President spends morning at Capitol, signing bills passed by Congress the day and night before. Evening Star (Washington, DC), 4 March 1865, 2d ed., 2:2; LL, No. 1452.

At 11:45 A.M. Vice President Hamlin escorts President to Senate Chamber to witness swearing-in of Vice-President-elect Johnson. From Senate Chamber President proceeds to platform erected in east front of central portico of the Capitol. Washington Chronicle, 5 March 1865.

Senators James Harlan (Iowa) and Henry B. Anthony (R.I.) escort Mrs. Lincoln to inaugural ceremonies. Evening Star (Washington, DC), 4 March 1865, 2d ed., 2:2; Helm, Mary, 244.

Lincoln takes oath of office, administered by Chief Justice Chase, shortly after noon and delivers Second Inaugural Address. LL, No. 1452.

In his second inaugural address, Lincoln reflects upon the ongoing civil war. He states, "Fondly do we hope—fervently do we pray—that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it continue, until all the wealth piled by the bond-man's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash, shall be paid by another drawn with the sword . . . it must be said 'the judgments of the Lord, are true and righteous altogether.' With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation's wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan—to do all which may achieve and cherish a just, and a lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations." Second Inaugural Address, 4 March 1865, CW, 8:332-33.

Thousands of African Americans, heretofore excluded from such affairs, mingle with spectators. Frequent applause breaks out during reading of Address. Adolphe de Pineton, marquis de Chambrun, Impressions of Lincoln and the Civil War: A Foreigner's Account (New York: Random House, 1952), 38-40.

President, accompanied by Tad and Senator Lafayette S. Foster (Conn.), leaves Capitol and occupies carriage in procession to the Executive Mansion. Mrs. Lincoln, escorted by Senator Anthony follows in next carriage, followed by carriage of Robert T. Lincoln. Evening Star (Washington, DC), 4 March 1865, 2d ed., 2:2; Washington Chronicle, 5 March 1865.

Mrs. Lincoln receives from Chase Bible kissed by Lincoln on taking oath of office. Chase comments that sun broke through at same time and was "an auspicious omen of the dispersion of the clouds of war and the restoration of the clear sunlight of prosperous peace." Chase to Mrs. Lincoln, 4 March 1865, Abraham Lincoln Papers, Library of Congress, Washington, DC.

President and Mrs. Lincoln drive out during afternoon in open barouche. Stop at Willard's Hotel for Mrs. Lincoln to visit friend. Philip V. D. Stern, An End to Valor: The Last Days of the Civil War (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1958), 20.

Lincoln receives members of the Perseverance Fire Company of Philadelphia in East Room at 4 P.M. Evening Star (Washington, DC), 6 March 1865, 2d ed., 2:1.

Public reception 8 P.M. at White House. Largest reception this season. President shakes hands with as many as 6,000 persons. Marine Band provides music. Receives members of the Franklin Hose Company of Philadelphia 15 9:30 P.M. Also receives Army officers to discuss military matters. LL, No. 1452; Washington Chronicle, 5 March 1865; Evening Star (Washington, DC), 6 March 1865, 2d ed., 2:1.