"That's so," retorted Whitley, "but I never heard of any other Napoleon.
The breed began and quit with him."

But the soldiers crowding the capital had full confidence in "Little
Mac," as they had already begun to call him. Those off duty followed
and cheered him and the President, until they entered the White House
and disappeared within its doors. Dick and his friends were in the
crowd that followed, although they did not join in the cheers, not
because they lacked faith, but because all three were thoughtful.
Dick had soon discovered that Whitley, despite his lack of education,
was an exceedingly observant man, with a clear and reasoning mind.

"It was a pair worth seeing," said the sergeant, as they turned away,
"but I looked a lot more at Old Abe than I did at "Little Mac." Did you
ever think, boys, what it is to have a big war on your hands, with all
sorts of men tellin' you all sorts of things an' tryin' to pull you in
all sorts of directions?"

"I had not thought of it before, but I will think of it now," said
Warner. "In any event, we are quite sure that the President has a great
task before him. We hear that the South will soon have a quarter of a
million troops in the field. Her position on the defensive is perhaps
worth as many more men to her. Hence let x equal her troops, let y
equal her defensive, and we have x plus y, which is equal to half a
million men, the number we must have before we can meet the South on
equal terms."

"An' to conquer her completely we'll need nigh on to a million." said
the sergeant.