973.7L63 Reinke, Arno B. B3R27h 1939 He Could Take It LINCOLN ROOM UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS LIBRARY MEMORIAL the Class of 1901 founded by HARLAN HOYT HORNER and HENRIETTA CALHOUN HORNER it- He could take it & Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2012 with funding from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign http://www.archive.org/details/hecouldtakeitOOrein He could take it ARNO B. REINCKE Copyright 1934, Arno B. Reincke, Reincke-Ellis-Younggreen & Finn, Inc. Chicago Printed in United States of America A friend and I were discussing "self- pity" the other evening when he offered a suggestion which is worth passing on: Just before he drops to sleep on those nights when the outlook seems particu- larly drab he calls into consciousness the picture of a man he admires tre- mendously. As the episodes of this man's life unfold before his inner vision they always prove a quick solvent for the day's accumulated "poison." Thus my friend is able to fall asleep in per- fect relaxation, to awaken with re- newed courage. The first scene of his picture is laid in a crossroads store in the middle west, where a young man of 22, a part- ner in the store, had learned for the first time that failure is easier to achieve than success. It was a bitter lesson, punctuated with a sheriff's sign on the door and the realization that he had He could take it lost every penny of seven years' sav- ings. This tense scene carries with it all of early youth's poignant grief and dis- appointment. The scene then shifts to the young man's second partnership. After two years of struggle to accumulate another stake, he tried again, determined not to repeat the mistakes which had forced his former partner into bankruptcy. He must succeed this time; he could not endure another period of hardship like the last. But he failed again! His new partner drank up all the profits within two years. Not only did this young business man see his savings swept away the second time, but he faced an indebted- ness which he knew would crush him. In desperation the partners agreed to terms of sale that proved disastrous. At the end of the year the purchaser failed to make his payment, sold the entire stock of merchandise, gathered up the receipts and took French leave. He could take it Then the partner died, forcing the young man to shoulder the debts of both. It was a bitter experience, but he re- fused to go into bankruptcy and, after years of miserable penury, on his thirty- ninth birthday, he paid the last dollar of his obligations. After this second mercantile failure a friend came to his rescue with the offer of a job as surveyor. He was forced to borrow in order to buy a set of instru- ments and a horse. But he never took the job. One of his creditors levied on the instruments and horse and took them for debt. Destiny seemed to have singled him out for failure. Life then dealt him the most crushing blow of his career — a blow to the heart from which his spirit never recovered. His first and only enduring love sud- denly died and, as he afterward said, his heart followed her to the grave. It was too much. He went down, to the verge of insanity. "At this period of my He could take it life I never dared to carry a pocket- knife," he wrote long afterward. Within a year he had broken so completely that he had to be removed to his parents' home 300 miles away and nursed back to mental health. Ten years later the sun broke through the clouds for a brief hour. Believing that this "failure" might succeed in politics, some of his friends secured his election to Congress. But again he failed. After he had worried through two short sessions his constituents re- fused to return him to Washington. Nine years later those who knew and respected this man of high principles determined again to help him. They forced a political situation which placed him in direct line for nomination to the United States Senate. Until one hour before the state nominating convention the entire electorate had conceded his victory. But at that last moment a split developed in the party lines and he was forced to step aside and yield He could take it the office to a friendly opponent. Again failure ! Two years later he made one more at- tempt to attain the senatorship, meet- ing the state's most popular candidate in a series of open-air debates on the questions of the hour. His opponent, a suave, experienced politician and a gifted orator, gave no quarter to this misfit and failure. Again he was overwhelmingly defeated. In his own estimation he was down and out of politics at the age of 50. He had been unable to achieve one single per- sonal victory in 30 years of constant effort! But the unseen forces of circumstance sometimes move to meet the great issue of a human life with certain if dis- heartening deliberation. Two years after this last and disastrous defeat, destiny with one magnificent stroke compensated this man for his years of heartache, disappointment and failure. He could take it He was elected President of the United States. I have repeated this story of Abraham Lincoln as it was dramatized for me by my friend. You and I frequently brush shoulders with many men who need this stimulant. It is worthy of an important place in the gallery of every man's life, rich or poor — a universal promise that we too "shall not have lived in vain." 4 Originally released in 1934 as a New Years Greeting card, this message has been re- printed in many publications, among them the January, 1939 issue of READERS DIGEST. This nar- rative, based on fact, continues to be a source of inspira- tion to all who read it. S 7 r 3 ^^l B3R27H193 9 C001 HE COULD TAKE IT CHICAGO 3 0112 031797688