Abraham Lincoln . f princi-pal and interest was paid. It was a happy day when he left the GlobeTavern and began house-keeping in his own home, where he could dis-pense liberal hospitality to his friends. It was a pleasure to them to sitat a table bountifully supplied In Mrs. Lincoln. There was little for-mality in his intercourse with his guests. The repast was ever madecnjovable by flashes of wit, humor, and story-telling on the part of thehost. When tlie meal was finished, and tlie company assembled in theroom set apart for the library, tlie grave topics of the day were dis-cussed. Although
Abraham Lincoln . f princi-pal and interest was paid. It was a happy day when he left the GlobeTavern and began house-keeping in his own home, where he could dis-pense liberal hospitality to his friends. It was a pleasure to them to sitat a table bountifully supplied In Mrs. Lincoln. There was little for-mality in his intercourse with his guests. The repast was ever madecnjovable by flashes of wit, humor, and story-telling on the part of thehost. When tlie meal was finished, and tlie company assembled in theroom set apart for the library, tlie grave topics of the day were dis-cussed. Although Mr. Lincoln was personally out of politics, he wasnot indifferent to the great political questions of the hour; on the con-trary, he was keenly alive to them. He was a Whig from principle, buthe took little interest in the campaign between General Scott, 1852 ^ the Whig candidate for President, and Franklin Pierce, theDemocratic candidate. It seems probable that he saw from the outset5 138 LIFE OF ABRAHAM OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES. tl,at the Democratic Party would fiu,„ph. General ^l^^^^^^selected as candidate by the Whigs solely on account of Ins mditarjservices Franklin Pierce, without national reputation, had been seI™by the slave power because he would be subservient to their CONFLICT BETWEEN FREEDOM AND SLAVERY. 139 interests. We may believe Mr. Lincoln, in common with Daniel Web-ster, saw that after the election the Whig Party would live only inhistory; that new political combinations must be made. He knew theCompromise of 1850 had settled nothing. The law which compelled thereturn of fugitive slaves to their masters was hateful, unrighteous, andcontrary to human instincts. He knew that sooner or later vital ques-tions would come up for consideration, but he little thought he was tobe a leading actor in the historic drama of the future. •The Compromise of 1850, said President Pierce, in his inaugural address, has given repose to the country. That repose is to
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