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"Lincoln took it philosophically, though he found it hard to do so, remarking that he felt like the boy who stubbed his toe on the way to see his girl; he was too big to cry, he said, and it hurt too much to laugh."
-- Shelby Foote, Civil War
This is in reference to the 1862 Congressional elections. Although the Republicans were able to retain their majority, a lot more Democrats won, and Mr. Foote writes that this was largely seen as demonstrating a want of confidence in the president, since matters weren't improving appreciably for the North since the repulse of the Seven Days.
Now that politics could be cleared from the equation, Lincoln took the opportunity afterwards to replace the ever meticulously cautious General McClellan as head of the Union forces. This closes a big chapter in the Civil War, just as we are also now coming upon the close of volume one of Foote's trilogy.
.
"Lincoln took it philosophically, though he found it hard to do so, remarking that he felt like the boy who stubbed his toe on the way to see his girl; he was too big to cry, he said, and it hurt too much to laugh."
-- Shelby Foote, Civil War
This is in reference to the 1862 Congressional elections. Although the Republicans were able to retain their majority, a lot more Democrats won, and Mr. Foote writes that this was largely seen as demonstrating a want of confidence in the president, since matters weren't improving appreciably for the North since the repulse of the Seven Days.
Now that politics could be cleared from the equation, Lincoln took the opportunity afterwards to replace the ever meticulously cautious General McClellan as head of the Union forces. This closes a big chapter in the Civil War, just as we are also now coming upon the close of volume one of Foote's trilogy.
.
