Although the campaign for president in 1888 was
quite heated, the Republican candidate remained remarkably calm throughout the
long ordeal. The grandson of a
former president, Benjamin Harrison knew only too well the ebb and flow of
politics and popular opinion, and simply refused to allow the process to
disrupt his emotional equilibrium.
On election night his chief interest seemed to
be in the polling results of his own state of Indiana. When the numbers there were safely
announced in the Republican column, just after ten, he went to bed.
The following morning a friend, having called to
congratulate him late the night before, asked why he had retired so early. The president-elect explained, "I
knew that my staying up would not alter the result if I were defeated, while if
I was elected I had a hard day in front of me. So a good night's rest seemed the best course in either
event."
Later he added, "A
fellow who fails to take into account the divine is bound to miss a good deal
of sleep unnecessarily--it can help but little. Our charge is simply to render our services aright and leave
the results to providence."
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