1850 American Gold Tycoon.

Chapter 641 We Need Time

"Well, very good, General Butler, you arrived just in time."

The arrival of the Seventh Army of New York gave Lincoln some comfort. If he had to fight a battle to defend Washington now, at least he had the generals and soldiers to fight this battle to defend the capital.

"The rebels in Maryland, especially in Baltimore, were so active that the railroad from Wilmington to Washington was completely paralyzed," General Butler said apologetically. "I was able to reach Washington successfully by bypassing Baltimore with the officers and soldiers of the 7th New York Army."

Lincoln ordered Butler to arrive in Washington within five days, but it took Butler a full two weeks to arrive.

"That's good to see you here. Any news from other troops?" Lincoln said calmly, "The telegraph office in Washington has been paralyzed for two weeks. During these two weeks, I was blind and deaf. It seems that General Dix does not have full control over the situation in Maryland."

There were not many pro-Southern militants near the capital Washington, but they hid among the civilians and harassed the garrison in Washington, kidnapped postmen and messengers, destroyed the railways and roads leading to Washington, and cut off the telegraph lines, which really caused a lot of trouble for Lincoln.

"The Rhode Island Army will arrive in Washington within one or two days," Butler said. "Mr. President, with all due respect, this is not entirely General Dix's fault. General Dix only has 2,000 men under his command. It would be difficult for him to completely control Baltimore with these troops, let alone the entire state of Maryland."

"General Dix has done a great job by using two militia regiments to force Maryland to nominally remain in the Union." Lincoln motioned to the presidential secretary Nickel to show Butler a seat.

Since the rebellion, the Union Army has had many more generals, but Lincoln knew that if he wanted to stabilize the situation, he had to rely on veteran Northern generals such as Scott, Butler, McClellan, Dix, and Mason, rather than on speculators like Anderson.

Although these northern veterans are not as famous as the southern generals and may be slightly inferior in ability, at least they are all tested professional officers and can be used.

"What's wrong with those New York bureaucrats? If the railways can't work, we can go by sea." Scott was very dissatisfied with the performance of the New York State authorities and the navy. "And those guys in the navy are useless. They can't even keep the waterways in Washington open."

"Order the naval shipyards in Boston, New York, and Philadelphia to each purchase two merchant ships with a displacement of more than one thousand tons. Within a month, I want to see these merchant ships transformed into usable warships and appear in the Potomac River. If this is not possible, let those useless factory directors get out." Lincoln looked angry, and he was also very dissatisfied with the slow-moving bureaucrats in the northern states.

"The Navy's shipyard needs authorization from Congress to purchase and modify new ships." Nikola whispered in Lincoln's ear.

"We have to take emergency measures. By the time we get the authorization from Congress, the rebels in the South will probably have reached Washington." After saying that, Lincoln looked at Butler again, "General Butler, I now appoint you as the commander of the capital region to be in charge of the garrison troops in the capital. In addition, are there any engineers in the Seventh Corps?"

"Two companies of engineers," Butler replied.

"Immediately repair the telegraph lines from Washington to the northern states, and restore communications between Washington and the northern states as soon as possible." Lincoln said, pulling his beard. "In addition, immediately cancel the writ of habeas corpus in Washington and Maryland. Anyone who violates military control and disturbs public order will be treated as a southern rebel!"

"Mr. President, there is no relevant provision or precedent for the president to suspend the writ of habeas corpus, either in the current laws or in past cases." Scott on the side tactfully reminded Lincoln that this move was unconstitutional, and hoped that Lincoln, who had just taken office, would use his power prudently and not give others an advantage.

"Scott, I am deeply sorry that I have to do this in this emergency of life and death for the Union," Lincoln said in defense. "What is the point of abiding by the Constitution if the Union no longer exists?"

With the Seventh Army and the Rhode Island Army stationed in Washington, the situation in the federal capital gradually improved. Thanks to the efforts of the Seventh Army and the Rhode Island Army engineers, transportation and communications between Washington and the outside world were restored.

The "Land Act of the American Republic" promulgated by the Western American Republic finally arrived and was delivered to Lincoln's desk.

After reading the contents of the "Land Act of the American Republic", Lincoln felt dizzy, as if the sky was falling.

Lincoln considered solving the western problem, but due to the situation, he had to deal with the western problem after dealing with the North-South problem.

Therefore, Lincoln's attitude towards the West was that as long as the West remained neutral, stayed west of the Rocky Mountains, and did not touch his bottom line, he would turn a blind eye to the West. After all, given the state of the federal government at that time, it was not ready to go to war with both the South and the West at the same time, either militarily or financially.

However, this "Land Act of the American Republic" has completely touched Lincoln's bottom line, which Lincoln could not accept no matter what. Farmers in the central region can not only provide food security for the federal government, but also provide a much better source of soldiers than urban workers. When necessary, the central region can also become a pressure relief valve for the federal government.

To put it bluntly, whoever can effectively control the central region and allocate its resources will have a better chance of winning this civil war and dominating the American continent.

Lincoln convened a cabinet meeting to discuss the thorny issue of the West's attempt to encroach on the central frontier region.

All the cabinet members attending the meeting had gloomy faces. It was obvious that they were not mentally prepared for this issue, nor did they have any contingency plans. After reading the "Land Act of the American Republic", all the cabinet members remained silent.

"Secretary Scott, can General Mason block the western army in the North Platte Valley?" Lincoln broke the silence and turned to look at Secretary of Defense Scott, who had white hair and slightly trembling hands.

"Although we have built Fort Gethenburg, Fort Cod, Fort Lexington, and Fort Kearny along the North Pra River and continuously sent more troops to these forts, due to time constraints, shortage of funds and materials, only Fort Gethenburg and Fort Kearny of the four forts used to contain the eastward advance of the western army have been initially completed. Fort Cod and Fort Lexington have not yet been completed." Scott spoke like he was listing them all.

"What's even more fatal is that our federal garrison in this area is only one brigade of General Mason, and according to General Mason's report, the army deployed in North Platte in the west has at least 30,000 to 40,000 regular troops."

At the end of President Buchanan's administration, Scott had realized that the West was likely to be an unstable part of the United States, so he built forts and increased his troops along the North Pla River to prevent any accidents.

Unfortunately, Scott's preparations were ultimately too late. Relying on these hastily built, unfinished forts and a brigade of troops was obviously unable to stop the powerful troops from the West from moving eastward and ensure the federal government's control over the central frontier region.

Furthermore, the Western Army had the advantage of the Rocky Mountains, and was in a commanding position over the Great Plains region in the central part of the country. The initiative of attack and defense was entirely in the hands of the Western Army.

"Thirty or forty thousand regular troops? Where do they get so many regular troops?" The federal government's Secretary of State frowned after hearing this number. He even suspected that Scott, the Secretary of War, was exaggerating the strength of the Western Army in order to gain more funds.

"To mobilize and maintain such a large regular army, they would need to effectively control a population of at least 200 million."

Seward was not a mediocre person, but as a native of New York State, Seward spent most of his life in New York. Like most typical northern politicians, Seward paid more attention to the North-South issue, after all, the North-South issue was the biggest concern of the Union.

It's not that Seward didn't know anything about the frontier areas, but his knowledge of the frontier areas was limited to hot spots such as Illinois and Kansas.

But Seward's knowledge of the areas west of the Rocky Mountains was very limited. After all, these areas had only been part of the Union for a dozen years, less than a generation.

"Previously, the treatment of the Western Army was the best in the Federation. It recruited many outstanding veterans and even some officers from all over the country. Seward, I can tell you clearly that the population that the West can effectively control is far more than 200 million." Lincoln said seriously.

Lincoln knew the border regions, especially the West, much better than other northern elites. He knew that the problems in the West were as serious as those in the South. The ethnic groups in the West were very different from them, and Liang Yao was an excellent young leader. Under his leadership, if the West was separated from the Union for too long, after a generation, the chances of the Union reuniting this vast territory would be infinitely close to zero.

By then, America's geopolitical situation would be extremely deteriorated, and the upper limit of its development would be locked. At that time, the European powers could also use the strategic means of offshore checks and balances to stir up or even manipulate the political situation in North America at a relatively low cost. This was the situation Lincoln least wanted to see.

"With the original 75000-plus standing troops and the newly mobilized 9 volunteers and militia, we can now mobilize nearly troops. If we fight against either the West or the South, we will have the advantage," Seward said after a moment's silence. "But if we fight against both sides at the same time, our manpower and financial resources will not allow us to do so. We need to make a choice."

"Unfortunately, the West and the South are both serious problems, not minor ones, and we have no chance to choose," Lincoln said. "This is the most difficult period for the Union, but I believe that the future is in our hands. We only need a little time, precious time."

The population size and industrial scale of the Union are far greater than those of the South and the West, and the Union has a higher war potential. What Lincoln needs most right now is some time, some time to allow the American war machine to operate efficiently.

(End of this chapter)