For sale in the corner. Thank you. [applause] thank you so much for coming. Please remember to fill out the survey here to help us know how to find programs like this [inaudible] [inaudible conversations] next up on booktv, mark tooley, president of the institute on religion and democracy, talks about his book, the peace that almost was. Its from this years fall for the book festival in fairfield, virginia. Our guest tonight is historian mark tooley. Mark tooley is the president of the institute on religion and democracy in washington d. C. His writing has appeared in National Review online, the Chicago Tribune and christianity today. He also writes regularly for the Weekly Standard asklies outside of northern and lives outside of northern virginia. His new book, the peace that almost was, was published in july of this this year. The book brings readers to the final days in d. C. When some of the most important men in the nation came together to try and prevent disaster and failed. Please join me in welcoming mark tooley. [applause] well, its great to be here with you all and great to have cspan in the room, so if any of you want to do want to appear on cspan and get their anticipation, do something outrageous or ask a provocative, the controversial question at the end, and they will enjoy that. My book, as mention ld, is about a relatively forgotten and unacknowledged part of the history, the prehistory of the civil war and a typical book about the war may give it a few of paragraphs. Usually even the most well informed history buffs and civil war buffs dont know very much, if anything, about the washington peace conference of 1861. When i met my publisher about a year and a half ago or two years ago, he said give me some book topics or some proposals. I gave him about a dozen, and just as an afterthought, i mentioned the washington peace conference never having read a book about it, just walking by the Willett Hotel in downtown d. C. , theres a plaque mentioning thats to where they met. But it seemed very mysterious and often overlooked. And my interest was further piqued by debates still ongoing even this year, this summer about what were the underlying causes or cause of the civil war, and is so i thought surely this whole peace conference whose whole objective was to avert the civil war, their conversations will indicate to us what was the cause or what was the chief point of contention that led to the civil war. So i accepted i was surprised, pleasantly, when the publisher said thats the topic he wants me to write about. And i noted thered been no book on this topic since the 1950s, and wed just gotten through the saw 0th 150th anniversary of the civil warp. So it seemed timely. The interest that persists, hopefully. With, the story takes place in february of 1861, ands it is a very tense time. Its an understatement to say. Of course, Abraham Lincoln had been elected in november which led to the secession of six deep south states from the union after the election, and in february during the peace conference the seventh, texas, would withdraw. The upper Southern States like virginia have called Secession Conventions and are planning on this issue of whether or not to withdraw from the union. So the whole country is facing the question do we as a nation even have a future, and the if we do dissolve as a country, will there be a terrible civil war, and no one had any particular remedy to avoid either unsavory possibility. Until an elderly former president stepped forward in hate january in late january named john tyler who had been retired for 16 years on his wonderful james river plantation called Sherwood Forest which still exists today and still advertises itself as the longest frame house in north america. You can visit it. Its a great place to take a look at. He wrote an editorial for a richmond newspaper suggesting that in pursuit of preserving the union, that there be a last attempt of a convention of thiess the upper south and lower at least the upper south and lower north to work out some possible concord that might bring the country back together. The legislature of virginia quickly latched on to that idea enforced by virginias governor and so, essentially, virginia as at least the most important Southern State invited, sort of ignoring john tylers suggestion that it be limited just to the border states, virginia invited all of the states of the union to come together to work out a possible compromise over avoiding the catastrophe to come. Well, of course, the six stated that seceded were not going to come, and neither was texas, and arkansas never really organized or decided. But 21 states did come. California and oregon, of course, were too far away to get there in time. But after each debate almost all the northern states came, although they were concerned this was an idea coming from virginia, it was some sort of southern or proslavery or democratic plot to effectively overturn the results of the 1860 election in which the Republican Party had come to power for the first time. The exceptions are the upper midwest which were very, very republican wisconsin, minnesota and michigan declined to come for that reason. But even very republican new england by and large decided even if there is a plot to overturn the election, we want tock there to stop it. Been there to to stop it. Even by then the muchstoried Willett Hotel, essentially located in Downtown Washington on pennsylvania avenue, of course, still there today although a different building, and 13 be 1 delegates 131 delegates start arriving on this monday late morning in early february, 1861. Its cold, theres been a dusting of snow in washington, and i speculate that washington could not handle snow very well then just as it doesnt now [laughter] but somehow many of the delegates wandered in, and if you can picture that scene, the Willett Hotel is already packed full of Office Seekers and stylish women in the lobby and lots of cigar smoke and multiple orders for mint view lends which was sort of juleps of the hotel. The main part of the hotel on 14th facing pennsylvania avenue, but in the back on f street where, which is now the entrance to the garage. But at that point there had been an Old Presbyterian Church that looked like a greek temple, and just the year before the willard brothers had bought the Presbyterian Church and turned it into a concert hall and conference space for the hotel. So it was outfitted for the delegates, and a big portrait of George Washington was placed up front, and Washington Police were stationed outside to prevent intruders from interrupting and so off they were on that late monday morning. In trying to recall to you who the major characters, who were there as delegates, its a little bit difficult because these were big people in their day who almost entirely have been forgotten in that, their legacy and their memory, of course, were quickly overshadowed by what was to happen over the next four years. But it was former governors, former senators, former congressmen, former judges, generals. It really was the elite of prewar leadership in america. But ill share a few of them and try to make connections so that maybe theyre a little wit recognizable to you. Of course theres president john tyler himself, nearly 71 years old. He had been the first president to take office upon the death of his predecessor, so sometimes he had been sarcastically called his accident city. He had been elected from the whig party which he disavowed after he became president. He had been a democrat who had run as a Vice President on the whig, with the whig party with William Henry harrison but then ended up from their perspective betraying the whig party. So he was effectively a man without a party, and he styled himself as a person of great independence sort of like robin hood, helps, he lived in hence, he lived in Sherwood Forest down on the james river. Although elderly by the standards of the day, still pretty robust and energized by this event where he would be elected president of the conference and preside over the proceedings over the next three and a half week. The leading republican at the Washington Peace Convention is someone who should be recognizable to most civil war buffs, and thats an ohio statesman named salmon chase who had been governor of ohio. He had just been elect today the u. S. Senate by ohio, and he had been a candidate for president at the Republican Convention against abe hall lincoln Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln would shortly appoint him to be treasury secretary and, of course, he played a leading role in lincolns cabinet throughout most of the war. Early on in the conference, the republican delegates decide that they need to have their own caucus that meets after hours in somebodys room upstairs in the hotel, and so salmon chase hosts or convenes those Republican Caucus gatherings late in the evening. Someone else who was there who was characteristic of old statesmen who predominate at this event and, in fact, the newspapers early on began labeling this get together as the old gentlemens convention because it was so disproportionately made up of literally old statesmen who had been in power decades before and had literally been the leadership generation who had succeeded the founding generation and had run the country, essentially, for the last 30 and 40 years. And one of those old gentlemen was a former u. S. Attorney general from ohio named thomas you wing whom ewing who im sure almost none of you have heard of except he had a soninlaw who would become famous as a general, and his name was william sherman. So thomas ewing was there from the old now virtually dissolved whig party. Theres a character from virginia who was pronounced by some as the most forceful orrer the of this conference orator of this this conference named james sedden. Hes a bigtime slave owner. Usually, the virginians are fairly refined in terms of how they address the slavery issue, but because sedden also happens large Land Holdings in louisiana, he almost seems to represent the views of the very deep south on the slavery issue, very fierily. And in appearance hes very small and skinny and aesthetic with a thin black beard and moustache and thin black hair but very dark, fiery eyes. Looks almost like a jesuit missionary from the 1600s. But almost barely alive behind his pallid skin. Once he spoke be, everyone heeded him. He would go on to become the war secretary of the confederacy for part of the civil war. Theres another old gentleman, former naval officer, a senator from new jersey named stockton whom ill well, ill tell you right now what is, all of these old gentlemen have connections to each other that date back a decade, and stocktons interconnection among many others was john tyler during his presidency, his wife had died, and during his widowhood, he was onboard a u. S. War vessel in the Potomac River that was out for sort of a pleasure excursion to which most of official washington had been invited on a weekend afternoon going back to mount vernon and back, and there was a new artillery piece on that ship called the peacemaker, and it was fired off several times to the delight of the crowd. And before the ship returns, members of the crowd plea for one more firing of the peacemaker to which they accede, and it backfires, and the shrapnel explodes across the surface of the ship. Several prominent washingtonians are killed, including the war secretary, including a new york congressman whose young 20somethingyearold daughter is below deck, and when she gets word her father had been killed, supposedly fainted into the arms of the then widower president john tyler who carried her off the ship and married her some months later. He had a half dozen children who were young adults, he has a half dozen more children with his second wife and, in fact, he brings her to the peace conference, and they Stay Together not at the willard, but at the browns hotel down sort of where the Canadian Embassy is now on pennsylvania avenue, and she brings with her their youngest child whos still a baby. Shes about 40, and hes about 71. Another major figure is a man not recognizable to you until i describe his role a little bit, Roger Sherman baldwin, a thenfamous antislavery figure, a former senator from connecticut. His father was very famous, Roger Sherman, one of the Founding Fathers present at the Constitutional Convention that drafted the declaration of independence x he was present at the Constitutional Convention. One of the major figures in americas founding. Baldwin himself is a famous, or was famous in his time as a very expert lawyer and, in fact, is recruited along with former president John Quincy Adams to represent the escaped slaves of the amistad if you remember that about 20 years before, a spanish slave ship in which the slaves rebelled against the crew and the ship wandered into american custody, and the big issue of the day was are these slaves now free now that theyre in america, and it went all the way to the u. S. Supreme court, and thanks to Roger Sherman baldwin and John Quincy Adams, the Supreme Court declared they were free persons. If you saw the movie, Roger Sherman baldwin is played by matthew mcconaughey, so just picture that when i mention his name. Another figure whos one of the younger men at the old gentlemens convention and the younger men tended to be the republicans because thats the rising new party and his name is Lucius Chittenden from vermont, and hes important because the conference early on said no media, this is a closed event, and were not evening going to keep our own detailed journal or minutes because we want everyone to speak, presumably, candidly. Chit pden decided in his mind that this was a hugely important event on the scale of the Constitutional Convention, and he compared himself to James Madison who kept notes, and he said im going to be declare myself the notetaker and journal maker of this event, and to his credit, announced that rather than doing it quietly, announced that to the conference early on. Several objected vociferously, but old john tyler who was presiding, who was always very concerned about propriety said, no, this assembly has no control or authority what its individual members to and say. So, mr. Chittenden, you may proceed. He kept very detailed notes of what everybody said, and thanks to him, we know what happened behind those closed doors. And finally, ill mention another figure from virginia who sort of embodies this very august assembly, another forgotten figure who was a big deal in his day, senator william california bell reeves who was a member of the gentry out in the piedmont out towards charlottesville although suffering financially a little bit and just a year before had sold over a hundred of his slaves to james sedden who i just mentioned earlier as another virginia delegate. And the reason reeves had been senator, diplomat to france during the 1830s, and just to give you an idea of the tall company he ran in, i learned from reeves great brand son that reeves daughter once boasted her parents were very, very particular about who could be the god children of their parents. For example, her one brothers godfather was robert e. Lee, and her other brothers god father was the marquis de lafayette, and her godmother was the queen of france. So very lofty asemblage that they ran with, clearly. My book doesnt just focus on the proceedings of the peace conference, it also talks a lot about whats going on outside the halls of the Willard Hotel and how they affect whats going on inside. Some of the major characters whom i talk about are, of course, the president of the United States himself, james buchanan, whos heaving office shortly leaving office shortly, in the month of march, and is desperate that the peace conference you can seed. Hes, of course, against dissolving the union. He thinks the states have no right to secede, but he also proclaims that he has no right to stop them. So hes kind of in a bond, and his last chance as he sees it is for the peace conference to succeed in some way, and hes cajoling them behind the scenes to make sure that happens. Because hes a bachelor, his first lady at the white house is his niece, harriet lane, and shes hosting social events to which the peace delegates are coming at the white house. And shes distinguished and important in that she sort of held washington together socially when Everything Else is falling apart politically. Theres general general winfiel, youll recognize hes one of the great figures of that age having been a general dating back to the war of 1812, so over 45 years. Hes now ancient himself and very fat but very imposing. Supposedly he was 64 and wore lots of braids and end lets and plumage and feathers. And supposedly when he met you, he would sweep his hat down to the floor, and the death earns would sweep the floor. So he was a gentleman of the old school. And although from virginia, is not only against slavery, but very exitcommitted to the union. Theres a famous quote that comes out of, during the peace conference. One of the delegates goes to see him at his office. He was headquartered on 17th building which is still there across from the white house. One of the delegates is very concerned about security in the sky and dose to see general scott who is taking a nap on his office sofa but pulls himself up to his full height to greet the young dell fate from vermont delegate from vermont. And he pronounces although from virginia, he would better he would rather than that the hills of virginia would be ma toured with the blood of her sons. But he was committed to maintaining security during the peace conference, during lincolns arrival, and his inauguration and beyond. Well, there are other characters footing about whom i mention in the book. Steven douglas, the former the stillsitting senator from illinois who had been defeated by lincoln who has a house with his wife over near Judiciary Square. Theres William Seward from new york, a defeated republican candidate by lincoln who would soon become secretary of state. And he had his own machinations going on. Theres the Vice President of the United States john breckenridge, outgoing. He also was defeated by lincoln in the president ial election, and he will be presiding over an event that typically is just sort of pro forma and ignored, but because of the tension in the country becomes now a major event whether itll even take place, and thats the ratification of Abraham Lincolns Electoral College vote in a joint session of congress. Breckenridge is himself defeated by lincoln but presiding over the ratification of lincolns election, and many were suspicious whether he would carry through on that duty as he was called to do and. And keep in mind that for a short time he would himself become a general in the Confederate Army and just three years would be with the Confederate Army attacking washington at start stevens fort stevens in that summer of 864. But for now hes still the Vice President. Theres Charles Francis adams, hes a congressman from massachusetts, and he is encouraging massachusetts and other stronglyrepublican areas to participate in the peace conference, and he also has a big party for all the tell gates during the press delegates during the press conference. And finally the most arguably colorful figure is daniel sickles. Again, if youre a civil war buff, hes the general at gettysburg who lost his leg and for decades afterwards would go to visit his leg at the army medical hospital. Not sure where it is now, i need to go find it. But he was scanned house for many reasons scandalous for many reasons, and ill just mention one or two. Just a few years before the washington peace conference, he had shot to death his wifes mother as his wifes boyfriend was waving a handkerchief in a prearranged signal. He shot him dead, but he had the fore thought to hire a brilliant lawyer, edwin stanton, who would actually be the u. S. Attorney general under james buchanan, later war secretary under Abraham Lincoln. Stanton got him acquitted by arguing for temporary insanity. And that was the first time temporary insanity was successfully employed in an american murder trial supposedly. Is sickles is controversial, needless to say, but unabashed and remains in the public eye. Besides the proceedings of the peace conference itself which starts out very slowly, first of all, one of their more elderly members dies literally that first week unsurprisingly, so they have to adjourn, and they have a Memorial Service for him and pay him homage and ship his body back to ohio. But amazingly, hes the only elderly gentleman who does die during the peace conference. But after that they essentially appoint a committee with one delegate from each of the participating states to craft the proposals that theyre going to debate that hopefully will save the union and avert war. And is while theyre waiting for that committee to meet and all the countrys speculating about whats going on behind closed doors, the delegates are moving around washington, and there are multiple dramas going on with them and, of course, with the country. Ill mention just a few as i describe them in the book, but at the white house itself, james buchanan, of course, is very active in pushing the delegates toward compromise, basically means come probe poising with the south compromising with the south to win back its loyalty. He inviting all he invites al the delegates for a reception line. According to one, buchanan is weeping and hugging the delegates as they come through the reception line and pleading with them to come to some sort of concord. The republicans are very suspicious that hes trying to omit events in favor of the southern democrats. Back in washington trying to save you. A little bit of division already in his family. Theres Abraham Lincoln who joined the peace conference of course and will lead springfield, illinois, and give us famous Farewell Speech where he tells his lifelong friends he knows not when or whether he will ever return to be among them, and goes on at long journey to a number of the northern cities giving speeches but trying to avoid saying anything potentially controversial, trying to avoid any major comments about the washington peace conference because things have been formed by the republicans that were at the peace conference. I mentioned the Electoral College vote again typically a nonevent but it takes place the second week of the peace conference and all the delegates are given a free pass to come to the house of Representatives Chamber and to watch whether not that vote will take place. Washington is rife with rumors that the our political strategist to disrupt the ratification of lincolns election, maybe even physical violence. So general Winfield Scott doesnt have an Effective Police force or swing force. Its up to the arm and general scott has pulled an all the army units he can come which are minimal, into the city and he has promised, the delegate commission to which it is with them in his office he gave him his personal assurances that the Electoral College vote will take place. He told them he had personally spoken with the Vice President and breckenridge promised that the law would be upheld and general scott said breckenridge was a man of honor so he had no doubt. The crowds assembled in the house of Representatives Chamber, including the peace delegates. The capital is surrounded i troops there typically anybody could walk into capital at that particular day you had to pass to get into. And all kinds of stories about armed men supposedly prepared to intervene on either side during the vote. Members of the senate processed in to budget and breckenridge sitting up at the dais received the official tally of the berries states. And lincoln is elected. A virginia congressman a chance to protest. He is gaveled out of order by breckenridge and all the members of congress process out. As one delegate described, there was a near riot in the galleries that general staudt was a military dictator and they would not abide by the course of control over the city, et cetera, et cetera. That particular delicate claims later he got into his taxi carriage in the streets were such a messy commute t make us wait up pennsylvania avenue back to the hotel. They had to make their way back to back streets to get there and there was commotion for the rest of the night, as he recalls it. Antheres also plans for the inauguration going on, which ill share all of the more about the later. Theres another event going on during the peace conference that again would not have typically been noteworthy but during this time in the nations history everything is fraught with meaning and trauma, and that is George Washingtons birthday which, of course, takes place the second, third week of february. And so does general, unser, congressman sickles who i mentioned to you is a great pro Union Democrat and he makes a motion that washington and the federal government robustly so that George Washingtons birthday and to show support for the union with a big military display on pennsylvania avenue and around the white house. So preparations are made for the army and the navy and the marines and the d. C. Militia units to march in honor of George Washingtons birthday. Much of washington assembles in the streets of people come in from the countryside and newspapers advertise this event. The night before old president john tyler, a suite of the browns hotel, to find out about this big military demonstration and realizes and sees it for what it is, and intimidation aimed at the south and in particular the southern delegate at the peace conference. So he sends an urgent note to president buchanan, the parade must be canceled, otherwise it would disrupt the peace conference. Buchanan being a very in many ways a nervous person trying to hold things together am intimidated by the implied threat, and that night or Early Morning tries to cancel this parade even after the crowds are assembling. So the army and navy units and the marines offered back to the parents and the d. C. Militia units march alone. And congressman sickles is so upset that he storms up to the white house to protest, and again president began is very nervous come intimidated and says yes, i agree with you, this is embarrassing, the parade is back on. So they had to bring the army and navy and its back to pennsylvania avenue. It was too late for the marines. They were already back at their barracks southeast d. C. So in effect there was a second parade that day in washington, mobilizing in front of the Willard Hotel up pennsylvania avenue round the north side of the white house down 17th past the south part of the white house will present a begin others i believe including probably very exasperated channels cant air to review the troops. The newspapers around the country understandably mocked all the confusion over George Washington birthday parade. Also in the midst of all of these goingson in washington there was a social riot right happened with the delegates. As i mentioned, Stephen Douglas and his wife put on one of the biggest parties during the peace conference. In fact, it was the same night as president began and harriet lane last white house reception of his presidency. The crowds are at the white house early in the evening. Their carriages would head over to Judiciary Square to go to Stephen Douglas house and supposedly there were 400 people at this party. It must have been a very huge house. Stephen douglas lived on the same block with Vice President breckenridge in the same house that jefferson and davis had lived in before they left washington a few weeks before he resigned the senate to listen to become president of the confederacy. So the delegates and other partiers are in the douglas and john tyler and his wife julia are there, the center of attention, and she is writing hopefully for us letters to her mother back in the north describe how these events and how all the country and all of washington are listening to has been to save the nation. She had been a very stylish and prominent first lady although very young and had even during her own white house reception that constructed a raised platform on which she set in eastern, sort of like royalty. She was the first lady who would have her photograph taken as a first lady which was wellpublicized and was known for her clothing. In fact, was writing a letter back to her mother during the peace conferencing please mail me some more dresses from new york so she could fully participate in Washington Life. She told him other people are telling her she hasnt aged at all. Since she was first lady. Which turns out to be untrue, evidently, because later year or two later she sent richman and theres comments that julia tyler doesnt look a day over 20. Evidently she didnt age. The photograph of her from her first leg this is in the book and she seems to have been looking almost the same even there in 1861. So all this excitement at this Stephen Douglas party, that theres a letter from henry adams was also there. Is the son of Charles Francis adams, the grandson of John Quincy Adams which goes on to become the caustic, sarcastic commentator and historian, and he writes its all rather sorry for empathetic to all of washington is swirling around this old fossil john tyler. Keeping up on them all these hopes, save the nation from which are bound to be disappointed. Ready imagine a peace conference at least wont do any major home. Do any major hunger that sort of his pessimistic outlook of what was happening at the peace conference. In terms of the proceedings of the peace conference, the division is not just northsouth. Its also republican democrat, and you cant the older generation of northerners who are basically in agreement with president began declaring that they are personally against slavery but with the south does is none of their concern, and is a busybody to even comment on the south policy towards slavery. Theres a delegate from new jersey, stockton, makes a comment that even though new jersey had voted, or did they vote for lincoln in 1861 . They had. And hes one of the few catholic delegates at this conference, he along with thomas dewey, general shermans fatherinlaw from while. He described the Election Party from the Republican Party as being the rise of the puritans with england in the 1600s. Its a theocratic movement, zealous religious military to post its theology on the whole country can be declared that new jersey and most of the north will ultimately reject them. Even though today we look back on the civil war as being northsouth come at that particular time in history it wasnt necessarily bad idea. John tyler had already said at the peace conference, he thought a new unit would emerge from the actions that was faithful to the constitution as it really was. That new unit would include virginia and the more reasonable northern states as pennsylvania, new jersey and maybe new. His wife is from new york city and she insists that new york city is with the south. Opinion was a message of as originally divided or as clear as we imagine today. Well, finally the Committee Comes back with its recommendations on which they will vote and i wont describe them all but essentially they would have institutionalized slavery encoded into the constitution in perpetuity. So more enforcement on future slave laws, requiring if future sites are not successfully turned by the northern states they would financially reimburse slaveowners to the cost of the enslaved states. The most important and legislative part of this package is a would allow slavery to spread into what was essentially a southwest part of what is now the United States, then was of course the territories it had been a platform at the republican part in which lincoln had been elected that would complete opposition to the spread of slavery to the territory. They didnt question is legal existence which already existed but opposition to its spread. The question is how will the republican delegates and others handle this proposal to open up the west to the spread of slavery . Meanwhile, lincoln arrived in washington and at the hotel early on the final saturday morning in february, and youll recall he slept through baltimore late in the night and there were rumors of assassination plots against him, and he arrived at the Willard Hotel early in the morning, checked and quietly and similar to the delegates later in the day that he would like to receive them in his par upstairs. And interestingly before the message from lincoln is received by the delegates is an interesting scene which may or may not happen but if you call one of the delegates and its too good to believe its not true but this fire read james from virginia, his leg is with him at the peace conference at is the only slight actually mentioned as being there at willard hall which is interesting ironic considering all the conversations about slavery. But the slave can send that saturday and gets his master this note saying, a northern delicate is just looking over shoulders to see what it said that it says, lincoln is in the hotel. He says nothing and he passes it to another sovereign delegate to his side who exclaimed, lincoln got through baltimore . So the implication was they had some insider knowledge about plotplots against lincoln and baltimore plots against lincoln in baltimore but i blame you that baltimore was a place of great violence. It was called mob town so dont think youre any inside knowledge wondered how lincoln would get through baltimore. When lincoln invites the delegates there some objection that he should come to them rather than take it to him. John kaiser, again, great propriety of kosovo to visit the president elect. They process up 9 00 at night, a long day, and according to one account they go in and organize two by two like animals into the ark. According to another account, a crowd like one of the three people wandering through the hallways up to salina. Sending it. Link is described as receiving each delegate one by one, being introduced by samuel chase and he has remarkable to me. A lot of the delegates he served with in congress back in 1840s. Those years never met before he still knows all thought about them when he hears the name. When senator reeves is introduced them, lincoln says you are much smaller in stature that i had pictured you, no doubt very great and intellect. And he responds, not so great as your intellect, mr. Lincoln. Up nearly on russia did it with leaves, but he had had the winning the people, policemen, he would have them lined up behind them back lined up behind in back to back and edit it so they could come compared their perspective heights and he could joke about it. A few were, had a sense of humor, you might enjoy that. I think the more serious people were probably put off by that a little bit, and maybe senator reeves. Lincoln goes through the pleasantries. Very soon they get into it and lincoln is challenged not just by southern delegates but also many Northern Democratic delegates. They push him about fort sumter issued an expansion of slavery. If you dont like our ideas can what is your idea, mr. Lincoln . My ideas fidelity to the constitution. Offers a path forward. Apparently his critics eventually back off as described by one delegate that they are little bit intimidated or frustrated, also but impressed that the account is a more formidable figure than they had expected. Senator reed is writes a letter home to his son saying that lincoln has been very gracious, clearly meant well but he just likes to tell stories and jokes included doesnt appreciate the seriousness of the moment, which was not too. Lincoln appreciated how serious the moment was but thats how you dealt politically with people, with stories and jokes. Senator reeves is described by someone else is saying at the time that lincoln was perhaps not a George Washington, not an Andrew Jackson but it clearly was a very strong individual who would set his own policies and people would have to deal with that. So expectations had been low. Lincoln exceeded those expectations. The delegates actually vote on these proposals on monday. This sunday in between the meeting with lincoln, lincoln is met that morning by William Seward the escorts him to Seward Church at Lafayette Square, st. Johns episcopal church. I spend a chapter in a book talking about the clergy who participated in the conference in terms of delivering the opening prayers, and the influence of washingtons churches and was going on in Washington Life at the time. It was a great influence. The clergy in washington where the paul mcmahan in that era. Seward and lincoln slipped into st. Johns episcopal church. Nobody noticed them. Lincoln is not recognizable to most because it run for president as a cleanshaven man and now he has his whiskers. Seward introduces them to the priests as they go up, other people Start Talking about lincoln. When one is quoted in i believe the washington star the next morning, or the evening star, that lincoln was a much more attractive than than she had been led to believe the seward escorts lincoln over to his house a Lafayette Square for lunch. Seward would later be nearly slashed to death during the lincoln assassination. The reverend at st. Johns in fiscal church was actually a witness at congressman sickles murder trial soviets before because the killing had taken place outside the church at Lafayette Square. As i recall he testified he had run into sickles before the killing and he had, in fact, it seemed quite deranged. Ill further point out the man he killed was the son of Francis Scott key, of course the author of the starspangled banner and young mr. Hickey was prosecutor or District Attorney for washington and he was also the nephew of the chief justice of the United States, roger tony, who would author the dred scott decision which set up a whole chain of events that led to lincolns eruption of the washington peace conference soaking everything seemed to tie together. I will not do you much more about the washington peace conference. I will gladly accept some of your questions, but my publisher when he commissioned this book he thought what a wonderful topic, so much polarization in the country and in washington, maybe destroy can give us examples of how people can talk to each other and reach a compromise. Well, in fact, as you get into the story thats hardly the example is that it does not end very well as you know. The civil war does, in fact, does take place so the question is do the peace conference or for any purpose at all . Typically dismissed as a failure. And i think in fairness it did serve several important purposes. A famous senator at the time from kentucky a wellknown advocate of compromise had commented after the conference that no, did serve a purpose. The whole country was a heated state. Did cool things down just a little bit. It slow down this process to get virginia for a couple more months and allowed unionist opinion to coalesce more in north and help prevent the border states from seeking. And attempt to provide time and space for lincoln. Lincolns election must be ratified and for his inauguration actually did take place peacefully, thanks to the security measures of general Winfield Scott. On that note i will end. I will share a few words about what happened to the tigers after the war. They are sort of essential figures of my story. John tyler, just within 72 hours after the adjournment of the peace conference, which was his idea, he was the brains behind the whole initiative, was back in richmond where the secession, virginias own Secession Convention would be gathering. And tyler with james said in a. In the front of the hotel and speaking to a crowd denounced the washington peace conference as a complete failure, and that the northern abolitionists were not in control in secretary of state of resistance to any recent conversation to compromise, that there was no alternative to virginias secession. So when the compromise proposal that emerge in peace Conference Get to congress in the house of representatives, they are not even given a vote. Famous abolitionist congressman from pennsylvania that is stevens says i stand with john tyler on this issue and everyone laughed. The author himself had renounced the peace conference. John tanner goes on to be elected to the Confederate Congress although he never takes office because a few days before his wife julia has a terrible dream back on the plantation that he died what is about to die and she rushes to richmond and she sure shares the story, alaska may be a fine. At the peace congresses always taking these horrible medicines that were mostly made up of mercury so im sure it was killing him more than helping them. Everybody back and was taking horrible medicine. Anyway a few days is after her arrival at the hotel he does die leaving her a widow. She goes back to the plantation or her mother had wanted to come to new york before the war began and john howard before that had assured his motherinlaw if you could see how fortified unprotected virgin is completed safer than Staten Island is for you. Of course the plantation is overrun by union troops during mcclellans initial campaign. Her mother gets her pass the union line and then she comes back to the plantation and the slaves are leading to some of the women slaves are taking her treasured addresses the shes writing letters to federal commanders and into president lincoln. She wants addresses back up she wants a slice back to one can imagine the response to that. She wants to go back in your. She gets on a blockade runner and runs the gauntlet out to bermuda and arranges to take some cotton bales with her which she sells and makes a small fortune. She spends most of the rest of the work in new york city with her mother at a very prounion brother, which made great tension in the house. And at the end when lincoln was assessed and that were rumors in new york that there was a Confederate Flag in your house, so people broke into the house to i dont think they found a flag but she was resilient and she loves washington, d. C. And the star that elicited this which i was delighted to find in my research, doing the peace conference she wrote her mother of course i have to get back to the plantation to be with the children. Four or five days later i found a newspaper article that should been spotted dancing late in the night at browns hotel. No mention of her husband. But she loves washington socialite. She comes back to washington, reestablish itself as a former first lady. She prevents other first ladies, mrs. Grant and mrs. Hayes. Reporters put in the white house and she gets attention from congress and she sends her daughter to Convent School in georgetown, which is so impressive for she converts to roman catholicism. She later before she dies in richmond, dice there. So what happens to her and her husband, the vast transformation the country went through before and after the peace conference, they are on their plantation with their scores of slaves and their carriage with coachmen Unemployment Rate if they even have a labor barge that have a ball and arrow painted on it and the slave forsman had special blue uniforms with a bow and arrow emblazoned on a. So they lived really like cleopatra going up and down the james river like cleopatra with up and down the river nile quite legal in the whole world, of course was over not very long after the washington peace conference. Thats one reason why i think the story is so interesting that it gives us sort of a last chance out of last opportunity to look into that window of a prewar america, the people were, but the assumptions were, what the debates were, and thats our last chance to see was people because theyre all virtually gone with the wind within a few months after they adjourn. So thank you for your patience and listening come and let me take your questions if you have any. Yes, maam . I guess my thought when i peace conference i thought that there would be more of an effort having the Southern States represented im curious after the city, what, do all the senators and congressmen just leave washington . Was there no communication with them anymore . With her not have been someway to get them talking . Many members of concept left for the deep south. Left in late january and many of them gave dramatic Farewell Speeches in the senate or in the house. The deep south adapt to be in peace conference. The upper south, north carolina, kentucky, they were there, missouri was there. So hopeless that they could reach an acceptable accommodation of slavery in the south, the deep south might be lured back into speed is what were some of the things the southern were asking for . What would have been a compromise . What they offered, which was to encode slavery into the constitution interpreted in fact the proposal declared all of these other proposals could not be revoked except by unanimous consent of all the state. So literally it would be impossible to change from to delete them from the constitution in future. Slavery could have existed for decades more had not gotten through. But the deep south was no longer interested in even that kind of compromise. The only time john tyler spoke during the convention we left the dais and addressed the debate, he wanted the president ial appointments to the charitable government to have to have approval in the senate by a majority of the slave states and the nonslave states. So in essence this it would have to be divided into two different houses to ensure that no antislavery wouldve be appointed government in the south and that was voted down. You mentioned that john tyler had married a very young woman. A few years back i was at the glen announced u i was talking o an author, and he told me that the koran son, the youngest grandson of john tyler was still alive. Have you heard anything like that . My great hope in researching this book as i would have an excuse to go see the grandson who still owns sure what forced to go to the grandson still at the of course john tyler had children into his up until 70. He had a son who would children up in his 70s. He had two grandchildren still alive were born in the 20s. One is in tennessee and one still owns Sherwood Foerster i think it was parttime in richmond. I thought i could get a meeting with advertising them on cspan and ive heard him come at the early this year so surprised that he was still alive and into begin. He mentioned people dismiss my grandfather but he did have this washington peace conference and tried to avert the civil war. When i called Sherwood Forest, they said that his health was declining and he wasnt available to be met. However, every time i called the local Public Library for information, whoever after the what i said hes my cousin and i guess im at the restaurant last week. So evidently i need to go down to pressure in charles city virginia and tried the medium. I havent succeeded at it. He was assistant attorney general for virginia for a line time, was a . That sounds correct. I think you are right. Did any other proposals get approved by the south, but the Southern States were hoping for . Well, backing out of washington peace conference was voted down over limit in the senate and did not come up again in the house. Legislators may have voted on them. Did they vote on it . Yes. I can skip over the crucial part. I believe you to read the book. A dramatic vote on tuesday, that last tuesday in february and everyone just assumed it went to skimming all the states represented so of course they will go through. Most contentious one was about allowing slavery into the territories and they voted out by individuals but by state and failed by one vote. Everyone but we said whats happened with the adjourn community. You can imagine the panic and hallways of the Willard Hotel and lots of negotiations going on tonight. Commitment to meeting with lincoln that night by some of the delegates. Its unclear whether was that night or the next night at the next a vote on it angry it is arranged a kind of passed by one vote when illinois switched from i think abstention. So some of the republicans in illinois switched. Did lincoln encourage them but probably not the one of the latest with apologetically told lincoln i guess my career is over. Lincoln secretary lew dismissively said well, lisa the peace conference didnt do any great damage. I think they were kind of relate it was over. The delegates paid on what it wanted did the states pay for them speak with the dates paid away. The willard brothers gave them the meeting space for free, at least the conference space, not the hotel rooms. And included in the package was free latte. I guess the gaslight were expensive and that was kind of a special thing to get free lighting. Was there anything other than slavery put on the table . Thats all they talk about. Sometimes people do all these other issues when played over the civil into session. Recipes congress was concerned, its all the talk about was slavery. Some people said the tariff was an issue with the civil war but it never came up during the peace conference. Do you think they actually thought they were making progress, or was the mood, they knew that this was a deadend . I think i know the republicans just wanted to prevent any damage from being done. They were trying to stall for tiger i think most of the people theyre genuinely wanted adequately, especially the older statesmen who to their credit they had held the country together for several decades, and they assumed they could do it again. But they had no more tricks left in the bag and also the fact that those old men were still alive at this point were sort of the second tier. The real great figures like Daniel Webster and henry clay had died five or six years before. So these individuals just dont longer had the capacity, plus the country was far more polarized now than it had been five years before. Anybody else likes. I hate giving what if questions im going to give you a. What if the 13th an ad enshrined flavor rather abolish it works well with the next 50 years look like speak with maybe you could write a book about. John has written a wonderful book on the year 1844, blurb my book very generously. So yes, if slavery were encoded into the constitution, there was no possibility of taking it out, presumably slavery wouldve survived for decades longer than the sum reckless new National Consensus emerged against but i dont know whether wouldve taken place. And its remarkable that going to the speeches of the peace convention, a number of northerners oversampled over the abolitionists and the Republican Party and lincoln were very adamant that slavery was none of this of north, was a handsoff approach. And, of course, you can himself famously after his inauguration when the dred scott decision was released said the slavery issue has finally been put to rest, settle once and for all. Just . Was actually called the peace conference at the time . Suddenly come with any sense at the conference of an effort to just, was a primary just to keep did you together i was there a strong sense of we are on the edge of a cataclysm, that we need to pull back from . The newspapers were calling it the peace conference with the peace convention, not much difference. Sometimes the old gentlemans convention. In terms of what they were a big cataclysm to come, there were many speeches where they would use the phrase rivers of blood, rivers of blood, rivers of blood. Sulleys venue that could be a great catastrophe but its hard to imagine several hotels with an expert is which of be like 7 million to date in four years in terms of percentage of population. Ive wondered as John Harbaugh the train, he went to some a great battlefield of the