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Memoir 1, Page 79, The Election of 1860

"he would soon be subjected to a kind of mob ordeal by a Vigilance Committee."

A Vigilance Committee is a group of people that would typically form when the governmental system of justice or order was not considered to be enough. Vigilance Committees have been formed across the country in various time periods; however, in this case, Woods means groups of white Southerners who existed to intimidate or even harm people they saw as disloyal to the South.

"The presidential Canvass, between Lincoln, Douglas, Bell and Breckinridge was exciting and angry."

During the election of 1860, the growing sectional tensions could be felt even within the political parties. Conflict over the question of slavery led to a split in the Democratic Party along geographic lines. While Northern Democrats nominated Stephen Douglas from Illinois, Southern Democrats nominated John C. Breckinridge. The national vote was further divided by the inclusion of a fourth candidate John Bell of the Constitutional Union Party. While the entire South and Maryland went to Breckinridge, Bell’s success in the mid-Atlantic region gave Lincoln the advantage despite winning only half of the country.