On the first day of the Civil War, the fortress of Sumter fell. The fleets that the northern government sent supplies to them were just watching from afar.

The next day, President Lincoln ordered the conscription of 75,000 state militiamen for 90 days to suppress the Southern rebellion.

Obviously, the northern government did not realize the seriousness of this civil war, and thought that as long as there was no intervention from various countries, they could easily suppress it.

The southern government struck first and won a military victory, but lost a political advantage.

The northern states, which had been uncertain, united in a short time, and under the influence of the capitalists' manipulation of public opinion, patriotic young people joined the army one by one.

Stephen Douglas, the leader of the Democratic Party, who was originally inclined to the South, also stood on the side of the northern government at this moment, denouncing the southern government for provoking a civil war.

"There are no neutrals in this civil war, either patriots or traitors." ”

Almost every northern state has overfulfilled its conscription quotas. Inadequate training, lack of weaponry, lack of discipline, and the inability to find enough officers were common problems in the northern states.

But it doesn't matter, it's all cannon fodder anyway, as long as there is a lot of blood, it's enough.

Looking at the troops gathered from all directions, the high-spirited President Lincoln was ready for victory.

The Secretary of War angrily said, "Your Excellency, Maryland and Delaware have refused the enlistment order, and they have barred federal troops from entering. ”

These two states are very interesting, some of them support the South, some of them support the North, and the two sides are at a stalemate before they remain in the government of the North.

In particular, Washington is still under the encirclement of Maryland, and if the state falls to the southern government, it may not be long before the northern government becomes a prisoner.

President Lincoln asked, "How many more troops do you need in the Washington area?" ”

The Minister of War replied: "Together with the newly mobilized militia, we now have a total of 30,000 soldiers. ”

President Lincoln asked cautiously, "How sure are you if the government were to settle Maryland by force?" ”

The Secretary of War replied: "Maryland has mobilized, with about 30,000 fighters supporting the Southern rebels and about 20,000 remaining loyal to the government."

On the whole, the forces inclined to rebellion prevailed. With the two sides holding each other back, Maryland remained neutral.

If there are no reinforcements from the south, our odds of victory are as high as nine stacks. ”

How is this possible without reinforcements from the South? You must know that the southern states have been preparing for war for a long time, and the preparations of the northern government have only just begun.

Fortunately, in this era, transportation is limited, and the United States is large enough, and it will take a lot of time from mobilization to assembly.

Otherwise, if the southern government fights a blitzkrieg at a fast pace, the northern government will not be able to hold back. It is estimated that before they can complete their mobilization, the central government will become a prisoner.

Once there is a group of dragons without a leader, the war will be won or lost. As a country of immigrants, the patriotic fervor of Americans in this era lasted only a month or two at most.

The people have returned to reason, and many people are unwilling to continue to work hard. Historically, in order to win this war, the northern government did not recruit a small number of soldiers into the army.

After a moment of hesitation, Lincoln made a surprising decision: "I'll go to Maryland myself to do their ideological work, and you guys will be ready for military action."

If diplomatic efforts fail, you must immediately unite our supporters to take military action, and it must be fast. ”

There is no way to choose, and the state of Virginia, next door to Maryland, has declared independence. As soon as the war started in Maryland, the Southern army next door was immediately killed.

Don't look at the war minister's sworn assurances that there are nine chances of victory, but this is based on the fact that the enemy is isolated. With the support of Southern government troops, President Lincoln did not think he could easily win.

The chances of victory militarily are not great, so use the political means that he is better at.

"Your Excellency, you have to be in charge of the overall situation at this time, and it is not appropriate to leave Washington," the secretary of state reminded. ”

President Lincoln shook his head and said, "But how can I deal with this threat in Maryland if I don't go there myself?" As long as this threat is not addressed for a day, Washington is under the threat of the enemy.

Now that Maryland is not independent, as president of the federal government, they are not going to do anything to me. ”

The political struggle in the United States is still relatively relaxed, and even if he runs to the territory of the south, he should not worry about the danger.

This has been proven in history by the fact that after the defeat of the southern government, almost none of the top officials have been liquidated, and they are still rich.

The secretary of state is not worried about the personal safety of the president, even if the president is hung up, and the vice president is on top, anyway, they are all the spokesmen for the interests of the capitalists, and it is the same for whoever is replaced.

He was just worried about the president, and ran over to do ideological work, and instead of pulling back the people who supported the Southern government, he forced Maryland to rebel, which would disgrace the government.

Don't look at the history books that have a high opinion of Lincoln, everyone in this era did not recognize his ability. In particular, his performance in dealing with the South was not satisfactory either.

Of course, to the satisfaction of the interest groups that support him behind him. Many capitalists believed that they were in good hands, and that if the rebellion was suppressed, they would have access to cheap industrial raw materials and markets.

Essentially, the capitalists in the North wanted to turn the South into an economic colony, and the southern states reacted so violently.

However, this misunderstanding naturally does not need to be explained clearly. Seeing through it or not saying it is the basic quality of politicians.

……

On April 20, 1861, a week after the outbreak of the Civil War, Lincoln hosted a dinner for local celebrities in Maryland.

The opening was naturally a passionate speech, but half of the people were applauding, and the other half were watching the excitement, and the scene was very embarrassing.

This little scene naturally did not scare President Lincoln, and it was harmonious to see the excitement. During the speech, he personally experienced the incident of someone throwing a banana peel on the stage.

The American people are very open in this regard, and if you are unhappy, you will be unhappy, and they will not save face for the president.

Lincoln said casually: "Gentlemen, in order to prevent the Southern rebellion from affecting the stability of Maryland, the federal government has decided to temporarily suspend the habeas corpus in some areas, and I hope that you will cooperate with the government's work." ”

This is equivalent to military control in disguise, and without the "habeas corpus" the government's rights will be greatly increased, and the voice of these celebrities will be greatly reduced.

With this protection order, even if they support the southern government in a bright and bright way, the government can't do anything to them.

Before that, a guy named John Merriman, who organized activities in support of the Southern government, was arrested and then acquitted under the Habeas corpus order.

A middle-aged man righteously refused: "No, the federal government has no authority to repeal the writ of habeas corpus without the approval of the Maryland State Assembly." ”

"Yes, the constitution stipulates that the president has no right to directly repeal the decree!"

"I don't even have a little legal knowledge, how did I become president?"

"You stupid pig, go home and make up for it!"

……

People who favor the Southern government have spoken out one after another denouncing the federal government's interference in Maryland's internal affairs and violating the federal constitution. Be more radical and scold directly.

There have even been public declarations that they want independence as long as the federal government dares to interfere in Maryland's internal affairs.

What is the president when it harms his own interests? Scolding the president is also part of the daily life of the American people. As for the federal government, who to scare, do they have less to do with government decrees as toilet paper?

Looking at the scene, Lincoln knew that there was no hope for convincing these people to abandon the Southern government and abandon the darkness and turn to the light by words.

Interests determine positions. Although Maryland's livestock system is on the verge of extinction, as a state that exports farm goods, farmers and plantation owners are on the same side.

Lincoln whispered to a middle-aged man next to him, "Are you done here?" ”

The middle-aged man replied in a low voice, "The influential bigwigs in Maryland are basically here. ”

Lincoln nodded with satisfaction, and then said unhurriedly: "Seeing that everyone is more emotional, I think it is necessary for everyone to think calmly."

Why don't you just rest here tonight and we'll continue our discussion tomorrow. The owner of the room has been arranged, I wish you all a good dream! ”

With that, Lincoln quickly left under the escort of his bodyguards. Sensing that something was wrong, the crowd stepped out the door and prepared to leave, when they found that the outside was surrounded by federal troops.

"Oops, we're under house arrest. Son of a bitch chop, he dares to break the rules! ”

"It's obvious that today's banquet is a trap. The so-called joint discussion of state affairs is a bait, in order to trick us into coming, Lincoln, the bastard, actually went out in person! ”

"It's too late to say anything, we've become prisoners."

"No, he doesn't dare to do anything to us. The president of the United States does not have such a great power, and if he does such a thing, I will see how he ends! ”

……

The curses of the crowd were no longer heard by President Lincoln. If he had a choice, he wouldn't want to do it. But now that the situation is in crisis, he has to break the rules in order to settle Maryland as soon as possible.

Today, Lincoln has offended all the celebrities of Maryland, including those who support the Northern government, and will definitely not have any affection for him as president.

It doesn't take long for him to become the least popular person in Maryland. If you want to run in the next presidential election, you don't have to think about the votes in this state.

But for the United States to be reunited, he had no choice. If Maryland's problems cannot be resolved quickly, once the Southern rebels come to fight, with the help of this group of leading parties, they will soon be in Washington.

It will take time for the federal government to withstand the first wave of pressure before reinforcements from the states arrive.