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Rh diers in the field to vote; and on 24 April lie vetoed a bill " to secure the elective franchise to qualified voters of the army and navy of the M:iir of New York," on the ground that it was uncon- stitutional. The amendment that he had recom- mended was afterward adopted. In everything pertaining to the raising of troops Gov. Seymour's administration showed conspicuous energy and ability, but especially in the effort to meet Lee's invasion of the north in the early summer of 1863. On 15 June the secretary of war telegraphed to Gov. Seymour asking for help, and within three days 12,'000 state militia, " well equipped and in good spirits," were on their way to Harrisburg. The good-will for such an achievement was not rare during the war, but it was not often joined with the necessary executive ability, and Presi- dent Lincoln and Sec. Stanton both sent their thanks to Gov. Seymour for his promptitude. On 2 July, Gov. Curtin, of Pennsylvania, telegraphed for aid, and on the two following days troops were sent to his assistance.

During the absence of the New York militia the draft riots began. They had their pretext, if not their origin,' in two grievances, which were afterward abolished. One was the commutation clause in the draft law, which provided that any drafted man might obtain exemption by paying the government three hundred dollars. The poor regarded this as a fraud upon them in the desper- ate lottery of life and death. The other was a discrimination against New Y^ork state, and espe- cially New York city, in the allotment of quotas. Gov. Seymour had been anxious to have this in- ju-tire. corrected, and to have the draft postponed ; but it began in the metropolis on Saturday, 11 July, 1863. On Sunday the names of those drawn were published, and on Monday the rioting be- gan. The rioters stopped at no outrage, not even the murder of the innocent and helpless. That night the governor reached the city, and the next day he issued two proclamations, the first calling upon all citizens to retire to their homes and pre- serve the peace, and the second declaring the city in a state of insurrection. The same day he took measures for enrolling volunteers and gathering all available troops. On Tuesday he also spoke to a mob in front of the city-hall. Then, and ever afterward, his impromptu speech was the subject of bitter criticism. It seems clear, from vari- ous conflicting and imperfect reports of it, that he promised the crowd that if they had grievances they would be redressed, declared himself their friend, and urged the necessity of obedience to law and the restoration of order. The design of the speech was twofold to persuade the crowd to disperse, and, in any event, to gain time for the concentration of the forces within reach to sup- press the riot. Under the direction of Gen. John E. Wool, with but slight aid from the National forces, order was restored within forty-eight hours. The rioting lasted from Monday afternoon until Thursday evening, cost about a thousand lives, and involved the destruction of property estimated at from half a million to three million dollars in value. Shortly afterward Gov. Seymour wrote to President Lincoln, pointing out the injustice done in the enrolment, and asking to have the draft stopped, in order that New Y'ork might fill her quota with volunteers. The president conceded that there was an apparent unfairness in the en- rolment, but refused to stop the draft. A com- mission, appointed by the war department to in- vestigate the matter, declared that the enrolment under the act of 3 March, 1863, was imperfect, er- roneous, and excessive, especially with reference to the cities of New York and Brooklyn. On 16 April, 1864. a Republican legislature passed a reso- lution thanking Gov. Seymour for his " prompt and efficient efforts " in pointing out the errors of the enrolment and procuring their correction. He took an active part in the state canvass of 1863, making many speeches in defence of his own record and the principles of his party, and attack- ing the policy of the administration ; but in the election the state gave a Republican majority of about 29,000. On 22 April, 1864, the governor sent to the legislature a message urging the pay- ment of interest on the state debt in gold ; and this action was construed by political opponents as a covert attack on the national credit. On 3 Aug., 18G4, the Democratic national convention met in Chicago, and Gov. Seymour presided, refusing to be a candidate for the presidential nominal inn. But he became a candidate for the governorship that year, and was defeated by Reuben E. Fenton, Republican, by a majority of 8,293.

After the close of the war Mr. Seymour remained a leader in politics. He made speeches in the state canvasses of 1865, 1866, and 1867, opposing strongly the reconstruction policy of the Republican party, and criticising sharply its financial methods. He presided over the state conventions of his party, 3 Oct., 1867, and 11 March, 1868, and over the National convention that met in New York city, 4 July, 1868. In spite of previous declarations that he would not be a candidate before

that body, and in spite of his protestations during its proceedings, the convention nominated him for the presidency, and he allowed himself, against his better judgment, to be overpersuaded into accepting the nomination. In the election of 3 Nov., 1868, he carried the states of Delaware. Georgia. Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Oregon : Mississippi, Virginia, and Texas did not vote ; and the rest of the states voted for Gen. Grant, the Republican candidate. The electoral vote stood 214 for Grant and 80 for Seymour: the popular vote, 3.015,071 for Grant and 2,709.213 for Seymour. This defeat virtually closed Mr. Seymour's political career, for, though mentioned in connection with the presidency regularly every four years, offered the senatorship. and nominated for the governorship, he refused steadily to have anything more to do with public office. The remote origin of his last illness was a sunstroke, which he suffered in 1876 while overseeing the repairing of the roads in Deerfield, near Utica, where he had settled in 1864. See the accompanying view of his residence at Deerfield on the left bank of the Mohawk river. Mr. Seymour was of fair stature, lithely and gracefully built, and had a refined face, lighted up by dark, glowing eyes. In social intercourse he was simple in manner and considerate in spirit. As an orator