Page:History of Iowa From the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century Volume 2.djvu/125

 Fourth; John A. Kasson in the Fifth; and A. W. Hubbard in the Sixth. The Democratic candidates were J. K. Hornish in the First; E. H. Thayer in the Second; D. A. Mahoney in the Third; H. M. Martin in the Fourth; D. O. Finch in the Fifth; and John F. Duncombe in the Sixth.

The result of the election was the choice of all of the Republican candidates. Iowa kept this able delegation in Congress until after the close of the war; with Grimes and Harlan in the Senate, no State in the Union had a stronger representation in the National Legislature during this critical period; and in point of influence and high order of statesmanship, it has not since been surpassed, if indeed it has been equaled.

The elections in the Northern States under the general depression felt over the disastrous defeats of the Army of the Potomac, the call for 600,000 more men to reënforce the armies, the opposition to a draft, the desire for peace, and opposition to the emancipation of the slaves, resulted in the defeat of the Administration tickets in the States of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin. This left the Administration a bare majority of two in the House of Representatives. The majority in the Senate had also been lowered. There was little in the political or military situation at the close of the year 1862 to justify the hope of a speedy overthrow of the Rebellion. The Army of the Potomac, under McClellan, had checked Lee’s invasion of Maryland by the battles of South Mountain and Antietam, but at the fearful loss to the Union army of 25,620 men, made up as follows: 1,568 at South Mountain, 11,538 surrendered at Harper’s Ferry, and 12,469 at Antietam; while Lee lost but 13,533 in the campaign. At the Battle of Fredericksburg, fought in December by the Army of the Potomac, under General Burnside, our losses were more than 15,000, one of the most disastrous defeats of the war, while the Confederate’s army lost less than 6,000. This swelled the losses of the Union army, from September 9th to December 15th, to