who came closest to him, but it was as much by the qualities of his
mind as by the special fascinations of his manner. He commanded the
respect and support of most of the leaders of his party, because they
were great enough to grasp and appreciate his reasoning, but he was
never the idol of the people to the same extent as many other leaders.
He would probably have made a great career in whatever direction he
might have turned his high abilities, but he was fortunate in finding
an opportunity for their exercise in a crisis which enabled him to
render greater services to the country than have been rendered by
almost any man in her history, with the exception of Washington and
Lincoln.
The Riverside Press
_Electrotyped and printed by H. O. Houghton & Co._
_Cambridge, Mass., U.S.A._