The newly-formed Republican Party, mostly confined to the radical
Germans of St. Louis, cast 17,028 votes for Abraham Lincoln.

The Slaveowners and their henchmen--"Southern Rights Democrats"--cast
31,317 votes for John C. Breckinridge.

The "Regular Democrats" polled 58,801 votes for Stephen A. Douglas and
"Squatter Sovereignty."

The remains of the "Old Line Whigs," and a host of other men who did not
want to be Democrats and would not be Republicans, cast 58,372 votes for
John Bell, the "Constitutional Union" candidate.

Thus it will be seen that out of every 165 men who went to the polls 17
were quite positive that the extension of Slavery must cease; 31 were
equally positive that Slavery should be extended or the Union dissolved;
59 favored "Squatter Sovereignty," or local option in the Territories in
regard to Slavery; 58 thought that "all this fuss about the nigger
was absurd, criminal, and dangerous. It ought to be stopped at once by
suppressing, if necessary, by hanging, the extremists on both sides, and
letting things go on just as they have been."

22

Thus so great a proportion as 117 out of the total of 165--nearly
five-sevenths of the whole--professed strong hostility to the views of
the "extremists, both North and South."

The time was at hand, however, when they must make their election as to
which of these opposite poles of thought and action they would drift.
They could no longer hold aloof, suggesting mild political placeboes,
lamenting alike the wickedness of the Northern Abolitionists and the
madness of the Southern Nullifiers, and expressing a patriotic desire to
hang selected crowds of each on the same trees.

South Carolina had promptly responded to the election of Abraham Lincoln
as President of the United States by passing an Ordinance of Secession,
and seizing all the United States forts, arsenals and other places,
except Fort Sumter, within her limits.

The rest of the Cotton States were hastening to follow her example.

To the 117 "Middle-of-the-Road" voters out of every total of 165 it
was therefore necessary to choose whether they would approve of the
withdrawal of States and seizures of forts, and become Secessionists,
or whether they would disapprove of this and ally themselves with the
much-contemned Black Republicans.

It was the old, old vital question, asked so many times of neutrals with
the sword at their throats:

"Under which King, Bezonian? Speak, or die."