ABRA 
 
 IN 
 
 INCLUDING HIS JGKIS AND ^tCD 
 
 FROM 
 
 tdWHITE HOUSE 
 
P': 
 
 I ■ 
 
 LINCOLN ROOM 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS 
 LIBRARY 
 
 MEMORIAL 
 
 the Class of 1901 
 
 founded by 
 
 HARLAN HOYT HORNER 
 
 and 
 
 HENRIETTA CALHOUN HORNER 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 
 in 2012 with funding from 
 
 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/storyofabrahamliOOilgrid 
 
THE EARLIEST PORTRAIT OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 (By courtesy of H. W. Fay, DeKalb, 111.) 
 
 From a daguerreotype taken when Lincoln was about forty years of age; 
 now owned by his son, the Hon. Robert T. Lincoln, 
 
ABRAHAM LINCOLN— 1858. 
 
 The original photograph, from which this half-tone is made, was sold by the ladies 
 of the Methodist Church at Wilmington, 111., and although only cabinet size, brought 
 in excess of one hundred dollars. 
 
 The purchaser, an old friend and great admirer of Abraham Lincoln, presented it 
 to Attorney D. R. Thomas of Chicago, through whose courtesy the author is able to 
 reproduce it here. Hon. A. Orrendorff of Springfield, 111., says "this is the best picture 
 of Mr. Lincoln that has been found to date," and further says, "I can see him just as 
 he sits in the court-room and about ready to argue an important case." 
 
^ @ @ ^ 
 @ 
 
 THE 
 
 STORY 
 
 OF 
 
 @ 
 
 hfihK L 
 
 LN 
 
 OR THE JOURNEY FROM THE LOG 
 CABIN TO THE WHITE HOUSE . . . 
 
 *' Vou can fool some of the people all the ttme^ and all the people some of the 
 time^ but you canH fool all the people all the time.'''' 
 
 — A. Lincoln 
 
 BY 
 
 ELEANOR GRIDLEY 
 
 SECRETARY OF THE LINCOLN LOG CABIN ASSOCIATION 
 
 EDITION OF 1927 
 
 M. A, DONOHUE & CO. 
 
 CHICAGO 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
Copyright 1900 
 
 By 
 
 ELEANOR GRIDLEY 
 
 All Rights Reserved 
 
 THE ENGRAVINGS in this volume 
 were made from origiual photo- 
 graphs and drawings, aiid are speci- 
 ally protected by Copyright, and 
 notice is hereby given that any per- 
 son, or persons fiuiliy of reproduc- 
 ing, or infringing the Copyright in 
 any way, will be dealt with accord- 
 !■£ to law. 
 
c. 
 
 11- 
 
 '-IZI 
 
 STATEMENT TO THE PUBLIC 
 
 During the summer of 1891 "The Abraham Lincoln Log Cabin Asso^ 
 elation" of which I was president, elected Mrs. Eleanor Gridley as 
 secretary and literary editor of the organization. She was sent into 
 Coles County, Ills., where the Lincoln family lived, for the purpose of 
 collecting Lincoln relics and of obtaining such authentic and historical 
 facts as might be gathered from relatives, neighbors and associates of 
 the martyred President. During her stay there she boarded with Mr. 
 John Hall, a cousin of Abraham Lincoln, and at that time owner of 
 the Lincoln homettead. Here she remained several weeks, in sight of, 
 and making daily trips to the "old log cabin" and spent much time in- 
 terviewing the people who came from the country about to tell of their 
 acquaintance with Mr. Lincoln and his people, 
 
 I take great pleasure in saying that Mrs. Gridley did her work 
 faithfully and to the entire satisfaction of all members of the organi- 
 zation. The unique and original manner in which she has interblended 
 pathetic, humorous and homely incidents in her book, makes the story 
 "From the Log Cabin to the White House'' one of great interest and 
 rare value. 
 
 Respectfully, 
 
A RARE TESTIMONIAL 
 
 The following letter by Hon. Thomas B. Bryan addressed to the au- 
 thor of "The Story of Lincoln" is a graceful compliment to Mrs. Grid- 
 ley's effort. 
 
 Mr. Bryan is one of the few surviving members of the Union Defense 
 Committee, recognized by President Lincoln as being of such efficient 
 service to the Union cause as to call the committee his "right arm in 
 the West/' As he expressed it, the "Western fellows can fill up any gap.'' 
 
 Mr. Bryan is the only surviving member of the distinguished Chi- 
 cago pall bearers who bore the casket which contained the precious 
 remains of the martyred President to its last resting place. 
 
 Mr. Bryan w^as the philanthropic man to purchase the draft of the 
 Emancipation proclamation given by Abraham Lincoln to the ladies 
 of the Chicago Sanitary Fair. He paid for it |3,000 — then presented it 
 to the Soldiers' Home. Twentv-five thousand dollars was the sum 
 afterwards offered for this priceless document. 
 
 Mr. Bryan has been for many years a strong and unique figure in 
 the arena of political, social and legal activities. He was and is an 
 ardent admirer of the great Lincoln and has had many interviews with 
 the dead President Following is- his letter: 
 
 Chicago, July 4, 1902. 
 Mrs. Eleanor Gridley: 
 
 My Dear Madam: — In compliance with your request, I furnish you 
 herewith the clipping of a Chicago newspaper of May 1, 1865, from 
 which you can obtain the data of the obsequies of Abraham Lincoln in 
 this city. 
 
 You are right in saying that I am the last survivor in Chicago of 
 the twelve pall bearers, indicated in the accompanying cut of the cor- 
 tege. 
 
 You are also right in the belief that the very faithful portrait of 
 Lincoln was painted by Healy immediately after the first election, to 
 complete my presidential series from Washington to Lincoln, now in 
 the Corcoran Art Gallery at Washington. 
 
Instead of my writing, as you desire, an introduction to your book, 
 allow me to quote from two of my friends, both long since gathered 
 also to their fathers, Horace Greeley and Benjamin F. Taylor. 
 
 "Mr. Lincoln," wrote the former, "was emphatically a man of the 
 Ijeople. There never yet was man so lowlj^ as to feel humbled in the 
 presence of Abraham Lincoln; there was no honest man who feared to 
 meet him; there was no virtuous society so rude that had he casually 
 dropped into it, he would have checked innocent hilarity, or been felt 
 as a damper on enjoyment. Had he entered, as a stranger, a logger's 
 camp in the great woods, or a pioneer^s bark-covered cabin in some new 
 settlement, he w^ould have soon been recognized and valued as one 
 whose acquaintance was to be prized and cultivated." 
 
 Then equally forcible, eloquent, and true are the words of that poet 
 friend who well knew and warmly appreciated the noble attributes of 
 the illustrious martyr. 
 
 Benjamin F. Taylor wrote: "To me Lincoln's story with rugged face 
 was always a poem in itself. There were flashes of wit and flashes of 
 humor like glimpses of sunshine in a shady place; but ever in those 
 kind and gentle eyes an unspeakable sadness, as if no matter what the 
 lips were saying, they were always seeing the mission of their master's 
 life, at once an anthem and a dirge, that should touch unreckoned ages, 
 and make his words as imperishable as our English speech." 
 
 On looking over your volume I am impressed with the care and 
 pains you have taken, and the great success of your efforts in obtaining 
 from the fountain-head, the home neighbors of the martyred President, 
 incidents of personal interest connected with his noble life, and illus^ 
 trating the sterling character for which his memory is so universally 
 cherished. You are to be congratulated on the thoroughness of your 
 work so signally displayed in the volume before me. 
 
 Yours sincerely, 
 
 THOMAS B. BRYAN. 
 
Dedicated 
 
 TO 
 
 Every American Citizen — man, 
 woman and child — who reveres 
 the life of that noble-hearted and 
 matchless man, Abraham Lincoln 
 
PREFACE 
 
 THE grandest heritage of any nation is the lives and deeds of its 
 noblest sons who have wrought and sacrificed even life itself that 
 the nation might live. Our country's history is rich in the lega- 
 cies left it by heroic souls who have toiled in every field of human 
 endeavor, but in none more so than in the life story of the subject of this 
 volume. 
 
 While many books have been written upon the life of Abraham Lin- 
 coln, all of which are good, yet none to my knowledge offers the plain 
 and unvarnished story of his home life and surroundings. They have 
 dealt largely with Lincoln, the statesman, while this volume is designed 
 to set forth Lincoln, the boy, the native man. Here his boyish hopes and 
 hardships, his youthful aspirations and privations, his home life, and 
 his public services are so interwoven in simple story that the reader will 
 follow, step by step, the journey from the Log Cabin to the White House 
 with unflagging interest. 
 
 The humble origin and lowly condition of the man is presented for 
 the purpose of strengthening and developing correct ideas concerning 
 the possibilities of the human race, no matter what the early environ- 
 ment or training may have been. 
 
 I spent several weeks at the Lincoln homestead, personally inter- 
 viewing the relatives, friends, neighbors and associates of Mr. Lincoln 
 and his father's family, while those further removed from the old home- 
 stead were otherwise communicated with, thus obtaining many incidents 
 and anecdotes entirely overlooked by the ordinary historian. I have tried 
 to make the home life of Uncle Abe, the children's friend, so intensely 
 interesting that not a single family in the broad land will be without it. 
 
 The boy's Kentucky home, the young lad's life in Indiana, the man's 
 legal profession and domestic life, the home at the White House, the 
 service to the nation, and the patriot's death will, I trust, inspire other 
 boys to noble endeavor. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 I desire to express my thanks to Judge James B. Bradwell, through 
 whose courtesy I have been able to secure copies of original documents 
 and original photographs of valuable relics of Mr. Lincoln ; to Mr. Koot, 
 whose kindness has furnishecb me with rare photographs, and to Mrs. 
 John A. Logan, Governor Eichard Oglesby, Mrs. Colonel O. B. Ficklin 
 and many other admirers of Mr. Lincoln, whose kindly aid has made my 
 task a labor of love. 
 
 ELEANOR GRIDLEY. 
 
 AN APPRECIATIVE LETTER 
 
 (Written by Myron E). Dunlap of Washington, D. C.) 
 "My Dear Mrs. Grldley: I need not tell you that I read with much 
 interest and pleasure the chapters you sent me. You have done a good 
 work and have done it well. You give us new views of the great Lin- 
 coln. From a new standpoint you show the extreme poverty of his 
 boyhood days and the limited schooling he had in the university of 
 the woods; how low down his beginning and how high up his ending. 
 Fred Douglass used to say of himself that the height to which he 
 attained in his career was not to be wondered at so much as the depth 
 from which he came. Is not that true of Lincoln? Your book shows 
 most vividly the great depth from which he came. But Henry Watter- 
 son holds that Lincoln was divinely appointed for the mission he per- 
 formed, and that seems to me to be the only satisfactory explanation 
 of Lincoln's great career. Like John the Baptist, he came forth from 
 the wilderness in his raiment of camePs hair, and his meat was locust 
 and wild honey. Did you read my apostrophe to him in the address 
 I delivered in the Confederate cemetery at Appomattox? He deserved 
 all I said of him and more, too. It is my earnest wish that your book 
 may bring to you much praise and joyful recompense and that you may 
 live long to enjoy both." Very sincerely and truly yours, 
 
 MYRON E. DUNLAP. 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 THE world ha'S become exceedingly familiar with the Abraham 
 Lincoln who filled a great place in the history of the United 
 States, and thubi remain foreyer the central point of its national 
 life of freedom. T\e recognize at a glance the rugged outlines of his 
 strong figure, and thrill as we realize that the open horror of legalized 
 slavery might be among us still, had it not been for his courage and 
 constancy. 
 
 There is anothei* i^mcoln, howeyer, with whom we are not yet well 
 acquainted. Eyery great man has his human side^ the side which 
 reyeals his rearing' and associations, and offers frank traces of the 
 enyironment which naci much to do v/ith m.aking him the indiyidual we 
 have learned to knc^w und loye, the indiyidual who has become of yalue 
 to his race. This I/incoln is the man who wore "blue Jeans," and split 
 rails, whose name was "Abe,'* and whose greatness always kept the 
 gentle outline of a loving intimacy for all those v/ho knew him in his 
 youth. 
 
 Out of this "Abe^' the famous statesman and savior of his country 
 grew. He would never have entered our national life v/ith the clear 
 perception, the giant principle and unflinching self-sacrifice v/hich made 
 him what he was, unless the simple relations of his daily existence had 
 formed the fire which melted and molded the varying constituents of 
 his nature, until gradually the coarse and selfish elements disappeared, 
 to be replaced by those eternal and splendid characteristics which 
 builded in him a hero for all time. 
 
 Many people of to-day live far away from the realities which 
 molded Abraham Lincoln into the thinker and statesman, and it is 
 good to be reminded of them. We grow strong in seeing how he helped 
 build the cabin in which he lived, how he constructed the flat boat with 
 which he etirned his first silver half dollar We think seriously as we 
 realize that no matter huv/ coarse his surroundings, Abraham Lincoln 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 never made a low jest about a woman, or allowed such a thing to pass 
 without reproof, and that wherever he was, in all the country round, 
 he was known as "the homeliest, the gentlest, the strongest and the 
 best-natured fellow.'' 
 
 It is this Abraham Lincoln to whom the sympathetic spirit of Mrs. 
 Gridley has introduced us. Her own varied knowledge of life and sensi- 
 tive perception, her feeling for the natural and unconventional man 
 have helped her to understand him. Her gift of pure and pregnant 
 English has enabled her to put him before us as he breathed and moved. 
 She has brought us in touch with his native ruggedness and in her 
 pages we become acquainted with Abraham Lincoln as those knew 
 him who were born under the same roof-tree with him. 
 
 We recognize, perhaps with surprise, that his ideal was never that 
 of thrifty self-advancement ; that his family as a rule were pronounced 
 "shiftless," that "Abe" would invariably divide his half dollar with any 
 one who needed it, and that his treasures were always for the service 
 of his friends. He had an old uncle who would stop to philosophize 
 while he stuck a pig, and Lincoln's own energy and push never became 
 too far removed from this spirit of gentle and loving inquiry, which 
 kept him forever in touch with the man who sweats and toils, and the 
 woman whose hands are hardened by the multiplicity of her cares. 
 
 To live is to create actively in many different directions, to build, 
 
 /ove, contrive and think, and the Abe Lincoln who lived, and through 
 
 real living became an eternal figure in the national life of his fellows, is 
 
 the Abraham Lincoln who greets us in these pages, and to whom we 
 
 >ever afterward will be willing to say f arewelL 
 
 MAKY HANFORD FORD. 
 
AUTHOR'S SPECIAL PREFACE 
 
 TO THE 
 
 ANNIVERSARY EDITION. 
 
 It is impossible to conceive of a more notable or more historic 
 series of events marking the birth of any character, however great or 
 powerful, than those which have been observed in celebrating the one 
 hundredth anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln. 
 
 In every large city of the world the great man's life was the leading 
 theme of eulogy and oratory. In every city, town and hamlet of this 
 reunited and reconstructed land of our country, his life, step by step, 
 from birth to martyr death and glorious translation, was reviewed by 
 distinguished men and earnest women in brilliant speech of loving 
 tribute. His words were revived; those words so pregnant with wis- 
 dom, justice, sympathy, humorous allusion of pathetic reflection were 
 resurrected and respoken that they might gather anew, strength to 
 again declare the truth, the beauty and the love they once proclaimed. 
 
 In all the schools of the broad land the great man's humble birth, 
 his wretched home, his poverty, his destitution, his limited education, 
 his yearning for a different life, for youthful pleasures and boyhood 
 comrades, which were denied him, were vividly portrayed, while the 
 patience and courage of his brave little soul, his sacrifices, his un- 
 selfishness, his self-education and self-advancement were dwelt upon, 
 that the boy of today who has so many educational advantages and 
 opportunities and home comforts may realize that it is not the homely 
 and common environment of childhood and youth that holds the boy 
 in bondage to mediocre results, but, that the boy Who may be sur- 
 rounded with all these and more unhappy and, apparently, unfortunate 
 conditions can through strength, courage, patience, hope and faith 
 overcome and overthrow all obstacles, no matter how great or difficult. 
 
 In all the higher schools of learning — colleges and universities — 
 the rise and emancipation of this great soul, from poverty and squalor, 
 from coaioC and vulgar ignorance, from uncongenial associates and 
 companionship, from an environment always of downward tendency 
 
AUTHOR'S SPECIAL PREFACE. 
 
 and never of thrifty self-advancement, to the heights — ^^the fomm of 
 intellectual culture and masterful language, was the subject presented 
 for consideration and example to the students of all rank and class. 
 
 In every gathering, great or small, whether it was the large and 
 fashionable audience of the great auditoriums or banquet halls who 
 had come to listen and applaud the brilliant and masterly effort of 
 the learned speakers; whether it was the little band of loving souls 
 who had met to voice, in simple, homely speech their tribute of praise 
 and love; whether it was the little household brood who were drinking 
 in the words of the story — a story which set forth, step by step, Abra- 
 ham Ijincoln^s journey from the log ©abin to the White House, and 
 told by the loving mother who pictured the future greatness of her 
 young son, as did Nancy Lincoln a. hundred years ago when her baby 
 boy was laid in her caressing embrace; in every one of these special 
 gatherings every heart breathed the spirit of love, of tenderness, of 
 pity for the great man's sad and dangerous voyage — the voyage of 
 life — ^for his sorrows, his disappointments and his tragic and untimely 
 death. 
 
 At the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln, in Kentucky, a most ex- 
 traordinary gathering convened. Though the day was anything but 
 pleasant or agreeable, the pilgrims who came to mark the natal spot 
 were not discouraged nor driven back by the pelting rain; with cheer- 
 ful hearts and lively step they pushed onward and faltered not till the 
 mecca was reached. 
 
 A notable array of America's most distinguished men and women 
 ;^ere gathered to pay homage to the memory of the great man and with 
 mutual good-will united in making the ceremonies a most imposing and 
 impressive event. The exercises were conducted in an open-sided 
 tent erected alongside the cabin in which the great emancipator was 
 born one hundred years ago. The monument which shall mark this 
 ;pot (the corner stone of which was laid this day) establishes another 
 nemorial to the nativity of America's great heroes. 
 
 The President, Theodore Eoosevelt, was the most distinguished 
 speaker of the occasion, and, in paying his tribute to the memory of 
 A^braham Lincoln, he pronounced such eulogy as never before was 
 ^iven to any ruler of the world. His speech in full will be found else- 
 where in this book. 
 
 At Springfield, Illinois, the town from which Abraham Lincoln de- 
 parted on the triumphal march to Washington and to his residence 
 
AUTHOR'S SPECIAL PREFACE. 
 
 m the Executive Mansion, lie was internationally canonized and in this 
 town, which knew him best, the United States, Great Britain and 
 France, through their distinguished representatives, and, only as man 
 to man, paid their nations ^ tribute to the man who loved his f ellowman 
 with a love past all understanding. 
 
 The capital city of Illinois was a scene of varied contrasts. The 
 people, old and young, gay and sad, black and white, were passing to 
 and fro among the streets he used to walk, by the building where his 
 law office was located, into the old court house where he practiced law 
 and through and through again the rooms of the old Lincoln homestead. 
 
 The incessant tramp and hurried step of the city's visitors w^as 
 changed to a slow and measured tread, the chatty tone and loud voice 
 of the sightseers was low and subdued as they turned from the streets 
 of the town and began their march to Oak Eidge cemetery where the 
 beautiful and imposing mausoleum has been erected to the memory of 
 the martyred president. Here, beside the sarcophagus, in which the 
 remains of the illustrious dead rest, the immediate kin, his only male 
 descendant, Eobert Lincoln, the distinguished speakers of the occasion, 
 the friends — and the people, the common people — gathered to pay 
 their silent and tearful tribute to the memory of the affectionate father, 
 the gentle, tender man, the nation's wise and just ruler and the blessed 
 martyr. 
 
 At the base of the monument old soldiers, boys in blue, who had 
 responded to Lincoln's call to arms with ^^We are coming. Father 
 Abraham, six hundred thousand strong" stood guard with ^' fixed bayo- 
 nets" but the bayonets were not so ^' fixed" that they could not lower 
 them when the children and the women and the other people asked to 
 place their wreaths of fragrant floral offerings about the resting place 
 dedicated to the memory of Abraham Lincoln who is marching on 
 with the other heroes who have joined the procession of renowned 
 immortals. 
 
 This great and wonderful demonstration in honor of the one hun- 
 dredth anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth was most impressive 
 and carries in its import mighty influences, influences that will be a 
 lasting and beneficial lesson to the present generation and to all future 
 generations. It will so have gathered greater and greater import that 
 the life and character of this man of lowly birth and humble child- 
 hood and youth, who rose to command the respect and admiration 
 of other nations and gained the love and reverence of the greatest 
 
AUT ROB'S SPECIAL PREFACE. 
 
 and most powerful nation on eartli may be considered the miracle 
 of the present century. 
 
 The life of Abraham Lincoln in every aspect, from his birth to 
 his death, calls for emulation, whether it be the simple home life filled 
 with gentle words and helpful deeds, with self-sacrifice, self-denial 
 and unselfishness, or his public career — a mighty career — crowded into 
 the space of a few years, a life filled with stronger words of wisdom 
 and sympathy and greater deeds of helpfulness and love. 
 
 All through his life he dared to do what he thought was right, dared 
 to champion the cause of the helpless and the oppressed, dared to 
 stand up against criticism and contumely, dared to withstand flattery 
 and adulation, dared to stand up against oppression and censure ; with 
 malice toward none and charity for all, he preserved a calm demeanor 
 and pursued the even tenor of his way. What he considered right to 
 do he dared to do ; what he considered wrong no power on earth could 
 compel him to do. In every decision of his life he said, *^ "Whatever 
 appears to be God^s will, I will do." 
 
 At every crucial point of his life he met the situation with un- 
 flinching courage and indomitable determination, and in whatever 
 manner or way life touched him he spoke back its meaning, gave forth 
 fire to kindle anew its flames. Each power slumbered in him and 
 waited to be awakened and upon whatever scale the cliallenge came 
 he seemed a great reservoir of living water which could be freely 
 quaffed but never exhausted. His nature suggested a richness that had 
 only been partly drawn upon and his life ended as if unfinished, fuller 
 of promise than when it began. 
 
 The little cabin home, so small, yet it contained all who loved him, 
 but now the House Beautiful is so large that it can contain all who love 
 his memory, the whole nation. 
 
 ELEANOR GRIDLEY. 
 
PRESIDENT THEODORE ROOSEVELT'S 
 
 CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY SPEECH, 
 
 FEBRUARY 12th, 1909, AT THE LAYING OF THE CORNER 
 STONE OF THE MEMORIAL BUILDING, ERECTED ON 
 THE FARM WHERE ABRAHAM LINCOLN WAS BORN 
 NEAR HODGENSVILLE, KENTUCKY. 
 
 We have met here to celebrate the hundredth anniversary of the 
 birth of one of the two greatest Americans ; of one of the two or three 
 greatest men of the nineteenth century ; of one of the greatest men in 
 the world's history. This rail splitter, this boy who passed his un- 
 gainly youth in the dire poverty of the poorest of the frontier folk, 
 whose rise was by weary and painful labor, lived to lead his people 
 through the burning flames of a struggle from which the nation 
 emerged, purified as by fire, born anew to a loftier life. 
 
 After long years of iron effort and of failure that came more often 
 than victory, he at last rose to the leadership of the republic, at the 
 moment when that leadership had become the stupendous world task 
 of the time. He grew to know greatness, but never ease. Success 
 came to him, but never happiness, save that which springs from doing 
 well a painful and a vital task. 
 
 Power was his, but not pleasure. The furrows deepened on his 
 brow, but his eyes were undimmed by either hate or fear. His gaunt 
 shoulders were bowed, but his steel thews never faltered as he 
 bore for a burden the destinies of his people. 
 
 Heart Shrank from Giving Pain. 
 
 His great and tender heart shrank from giving pain; and the task 
 allotted him was to pour out like water the lifeblood of the vouno^ 
 men, and to feel in his every fiber the sorrow of the women. Disaster 
 saddened but never dismayed him. 
 
 As the red years of war went by they found him ever doing his 
 duty in the present, ever facing the future with fearless fi'ont, high 
 of heart, and dauntless of soul. Unbroken by hatred, unshaken by 
 
PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT'S SPEECH 
 
 scorn, lie worked and suffered for the people, Triumpli was liis at 
 the last, and barely had he tasted it before murder found him, and 
 the kindly, patient, fearless eyes were closed forever. 
 
 As a people we are indeed beyond measure fortunate in the char- 
 acters of the two greatest of our public men, Washington and Lincoln, 
 Widely though they diifered in externals, the Virginia landed gentle- 
 man and the Kentucky backwoodsman, they were alike in essentials, 
 they were alike in the great qualities which rendered each able to 
 render service to his nation and to all mankind such as no other man 
 of his generation could or did render. 
 
 Each had lofty ideals, but each in striving to attain these lofty 
 ideals was guided by the soundest common sense. Each possessed 
 inflexible courage in adversity and a soul wholly unspoiled by pros- 
 perity. 
 
 Each possessed all the gentler virtues commonly exhibited by good 
 men who lack rugged strength of character. Each possessed also all 
 the strong qualities commonly exhibited by those towering masters 
 of mankind who have too often shown themselves devoid of so much 
 as the understanding of the words by which we signify the qualities 
 of duty, of mercy, of devotion to the right, of lofty disinterestedness 
 in battling for the good of others. 
 
 There have been other men as great and other men as good, but 
 in all the history of mankind there are no other two great men as 
 good as these, no other two good men as great. Widely though the 
 problems of today differ from the problems set for solution to Wash- 
 ington when he founded this nation, to Lincoln when he saved it and 
 freed the slave, yet the qualities they showed in meeting these problems 
 are exactly the same as those we should show in doing our work today. 
 
 Lincoln Eead the Future, 
 
 Lincoln saw into the future with the prophetic imagination usually 
 vouchsafed only to the poet and the seer. He had in him all the lift 
 toward greatness of the visionary without any of the visionary 's fanat- 
 icism or egotism, without any of the visionary's narrow jealousy of 
 the practical man and inability to strive in practical fashion for the 
 realization of an ideal. 
 
 He had the practical man's hard common sense and willingness to 
 adapt means to ends, but there was in him none of that morbid growth 
 of mind and soul which blinds so many practical men to the higher 
 things of life. 
 
PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT'S SPEECH 
 
 No more practical man ever lived than this homely backwoods 
 idealist, but he had nothing in common with those practical men whose 
 consciences are warped until they fail to distinguish between good and 
 evil, fail to understand that strength, ability, shrewdness, whether in 
 the world of business or of politics, only serve to make their possessor 
 a more noxious, a more evil member of the community, if they are not 
 guided and controlled by a fine and high moral sense. 
 
 Problems to Be Solved Today. 
 
 We of this day must try to solve many social and industrial prob- 
 lems, requiring to an especial degree the combination of indomitable 
 resolution with cool-headed sanity. We can profit by the way in which 
 Lincoln used both these traits as he 'strove for reform. 
 
 We can learn much of value from the attacks which following that 
 course brought upon his head, attacks alike by the extremists of revo- 
 lution and by the extremists of reaction. He never wavered in devo- 
 tion to his principles, in his love for the union, and in his abhorrence 
 of slavery. 
 
 Timid and lukewarm people always were denouncing him because 
 he was too extreme ; but as a matter of fact he never went to extremes, 
 he worked step by step; and because of this the extremists hated and 
 denounced him with a fervor which now seems to us fantastic in its 
 deification of the unreal *and the impossible. At the time when one side 
 was holding him up as the apostle of social revolution because he was 
 against slavery, the leading abolitionist 'denounced him as the 
 * * slave hound of Illinois. ' ' 
 
 When he was the second time candidate for president, the majority 
 of his opponents attacked him because of what they termed his extreme 
 radicalism, while a minority threatened to bolt his nomination because 
 he was not radical enough. He continually had to check those who 
 wished to go forward too fast, at the time he overrode the oppO'sition 
 of those who wished not to go forward at all. 
 
 The goal never was dim before his vision; but he picked his way 
 cautiously, without either halt or hurry, as he strode toward it through 
 such a morass of difficulty that no man of less courage would have 
 attempted it, while it surely would have overwhelmed any man of 
 judgment less serene. 
 
 Yet perhaps the most wonderful thing of all, and, from the stand- 
 point of the America of today and of the future, the most vitally 
 
PRESIDENT EOOSEVELT'S SPEECH 
 
 important, was the extraordinary way in w^liicli Lincoln could fight 
 valiantly against what he deemed wrong and yet preserve undimin- 
 ished his love and respect for the brother from whom he differed. 
 
 Genebous in Hour of Triumph. 
 
 In the hour of a triumph that would have turned any weaker man's 
 head, in the heat of a struggle which spurred many a good man to 
 dreadful vindictiveness, he said truthfully that so long as he had been 
 in office he never had willingly planted a thorn in any man's bosom, 
 and besought his supporters to study the incidents of the trial through 
 which they were passing as philosophy from which to learn wisdom 
 and not as wrongs to be avenged, ending with the solemn exhortation 
 that, as the strife was over, all should reunite in a common effort to 
 save their common country. 
 
 He lived in days that were great and terrible, when brother fought 
 against brother for what each sincerely deemed to be the right. 
 
 In a contest so grim the strong men who alone can carry it through 
 are rarely able to do justice to the deep convictions of those with whom 
 they grapple in mortal strife. At such times men see through a glass 
 darkly; to only the rarest and loftiest spirits is vouchsafed that clear 
 vision which gradually comes to all, even to the lesser, as the struggle 
 fades into distance, and wounds are forgotten, and peace creeps back 
 to the hearts that were hurt. 
 
 But to Lincoln was given this supreme vision. He did not hate 
 the man from whom he differed. Weakness was as foreign as wicked- 
 ness to his strong, gentle nature, but his courage was of a quality so 
 high that it needed no bolstering of dark passion. 
 
 He saw clearly that the same high qualities, the same courage, and 
 willingness for self-sacrifice, and devotion to the right as it was given 
 them to see the right, belonged both to the men of the north and to the 
 men of the south. 
 
 As the years roll by, and as all of us, wherever we dwell, grow to 
 feel an equal pride in the valor and self-devotion, alike of the men 
 who wore the blue and the men who wore the gray, so this whole nation 
 will grow to feel a peculiar sense of pride in the man whose blood 
 was shed for the union of his people and for the freedom of a race; the 
 lover of his country and of all mankind ; the mightiest of the mighty 
 men who mastered the mighty days, Abraham Lincoln. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 A Teip to the Old Log Cabin 19 
 
 CHAPTER 11. 
 What the Old Log Cabin Revealed 25 
 
 CHAPTER IIL 
 Family Incidents Gathered from Relatives 33 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 The Boy Abe and His Angel Mother 37 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 Anecdotes 42 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 Ko Barriers to Greatness 46 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 The New Home — Visions of Prosperity 50 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 Abe's First Grief 57 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 Abe's New Mother and His New Life -^ 62 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 Lincoln's Kindness to Animals 69 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 Starting Out in Life 74 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 Second New Home — ^Visions of Wealth 81 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 Getting Acquainted With Himself 86 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 Lincoln's First Candidacy 91 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 Mb. Lincoln's Political Career , 95 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 A Thrilling Night at the Old Log Cabin 100 
 
 CHAPTER XVIL 
 A Memorable Sunday 104 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 Love, Courtship and Marriage , 111 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 Mr Lincoln in Congress 120 
 
 15 
 
16 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 A Neighbor's Verdict 1^^. 
 
 CHAPTER XXL 
 Why Lincoln Never Used Profane Language 141 
 
 CHAPTER XXIL 
 Lincoln Surprised His Photographer 149 
 
 CHAPTER XXIIl. 
 Dennis Hanks" Visit to the President and What Came of It. , . , 153 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 Recovery of the Lincoln Folk-Lore Stories 161 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 Meeting the Little Giant in Debate 175 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 The Honest Lawyer 182 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 The Famous Eastern Trip 190 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIIL 
 Presidential Nomination 197 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 The Campaign 203 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 Journey to the Capital 311 
 
 CHAPTER XXXL 
 The Inauguration 223 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIL 
 Beginning of the Rebellion 229 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIIL 
 Anxious Days 238 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 The President's Kindness 249 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 The War Continued 259 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVL 
 Second Presidential Election 263 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVII. 
 Lincoln's Assassination 269 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVIII. 
 Independence Day at the Old Log Cabin 273 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIX. 
 Farewell to the Lincoln Homestead 279 
 
 Lincoln's Great Sayings 283 
 

 
 ENVELOPE USED, DURING CAMPAIGN OF 1860. 
 
 ^"YOU may plant your seed in PEACE,FOaOLD 
 VIRGINIA >WILLHAVETO BEAR. THE BRUNT OF BATTLE^ 
 
 GOV. PICKENS. 
 
 \V^^- 
 
 POOR OLD SIMPLEVIRGINIA 
 
 
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 h-^y^^ 
 
 ^■v 
 
 
 ^/Zz^l^^^-V^ A 
 
 ■•'ii; 
 
 
 
 ■III 
 
 ENVELOPE USED DURING THE CIVIL WAR. 
 
SKETCH OF THE AUTHOR'S LIFE. 
 
 Mrs. Eleanor Gridley, the pleasing author of this book, and Secretary 
 of the Lincoln Log Cabin Association, was born in Jackson, Mich. 
 
 After deriving all the advantage possible from the public schools of 
 her native town, she was sent to college to complete her education, but 
 an early marriage diverted that plan. Later she devoted herself to the 
 care and education of her children. Circumstances arising in the home- 
 life induced Mrs. Gridley to look about for a wider sphere. Ever de- 
 sirous of progressing in the intellectual realm, and having an ambition 
 to keep abreast with her children's studies, she sought a position in the 
 public schools of her native town, where for seven years she discharged 
 her duties with wonderful ability. The death of her son, a young man 
 of promise, was a terrible blow to her, and in order to escape from the 
 associations that constantly recalled the supreme sorroAv of her life, 
 she sought another change, this time going to the great metropolis of the 
 West, and without difficulty secured a position as society editor of one 
 of the leading weeklies of Chicago. Mrs. Gridley very soon became 
 widely known for her clever character sketches. Probably Mrs. Gridley 
 has written as many pen sketches of prominent men and women, if not 
 more, than any other literary woman in our country. Her work during 
 the World's Fair, as editor of the woman's department of the official 
 organ of the World's Columbian Exposition, w^as strong and forceful, 
 and the character sketches of the men and women connected with the 
 executive board of the Fair were unusuallv clever and brilliant. 
 
 Mrs. Gridley is a versatile writer, handling her subjects with grace 
 and dignity. Her descriptive and biographical work cannot be excelled. 
 For the past twelve years she has been connected with the leading 
 periodicals of our country. 
 
 As a traveler, Mrs. Gridley's experience has been wide, varied and 
 practical. Her "Wayside Sketches and Country Rambles" gives her 
 readers a delightful presentation of rural life in Europe. 
 
 Mrs. Gridley comes of good old stock, her ancestry in this country 
 dating back to 1633. A loyal Daughter of the American Revolution, 
 she entered this influential society through the lineage of several die- 
 
 17 
 
18 SKETCH OF THE AUTHOR'S LIFE, 
 
 tinguished Revolutionary heroes, being a daughter of the late Judge G» 
 Thomson Gridlej, of Jackson, Michigan. 
 
 Mrs. Gridley does not deny that she is grandmother to three of the 
 sweetest and most interesting children in the United States. The two 
 eldest, little maidens, are so interested and touched with the life of 
 Abraham Lincoln, as told to them by her, that the Great Emancipator 
 has become the children's real, actual friend. 
 
 Mrs. Gridley's lectures on the Life of Lincoln, before the public 
 schools, have been the subject of most favorable comments. Among 
 them is the following from Prof. W. G. Coburn, superintendent of public 
 schools, Battle Creek, Mich.: "I wish to tell you how much the pupils 
 and teachers of the Battle Creek public schools enjoyed your lecture on 
 the Life of Abraham Lincoln. We were all delighted with it, and I be- 
 lieve impressions of the goodness and greatness of Abraham Lincoln 
 were left in the minds of the pupils that will remain with them all their 
 lives. 
 
 "You touched upon incidents in the life of Lincoln not usually given 
 by his biographers, and incidents, too, that appeal to the young mind 
 in such a way that Lincoln's life seems more real to them. I can heartily 
 endorse your lecture, and can say it is the finest lecture on the life of 
 Abraham Lincoln, for young people, I have ever heard." 
 
 Mrs. Gridley has in a series of practical talks enthused and awakened 
 the interest of the young students to such an extent that in many schools 
 a special course including the study of the life of Lincoln has been in- 
 augurated. As Secretary of the Lincoln Log Cabin Association, she 
 needs no better testimonial than the one given by the President of the 
 association, inscribed on page 8 of this book. G. S. 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 "A TRIP TO THE OLD LOG CABIN" 
 
 IT WAS under the patronage of the "Lincoln Log Cabin Association/' 
 and by whom I had been engaged to write this story, that on the 
 evening of June eighteenth, 1891, I left Chicago for Farmington, 
 Illinois. With me were the officers of the organization, who had made 
 arrangements that I should stay at the "Old Log Cabin,'* the homestead 
 of Thomas Lincoln. A cabin so replete with memories of one, who, al- 
 though of poor and lowly parentage, yet rose to eminence, honor and 
 greatness. From it there came the chosen representative of a mighty 
 people and one of the greatest historical characters of the world, our 
 martyred President, Abraham Lincoln. 
 
 THE EX-CONFEDERATE SOLDIER 
 
 Our party consisted of four persons, the president, who had formu- 
 lated the plans of the association; the treasurer, Colonel F. R South- 
 maid, a brave and gallant ex-confederate officer; Miss Coleman, a 
 stenographer, who had proffered her services for the privilege of accom- 
 panying us, and myself. We were an enthusiastic company, each one 
 deeply interested in the objects of the association. Colonel Southmaid 
 had secured the cabin and the land upon which it stood, and had made 
 arrangements for the removal of the structure to Chicago. My work 
 was to obtain from the relatives and friends of the Lincoln family such 
 facts as would make the records of the society complete. We boarded 
 the train at the Union depot and were soon steaming away across the 
 Prairie State. 
 
 MY MOTHER KNEW UNCLE ABE 
 
 The night was still and uneventful, the sleeping car was hot and 
 poorly ventilated, but the nature of our visit and its anticipated results 
 
 19 
 
20 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 exhilarated us to such an extent that neither my companion nor myself 
 heeded the trip. To mortals, both old and young, all things bad, aye, 
 pleasant, too, must end, and just at break of day we pulled into the 
 little town of Mattoon, nearly two hundred miles south of Chicago, 
 where our journey by rail was completed. A hungrier and more forlorn 
 company never alighted from a railroad train. We walked about the 
 town for some time in search of food, and it was with great difficulty 
 that we finally found friendly shelter and something to eat. We were 
 agreeably surprised and delighted when we discovered a signboard, on 
 which were traced the familiar words, "Eating House." The landlady 
 opened the door in response to our loud and emphatic knock. We told 
 our story, and then asked for quick service. Her face lighted up and she 
 said, "My mother knew Uncle Abe; there isn't anything that I wouldn't 
 do for you all." In a little while a warm and appetizing meal was 
 served. The boy readers of my story will surely appreciate the quantity 
 of good things that were stored away by our hungry party. 
 
 THE GRAVE OF LINCOLN^S FATHER 
 
 At exactly four o'clock in the morning a turnout, which had 
 been engaged for us by telegram through the courtesy and thoughtful- 
 ness of our escort, the superintendent, dashed up to the restaurant. 
 We entered the carriage and were rapidly driven through the streets 
 of the country town and out into the green world where nature was 
 just awakening. The birds carolled, a dewy fragrance tilled the air, 
 and the glorious sun sprang into brilliant splendor. We bowled along 
 right merrily. A drive of nearly two hours brought us to a plain 
 little church surrounded by the old-fashioned graveyard. We drew 
 rein and tied our horses for we had been told that the remains of 
 Thomas Lincoln, the President's father, were buried here. 
 
 THE FAMILY IViONUWIENT 
 
 Passing through the stile we stepped within the enclosure, and 
 there, nearly in the center of God's acre, stood an unpretentious shaft 
 bearing the following inscription: 
 
"^ TRIP TO THE OLD LOG CABIN:' U 
 
 THOMAS LIN(X)LN, 
 
 Father of 
 
 The Martyred President. 
 
 Born 
 
 Jan. 6, 1778. 
 
 Died 
 Jan. 15, 1851. 
 
 We stood beside it with uncovered heads and silent tongues, each 
 reflecting upon the uncertainty of life, until the stillness was broken 
 by one of the party, who began to speculate upon the character and 
 life of the humble old man, the father of one who became a central 
 figure in our nation's history. But we were soon interrupted by a more 
 practical member of the party, who said, "Time is fleeting and we must 
 proceed on our journey, if we wish to see the Old Cabin to-day." 
 
 THE HILLSIDE COTTAGE 
 
 A ride of about thirty minutes completed our journey. A small 
 and unostentatious cottage met our view and we were told by the driver 
 that this was the home of Mr. John J. Hall, a nephew of Thomas Lincoln 
 and a cousin of President Lincoln, and now possessor of the old farm and 
 late owner of the historic cabin, where he and his family had lived 
 since the year 1851. Only within the last year had the family moved 
 into the new house. Of course we were all interested and excited, and 
 questions and exclamations poured in from all sides. One said, "Why, I 
 don't see any old log cabin. Where is it?" Another followed with, 
 "How far away is it, and are we going to it now?" We were pacified 
 with the good news that after an introduction to our host he would 
 accompany us to the spot and we should be allowed to enter and view 
 its interior. We descended from our comfortable vehicle and a small 
 but excited procession filed into the little cottage, where we met the 
 'nmates of the humble home. 
 
 INTRODUCTION TO UNCLE JOHN HALL 
 
 Our host, in a quiet and cordial manner, extended the right hand 
 of fellowship and we were invited to make ourselves "to hum." I 
 could not repress n\j thoughts and at once told him how strongly he 
 
22 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 resembled his honored relative. Mr. Hall smiled and said, "Yes, I 
 reckon I du, IVe been told that nigh onto a hunderd times." 
 
 We were asked if we did not wish a drink of cold water, to which 
 invitation we eagerly and affirmatively responded. Sis, Mr. HalPs 
 daughter, was called to wait upon us, and as she dropped the small iron 
 kettle into the well and drew it up hand over hand we looked at the 
 bare-foot lassie and sighed for her strength and robust youth. She 
 brought up the cooling draught and greeted each one with a pleasant 
 "howdy, howdy, I'm glad to see ye. Take off yer things and stay 
 awhile. '* 
 
 PRESIDENT ADAMS^ PICTURE 
 
 Glancing curiously about the small front room called the parlor, 
 hoping to find some relic or memento of the great man and his family, 
 I ventured the question: "Have you not something that you brought 
 up from the old cabin?" With a sorrowful shake of the head my host 
 mournfully replied: "No, no! not much; they stole almost all I had. 
 Why, thare wus Tom Johnston, Uncle John D. Johnston's boy, stole 
 een a most all the things that grandpap and grandmarm Lincoln hed. 
 He'd come up to the old cabin to see us after Uncle Abe got to be 
 President, purtendin' all the time to be orful friendly, and jest a« soon 
 as I'd go out on the farm to work he^d make off with somethin'. I hed 
 an old copy book of Uncle Abe^s whare he use to do his sums. Why, 
 it wus writ all over with Uncle Abe^s words and picters he'd drawed 
 jest as natural as could be. He wus awful fond of Henry Clay and 
 John Adams, and he drawed a picter of Adams with a bald head jest 
 as he use to be. Wall, Tom Johnston took the hull of that book and 
 only left me jest one leaf, which said on it, in Uncle Abe's hand writin' 
 tu, these words: 
 
 " ^Abraham Lincoln, his hand and pen, 
 He will be groat, but God knows when.' 
 
 TOM JOHNSTON STOLE THE MISSING LEAF 
 
 Why, I tell you, Tom Johnston had a chance to make lots of money 
 out of the things be stole from me, cause Uncle Abe give him a pass 
 
''A TRIP TO THE OLD LOG CABIN/' 23 
 
 to go all over the army takin' picters and he sold the hull of that book, 
 leaf by leaf. But, I tell yer, folks can't do what is wrong but they get 
 their pay fur it, 'cause yer know it has got to be so. Why, after Uncle 
 Abe was killed and there wus no one to take him up Tom come up to 
 me sick nigh unto death and without a cent. He said he^d spent 
 everything he hed and wus a poor, miserable critter and he'd no whare 
 to lay his head. Wall, I took pity on him and told him he could stay 
 with me. He wus an orful sick man and never did a stroke of work 
 fur two years. I hed to feed him, clothe him, pay the doctor, and bury 
 him." 
 
 The old man continued to tell us of the unkind and dishonest tricks 
 that Uncle John D. Johnston's son had played upon him, "upon Grand- 
 marm Lincoln, upon Abr'm tu and the balance of the relative," but we 
 were getting impatient for a sight of the famous log cabin and we asked 
 our host to guide us to the spot. After sitting a few minutes longer he 
 kindly but coolly informed us he "must go to Farmington, and that we 
 could go right on down to the cabin and he'd be along almost afore we 
 got there." When Mr. Hall left for Farmington two or three neighbors, 
 who, having heard of our arrival, had called to see us for the purpose of 
 adding their mite to the fund of information, volunteered to show us 
 the way. 
 
 THE OLD LOG OABIN 
 
 Our party started across lots and after walking through brush and 
 stubble and meadow we arrived at the old cabin. As we came in 
 sight of it we stopped and gazed at it in wonder. Weather beaten, 
 dilapidated, and pitifully forlorn, it stood before us, a reminder of the 
 hardships, toil, and privations that the poor but honest folk had under- 
 gone. Its sad and homely loneliness appealed to our emotion*, and 
 before we realized how the pathos of a deserted homestead could 
 affect us, silent and honest tears paid tribute to the memory of this 
 once struggling household. Colonel Soutlimaid, the confederate sol- 
 dier, brushing a tear from his cheek, began to repeat aloud a verse of 
 his own composition. We gathered about him, and listened to the fol- 
 lowing quaint poem: 
 
34 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 "In mute but wondrous eloquence it stands, 
 
 Inspiring lofty hope and noble aim, 
 For these rude logs were fastened by the hand 
 
 That from a race in bondage broke the chain, 
 And caused the sun of liberty to shine 
 
 On lands made dark by Slavery's cruel strife. 
 A noble nation issued from his hand — 
 
 A nation's glory issued from his life." 
 
 "From roof and pane and sill and rough laid flooi 
 
 A lesson grand its loftiness does show; 
 Though Lincoln's voice is still for ever more 
 
 (That noble life by treacherous hands laid low), 
 Still lives this lowly task done by his hands 
 
 And to us all this lesson it unfolds: 
 ^Be true, and there's no bar to highest stand 
 
 Within your country's gift and love to hold.' '' 
 
ELEANOR GRIDLEY. 
 
EARLY CARPENTRY WORK. 
 
 The above picture shows the east end of the Lincoln Log Cabin and the rude clapboards 
 that Abraham Lincoln and his father hewed with no other tool than a drawing knife. 
 
 REAR OF THE LINCOLN LOG CABIII. 
 
 The ox-yoke hanging on the outside wall was used upon the neck of one of the oxen driven 
 
 by Abraham Lincoln when the family moved from Indiana to the State of 
 
 Illinois. The wooden maul underneath the ox-yoke was made 
 
 bv Abraham Lincoln when nineteen years of age. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 WHAT THE OLD LOG CABIN REVEALED 
 
 THE cabin standing back from the road about eighty rods was 
 situated upon a slight eminence. A good view of the surround- 
 ing country was obtained, and as we glanced over the fields of 
 ripening grain we wondered how, from a tract of tangled brush and 
 sturdy oak, so much wealth and beauty could have grown. At this 
 juncture in our investigations and while we were still talking of the 
 change between now and then, w^e espied our host cutting crosslots, 
 who, upon hearing our remarks, said: "Why, bless ye, ye couldn't 
 imagine the difference. The trees wus so thick when we cum here 
 we couldn't see nowhare. Grandpap and Uncle Abe and Uncle John 
 D. Johnston jest cleared away a little spot right over there, pointing 
 to the cornfield a few rods to the east of us, and purty soon they hed 
 up a right smart house which is the east room of this yere cabin. It 
 stood over there alone for a while, then grandpap and the boys built the 
 west room and moved the other house over here and jined it onto the 
 new part. Why, ye ought to hev been around here in those days ; the 
 wild-cats, wolves, panthers, and other varmint wus as thick as bees 
 around a molasses pot. Lots of times we've heerd the wolves chasing 
 the dogs under the house and snarling and snapping at 'em till yer 
 hair would stand on end and the cold chills would run all over ye." 
 
 THE RED SKINS 
 
 We looked about and imagined that time had turned backward 
 and wondered if the denizens of former days would spring from their 
 long repose and devour us. Pretending to be frightened. Miss Coleman 
 turned to Mr. Hall and in an assumed tone of fear asked him, "Are 
 there any of the 'original natives' around here now?" Our host 
 inquired if she meant the red skins, and when answered in the affirma- 
 
 25 
 
26 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 tive he stared at her and said: "Not uow, Miss, but there wus plenty 
 of 'em, plenty of 'em, the red devils, back in Kantucky where Grandpap 
 and Grandmarm Lincoln used to live, and some day I'll tell ye how 
 grandpap come near being killed by 'em when he wus a little boy, and 
 if thet had happened, there'd been no Uncle Abe, nuther would ye hev 
 hed him for the President of this yere United States," 
 
 THE FAMOUS SHINGLES 
 
 Before we ventured into the sacred and deserted cabin an old well 
 was pointed out, while our host sadly reflected upon the happy 
 times when gTandpap and grandmarm and the boys were all here. 
 "We were contented and peaceful then," said he, "and we all worked 
 together. Why, only look at those logs made of shaking asp; grand- 
 pap and Uncle Abe cut down the tree», hewed and scored 'em, and the 
 shingles what is on the roof of the west room, grandpap made every 
 one of 'em and it took him full six months to get 'em all out." 
 
 THE HISTORICAL CANE 
 
 As I bethought me of the privations that the Lincoln family had 
 undergone I asked how they got their food and what they had for 
 meat? "Meat, did ye say? Why, plenty of it and the best in the land. 
 Turkey, prairie chicken and deer, lots of deer, wild rabbits and other 
 critters. One time after Uncle Abe hed left hum and hed been gone 
 fur a good while, we heerd somebody come crounching through the 
 woods, and when we looked out of the winder there wus Uncle Dennis 
 Hanks with a rifle over his shoulder and Uncle Abe carrying two 
 squirrels that Uncle Dennis had shot. Uncle Abe hed come up to see 
 us and got off the cars at Charleston, stopped for Uncle Dennis, and 
 they walked over through the w^oods. This wus after Uncle Abe got 
 to be a big man but he looked jest as be allers did and acted jest the 
 same. After he hed sot and talked with us a little while, he went out 
 and begun to chop wood, and that night he writ a long while, tu. Yer 
 see we were allers so glad to hev him come up fur he'd do jest as he use 
 to when he wus a boy and would make us feel so happy. I hev often 
 seen him climb the saplings and twist the limbs and tie 'em together 
 
WHAT THE OLD LOG CABIN REVEALED. 27 
 
 and say, ^Now we'll see how they'll look when I come agin/ I hev 
 seed him do that lots of times. Shore nufif, when he'd come agin he^d 
 hev a good cane. I believe one of these canes that he twisted wus 
 saved and taken to Springfield." 
 
 GRAVES ELEGY 
 
 Mr. Hall now escorted the little party into the cabin, and the abso- 
 lute homeliness and poverty of its interior struck me so painfully that 
 I was reminded of Mr. Lincoln's own words when asked concerning his 
 young days. "Why," said he, "it is a great piece of folly to attempt to 
 make anything out of me or my early life. It can all be put into a 
 single sentence, and that sentence you will find in Gray's Elegy, ^The 
 short and simple annals of the poor.' That's my life, and that's all 
 any one can make of it." 
 
 GRANDMA LINCOLN'S JOHNNY BREAD 
 
 We were obliged to stoop in order to enter the low doorway. We 
 paused and looked about the east room. Silent, so silent, and only the 
 twitter of the swallows, which had builded their nests in the chimney, 
 disturbed the stillness. A huge fireplace greeted us, and the few cook- 
 ing utensils used by the family still stood in their accustomed places. 
 From a long iron hook hung suspended the old pot and near to it 
 stood a cracked and broken tea kettle. In sheer despair I asked if 
 these were all the utensils that the family had for cooking purposes, 
 to which question Mr. Hall proudly and quickly responded. "Oh, no, 
 grandmarm had a nice iron pan which she baked corn bread in. Why, 
 she'd jest stand it up afore the fireplace and as soon as it wus brown 
 she'd slap it right over on tother side, and purty soon we'd hev a cake 
 fit for the king to eat. We allers knowed when we wus goin' to hev 
 corn bread, cause grandpap 'ud take down the corn raker and grate 
 away fur all he wus worth fur a hull afternoon, and then hurrah for 
 the Johnny bread." 
 
 My eyes roamed about and a single glance revealed so much 
 that I could not repress the many questions that filled my mind. 
 Mr. Lincoln did not sleep in this room, did he? I asked. "After 
 
^8 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 he left home and for the first few years," Mr. Hall answered, "he 
 allers slept in the loft, but when he got to be a lawyer he slept on 
 a bunk that we made and put it right over there," pointing to the 
 southwest corner of the new room, "so that he could be near 
 grandpap and grandmarm." Mr. Hall rambled on and told us how 
 "Uncle Abe never did eat much nor had any chise about his vittels. 
 Grandmarm 'ud allers try to fix something defferent for him to eat 
 but he didn^t seem to notice as how she had cooked anything onusual. 
 He allers appeared to be thinking and thinking. I remember one time 
 when he come to visit us, after he got to be a big man and wore a high 
 hat, we killed two or three or four hens and a turkey and the old 
 neighbors come in and brought some more things to eat, and Uncle 
 Abe told 'em curus stories but he seemed jest the same as ever and 
 grandmarm said, squeezing her hands together, I reckon Abe '11 be the 
 President of the United States some day, but Uncle John D. Johnston 
 said, "Sho'j old woman, your brain is cracked." 
 
 THE OLD SPINMING WHEEL 
 
 We now passed into the west room and looked upon the "very spot" 
 where Mr. Lincoln had often slept after "he got to be a big man." In 
 the further corner stood the bedstead upon which the President's 
 father and mother had also slept and upon which they both had died. 
 An old spinning wheel stood near the bedstead; it was now broken 
 and useless, still and silent, a homely and forlorn object. Its silence 
 was sad and pathetic, but listen! again the whir and buzz of the 
 wheel was heard, and in fancy we saw the dear old lady look up from 
 her work and greet the av/kward boy, as he came strolling in and threw 
 himself upon the floor before the fireplace. Could the wheel have 
 spoken and told the story of the days long past, it would have un- 
 folded a tale of pride and joy, for beneath the touch of the mother's 
 hand and the throb of the mother's heart the woof and web of grand 
 apparel was formed. 
 
 THOrVlAS LINCOLN^S FIRST LOVE 
 
 Mr. Hall broke the spell, and we listened for the wonderful tale, 
 but he simply said: "Grandmarm wus a mighty industrous woman. 
 
ABE'S FIRST LECTURE— CRUELTY TO ANIMALS. 
 
THOMAS LINCOLN MOVING. 
 
 Abe wades back and rescues the dog. 
 
WHAT THE OLD LOG CABIN REVEALED. 29 
 
 She never wus idle no how, but allers a doing for somebody else. Ye 
 know she wus grandpapas second wife and Uncle Abe's stepmother, but 
 she never made no difference twixt the two families no how. Why, 
 grandpap ust to court her afore he married Uncle Abe's mother, but 
 somehow they didn't make a go of it for grandpap married Nancy 
 Hanks and grandmarm she man*ied Daniel Johnston, Uncle John D. 
 Johnston's father. Arter a while, you know, grandpap lost his first 
 wife and grandmarm her first husband, and it warn't long afore 
 grandpap went to see her down at Elizabethtown, Kantucky, and they 
 got married right away. Grandmarm ust to say, ^It jest seems as if 
 Providence intended that Tom and me should be hitched together arter 
 all.' Why, none of us knowed that she warn't Uncle Abe^s mother till 
 arter he got to be a man. I hev often heered grandmarm tell how she 
 hed two suits of clothes for her boy when grandpap married her, and 
 to hev Abe as well dressed as her own boys she sewed a piece on the 
 bottom of one of her own boy's pants to make each hev a even suit of 
 clothes, one as much as tother." 
 
 THE BILL OF FARE 
 
 We discussed the cause of lengthening Uncle Abe^s pants and 
 finally settled that he was always "long-geared." 
 
 A summons from the house now informed us that dinner was ready. 
 We were very hungry and promptly obeyed the call and hastened to "the 
 little cottage on the hillside," where a plain but bountiful meal was 
 served. Salt pork and corn bread was the first course, corn bread and 
 salt pork the second course, sorghum, hot biscuits and clabber were 
 served as dessert. During the meal I glanced about cautiously and dis- 
 covered that the room was like the old lady's bag, a receptacle for many 
 things and served many purposes. A large old-fashioned stove stood in 
 the further corner and added more than ten degrees to the summer tem- 
 perature. As I had promised to remain at the home of Mr. Hall and 
 seek from the old neighbors and friends anecdotes of and incidents 
 relating to Mr. Lincoln's early life, there rose before my mental vision 
 the lurid glare of the July sun and the torrid midsummer atmosphere, 
 and I felt inclined to beat a hasty retreat. 
 
30 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 A glance over my shoulder revealing a bed which stood in the corner 
 opposite the stove, untidy and soiled in appearance, did not assist 
 my appetite, and when Sis informed us that "Little Joe and paw slept 
 there" silence reigned, and neither comment nor remark was made by 
 either guests or host. 
 
 THE COUNTRY GIRUS TRUE POLITENESS 
 
 At three in the afternoon two of our party departed. My companion, 
 the "pretty typewriter," and I were left alone with the prospect of a 
 three weeks^ stay. However, before good-byes had been said, we 
 exacted a promise from our friends that they would keep us in reading 
 matter. We watched their retreating figures from the brow of the hill, 
 and with a sense of anticipated loneliness approached the house and 
 sought the companionship of the household. No doubt we looked as we 
 felt, for Sis, the host's daughter, said: "Don't look so sad, I'll do all I 
 ken fur ye all." Miss Coleman and I looked at each other. Shame crept 
 up into our eyes and burned our cheeks. This poor, uneducated girl, 
 with no advantages, no comforts, even lacking the ordinary necessities 
 and delicacies of life, never having been ten miles from her home and 
 always at work from early morning until late in the evening, proposed 
 to comfort us. Surely here was an example of innate culture at last. 
 So we smiled and thanked her, and in our confusion made poor work in 
 trying to tell her that we hoped to make her happy during our stay. 
 
 FEBRUARY 12, 1809 
 
 The afternoon dragged its quiet hours along. Miss Coleman lay 
 upon the cool grass, under the shadow of the spreading oak, and fell 
 asleep, while I reverted to a period long past when there came into the 
 world a little baby boy, born on the twelfth day of February, 1809. 
 
 I wanted to talk about this baby boy, and was impatient to interview 
 Mr. Hall, who no doubt could tell me something of the circumstances 
 of his baby days and early boyhood. 
 
 Time passed and the shadows were lengthening and still Uncle 
 John did not return from his errand at Farmington, w^hither he had 
 gone directly after the departure of our Chicago friends. 
 
WHAT THE OLD LOG CABIN REVEALED. 31 
 
 I strove to recollect all that I had ever read concerning Abraham 
 Lincoln and his early life, but the accounts were meager and homely, 
 and I knew that Mr. Hall would tell me something that had no doubt 
 escaped the historian. 
 
 Mr. Hall tarried, and my impatience became so great that I rose 
 
 and walked about the little yard with rapid step. Kealizing that such 
 
 foolish behavior was unbecoming and unwise I ventured within the 
 
 house and sought out Sis, w^hom I found hard at work in the hot 
 
 kitchen. 
 
 NO TIIVIE FOR FOOLIN^ 
 
 I entreated her to come out of doors, into the fresh, pure air, and 
 try to find rest and comfort. Sis refused, but gave no plausible excuse. 
 Again I besought her, and this time impressed her with the idea that 
 she could interest and entertain me. Again she refused, and I insisted 
 that she should give me a reasonable reason. 
 
 Twisting about on one foot and turning her face away, she finally 
 said, "I h'ain^t got no time for to be foolin'. Paw said I must get some 
 good vittels for the city folks." I looked at the poor, distressed girl, 
 who was tired, hot and embarrassed. She had no conveniences or com- 
 forts, and with no assistance this young woman w^as striving to make 
 her guests satisfied and contented. 
 
 I could not turn away from so much distress and discomfort. Catch- 
 ing sight of an apron lying across a chair I put it on and told her that 
 I should wipe the dishes and continue to help her until her work was 
 finished and she, too, could come out into the cooler atmosphere and 
 pleasant surroundings. 
 
 The pile of dishes soon disappeared and the remainder of the after- 
 noon's work was accomplished. The tired and exhausted girl could 
 now take time to breathe. 
 
 Our short intercourse of work and conversation had given me an 
 insight into the girPs homely but good-natured character. Sis had told 
 me of her beau, of the new calico dress that she was going to have for the 
 picnic down at Berryville, of her hard and lonely labor, and of her desire 
 to go to Charleston, where Uncle Abe used to try his lawsuits. 
 
32 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 Then I asked her if she did not feel glad to know that Mr. Lincoln, 
 the President of the United States, was a relative of hers, though a 
 distant one. Looking at me she said : "Wall, I low that I never thought 
 about that. Paw is allers talking about him, but that^s 'cause he seed 
 him. I never did, and I low 1 wouldn't know him if he should come right 
 inter that door.'* 
 
 Evening was coming on, and the master of the house had not yet 
 returned. Miss Copeland rejoined me and Sis re-entered the house and 
 began preparations for the evening meal. 
 
 Down the road some distance there appeared two figures. They 
 approached and halted at the gate. Entering, the men, whom we novv^ 
 discovered were Mr. Hall and a stranger, came over to rustic seats that 
 had been placed in the front yard, under the one oak tree, and greeted 
 Miss Copeland and myself. 
 
 A FRIEND OF LINCOLN 
 
 Mr. Hall introduced the stranger. He was an aged farmer, who lived 
 about a quarter of a mile north of the old log cabin, and had been a 
 friend of Grandpap Lincoln. 
 
 Now my opportunity had arrived, and I thought that what the 
 younger man did not know about Abraham Lincoln's early childhood 
 days and his forefathers the older man might know. To my surprise 
 and delight the old gentleman's father and mother had moved from the 
 same locality in Kentucky from whence Thomas Lincoln and his family 
 had emigrated when they came to Indiana. The caller informed me 
 that he had often heard the old people talk over together their early 
 days, and he would be glad to tell me all that he could remember. 
 
 From Mr. Hall's homely record of the life in Kentucky, which had 
 been handed down from father to son, no doubt losing many particular^ 
 and the neighbor's recollection, I framed the following account of Abra* 
 ham Lincoln's babyhood and boyhood and his ancestors' history. 
 
CHAPTER 111. 
 
 FAMILY INCIDENTS GATHERED FROM RELATIVES 
 
 IT WAS down in Kentucky that this baby was born, in a rude and 
 homely cabin. This little baby boy came to live with his father 
 and mother and little sister Sarah, but two years older than him- 
 self. His father's father and his mother's father with their families 
 had moved from away "down East in Virginny" some years before and 
 had undertaken to establish homes in a wild and unbroken country. 
 Their fathers before them had also joined the march of immigration, 
 leaving England and seeking a home in the New World, where they 
 might find better and freer conditions. They settled in Massachusetts 
 and lived for some time in New England. Again the ancestors of this 
 poor baby boy sought another new home and they moved to Virginia, 
 where they lived for a period of years. Later the spirit of unrest came 
 upon them, and with friends and neighbors and relatives they jour- 
 neyed to the then far West, Kentucky, where they met with such hard- 
 ships and privations as they had never before encountered. 
 
 THE HOME iN THE WILDERNESS 
 
 The daring and courageous leader of this later day pioneer company, 
 Abraham Lincoln, the grandfather of the baby boy, Abe, secured a few 
 acres of land on Floyd's Creek in Bullitt County, Kentucky, and a cabin 
 was built near a stronghold called Fort Beargrass, now the city of 
 Louisville. The country at this time was an almost unbroken wilder- 
 ness and very few families had settled in that locality. These early 
 pioneers were brave, hardy and venturesome people, for there were 
 many savages in this region, who roamed through the forests; a con- 
 stant terror and treacherous enemy. The red man was now becoming 
 unusually irritated at the white man, whom he thought was taking his 
 land from him, and so sought to stop the white stranger from settling 
 
 33 
 
U THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 by killing him; therefore the Indians made single attack upon the 
 unguarded man or fierce onslaught upon the little settlements. 
 
 THE MURDER OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN'S GRANDFATHER 
 
 The family of Abraham Lincoln, grandfather to President Lincolr, 
 consisted of two daughters and three sons, Mordicai, Josiah and Thomas. 
 With his young boys' assistance the father began to cut down the trees 
 and break up the ground. In the second year of the settlement, Abra- 
 ham Lincoln was at work in the forest and little Thomas was standing 
 near, when an Indian suddenly appeared and attacked the father. 
 
 Believing that the readers of this story will be interested in a rela- 
 tive's recital of the tragedy, I quote Uncle elohn HalFs exact but homely 
 words. 
 
 UNCLE JOHN HALL'S EXACT WORDS 
 
 "Ye see grandpap came nigh being killed tu when he was a 
 little feller; that was when the family lived down in Kantucky. 
 He was out in the woods with his father and his Uncle Mordicai, 
 who was a splitting rails. The little chap was only six years old and 
 was running around picking flowers when he looked up and seed a 
 big red Injun looking him right in the face. The little feller yelled, and 
 grandpapas father started to run for him, when the Injun shot him 
 dead on the spot. Uncle Mordicai seed what had happened, and run 
 for the house, carrying little Tommy with him, getting in just as the 
 Injun was ready for another shot, but he wus tu quick for him. He shet 
 the door and fired from the winder but never knowed whether he killed 
 him or not. The Injun clared out and when Uncle Mordicai went down 
 to the fort to tell the news he follered a track of blood for a long dis- 
 tance, and that wus purty good evidence that somebody had been hurt, 
 anyhow." 
 
 LINCOLN^S FATHER GOES TO ELI2ABETHTOWN 
 
 The poor widow was now left to care for a family of five fatherless 
 children; the times were hard and poverty oppressed the whole country. 
 History tells us that the family moved to Elizabethtown in Kentucky 
 
FAMILY INCIDENTS GATHERED FROM RELATIVES. 35 
 
 where relatives and friends were living. In these small settlements 
 there were no schools, and had there been, the family was too poor to 
 obtain even the meager school advantages of those early days. The chil- 
 dren were poor, ignorant and squalid and Thomas Lincoln grew up lit- 
 erally without education. He could neither read nor write, nor did he 
 ?are to acquire any knowledge. Lazy and shiftless, though a good- 
 Jatured boy, he consequently did not become an industrious nor en- 
 terprising man. As a sort of makeshift, he tried to learn the carpenter's 
 trade, but even at this he made a poor living and was always a working 
 man, only serving others. So the years went by until he reached his 
 twenty-eighth year, when he married a girl named Nancy Hanks, as 
 poor as himself, whose people had also moved from Virginia and settled 
 in Kentucky at about the same time that Thomas Lincoln's father did. 
 
 MARRIAGE OF NANCY HANKS AND THOMAS LINCOLN 
 
 There was no announcement of the engagement as there is to-day. 
 Neither were there wedding guests nor bridal festivities, but the two 
 were simply married and went to housekeeping in a dilapidated and 
 miserable log cabin which stood on a small tract of land in La Rue 
 County, Kentucky, The log hut overlooked a bright little stream called 
 Nolin's Creek, a pretty place, for the natural scenery was picturesque 
 and beautiful. Thomas Lincoln did not improve with age nor with 
 increasing responsibilities. He was still the same kind and genial "fel- 
 low," but grew more and more shiftless and good for nothing as the 
 years rolled on. The farm was "rocky and weedy and scrubby," and 
 he did not cultivate the soil nor "fix up" the old shanty. He was a 
 carpenter without a trade, a farmer without any crops, and a man with- 
 out energy or ambition. He loved to tell stories, to make the boys laugh, 
 and thus his precious and valuable time was wasted and lost forever. 
 
 THE NEW BABY BOY 
 
 His wife was really a superior woman for those days. She could 
 read and write and was sweet and gentle in her manners and speech. 
 She loved the woods, the singing birds and the running vines and 
 fragrant flowers. Her household duties were so few that no doubt she 
 
36 THE SrORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 spent many hours communing with nature, talking to the birds and 
 flowers and longing for a different, a sweeter, a better and a more joyful 
 life. One day there came into her life a baby girl, and now the poor, 
 sad-eyed mother had something to love. The little one came to cheer 
 and comfort, although its lot was hard and uncomfortable. The times 
 grew harder and money scarcer, and still the father did not strive to 
 lift the burden or assist his wife in her household cares. The miser- 
 able cabin was falling down, and even unfit for a stable, when one 
 cold February day, but a little more than a year after the birth of the 
 first child, a baby boy came to the miserable home. The homely 
 little stranger was given a hearty welcome and no doubt the sick 
 mother, as she clasped the new-born baby to her tender bosom, pictured 
 the future years, and saw him a fine grown man, her pride, her 
 comfort and her support. Some day this birthspot will be the mecca 
 towards which thousands and thousands will journey to pay homage 
 to the memory of the great emancipator, the nation's chieftain and the 
 
 Martyred President. 
 
 DENNIS HANKS SEES THE BABY 
 
 The news went back to the little berg of Elizabethtown, and the 
 neighbors and relatives hurried out to see Nancy Hanks' "little red baby 
 boy," as his cousin, Dennis Hanks, called him. The child seemed quite 
 a wonder to his relatives, for at a very early age he gave evidence of un- 
 usual attractiveness for even his baby homeliness and infantile uncouth- 
 ness commanded attention. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE BOY ABE AND HIS ANGEL MOTHER 
 
 ABRAHAM LINCOLN never forgot his mother, and his earliest 
 recollection of her, was of sitting at her feet with his sister Sarah 
 and listening to the tales and legends which she either read or 
 related to her little family. His most vivid impression of his mother 
 was her life of hardship, of toil and of unremitting anxiety. Yet in her 
 restricted way she did everything for her family. She could handle a 
 gun as well as a man, and many a time she brought down game, either 
 bird or animal, which she skinned and dressed and cooked for her chil- 
 dren's food, while the skins of the larger game were cured and made 
 into clothing for her family. The boy loved and revered his mother 
 and thought that she could do everything, and so she did. With all 
 the monotony of homely toil and daily labor she found time to teach 
 her boy, "Little Abe," to read, and gave him daily instruction from 
 the Bible. While she was working herself to death, and she and her 
 family suffering for even the bare necessities of life, yet she was laying 
 for her little son the foundations of that truth and honor and goodness 
 and sympathy which ever after endeared him tO' the hearts of his family, 
 his friends, his neighbors, and his associates, and the nation mourned 
 when their beloved joined the procession of Silent Witnesses. 
 
 THE NEW LOG CABIN 
 
 When Abraham Lincoln was about four years old his father, in 
 some way which no one has been able to explain, obtained a much 
 larger and better farm. It was only a few miles distant from 
 the poor little patch of ground that the family had formerly occupied. 
 It was even more beautifully located than the old place and was situated 
 upon the banks of a stream called Knob Greek, at a point where it joined 
 another small stream, called Piolling Fork. 
 
 37 
 
38 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 A more substantial log house was built, and Mrs. Lincoln hoped 
 that this tract of land would be worked into a good farm, but alas, 
 Thomas Lincoln did not cut short his story telling hours nor cease to 
 engage in his hunting trips; so only a small portion of the land was 
 cleared and merely enough food raised to sustain life. 
 
 ABE^S FIRST SCHOOL 
 
 Surrounded by these hard and comfortless conditions, Abraham 
 Lincoln grew into boyhood. He had received no advantages; had had 
 none of the childish pleasures that make the child-home seem to men 
 in after years a castle of delight and ever-recurring joy. There was a 
 little log school house quite eight miles distant from the home of Abra- 
 ham Lincoln, and although his mother was discouraged and nearly 
 broken down with labor of the roughest and severest kind, yet she 
 insisted that her children should go to school, and thus deprived herself 
 of their oftentimes helpful assistance. The scrawny, half-fed little fel- 
 low and his sister trudged off through the forest to the rude and com- 
 fortless school house, with nothing but com bread to eat. The journey 
 was tiresome and the instruction that the children obtained from 
 the untutored schoolmaster of that day, and that rough, unsettled 
 country, was very unsatisfactory. This kind of schooling was all 
 that Abraham Lincoln ever received, and all put together would not 
 comprise twelve months. The boys of to-day who have so many advant- 
 ages, opportunities and comforts, can hardly understand how Abraham 
 Lincoln became the great lawyer, the distinguished statesman, the na- 
 tion's ruler and the kindly gentleman, that graced the executive man- 
 sion; whose strong and forceful character made him dictator over distin- 
 guished statesmen ; whose pitying soul urged him to liberate an enslaved 
 race; and whose wisdom and prudence and integrity and honesty of 
 purpose enabled him to restore to peace and prosperity and reunion a 
 
 divided country. 
 
 ABE PLAYS TRUANT 
 
 TTiis queer and curious little fellow living on Knob Creek did not 
 have any amusement or entertainment except such as originated in 
 his own mind. He had naturally inherited some of his father's traits 
 
THE BOY ABE AND HIS ANGEL MOTHER, 39 
 
 of character, and did not really like to work, consequently often 
 
 concluded to lay off. Then he would stray away into the woods and 
 
 watch the birds and animals and all the life that fills a great forest; by 
 
 so doing he worried and frightened his poor mother, who* was often 
 
 obliged to hunt him up. 
 
 LITTLE JOE 
 
 As the clock struck seven we were called to supper, where the 
 former bill of fare was duplicated, with the addition of cherry 
 pie for a wind-up. During the evening meal the door was uncere- 
 moniously opened and in walked the eldest son, named Squire for 
 his Grandfather Hall, but called "Bud" for short. We exchanged 
 greetings; the stalwart young fellow was hardly seated, when in 
 came the baby of the family, "Little Joe," a stripling of fourteen 
 years of age, who told us that he intended to "see something of the 
 world, and was coming up to visit Chicago some day." 
 
 YOUNG ABE 
 
 Again our meal was interrupted by another arrival, and a quiet 
 lad with solemn mien entered and silently sat him down. Our host 
 introduced us and said to the boy, "Abe, speak to the ladies." We soon 
 discovered that this sixteen-year-old boy was the namesake of his illus- 
 trious ancestor, but after carefully scanning every feature and linea- 
 ment, we failed to trace the slightest resemblance. Nothing seemed 
 to indicate the relationship, except the lad's awkward and clumsy 
 
 manners. 
 
 MILKED DRY / 
 
 Retiring from the supper table we went into the front room, 
 where the entire family had gathered to listen to the tale^ that their 
 father might relate concerning their revered relative. In answer to 
 my questions, Mr. Hall politely and kindly responded, and when I sug- 
 gested that he might have heard from old Mrs. Lincoln some anecdotes 
 of the President's childhood he said: "So many writing people have 
 been around thru the country that I reckon the family and relatives 
 are all milked dry," but without further objection he pointed to a 
 picture of Mr. Lincoln, in a very cheap and homely frame, hanging on 
 
40 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 the wall, and said; "He is a purty solemn looking feller, ain't he?" The 
 question rather surprised and puzzled me. I admitted the fact that he 
 was a serious looking man, but suggested that Mr. Lincoln no doubt 
 played and frolicked like other little boys when he was a child. 
 
 THE PRAYER MEETING 
 
 "I reckon not," Mr. Hall answered, "for grandmarm said, 'even when 
 he wus a little feller he wus allers odd and quiet and curous, and onct 
 w^hen he wus a very little boy he got holt of a sermon book, and when 
 he wus out with the childern he carried the book with him in his pocket 
 and proposed to the childern to hev a little meetin', and so he got on a 
 log or a stump and preached out of the book. Then he'd call on his 
 step-sister to sing, after he hed preached, jest as they do to church; and 
 then he would pray to God to give the chickens shoes and stockings fur 
 their little feet, because he wus affeared they would freeze.' 
 
 HOW THE PRESIDENT WAS SAVED 
 
 "I hev heerd Grandpap Lincoln tell many a time that after he got 
 a little older and begun to read some, he'd never play with the other 
 childern, but allers wanted to be readin', and was not satisfied either 
 till he know^'d how to write, and that Uncle Dennis Hanks showed 
 him how to write with a pen made from a buzzard's quill, that some 
 of the men down in Kantucky had shot. Uncle Dennis also said, 'that 
 the feller that taught school down near Uncle Abe's home didn't know 
 much more than them that couldn't teach school, and so most of the 
 boys played hookey. Uncle Abe with the rest, though he was a little 
 feller.' One day when Uncle Abe was about seven years old he thought 
 he'd play in the woods instead of going to school, and when it was 
 about time for school to let out Uncle Abe started for hum alone, and 
 of course had no one to help him cross the creek, which wus between 
 his father's and the school-house. It was a warm summer afternoon 
 and Uncle Dennis was picking some berries, when he looked up, and 
 who should he see but little Abe a tryin' to go across the log over Knob 
 Creek. Uncle Dennis has often told me many a time about it, and he 
 allers said: 'I made up my mind to watch him, 'cause I knowed he wus 
 
THE BOY ABE AND HIS ANGEL MOTHER, 41 
 
 g^in' to fall off that log, and the creek was mighty deep and swift, so I 
 
 laid still and waited, and shore null, up w mt his heels and down went 
 
 his head plump into the water. I jest jumped into the creek and pulled 
 
 him out and ran with him in my arms to Aunt Nancy%, and told her to 
 
 roll little Abe on her knees till he puked up the water that he'd swal- 
 
 lered. It wus a good while before the water come up, but when it did he 
 
 wus all right/ Then Uncle Dennis would laugh and say, 'If it hadn't 
 
 been fer me the United States wouldn't have hed Abe Lincoln fer a 
 
 President.' " 
 
 A RELATIVE OF LINCOLN'S 
 
 At the close of the recital of this little anecdote concerning the 
 rescue of the "President," I asked Mr. Hall how Uncle Dennis was re- 
 lated to President Lincoln? He thought for a while and then said, 
 "Wall, I believe Uncle Dennis' mother and Uncle Abe^s mother wus 
 sisters." 
 
 Mr. Hall's family, as well as Miss Coleman and myself, were so inter- 
 ested in the homely stories, which so pathetically depicted the severe 
 and lonely and uncomfortable life that came to Mr. Lincoln and his 
 parents, that we continued to call for more anecdotes, but Mr. Hall 
 refused and said, "poor folks have to go to bed early and get up with 
 the sun." 
 
 The clock struck the hour of nine, and my host commanded the 
 boys to retire, while Sis informed us that breakfast would be served 
 at five o'clock next morning. My companion glanced at me in dismay, 
 but I advised her to look upon all the vicissitudes of life with calmness, 
 and begged her to believe that all things work together for good. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 MORE ANECDOTES 
 
 AT HALF past four the family began to stir about and at five 
 o'clock we were told that "breakfast was ready and on the table.*' 
 Our food was a repetition of the day before. 
 Mr. HalFs absence was commented upon, and before I had ceased 
 speaking a voice saluted us. Looking about I discovered an old man's 
 head just emerging from under the coverlid. In response to our good 
 morning and are you not feeling well, Mr. Hall said, "Wall, no, not right 
 smart," and "little Joe" offered the information that "Paw allers drank 
 his coffee in bed and didn't get up with the chickens." I did not appre- 
 ciate the force of the remark until a little later. 
 
 THE DOOR-YARD FAMILY 
 
 From this time on and during the entire visit we had company, and 
 
 plenty of it, too ; always at meal time. Although unbidden, our guests 
 
 were not abashed, and when we unceremoniously (for we all joined in) 
 
 tried to drive them out, there seemed to be no hard feeling, for our 
 
 visitors continued to make strenuous attempts to enter. I am now 
 
 speaking of the door-yard family; geese, ducks and chickens walked 
 
 boldly in, and the c(i>^ilintious efforts of the family to keep them out 
 
 suggested the thought that some one with a gigantic brain might have 
 
 utilized oar proceedings, and perpetual motion would have been a 
 
 verified fact. 
 
 PAYING THE INTEREST 
 
 The delightfully cool morning enticed us out of doors and we went 
 out into the fresh sweet air. All nature was astir, and we delighted 
 in the early rising; a lovely sight greeted our vision. My eyes roamed 
 over the beautiful landscape, and in fancy I saw a young man crossing 
 
 42 
 
MORE ANECDOTES. 43 
 
 the fields. His head was bowed, his gait was awkward, and he did not 
 pause, but seemed bent upon a purpose which brooked no delay. 
 
 My dreaming was interrupted by Mr. Hall, who came up beside me. 
 I volunteered a question, "I suppose Mr. Lincoln has stood many times 
 just where I am now standing?" "Why, bless ye, of course he has," 
 said Mr. Hall. "He has roamed all over these fields. He allers walked 
 right across here when he went to pay the interest for Grandpap Lin- 
 coln, who had borrowed from the school funds, and Uncle Abe use to 
 come down every six months and pay off the interest. A heap of times 
 he would walk from the cabin up to the head of Indian Creek, about 
 six miles away, and see that the interest wus paid. He done that until 
 he hed money enough to pay the hull debt, and kept up the interest, tu." 
 
 THE FAMOUS HOUSE AT FARMINGTON 
 
 We walked about the yard for some time, I questioning and Mr. 
 Hall answering, until at last my host, pointing to a little cluster of 
 houses about half a mile down the road, said, "That's Farmington," and 
 singling out a particular house, gave me the interesting information 
 that Mr. Lincoln had made a speech there "after he got to be the Presi- 
 dent of the United States." 
 
 I begged him to tell me all about the occasion, but to my astonish- 
 ment he declined. After a few moments of silent thought he brushed 
 his hand across his cheek and said, "Pll take ye down there some time 
 and then I'll tell ye what Uncle Abe said to the wimmin folks, but not 
 
 now, not now." 
 
 LIKE THOMAS LINCOLN 
 
 The sun had steadily climbed into the blue sky, not a cloud 
 obscured its face, its hot and fervid rays were scorching the 
 already dry and parched earth. Uncle John Hall, as I was already 
 learning to call him, suggested that we had better get "inter the shade^' 
 saying, "Let's go into the house and rest a bit. I reckon the boys can 
 do the chores and tend to the crops." In this he was like Thomas 
 Lincoln! His manner attracted my attention and a searching look at 
 the old man revealed a startling similarity to that illustrious relative. 
 He did indeed resemble Abraham Lincoln. 
 
44 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 THE MIXED-UP FAMILY 
 
 Since becoming an inmate of Mr. HalPs family I had learned that 
 he was a grandson of Abraham Lincoln's step-mother, but knew that con- 
 nection could not make him a relative of the dead President. When I 
 recalled my first greeting I smiled to think how my imagination had 
 clothed him with a resemblance to Mr. Lincoln, who was simply a 
 connection. After having questioned him regarding this matter, Mr. 
 Hall said, "So I am related to Uncle Abe, tu. My father wus his first 
 cousin, but just how it came about 'twould take a lawyer to tell, for 
 our family is so mixed up," and then he talked of his father^s and moth- 
 er's life with the Lincolns, and how he "allers" lived with Grandmarm 
 Lincoln, until interrupted by the approach of unexpected visitors. 
 
 UNEXPECTED VISITORS 
 
 A gentleman and two young women entered the cottage and were 
 introduced to me, by Mr. Hall, as Dr. Williams and his daughters, Mary 
 and Ellen. 
 
 The father was the physician who lived in the little town of Farm- 
 ington just north of Mr. HalPs residence, and learning the cause of my 
 visit, came to tell me that he and his family occupied the "very house 
 in which Mr. Lincoln dined on that eventful day in December, 1860, after 
 his election to the Presidency — and where he addressed the neighbors 
 and all the people round about." 
 
 The doctor and his daughters extended a cordial invitation "to 
 come and see for yourself," an invitation that was quickly accepted, and 
 thus the promised story was not to be related until we both went down 
 to the now historical house at Farmington. 
 
 BILL WATKINS 
 
 As they departed. Sis called to her father from the adjoining room, 
 saying, "hurry up, for Bill Watkins wants you to come to the back door." 
 The old man did not offer to move, and said in an undertone, "Bill's sweet 
 on the gal and won't be disappointed if I don't put in a show." 
 
 The temperature was steadily increasing and the flies were about 
 
Andirons bought in Kentucky and brought by Thomas Lincoln and family to Indiana 
 and later to Illinois, where they were used in the old log cabin. 
 
ABRAHAM LINCOLN'S BABYHOOD. 
 
MORE ANECDOTES. 45 
 
 the room in perfect swarms. From the kitchen came a strong and 
 odorous scent suggestive of burning grease. Mr. Hall had fallen asleep 
 in his chair, which was tilted back against the rough and unpapered 
 wall. A broken looking-glass hung between the windows, and a yellow 
 cur lay on the weather-beaten doorstep. 
 
 DAD, WAKE UP 
 
 Sis tip-toed into the room, her sleeves rolled up to the elbows, her 
 dress unfastened at the neck and her cheeks aflame. She paused be- 
 fore the plain, old-fashioned deal table that stood underneath the look- 
 ing glass and quietly pulled out a shallow drawer. A small package 
 was taken out and laid upon the stand, then the girl pulled down her 
 ileeves, smoothed her hair with her hands and pinned together the 
 band at the neck of her dress. Unfastening the bundle, she tied a 
 flaming red ribbon about her throat. Turning around she punched 
 her father and called out in a loud voice, "Dad, wake up." Then, with a 
 smile and with a toss of her head said, "Bill's going to stay for dinner.*' 
 
 We filed out into the hot room, where we found Mr. Watkins looking 
 as ebeepish and guilty as Sis looked red and conscious. 
 
 The meal was begun in silence, only the rattle of dishes and the buzz 
 of insects disturbed the stillness. It seemed almost impossible that such 
 uncomfortable conditions, such a total lack of necessities could exist 
 at the present time, and we could hardly imagine a much more wretched 
 and cheerless situation; yet Mr. Lincoln's childhood and manhood were 
 passed amid scenes of much greater poverty and squalor. 
 
 His vicissitudes and uncomfortable surroundings were those of an 
 earlier and ruder time, in which there seemed no chance of improve- 
 ment. A time when a bare living was hard to get, when the comforts 
 of home and the advantages of education were almost undreamed of. 
 
 It was these very hardships and sacrifices that laid the foundation 
 of his greatness. The lack of pleasure, the dearth of books, the 
 absence of a comfortable home, made him struggle to secure 
 Tvhat the pampered and wealthy boy often throws away, and 
 achieve what the idle and worthless young man can never accomplish. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 NO BARRIERS TO GREATNESS 
 
 BACK to the old Kentucky home let us go and find out still more 
 about little Abe and his parents. 
 
 We must never lose sight of the fact that though Thomas 
 Lincoln was shiftless and idle and lazy and poor, and his wife hard- 
 working and no doubt a very plain and unpromising woman, yet they 
 both had taught their little children the moral code; to tell the truth, 
 to be honest, faithful and fearless in right doing. 
 
 LITTLE ABE WOULD NOT TELL A LIE 
 
 It was told to me bv Mr. Hall that Grandmam Lincoln had related 
 
 to him a story that some of the family had told her about Mr. Lincoln 
 
 when he was a very young boy. "It seems that," as Mr. Hall tells it, 
 
 "onct grandfather wus tellin' a story about somethin' that happened 
 
 one day, when little Abe spoke up and said, Taw, that wus not jest 
 
 the way it wus,' and then his father turned around and slapped him. 
 
 It made the water come out of his eyes in tears like, and he went out 
 
 and did not come back for some time; then some one said, ^Where is 
 
 Abe gone?' and they all looked out and seed him a peakin' through 
 
 the fence and whistling. They all expected to find him cryin' and 
 
 sniveling, but no sir, you see he had good grit even when he was a little 
 
 Bhaver." 
 
 THE LIFE OF A ROVER 
 
 The every day life of the Lincoln family was homely, uneventful 
 and exceedingly monotonous. Thomas Lincoln was always working 
 for others, neglecting his family and his own interests. The push and 
 energy of his forefathers seemed to have deserted him and he never 
 engaged in any enterprise that showed self-reliance or venture, beyond 
 the idea of simply starting out and leading the life of a rover — hunting 
 and fishing, and so the days went on. 
 
 46 
 
NO BARRIERS TO GREATNESS, 47 
 
 SEEKING HIS FORTUNE 
 
 At last, however, he ventured, and, securing a small boat load of 
 produce, undertook to try his hand at taking the raft down the creek 
 to the Ohio River, where he hoped to dispose of his cargo. He loaded 
 up the small, rude raft, fastened it to the shore and decided to wait 
 for another day before starting out on his unknown journey. He 
 arose early the next morning and went down to the creek. Did his 
 eyes deceive him? There was nothing to be seen. His craft and its 
 load had disappeared. He did not suspect any of his friends or neigh- 
 bors, for in those days our pioneer fathers did not rob one another — 
 they assisted and befriended each other. Finally his wife suggested 
 that "maybe the raft had sunk," and after a thorough search, there 
 the old scow was discovered at the bottom of the roaring creek, a total 
 wreck and its load ruined. Thomas Lincoln did not repine, but simply 
 said, "Luck is agin me." 
 
 After a year or more, in some unaccountable way the spirit of emu- 
 lation again came over him, and he either forgot all about his lost vessel 
 and its contents or else he concluded to reap the reward of experience. 
 At any rate he was determined to follow the example of one of his 
 relatives who had just returned from New Orleans with a "fortune." 
 
 A PAIR OF SHARPERS 
 
 Mr. John Hall told me the following incident of Thomas Lincoln's 
 life, which he said Abraham Lincoln had related to him at a time 
 when he was on a visit at his old home and after he became a member 
 of Congress. Mr. Lincoln, in substance, said: "Father often told me 
 of the trick that was played upon him by a ^pair of sharpers.' It was 
 the year before we moved from Kentucky to Indiana that father con- 
 cluded to take a load of pork down to New Orleans. He had a consid- 
 erable amount of his own, and he bargained with the relatives and 
 neighbors for their pork, so that altogether he had quite a load. He 
 took the pork to the Ohio River on a clumsily constructed flat boat of 
 his own make. Almost as soon as he pushed out into the river a couple 
 ( f sleek fellows bargained with him for his cargo, and promised to meet 
 
48 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 him in New Orleans where they arranged to pay him the price 
 agreed upon. He eagerly accepted the offer, transferred the cargo 
 to the strangers and drifted down the river, his head filled with 
 visions of wealth and delight. He thought that he was going 
 to accomplish what he had set out to do without labor or incon- 
 venience. Father waited about New Orleans for several days, but failed 
 to meet his whilom friends. At last it dawned upon him that he had 
 been sold, and all that he could do was to come back home and face the 
 music. Now came the most disastrous turn in my father's life, for he 
 was obliged to sell his place to pay for the pork that he had secured 
 from the relatives and neighbors. This unfortunate affair was the 
 cause of our removal to Indiana, where we all suffered such extreme 
 hardships and privations." 
 
 THE HAND OF PROVIDENCE 
 
 Mr. Hall and I talked for some time of the misfortune and poverty 
 that came to the family, and I gathered from the conversation that 
 Thomas Lincoln would never acknowledge that his misfortune and ill- 
 luck wa« the natural result of his own indolence and thriftlessness; 
 but would always excuse himself by saying: "'Twas the hand o' Prov- 
 idence laid upon me," and then he would quote from the Bible, "Whom 
 the Lord loveth he chasteneth." "Many a time grandpap has said to 
 me, *Why, everything that I ever teched either died, got killed or was 
 lost,' and then he would tell of poor luck and misfortune by the 
 
 bushel. 
 
 THE UNTIWIELY DEATH OF A HORSE 
 
 "He also onct told me that when he lived in Indiana they got so 
 poor that they hadn't anything to feed their horses with, and grandpap 
 turned them out to browse, but when he went to look for 'em, there 
 wus one hangin' up in a tree stun dead. Somehow in kickin' flies his 
 hind foot had got caught in the branches and there it hung with not 
 a atom of life in it." I relate this story as it was told to me, but must 
 let my little readers judge of its truthfulness. 
 
 Pausing and looking up at me, Mr. Hall questioned in a 
 dreamy and mysterious manner, "Do you believe that some folks 
 
NO BARRIERS TO GREATNESS. 
 
 49 
 
 is born to ill fortune, because their father's before 'em did some- 
 thing they hadn't ought to?" He did not wait for my reply, but crossing 
 his long legs and tipping his chair back against the wall, he looked me 
 straight in the face, and seemed to be answering his own question. 
 "Uncle Abe once said to me, ^John, I am almost inclined to believe 
 that the curse of God rests upon my family.' " 
 
 NOTHING BUT POVERTY 
 
 The many sad and unpleasant tales that had been related 
 to me by Uncle John Hall divested life of its pleasures, and I 
 longed to discover some funny incident or romantic story con- 
 cerning the Lincoln family. When I suggested to my host that he 
 had overlooked the humorous side of the family history, he shook 
 his head and said, "Thare wus nothing but poverty and work 
 and misfortune for our family. Don't you remember what Uncle Abe 
 said to a writing man that came to Springfield to make a book of Uncle 
 Abe and his family after he was elected the President?" Having for- 
 gotten, I asked to have my memory refreshed. Mr. Hall reached for 
 the Life and Public Services of Abraham Lincoln, and again I read 
 the quotation, from Gray's Elegy, "The short and simple annals of the 
 poor," that Mr. Lincoln gave to the historian. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 THE NEW HOME-VISIONS OF PROSPERITY 
 
 AVERY unfortunate and disastrous circumstance came into 
 Thomas Lincoln's life when Abraham Lincoln was about nine 
 years old. The farm was sold and the family were without a 
 roof of their own. Thomas Lincoln concluded that he would leave 
 Kentucky altogether and try to find some place where he could get 
 a better living. The spirit of unrest and adventure was now upon him. 
 He set to work with little Abe^s help and built a raft, which he intended 
 to float down the Rolling Fork to the Ohio River and then land some- 
 where, for he had no definite idea concerning the terminus of his 
 
 journey. 
 
 THE SHSPWRECK 
 
 He had heard marvelous stories of the wealth that could be amassed 
 and of the rich and fertile land that could be secured if one could only 
 get into the State of "Indiany." He had sold his Kentucky farm, con- 
 sisting of two hundred acres and his little log cabin for twenty dollars 
 in money and twenty barrels of whisky. Whisky in those days was a 
 medium of exchange for food, clothing, tools, cattle, lands and houses, 
 and was worth about twenty- five dollars a barrel. It will not take very 
 long for either a school girl or boy to figure out how much Thomas Lin- 
 coln received for his property. He paid his debts, arranged to leave his 
 home and started out to seek his fortune. All of the furniture except 
 just what the family could get along with was put on to the raft, to- 
 gether with what he had left of the w^hisky, after paying up the "hog 
 debt," and his kit of carpenter's tools. The boat was pushed off and 
 another possible Columbus set out to discover and possess an unknown 
 country. But this later day boatman was not so well equipped as the 
 earlier voyager was. His craft was unseaworthy and clumsy, and no 
 seamen accompanied him. He was obliged to command and obey, but 
 
 50 
 
THE NEW HOME-VISIONS OF PROSPERITY. 51 
 
 all went well until he reached the Ohio River. Here his raft became 
 unmanageable and Thomas Lincoln, whisky, furniture and tools were 
 dumped into the river. 
 
 How he ever managed to rescue any of his cargo was a mystery, but 
 with the aid of some men who were living along the shore he succeeded 
 in fishing out two barrels of whisky, his kit of carpenter^s tools and 
 part of his furniture. These he loaded on to an ox cart and took them 
 back into the State of Indiana, about thirteen miles north of the Ohio 
 River. Here he found a settler's cabin, where he left his load of goods 
 until he should return and claim them. 
 
 THE FATHER^S RETURN 
 
 During the absence of the father, the boy Abe managed to get 
 enough to eat for himself, his mother and sister by snaring birds, catch- 
 ing fish and picking berries. At last, after weeks of weary waiting, and 
 almost believing that they would never again see their father and hus- 
 band, the family were surprised one day when Thomas Lincoln walked 
 into the cabin and began to tell them wonderful stories of the prom- 
 ised land. 
 
 THE PROMISED LAND 
 
 His raft wa:; aestroyed and he had no money, so there was no other 
 way for himself and family to reach the promised land other than 
 "foot it," as Thomas Lincoln expressed it. It did not take the Lincolns 
 many hours to pack their household effects; a few pots, pans, kettles, 
 and bed clothing comprised the entire stock. A span of horses was 
 borrowed from one of the neighbors, and the bedding and cooking uten- 
 sils were packed upon the backs of the horses. The poor and desolate 
 family started out through an unknown forest for their new home 
 ninety miles away. Through thicket and underbrush, fording creeks, 
 living like gypsies, and plodding along like tramps, they made slow 
 headway. 
 
 If any of the family enjoyed this journey through the primeval 
 forest it was the children, of course, and no doubt Little Abe made the 
 best of the situation. We can easily imagine him gathering fagots, 
 
52 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 and building a fire for his mother, while she broiled the prairie chicken 
 and his sister picked the sweet wild berries. 
 
 THE ESCAPE 
 
 With all the unfortunate circumstances that now surrounded them 
 it seemed as if the very fates conspired to add to their unhappiness and 
 disappointment. The following story, told by Mr. Hall, will verify the 
 preceding statement: 
 
 "Though Grandpap Lincoln wus oncommon oneasy and allers mov- 
 ing about, he tried to keep his family in hog meat, and when he moved 
 from Kantucky to Indiany he took along quite a drove of hogs. Uncle 
 Abe wus a little shaver then, and be wus told to keep the hogs into 
 line, but that wus rather a hard thing to do, fur there was no path 
 to foller and every now and then some wildcat or painter would ^tackle 
 'em.' One night wild animals and other varmints scared 'em so terribly 
 that they all run away, and when grandpap and the rest of the family 
 woke up in the morning the hogs had all gone, the Lord only knowed 
 where. That wus an awful disappointment, for grandpap thought 
 they had meat nuff fer the whole winter." Had there not been a pitiful 
 side to the story as well as a humorous one I should have laughed im- 
 moderately. 
 
 THE RETURN 
 
 Never for a moment anticipating that their drove of hogs were ever 
 heard from again, and in a joking rather than a serious manner, I asked 
 Mr. Hall if the journey of the hog family ever came to light? He guf- 
 fawed and said, "You bet! After grandpap and the rest of the family 
 hed got settled in Indiany, grandpap hed a letter from an old neighbor 
 in Kantucky telling him that his hogs were all back at the old place, 
 and shore nuff, they hed swum the Ohio River and gone back to Kan- 
 tucky. Well, grandpap, after a little while, put out for Kantucky and 
 druv the hull pack back to Indiany." 
 
 NANCY LINCOLN^S DISAPPOINTIViENT 
 
 The journey had been long and wearisome and oftentimes danger- 
 ous, yet the pilgrims finally reached the settler's cabin where Thomas 
 Lincoln had stored his load of shipwrecked goods. 
 
THE NEW HOME-VISIONS OF PROSPERITY, 53 
 
 And now we can imagine the disappointment of the wife and chil- 
 dren when they found that the land which Thomas Lincoln had de- 
 scribed in such glowing words was not yet discovered. 
 
 The family started out again the next morning, and cutting their 
 way through tangled underbrush, often so dense and knotty that it 
 seemed almost impossible to make a path, they became too weary to 
 proceed further, and determined to take up a squatter^s claim almost 
 anywhere. The family had now tramped eight miles beyond the set- 
 tler^s home, when the tired and footsore father, mother and young chil- 
 dren took possession of an opening located in Spencer County, Indiana, 
 about a mile and a half from the present town of Gentryville. 
 
 THE SQUATTER^S CLAIM 
 
 Though a pleasant place on a grassy knoll, and near a limpid stream 
 of water, yet the weary family did not enjoy the rural scene nor antici- 
 pate future possibilities. The father consoled his little family by telling 
 them that the land was rich, the forest was full of game, the river 
 alive with fish, the ground was covered with flowers, the vines were 
 loaded with wild and delicious berries and all they needed to do now 
 was to settle down and make themselves "tu hum." But alas! where 
 was the home? No roof to shelter them from the noonday sun or the 
 
 pitiless rain. 
 
 THE NEW HOME 
 
 The first thing to do was to build a house, and now the father and 
 the nine-year-old boy set to work to build a cabin. Thomas Lincoln was 
 a carpenter, but he was too indolent to construct a comfortable log 
 house, and he did not even build a decent habitation. He thought a 
 half-faced cabin would do until he found time to build a more com- 
 fortable house. The family all set to work to "put up" a covering that 
 ihould shield them from the rain and coming winter storms. There 
 were four corner posts, the two rear ones being higher than the front 
 ones, and upon their forked tops four smaller posts were placed. These 
 formed the edges of the roof, while between was put a row of good- 
 sized poles, and to these were fastened thin slabs that Thomas Lincoln 
 made with a draw knife. Around the three sides were set up smaller 
 
54 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 poles, close together, while the cracks were chinked with chips and 
 clay. The front of the cabin was protected by deer skins, which kept 
 out the rain but not the cold, damp air. This was the habitation that 
 Abraham Lincoln lived in for more than a year. 
 
 THE HOIYIE-SYIADE SUIT 
 
 The future President of the United States was only ten years old 
 now, but a strong and unusually large boy of his age. He was a long- 
 legged, uncouth little fellow. His hair was black and thick and un- 
 kempt, his face was thin and emaciated and his skin tanned and yellow 
 from his out-door life and lack of care. But his muscles were tough 
 and hard. He could stand hardships and privations, and neces^ty 
 had taught him much ingenuity. His shirts were home-spun and were 
 woven by his mother, and colored with a dye which she made from 
 roots and barks. He had deer-skin breeches and a blouse made from 
 the same material. When he did not go barefoot he wore moccasins, 
 also made by his mother. His cap was a queer looking affair and was 
 fashioned from a coon skin with the tail of the animal hanging down 
 the back of his neck. This strange head covering did not add to his 
 general appearance. 
 
 A BED OF LEAVES 
 
 The monotony of the boy's daily life, and lack of comforts, would 
 be unendurable to the boys of to-day, who have comfortable homes, 
 amusements, recreation, and all the educational benefits of the present 
 public school system. But such was pioneer life ninety years ago — 
 the men and women were rough, careless, uncultivated and uncouth, 
 and the children were rude, untidy and ignorant. 
 
 The life that the Lincoln family lived in the shanty on Little Pigeon 
 Creek was indeed rough, and not only devoid of comfort and cleanliness, 
 but even lacked the common necessities of existence, while the decencies 
 of life were entirely ignored. There was no floor, and so the family 
 lived, walked and slept on the bare ground. Their beds were nothing 
 but heaps of dried leaves, which were gathered by the mother and 
 her little children — and only now and then changed for fresh ones. 
 
THE NEW HOME-VISIONS OF PROSPERITY. 55 
 
 YOUNG ABE^S ASPIRATIONS 
 
 The life that young Abe and his sister led was lonely and homely 
 enough in that wilderness. Yet this very loneliness and utter lack 
 of recreation and amusement forced the boy to think. He was always 
 a thoughtful little man, and here was the opportunity to do a great 
 deal of thinking. He would go out into the forest that surrounded 
 his home and lie on his back, look up into the sky and — just think. 
 His mother had read to him everything that she could get hold of and 
 had told him the oft-repeated tales of great people that she in her youth 
 had read of and heard of. 
 
 Young Abe had some knowledge that there was an outside world, 
 and that there were great men, who had performed brave deeds, val- 
 iant soldiers v/ho had led their men to victory; that there were also 
 beautiful and accomplished women and lovely homes filled with com- 
 forts, and luxuries, and little children w^ho laughed and sung the live- 
 long day, happy and free as the birds of the air. 
 
 ABE^S PROPHECY 
 
 Notwithstanding his rude life and lack of education and accomplish- 
 ments, young Abe did not have a low estimate of himself, for we are 
 told by Mr. Lincoln's early biographers that there were many indica- 
 tions, even at an early age, that he possessed self-respect, in a remark- 
 able degree, and w^as not backward in making it manifest. 
 
 It is also related by these same biographers that the boy prophesied 
 the greatness of the man; and that this prophecy was much commented 
 upon by the then unknown to the world relatives as well as afterwards 
 by the curious people of the country. 
 
 THE FAIRY TALE 
 
 When Thomas Lincoln returned to Kentucky for his run-away hogs 
 he took with him a bag filled with fairy tales. The bag was opened 
 to every listener, and as each new spectator-— relatives or old neighbors 
 — flocked about Mm, the tales grew in length and strength, and his 
 possessions increased and his future wealth was already secured. He 
 
56 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 proved to be so eloquent and persuasive that about a year after he had 
 settled in Indiana and just as the new log house was completed, Abra- 
 ham Lincoln's Uncle John and Aunt Betsy Sparrow, with his boy cousin, 
 Dennis Hanks, came up from Kentucky to also try their luck in Indiana. 
 Thomas Lincoln gave to the emigrant relatives, who were as poor as 
 himself, the old "half-faced" cabin, and the Lincolns had near neigh- 
 bors. 
 
 Though the times were just as hard, the days just as dreary, and the 
 every-day-life just as common and homely, yet the heretofore isolated 
 family had human companionship; the companionship of their own kin, 
 in which the common blood filtered through their veins and made a 
 comradeship that neither separation nor death could destroy. 
 
 The old friendships were revived, the old scenes rehearsed and the 
 old days were lived over again, and this tender communion made the 
 poverty and squalor more bearable and banished the despair of deferred 
 hope. 
 
CHAPTER VIIK 
 
 ABE^S FIRST GRIEF 
 
 A LITTLE sunshine now crept into the hearts of the mother and 
 her children — Mrs. Lincoln had her relatives for companions, 
 and Abe and his sister had their cousin Dennis for a playmate. 
 
 The new building was not a very great improvement on the old 
 cabin, but it was more like a house, though it had neither window, 
 door nor floor. But it was so much better than the miserable little 
 shanty in which they had merely existed since they came to Indiana 
 that young Abe and his sister felt quite proud of their new home. 
 
 The boy had helped his father build the log cabin, and had with his 
 own hands driven some pegs into the wall, and up this ladder of pegs 
 he climbed to the loft where he slept. His bed here, as in the now aban- 
 doned shanty, was simply a heap of leaves. 
 
 Their furniture was home-made. Three legged stools, and a bed- 
 stead built of poles driven into the logs at the back, while the front 
 was supported by chunks of wood, was about all the furniture that 
 the family possessed. The table on which the frugal meals were placed 
 was simply a rough board put upon two sections sawed from logs. 
 
 NECK AND NECK 
 
 The times grew harder and the two families were "neck and neck" 
 in the race with grinding poverty. Their crops failed, their horses 
 were killed and their cattle were stricken with a fatal distemper. Be- 
 fore the winter set in there were many sad days for both families. 
 A terrible sickness came upon them. It was called the "milk fever,'* 
 and those who did not die from the epidemic lived a few weeks longer, 
 suffering with and dying from a more lingering sickness called, by 
 the early settlers, "quick consumption." 
 
 57 
 
58 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 DEATH OF THE SPARROW FAMILY 
 
 John and Betsy Sparrow, the uncle and aunt who came up from 
 Kentucky, were among the first to die with the epidemic, and thus, 
 Dennis Hanks, the young lad, came to live with the Lincolns, Mrs. 
 Lincoln was also stricken with the epidemic, and although she did not 
 die with the so-called milk fever, she never recovered from its effects, 
 but became the victim of a wasting and fatal disease. 
 
 The nearest doctor was quite thirty-five miles away, but even had 
 there been a physician nearer there was no money to pay him or to 
 buy medicines with. The poor sick woman had no nourishing food, nor 
 comfortable bed. The house did not protect her from the cold or rain. 
 Her only woman companion was dead, and there was no one to nurse 
 her save the children, who did all that their young minds and hearts 
 dictated — at best it was but a feeble effort. 
 
 DEATH OF ABRAHAM^S MOTHER 
 
 Abraham was nearly beside himself with grief and agony as he 
 watched by his dying mother\s bedside. The mother realized that her 
 death was near, and turning to her forlorn and ragged little son, whom 
 she had loved so dearly, bade him be kind to his sister and father. 
 Her dying blessing was a prayer — a prayer that her precious son should 
 be "an honest and faithful boy, a good and tender man." The young 
 lad never forgot those words, but through all the years of his life he 
 strove to carry out every wish and desire that his dying mother ex- 
 pressed. During the period of his public services as President of the 
 United States, he was often heard to say to his friends and associates, 
 "All that I am I owe to my angel mother." 
 
 The death of Mrs. Lincoln was a terrible blow to her children. Their 
 father had never seemed to care for them and they had always de- 
 pended upon their sad-faced, hard-working mother for love and com- 
 panionship, help and instruction. She had always loved and brooded 
 her children. From their mother they had never heard other than 
 loving words nor received anything but gentle treatment. Her own 
 education was so limited that she was only able to do but little for 
 
ABE'S FIRST GRIEF. 59 
 
 them in that direction. She simply had taught them to read, for the 
 number of books that the Lincoln household possessed was so very, 
 very few that educational progress was impossible. 
 
 THE BURIAL OF ABRAHAM^S MOTHER 
 
 The poor and emaciated body of Abraham Lincoln's mother was 
 buried in the silent forest. Thomas Lincoln dug the grave and made 
 for his wife a rough coffin. There was no minister to offer a prayer 
 and no friends to console or comfort the heart-broken children. Little 
 Abe spent much of his time in the forest beside the new-made grave, 
 crying bitterly and begging his mother to come back. 
 
 The Lincoln family was more wretched than ever. The meals were 
 cooked by little Sarah, and what other housekeeping was done the 
 boys, Abe and Dennis, undertook to do. It is an easy matter to 
 realize how boys would keep house, especially when there were no 
 utensils or conveniences to do with. 
 
 It was during this very sad and gloomy period that Abraham Lin- 
 coln was such an unhappy boy. He was nearly starved, poorly clothed, 
 and wretchedly housed. His father was so utterly shiftless and good 
 for nothing that the boy could not see one ray of hope. He could not 
 even imagine a better or different home-life, for he had seen nothing 
 but poverty and squalor all of his days. The little fellow was really a 
 pitiable object, because in addition to all of these wretched conditions, 
 he was constantly thinking of his poor dead mother and lamenting 
 the fact that no minister had held a service or preached a funeral sermon 
 over his mother's grave. 
 
 One day he made up his mind that he would write a letter to the 
 old Baptist minister back in Kentucky. So he wrote to Parson Elkins 
 and begged him to come and hold a memorial service for his beloved 
 mother, The kind man answered the boy's letter and promised to visit 
 the Lincoln home sometime during the coming summer, although the 
 trip would involve a journey of more than a hundred miles on horse- 
 back. According to his promise the good man came to the little settle- 
 ment, and soon the neighbors carried the news to neighbors and indeed 
 every family within twenty miles came to attend the wonderful funeral. 
 
60 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 HIS MOTHER'S SERMON 
 
 It was a beautiful Babbath day, 'and the friends began to gather 
 early in the forenoon. Some came in carts of the rudest construction, 
 drawn by oxen, and some on horseback, two and three on a horse, while 
 many were on foot A motley crowd of sturdy yeomen with their wives 
 and children had gathered to listen to the preacher who had come all 
 of the way from Kentucky to preach a funeral sermon "over a woman 
 who had been dead almost a year." 
 
 There in the depth of the forest the grave had been dug eight months 
 before and the body of poor Nancy Hanks Lincoln had been lowered 
 into its narrow bed. There was no habitation within miles. There 
 was no sound save the song of the birds, the chirp of tiny insects and 
 the murmur of the purling stream. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln often said in after years when speaking of his mother's 
 grave "that its loneliness was pitiful and its solitude awful." 
 
 The sermon was an eulogy upon the character of Mrs. Lincoln, and 
 it has been said by Mr. Lincoln's biographers that it was a most 
 eloquent discourse. The entire company knelt about the grave and 
 joined the minister in his final prayer, while down the brawny cheeks 
 of many a strong and rough man tears were silently coursing. 
 
 So impressive a scene could not be forgotten by even the youngest 
 ones present. To the grave and silent and impressionable boy the scene 
 was never erased — it fairly burned into his plastic brain and forever 
 remained a vivid and living picture. 
 
 Abraham had accomplished what he considered a duty on his part, 
 and had honored his mother^s memory, and was therefore not so 
 wretched and grief stricken as before. 
 
 The summer months brought to the children some comfort. They 
 were neither freezing nor starving, the warm days gladdened their lore- 
 ly little hearts and the wild fruits fed them. The children had had no 
 training in household industries, because the mother had had no con- 
 veniences to do with. From their father they had not received an 
 example of thrift or labor, because he did not work. From his father 
 and through the influence and association that surrounded Abraham 
 
ABE STRIVING TO GET AN" EDUCATIOU. 
 
THOMAS LINCOLN'S MONUMENT. 
 
 Monument erected near Farmington, 111., to Thomas Lincoln, father 
 
 of Abraham Lincoln. 
 
 GRAVE OF NANCY HANKS LINCOLN. 
 
 This tombstone was erected to the memory of Lincoln's mother by the 
 late Hon. P. E. Studebaker, who purchased the Lin- 
 coln Farm in Spencer County, Ind. 
 
ABE'S FIRST GRIEF. 61 
 
 Lincoln he had inherited a distaste for work and cultivated a disinclina- 
 tion to labor. Therefore the boy spent his time in dreaming, in think- 
 ing and reading. His mother had given him all that she possessed^ — 
 three books, the Bible, Esop's Fables, and Pilgrim's Progress, and these 
 he read and re-read until he almost knew them by heart. Upon these 
 three books the literary tastes of Abraham Lincoln were founded. 
 
 The grave was for many years utterly neglected and unmarked. At 
 last it received recognition, and Mr. P. E. Studebaker, who purchased 
 the Rock Spring farm in Si>encer County, Indiana, enclosed the grave 
 with a neat iron fence and placed at the head of the mound a white 
 marble stone, on which is inscribed the following: "Nancy Hanks 
 Lincoln, who died Oct. 5, 1818, aged 35 years. Erected in 1879 by a 
 friend of her martyred son." 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 ABE'S NEW MOTHER AND HIS NEW LIFE 
 
 THE summer passed away in a sort of go-easy fashion, and the 
 housekeeping was more uncomfortable than ever before, when 
 Thomas Lincoln one day made the startling announcement to 
 his children that he was "going down to Kantucky on a visit." The 
 three forlorn and lonely little people were nearly stunned, and talking 
 among themselves wondered how they should get along while the father 
 was away. It is quite easy to believe, however, that they were no more 
 unhappy and no more uncomfortable during the father's absence than 
 they had been before. 
 
 Thomas Lincoln had been away from his little family fully three 
 months, and the children were no doubt beginning to think that their 
 father would never return, when one day in December the children 
 heard a loud hurrah from the edge of the forest and upon looking out 
 from the cabin they beheld a wondrous sight. Had a fairy god-mother 
 touched the world with her wand and produced the wonderful change? 
 Seated in a canvas-covered wagon and driving four horses sat their 
 father, and at his side a neat and tidy woman. On a seat behind them 
 were three children, who peeped out and called a lusty welcome. The 
 horses dashed up to the door in fine style and the travelers alighted. 
 The children in the cabin hung back and were loath to greet the new- 
 comers, but when the pleasant-faced woman stepped up to the desolate 
 and unkempt children and, putting her arms about the young girl 
 and the ragged, scrawny boy, said to them in a kindly tone, "I 
 have come to take your mother's place," they knew she was their friend. 
 Would wonders never cease? The wagon was unloaded, chairs, 
 tables, a bureau with drawers, crockery, bedding, knives and forks were 
 taken out and carried into the cabin. 
 
 62 
 
lABE'S NEW MOTHER AND HIS NEW LIFE. 63 
 
 THE NEW MOTHER 
 
 And now we should stop to inquire about this wonderful company 
 and where Thomas Lincoln found the woman and her children. He 
 had known the woman before his marriage, in fact, had been engaged to 
 her, but why they had never married history does not reveal. She 
 became the wife of Daniel Johnston, and Thomas Lincoln the husband 
 of Nancy Hanks. The children — Elizabeth, Matilda and John D. John- 
 ston — soon became acquainted with the young members of the Lincoln 
 household. 
 
 The new wife was like the new broom that, we're told, "sweeps clean.'^ 
 She took the reins of government into her hands. Glass was put into 
 the window frames instead of the old rags that had been jammed into 
 the openings. The old rickety frame gave way to a door with hinges. 
 A floor was laid and some mats spread upon it. Cupboards were fast- 
 ened to the wall and the dishes were put within; but best of all, a 
 few books were unpacked and put upon a hanging shelf that had been 
 fastened to the wall. These Abe straightway seized and began to de- 
 vour their contents with a hunger that w^as really pitiful. And now 
 the boy was supremely happy. As soon as the chores were done he 
 would lie upon the floor in front of the flreplace and read till his father 
 would command him to go to bed. 
 
 The new mother took an especial liking to the miserable and forlorn 
 little fellow from the first. She appreciated his gentle nature and 
 realized that he hungered for something that she did not quite under- 
 stand. She washed and cleaned her adopted son and dressed him in a 
 suit of her own boy's, though she had to piece down the legs of the 
 trousers with another kind of cloth and of a different color, for Abe 
 was, even at this early age, uncommonly tall. 
 
 ABE GOES TO SOHOOL 
 
 The thrifty ways of Mrs. Lincoln soon made an impression upon 
 the new members of her family. Even Thomas Lincoln began to fix up 
 and the house was becoming quite snug and comfortable. The children 
 were sent to the school-house close by, the meeting house to which the 
 
64 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 traveling schoolmaster would come to give the boys and girls four 
 months^ schooling each year. It was in this miserable log hut, scarcely 
 high enough for a man to stand erect, with holes for windows and 
 greased paper to take the place of glass, that Abraham Lincoln received 
 the elements of his meager education. Heading, writing and ciphering 
 was his entire course of study. For two years he attended the four 
 months' school, making eight months in all, less than a year of school- 
 ing, and yet he was again and again at the head of his classes. In the 
 spelling contests he was sure to "spell down" the entire school, "big 
 and little.'' 
 
 The care that his stepmother gave him began to tell. He was 
 strong, he was tall and he was wiry. He was clean and decently 
 clothed, and therefore respected himself. He was gentle, he was manly 
 and true, he was good natured, never a bully, but always a protector 
 of the girls and the little boys. Though he was often ridiculed by the 
 school girls and his narrow, sharp, bony shins provoked their mirth and 
 derision, yet he never retaliated, but when occasion required proved 
 himself their staunch ally. It is related that when one of the girls 
 who had "poked more fun at him" than any of the others was one day 
 being brutally reprimanded by the teacher, a rude and unlettered 
 schoolmaster, because she persisted in spelling definite with a y, Abe 
 with a significant cough attracted her attention and placed his long 
 bony finger on his closed eye. The girl understood the gesture, the 
 word was spelled correctly and thus the threatened punishment was 
 averted. 
 
 LINCOLN ALWAYS A GENTLEMAN 
 
 Abraham Lincoln was always a gentleman. He was never unkind 
 nor cruel and any inhuman treatment to animals was quickly resented. 
 The boys of his age and acquaintance were in the habit of putting live 
 coals on the backs of turtles so as to see them writhe and twist This 
 so incensed the young lad that for this act of cruelty he gave many a 
 boy a sound "drubbing." It is said by some of Mr. Lincoln's biographers 
 1ihat his first composition was on "Cruelty to Animals." 
 
 During the period of Abraham Lincoln's boyhood and young man- 
 
^BE'S NEW MOTHER AND HIS NEW LIFE. 65 
 
 hood he was called the girls' champion and protector, while in his later 
 years, and, in fact, through all the years of his life, he was con- 
 spicuous as the defender of woman's honor. When a young lad, during 
 his struggles for an education and when he could think and write only 
 indifferently, he was in the habit of amusing himself by composing 
 verses, doggerel verses to be sure, but the following composition shows 
 the trend of his thoughts: 
 
 LINCOLN^S FIRST POEM 
 
 'When Adam was created 
 
 He dwelt in Eden's shade. 
 As Moses has recorded, 
 
 And soon a bride was made. 
 
 The Lord then was not willing 
 
 That man should be alone. 
 But caused a sleep upon him 
 
 And from him took a bone, 
 
 And closed the flesh instead thereof, 
 
 And then he took the same 
 And of it made a woman 
 
 And brought her to the man. 
 
 Then Adam he rejoiced 
 
 To see his loving bride, 
 A part of his own body. 
 
 The product of his side. 
 
 The woman was not taken 
 
 From Adam's feet we see, 
 So he must not abuse her 
 
 The meaning seems to be. 
 
 The woman was not taken 
 
 From Adam's head we know, 
 To show she must not rule him 
 
 'Ti« evidently so. 
 
66 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 The woman she was taken 
 
 From under Adam's arm, 
 So she must be protected 
 
 From injuries and harm." 
 
 EAGER FOR KNOWLEDGE 
 
 Abraham Lincoln was now fifteen years old, and a homelier boy or 
 more ungainly, awkward lad probably could not be found in the whole 
 Western country. He had very little education so far as schooling goes, 
 but he had taken advantage of every opportunity, no matter how 
 simple or meager. Every scrap of printed paper that he could get hold 
 of he devoured and digested. If a sentence or paragraph pleased or 
 interested him he would write it down with a piece of charcoal on a 
 slab of wood or on the logs of the house, in fact, in every conceivable 
 place that he could find. He was always around when any of the 
 settlers came to the house and was a quiet listener to the conversa- 
 tion. If a traveler stopped before his father's house young Abe was 
 the first to mount the fence and question the caller, in regard to the out- 
 side world. His curiosity was so tremendous that every passing 
 stranger was hailed, and the young lad would put his inquiries with 
 so much intelligence and enthusiasm that his hearer would not only 
 pause but tarry and cheerfully impart to the boy his fund of infor- 
 mation. 
 
 ABE WORKED FOR WAGES 
 
 His father now thought that his son "fooled away" enough time, 
 and therefore he told him that "he must go to work for wages and 
 bring the money home." The boy obeyed his father willingly and 
 started out barefoot, chopping, grubbing, ploughing, mowing, cradling, 
 gathering and husking corn for the neighbors; but never losing an 
 opportunity to read — constantly reading. When he returned to his 
 home at night and after the farm and household chores were "done," 
 instead of joining the family meal he would take from the cupboard 
 a piece of corn bread, stretch his long legs out and eat, reading till late 
 into the night. Thomas Lincoln would often complain, call the boj^ 
 lazy and declare that so much "readin' would spile him." But his 
 
^BE'S NEW MOTHER AND HIS NEW LIFE. 67 
 
 stepmother would take his part, and often in after years said that she 
 "allers allowed Abe to read till he quit of his own accord/' 
 
 The next five years of Abraham Lincoln's life were hard and the 
 ugly monotony would have driven most boys to rebellion or dissipation. 
 Though dwelling in the roughest of frontier settlements during this 
 molding period of his life, yet he entered upon his manhood without 
 having acquired a vice. His privations are full of pathos, but the 
 successes of his life were gained through the discipline that was 
 imposed upon him in his youth, and he owed his strength and patience 
 to the vicissitudes that he had been obliged to endure. His spirit was 
 tried by fire and in after years, through all the trying events of his 
 political and public life as President of the United States, he never 
 failed to do what was expected of him at the vital moment. 
 
 HIS FIRST BOOK 
 
 One day when doing some work for his old schoolmaster, Mr. Craw- 
 ford, who had given up teaching and was now a citizen of the settle- 
 ment, Abraham Lincoln found upon a table a copy of Weem's Life of 
 Washington. This was a famous book in those days and the boy was 
 very anxious to read it. Mr. Crawford loaned the book to the lad with 
 the injunction that if anything happened to it he would have to pay for 
 it. With this possibility staring him in the face the boy was unusually 
 careful, always placing the book out of reach by putting it on the top 
 of the highest shelf. There was, however, a big crack between the logs 
 back of the rude book-case and accidentally the book fell against the 
 opening. During the night a severe rainstorm came up and when Abe 
 awoke in the morning he found the book completely watersoaked. Mr. 
 Crawford was a cross and cranky old man, and when Abraham Lincoln 
 told him of the accident he stormed and scolded and said that he must 
 "pull fodder for his cattle for three days." Although the boy considered 
 the penalty unjust, he said not a word but complied with the demand, 
 and it was in this manner that Abraham Lincoln paid for the first book 
 that he ever owned. 
 
 Not having been able to find in the different histories of Mr. Lin- 
 
68 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 coin's life an account or even an allusion to the animal pets that a boy 
 usually possesses, in one of my conversations I asked "Uncle John HalV' 
 if Mr. Lincoln did not as a boy care for pets, such as rabbits, squirrels, 
 birds, or dogs, remarking that as he always seemed so kind and 
 tender to everything I imagined that he must have many. He replied 
 to my question by saying, "Why, Uncle Abe allers wanted everything 
 to be free and enjoy theirselves jest as God intended they should, but 
 grandmarm use to tell us a story about a dog they onct hed and she'd 
 told it like this: 
 
 A HEARTY RECEPTION 
 
 " 'The boys took it into their heads they'd like a dog, so Uncle Abe, 
 John D. Johnston and the rest teased grandpap to get one. Wall, he 
 found a bull pup that nobody cared for and brought it hum. Ye ought 
 ter hev seed how tickled they wus. Jest arter this, father went down 
 the river with a boat-load of stuff. In those days it took a long time 
 to go down to New Orleans. Father wus gone six months, and of course 
 the pup hed grown up to be quite a big dog. One day we wus all look- 
 ing out of the winder when we seed your grandfather comin' through 
 the woods. He had been gone so long we thought he wus dead. You 
 jest reckon when we seed him we all rushed out and got around his 
 neck, all of us and Aunt Betsy Hanks, and we hugged and hugged and 
 kissed him and made the terriblest fuss you ever seed. But the bull 
 dog, he didn't know what to think about such a row, and he was tu 
 young when your grandfather went away to remember him, so he jest 
 showed his teeth and took a holt, tu ; but the holt wus behind and we 
 didn't see the dog, but yer grandfather felt it though, and between 
 the dog and all of us he hed a hard time. He hollered and kicked and 
 throwed us first one way and then t'other and then tried to tackel the 
 dog, but he hed hold in such a awk'ard place that before he could get 
 rid of the pup the seat of his breetches wus nigh gone and he hed a 
 wound, the scar of which he carried till he died.' Wall, that finished 
 the dog business, and our folks all round haint much hands for a dog 
 since no how." 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN'S KINDNESS TO ANIMALS 
 
 IN SPITE of the historic interest connected with the place, time hung 
 heavily. The commonness of all about us was so oppressive and 
 the sweltering heat so depressing that my young lady friend was 
 tempted to return to Chicago. The promise of a more varied and 
 pleasanter visit reassured her and she concluded to remain and enjoy 
 or suffer with me, as the case might be, the allotted period of our stay. 
 
 THE IRON WASHBOWL 
 
 The fourth day arrived and seemingly promised to be a repetition 
 of the other uneventful and tiresome days. The heat was intolerable, 
 Old Sol renewed his strength and was determined to test our powers 
 of endurance. At last becoming disgusted we counseled together and 
 decided upon a change. Looking across the fields we caught a glimpse 
 of the old log cabin, shaded by the huge old locust tree that "Grandpap 
 Lincoln" had planted soon after the erection of the log house. It was 
 uninhabited, there was no steaming hot stove, the doors opposite were 
 standing wide open and we knew a breeze must be blowing through 
 the house. All this was indeed inviting. We determined to cross the 
 "medder", and once again we stood within the shadow of the "old log 
 cabin.'' Remaining on the north side of the house and sitting down 
 upon an old «tump, close to the door, upon which had stood the iron 
 wash-bowl, in the days gone by (I could even see the dish of old-fash- 
 ioned home-made soap), we took in the entire situation from an en- 
 tirely different standpoint, and for the first time since our arrival 
 enjoyed the peculiar circumstances that had befallen us. 
 
 "SARVIN* HIS TIME IN THE LEQISLATOOR" 
 
 Time turned backward, the cabin was a scene of life and activity 
 again. Its inmates were humble, poor folks, yet the interior of the 
 
 69 
 
70 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 house was clean and tidy. The fire was burning briskly, the tea-kettle 
 was singing a merry song, the table was set, the younger members of 
 the family were astride the fence looking down the road. Thomas Lin- 
 coln, whittling a stick, was telling his neighbor that his son, who had 
 ^^been sarvin' his time in the Legislatoor," was coming to see him. The 
 mother, standing at the gate holding in her hand a bunch of holly- 
 hocks and "bouncing betties" that grew so profusely in the front yard, 
 was also watching for her boy, Abe. From an unexpected direction 
 there appeared a tall, ungainly figure; upon his head was a "stove- 
 pipe hat," in his hand an old black canvas satchel, and beside him 
 a young woman who strove to keep step with his long paces. They 
 approach the cabin. Cousin Sarah Hall, one of Mrs. Lincoln's grand- 
 daughters, had left the house unobserved and cutting "across lots" had 
 interrupted her relative whom she begged to abandon the traveled 
 road and stroll through the woods with her that she might first hear 
 the news. With his usual kindness and willingness to please, Mr. 
 Lincoln agreed to the proposition, and so they wandered down the river- 
 bank and up through the woods, finally coming into the yard from an 
 unexpected quarter. 
 
 A SNAKE STORY 
 
 Mr. HalPs recital of this circumstance was recalled and I 
 could in imagination again hear him relate in his quaint and 
 homely fashion the conversation that passed between Mrs. Lincoln 
 and her granddaughter Sarah, Uncle John HalPs sister. "Sister Sary 
 said to Grandmarm as they came into the yard, ^Wall, I ken now 
 believe all that yer ever told me about Uncle Abe's bein' kind to dumb 
 critters. Jest think of it, we run across a couple of big black snakes 
 ahanging from a paw paw tree and when I said to him, come quick 
 and kill the black varmints, Uncle Abe jest turned around and seed 
 them tu, ahangin' from a branch agettin' warm in the sun, and he 
 walked off and wouldn't touch 'em, and he said, "No, no, their lives are 
 just as sweet to them as ours are to us." ' " 
 
LINCOLN'S KINDNESS TO ANIMALS. 71 
 
 UNKNOWN ENEMIES 
 
 Miss Coleman, stretched out at full length upon the grass in the 
 shade of the old locust tree, had fallen asleep. I went into the 
 c*abin and explored its interior with the hope of finding some relic that 
 had been overlooked and left behind by John Hall and his family, when 
 they moved into the cottage on the hill. Nothing but emptiness and 
 vacancy and loneliness was encountered; the silence appalled me and 
 a consciousness of the presence of the departed took possession of me. 
 Again Thomas Lincoln^s pleasant voice responded to the "howdy" of 
 his neighbor, with the answer, "Purty middling and that's the best of 
 the hog ye know." The whir of Grandma Lincoln's wheel was heard. 
 Abraham Lincoln's tall, gaunt figure was bent, and his "high" hat was in 
 his hand that he might pass through the low doorway. A sort of 
 superstitious fear seized me and I fled from the house. My rapid and 
 boisterous exit aroused the sleeping young woman. Rubbing her eyes 
 and yawning, she demanded that we return to the little cottage. 
 'Twas twelve o'clock and time for dinner, she said. Unlatching the gate 
 we passed out of the door-yard and intended to return to the house by 
 way of the cornfield, but directly in front of us, in our path, was a drove 
 of hogs which stared at us in such a ferocious manner that we felt the 
 necessity of making a change of base, and therefore turned about and 
 undertook to walk through the "medder lot," but here again we found 
 an enemy, his royal highness, Mr. Bull, who eyed us so steadily that we 
 climbed the high rail fence in considerable haste and awaited develop- 
 ments. 
 
 THE RESCUE 
 
 We had been missed from the house on the hill and our friend, Mr. 
 Hall, getting anxious on account of our long delay, started out to find 
 his guests. When he spied us on the top of the rail fence, holding on 
 for dear life, he laughed immoderately and hallooed, "take courage, 
 I'll save ye." Mr. Hall approached the "gentlemanly" creature and 
 when he stroked him on the neck the heretofore vicious animal dropped 
 his head and walked away as quietly as though he had never had any 
 
n THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 unkind intentions. Mr. Hall politely assisted us to the ground, and w© 
 thanked our rescuer and rejoiced over our deliverance. 
 
 tr 
 
 DON'T BE SO SQUEAMISH" 
 
 Uncle John had told us of the wonderful sulphur spring whose 
 waters had been described as being delicious and good for all kinds of 
 "sores and eruptions." A« a cure for the "seven-year itch" it was in- 
 valuable, and when he informed us that the spring was "jest over that 
 rise of ground" we consented to accompany him. We were tired, 
 hungry and so thirsty that almost any liquid would have been accept- 
 able. Forming a cup with our hands we undertook to drink the spark- 
 ling water, but the odor was so peculiar and offensive that we abso- 
 lutely refused to even taste it. Mr. Hall, dropping upon his knees, fairly 
 plunged his face into the spring and taking a long draught said, "sho, 
 women, don't be so squeamish but jest stop sniffing and take a stout 
 
 pull." 
 
 "THAR WUS NOTHIN' BUT POVERTY" 
 
 Our host now kindly volunteered to guide us to the house and we 
 gladly accepted his proffered service. The adventure was related to the 
 family and Sis exclaimed, "I allers heerd that city women was afraid of 
 farm critters and the like." 
 
 The afternoon was hot and sultry and the hours would have dragged 
 had not Uncle John related many curious and quaint stories of the 
 Lincoln family and their relatives. He dwelt upon the early life of 
 Mr. Lincoln and recounted so many incidents of privation and dis- 
 couragement and sorrow that I became exceedingly depressed and 
 begged for anything that savored of humor or romance. My host shook 
 his head and said, "Thar was nothing but poverty and work and mis- 
 fortune for our family." 
 
 "PAW WENT TO FARIYIINGTON" 
 
 We retired at an earlier hour than usual that I might find, in slumber, 
 a panacea for all lifers griefs and discomforts. But after hours of rest- 
 less tossing the idea of sleep was abandoned and I arose and sat in the 
 open door, striving in vain to catch a refreshing breeze. The night 
 
LINCOLN'S KINDNESS TO 'ANIMALS. 73 
 
 deepened; the uncanny and bewitching midnight-hour filled me with 
 terror and drove me back into the hot, stifling atmosphere of the little 
 front room. The "break of day" was gladly welcomed for the noise and 
 bustle of the feathered tribe was an indication that the family would 
 soon be astir, and my fainting condition relieved. But exhaustion over- 
 came me and I fell into a heavy, dreamless sleep, and did not awaken 
 until rudely shaken by Sis, who announced that "if I wanted to write 
 any more stories that day about the President of the United States I^d 
 hev to be up and doin', for paw hed to go down to Farmington and 
 wanted to get offen his mind what he had to say afore he went." The 
 day was so hot and sultry that I excused him and suggested to Miss 
 Coleman that we also take "a day off." 
 
CHAPTER XI. 
 
 STARTING OUT IN LIFE 
 
 f N THOSE days when Abraham Lincoln was a young lad the son's 
 I wages belonged to the father until twenty-one years old; but as 
 the country was sparsely settled and the people very poor we can- 
 not imagine that Abraham Lincoln earned a fortune for either himself 
 or his father. When he was sixteen years old he ran a ferry boat 
 across the mouth of Anderson Creek w^here it empties into the Ohio 
 River. When he was not paddling the boat across the stream he was 
 doing farm and house chores. He remained with his employer nine 
 months, and during that time was hostler, plough-boy, ferryman and 
 farm hand. When he was at work in the house he did everything from 
 running the hand mill that ground the meal for the family to perform- 
 ing the duties that belong to a "maid-of-all-work," for all of which he 
 received but six dollars a month. His accommodations were uncom- 
 fortable and he was obliged to sleep in the loft with his employer's 
 son, who often insulted and ridiculed him. 
 
 MR. CRAWFORD'S NOSE 
 
 After this experience he went back to his old home and loafed about, 
 as young Abe called it, for awhile, building fires, carrying water, chop- 
 ping wood, splitting rails, ploughing, sowing, reaping or choring for 
 the women. At last he became so perfectly ravenous for "some read- 
 ing" that he hired out to cross, old Mr. Crawford that he might get a 
 chance to read all of his books. While in Mr. Crawford's employ he 
 really enjoyed himself, although the cranky old man "docked him" 
 whenever he "missed time." During this period of his life, however, 
 he gathered a great deal of information and instruction from the small 
 but well-selected library. After having finished his engagement he 
 took his revenge upon his hard taskmaster by writing some very funny 
 verse* about Mr. Crawford's nose. The nose was very large, crooked 
 
 74 
 
STARTING OUT IN LIFE, 75 
 
 and pulpy, and the verses were very poor, but both verses and nose be- 
 came very famous all about the country. 
 
 THE EXAMPLE OF EARLY HARDSHIPS 
 
 No matter what circumstance or condition came into Abraham 
 Lincoln's life, instead of complaining, he profited by the severe ex- 
 periences. As the years progressed and his hardships and privations 
 increased, he met them with a firm determination to conquer. The 
 struggle for the mastery did much to perfect that character, which for 
 quaint simplicity, gentleness, integrity and honest purpose has never 
 been surpassed among the historic personages of the world. His 
 example will surely teach the lesson that no matter how poor one 
 ma;y be or how few advantages one may possess, he can, if he will, 
 acquire sufficient education to get through the world, not only re- 
 spectably, but honorably. That no matter how lowly one's origin, or 
 how humble one's home, he may rise to affluence and power. He may, 
 as did Abraham Lincoln, become the choice of the people — the repre- 
 sentative of a mighty nation. 
 
 ABE KEPT RIGHT ON 
 
 Naturally I inferred, as no doubt most people have, that young Abe 
 was considered, among his associates and the inhabitants of the primi- 
 tive settlement, an exceedingly smart boy, and so I remarked to Mr. 
 Hall. An emphatic ^^o" was the response of my host, who immedi- 
 ately launched out into a somewhat lengthy account of what the neigh- 
 bors and family thought of Abe's ability: "Grandmarm said 'that Abe 
 wasn't considered nigh so smart as Uncle John D. Johnston, who could 
 talk well, dress well, and go about the neighborhood of an evening.' 
 Nuther wus he much of hand to go among the gals 'cept to corn shuckin', 
 and as John D. Johnston, grandmarm's son, wus right peart, she told 
 him onct that John would cut him out with the gals; but Abe said 'that 
 didn't bother him any,' and so the folks kept thinking that John wus 
 the smartest of the two, 'cause he wus allers sittin' in the house at 
 night porin' over his books, quiet and sad like, and John could talk 
 right smart like. At last John began to quit larnin', but Abe kept 
 
76 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 right on. Then his mother told him that Abe wus gittin' the start of 
 
 him, but he ses, ses he: ^Don't care, marm, 'cause I can go with Mahala 
 
 Anderson, a right smart girl, who wears a right smart pair of mittens 
 
 and cuts a pea in two and jest eats ha'f at a bite;' but grandmarm said 
 
 *that Uncle Abe wus allers asked to all the shuckin' bees and he wus the 
 
 fust one chosen, 'cause they knowed his side war shore to win, and allers 
 
 after the bee wus over he had to rastle with some of the boys, or he^d 
 
 tell some of his cur'us stories that wus so funny they'd make a hog 
 
 laugh.' " 
 
 ABE BECAME A LEADER 
 
 We are told some wonderful stories concerning Abraham Lincoln's 
 marvelous strength, and no doubt he was an unusually strong boy, for 
 his severe training and extraordinary size gave him great advantages. 
 It is well known that in physical strength and athletic feats he was 
 the master of them all, but he was never quarrelsome, nor disposed 
 to make an unpleasant show of his powers. Nor was it because he 
 was strong and active, but merely because he was fair and honest and 
 true and just in all his relations with those about him that he became 
 a leader among the boys and young men of his neighborhood. 
 
 THE STUMP SPEAKER 
 
 About this time he got hold of a book called "The Kentucky Pre- 
 ceptor," and from this speaker he got his inspiration for oratory. In 
 the harvest field, at the noon hour, he would mount a stump and his 
 rough, uneducated audiences were held spellbound with the magic 
 of his then young and no doubt crude oratory. The farm hands would 
 stand about with hands jammed down into the pockets of their trousers 
 and mouths wide open, unmindful of the flight of time, till either his 
 father or his employer would seize him and drag him from the im- 
 provised platform. Again in the evening the neighbors would gather 
 to hear him spout, as they called his speechmaking, and thus he would 
 entertain and amuse the crowd oftentimes till after midnight. Even 
 at this early age he was noted for his "funny and odd stories," a gift 
 which he had inherited from his father, who, though shiftless and lazy, 
 was always good natured and something of a genius in his own way. 
 
ABE'S PARENTS TOO POOR TO EURNISH HIM A SLATE. 
 
< 
 
 M 
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 o 
 
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 CO 
 
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STARTING OUT IN LIFE, W 
 
 ABE^S FIRST VOYAQE 
 
 That Abraham Lincoln was perfectly content with the humdrum 
 life that he was leading, and was satisfied with the uncomfortable con- 
 ditions of his surroundingSj is not at all probable. He had already 
 caught glimpses of life in the outside world, a life of greater sig- 
 nificance and greater dignity. Echoes from the large towns and cities 
 had reached his ears. 
 
 He was now eighteen years old, and was beginning to chafe at his 
 limited horizon. He had learned the use of tools, and by nature pos- 
 sessed considerable mechanical talent, and so he set to work to build 
 a boat and in it row out into the wide, wide world. 
 
 TWO SILVER HALF DOLLARS 
 
 Mr. Lincoln himself never gave any detailed account of his ventures, 
 but after he became the Chief Executive of the United States he told 
 Mr. Seward, the Secretary of State, the following story: "I was stand- 
 ing at a landing on the Ohio River and a steamer w^as coming down 
 the river. At the same time two passengers came to the river's brink 
 who wished to be taken with their luggage out to the packet. They 
 selected my boat and asked me to scull them to the steamer. This I 
 did, and after seeing them and their trunks on board I had the pleas- 
 ure of receiving a silver half dollar from each of the gentlemen. I 
 could scarcely believe my eyes.'' And, facing Mr. Seward, he said: 
 "You may think this a very simple matter, but it was a most important 
 incident in my life. I could hardly realize that T, a poor boy, had 
 earned a dollar in less than a day. The world seemed wider and fairer 
 before me; I was a more hopeful and confident being from that time." 
 
 ABE'S SECOND VOYAGE 
 
 This event aroused a new train of thought and urged the young man 
 on to further and larger effort. At the age of nineteen Abraham Lin- 
 coln made his second vo^'^age, and at this time caught something more 
 than a glimpse of the great world in which he was to play so important 
 and tragic a part. A neighbor applied to him to take charge of a flat 
 
78 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 boat and its cargo, and in company with his own son take it to New 
 Orleans. He was given charge of the entire business, and the fact 
 that he had never made the trip, knew nothing of river navigation, and 
 was unaccustomed to business transactions, made the contract an un- 
 usual proceeding. But Abraham Lincoln's tact, ability and honesty 
 were so thoroughly established that the trader did not feel the least 
 hesitancy in trusting him with the cargo and his son's welfare. 
 
 The young men of to-day cannot imagine the delight that entered 
 into the heart of young Lincoln as he swung loose from the shore upon 
 his clumsy craft and realized that he had started upon a journey of 
 nearly eighteen hundred miles. 
 
 With modern inventions and the innovation of the iron horse into 
 all parts of oar great and wealthy country, it is utterly impossible that 
 any of those early and simple conditions can now exist. 
 
 AN EXCITING ADVENTURE 
 
 The incidents of the trip were not likely to be very exciting, t)ut the 
 social intercourse that the young man enjoyed with the hunters and 
 settlers along the banks of the Ohio and Mississippi, and an exchange 
 of ideas with the boatmen of similar craft was a wellspring of joy and 
 pleasure to the backwoodsman. At length the boat was pulled in 
 and tied to the shore for the purpose of trade at a sugar plantation 
 somewhere between Natchez and New Orleans. Night was approach- 
 ing and consequently business must be deferred until morning. The 
 tired voyagers laid down to rest and sleep, when Abraham heard a 
 noise that aroused his suspicion. He shouted, "Who's there." The 
 noise continued, and not waiting for a reply, Lincoln sprang to his feet 
 and discovered several negroes evidently intending to steal the cargo. 
 Seizing a handspike, he rushed toward them and knocked into the w^ater 
 the first one that attempted to get on to the boat. The second, third 
 and fourth, who tried to leap on board, were served in the same rough 
 way. The remainder, no doubt, felt that they would meet the same 
 fate, and so they turned to flee, but Lincoln and his young companion 
 had become so excited that they jumped ashore and gave chase to the 
 negroes, whom they soon overtook and gave all of them a sound 
 
STARTING OUT IN LIFE. 79 
 
 pounding. The young men returned to the boat just as the first colored 
 men were escaping from the water, but further pursuit was abandoned. 
 Abraham and his companion were injured, but not disabled, and being 
 unarmed they were unwilling to remain at that point any longer for 
 fear that the negroes would receive reinforcements. Cutting loose, the 
 boat floated down the river a few miles and was tied up again, while 
 the now excited young men eagerly watched for the day to dawn. 
 
 ARRIVAL AT NEW ORLEANS 
 
 The trip was made to New Orleans without further accident, and 
 when the young men arrived at the Crescent City the unusual sights of 
 that peculiar Southern metropolis burst upon their view, and the coun- 
 try boys were both astonished and delighted. 
 
 The anticipation and anxiety of bringing to a successful issue the 
 business that he had been intrusted with, absorbed Abraham Lincoln's 
 attention so closely that he gave little heed to the peculiar customs and 
 methods that prevailed in that city before the war. After some unex- 
 pected delay and worriment he succeeded in selling the entire cargo 
 at a good profit. 
 
 Being relieved of the pressing business, Abraham Lincoln and his 
 young friend concluded to look about and take in the sights. 
 
 The institution of slavery was a question that the young lad had 
 pondered over. He had often been heard to express himself as being 
 "sorry for the black man's enslavement, and often said that when he 
 grew to be a man he hoped that he could help free the negro." 
 
 Here was an opportunity for the young man to see the effects of the 
 unjust institution in all its deformity and evil results. From this 
 time on till the shackles of millions of slaves were broken, Abraham 
 Lincoln never ceased to speak in open condemnation of slavery. 
 
 THE RETURN 
 
 The trip was at last ended. The cargo sold for money and the raft 
 itself also disposed of, the young men retraced their tedious journey 
 on foot, which occupied several weeks. 
 
80 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM. LINCOLN, 
 
 The venturesome enterprise for two such youths turned out a capital 
 thing, and when their narrow escape was known the trip on the flatboat 
 w^as talked of as a wonderful expedition, and Abraham Lincoln re- 
 ceived the credit of being a good boatman, an excellent manager and a 
 first-class salesman. 
 
 The success of the journey and its satisfactory results were due to 
 the tact, judgment, ability and fidelity of the young man, and his 
 employer was not chary in his praise. He was heard to say with con- 
 siderable conceit : "I was sure of my man, for I had tested Abe Lincoln's 
 honesty in more ways than one." 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 SECOND NEW HOME-VISIONS OF WEALTH 
 
 THOMAS LINCOLN'S household was now greatly diminished. 
 There had been three weddings in the family. Sarah Lincoln, his 
 daughter, when only fifteen years old, had married Aaron Grigsby, 
 a young man living near neighbor to the "Linkhorns," as the name was 
 then pronounced. The sister of Abraham had been married but a year 
 when she died, thus adding another severe sorrow to young Abe's tender 
 and sensitive heart. In speaking of the marriage of Mrs. Lincoln's two 
 daughters, Mr. Hall refers to that of his mother's, who was Matilda 
 Johnston, the younger girl, in the following manner: "Grandmarm' 
 told me that grandpap was so awful poor that she was glad to have 
 mother get married, and that when she was fourteen years old paw, 
 who wus only nineteen, came along and asked her to hitch up. She 
 said yes right smart." Glancing at me. Uncle John Hall said: "I 
 can't think that paw and ma wus much better off than grandpap, be- 
 cause they hed to go out in the woods and gather leaves for to make 
 their bed of, and so they hed to stay with grandpap and grandmarm 
 till they could get somethin' ahead." 
 
 ANOTHER PROiVIISED LAND 
 
 A general discontent now seized the entire Lincoln household and 
 the members of the family began to talk of "moving away" from In- 
 diana. The country was still very unhealthful, the land was difficult of 
 cultivation and the sons-in-law as well as Abraham were anxious to 
 make a change in order to better their condition if possible. Reports 
 were now coming to the family that the prairie lands of Illinois were 
 rich beyond imagination; that farms could be obtained for almost 
 nothing; that the land only needed the plough and the hoe to make it 
 immediately productive. 
 
 81 
 
82 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 DENNIS HANKS' RETURN 
 
 One day Dennis Hanks, who had been with the Lincolns since the 
 death of his mother, Betsy Sparrow, came rushing into the house and 
 announced his intention of going over into Illinois for the purpose of 
 finding a farm big enough and rich enough for the "hull family." The 
 young man left with high hopes, and the inmates of the humble home 
 anxiously awaited his return. In proper season he came back and 
 gave such glowing accounts of the new country that the family were 
 anxious to move at the earliest opportunity. Mr. Lincoln sold out his 
 squatter^g claim in Indiana and early in the spring of 1829, with his 
 family, his two sons-in-law and their wives and children, left the old 
 home for the promised land. 
 
 THE JOURNEY TO ILLINOIS 
 
 Mr. HalPs quaint and peculiar description of the journey to Illinois 
 and the life and changes of the Lincoln family will interest the reader 
 and convey a true impression of those unfortunate days that came to 
 Abraham Lincoln and his people. He said: "Grandpap and grandmarm 
 got so awful poor when they lived down in Indiany that their cows took 
 the milk sickness and all of the family got the milk fever; why Aunt 
 Betsy Hanks like to died with it, and the times wus hard and the 
 pickin' so poor they jest made up their minds they would move, and 
 so we picked up and come over into Illinoy and settled jest a few miles 
 from where Decatur is now located. I wus a suckin' babe when they left 
 Indiany and we moved all on one big wagon from Spencer County, In- 
 diany. There wus father and mother and John D. Johnston, Abe Lin- 
 coln and grandmarm, Uncle Dennis Hanks, Uncle John Hanks and his 
 wife and Aunt Sarry and her man and Grandpap Lincoln. The team 
 that we moved with wus a four yoke of oxen." Pointing to the old 
 cabin, he said: "Don't you mind that old yoke that hangs on the north 
 side of the old cabin? Well, that's the same old yoke that grandpap 
 brought up from Indiany. Uncle Abe he druv one of the teams and 
 grandmarm said, ^He'd often carry me in his arms.' When we first 
 come to this State we stopped at Macon County. Grandfather Lincoln 
 
SECOND NEW HOME— VISIONS OF WEALTH, 83 
 
 and Uncle Abe Lincoln cut the poles and built a log house. Then 
 they split rails to fence in ten acres of prairie land right on the edge 
 of the timber, and took it for a squatter's claim. They lived on this 
 place about a year, but they all liked to died with the chills and fever, 
 and wus afraid to stay there any longer for fear they'd all die 
 off. That winter the snow come so stiff they could catch deer on the top 
 of it. The snow would break through with the deer, but not with the 
 dogs, and then they'd chase them down. 
 
 MAKE ANOTHER MOVE 
 
 "The next year we moved ag'in to a place south of Mattoon and called 
 it Buck Grove, because the men found two big bucks what had been 
 fightin', with their horns locked together, and they hed died that way. 
 They built a log house and lived there one year, I think, and then went 
 down in the timber, further south two or three miles, and built another 
 house. They stayed there but a short time, when grandpap took it into 
 his head ag'in that he hed to move. He wus an uncommon uneasy man, 
 and a moving about so much seemed to make him mighty unfortunate. 
 Grandmarm said *it wus like the children of Israel trying to find the 
 promised land,' but no Eed Sea divided fur them, fur in coming up from 
 Indiany they hed to ford thru many a swollen stream and all sorts of 
 other difficulties beset 'em.'' 
 
 COMING OF AGE 
 
 Abraham Lincoln was now twenty-one years of age, and he had 
 determined to see the world for himself — ^to branch out and seek his 
 fortune. He so announced his intention and left home, although he 
 still remained in the neighborhood, paying for his board and clothes 
 by splitting rails, for money was a commodity never reckoned upon in 
 the Lincoln family. It is told by Mr. Herdon, one of Mr. Lincoln's 
 biographers, that he made a bargain with one of the women in the set- 
 tlement, "that for every yard of brown jeans, dyed with white walnut 
 bark, he would split her four hundred rails." In those days Abra- 
 ham Lincoln often walked five, six and seven miles to his work. 
 
84 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 ANOTHER IVIOVE 
 
 Again Mr. Hall took up the narrative and said: "Well, ag^in, in 
 the spring of 1831, grandpap moved and come up here into Coles County 
 and built a log house jest a little northeast of where the cabin now 
 stands." This last statement I did not quite understand, therefore I 
 questioned. The information I gained put me in possession of the fact 
 that the east room of the cabin was built by Thomas Lincoln and Uncle 
 Abe some distance from its present site. After a few months it was 
 moved down nearer the road leading from Goose Prairie to Charleston, 
 and Abraham Lincoln insisted that another room should be added. 
 The house now contained thirteen people, young and old, and there was 
 no opportunity for Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln to have a quiet moment. 
 Abraham Lincoln upon the occasion of his visit at this time announced 
 his intention ^-'of cutting entirely adrift from the old life," and insisted 
 that the "new room" should be erected at once. He remained long 
 enough to assist his father in building and completing the west room of 
 the old log cabin, and also succeeded in putting his mother into more 
 comfortable quarters. 
 
 PRIIVIITIVE TOOLS 
 
 All the tools that Abraham and his father used in the construction of 
 the cabin were simple in the extreme — ^a common ax, a broad ax, a hand- 
 saw and a "drawer knife." The doors and floors were made of punch- 
 eons, and the gable ends of the structure were boarded up with plank 
 "rived" by Abraham's hand out of oak timber. The boards used for the 
 roofs were cut by Thomas Lincoln, and it took him six months "to com* 
 plete the job." Forty acres of land were secured and Abraham promised 
 to help his father pay for the farm if he was ever able. 
 
 The time had now come when Abraham Lincoln bade his father and 
 mother a final farewell. In rrforrir.^ to this family event Mr. Hall said 
 that his "Grandmarm Lincoln" expressed herself as follows: 
 
 "When Uncle Abe went away to live we all jest thought the hull 
 world wus gone, and when he^d come back to see us we'd hug and kiss 
 him and try to get him to promise that he^d never go ag'ln no more." 
 
SARAH BUSH JOHNSTON LINCOLN. 
 
 This photograph of Abraham Lincoln's stepmother was taken when she 
 
 was ninety years of age. 
 
THE VACANT CHAIR. 
 
 The above family relic made by Thomas Lincoln for his wife, Nancy 
 Hanks, tells a story of early love in the Lincoln Home. 
 
SHEARS AND AXE WITH A HISTORY. 
 
 The above pictures in themselves mean but little, but when you learn that this pair of 
 shears was used for many years by Grandmother Lincoln and found under the 
 floor of the Cabin when the building was taken down, and that the axe was 
 used by Abraham Lincoln in splitting rails near Decatur, Illi- 
 nois, your interest will become more than ordinary. 
 
FAMILY RELICS FOUND IN THE LINCOLN HOMESTEAD. 
 
 The clock purchased in Kentucky was carried to Indiana, thence to Illinois, wher# 
 
 it ever adorned the old home. The bureau brought by the stepmother 
 
 from Kentucky caused much excitement in the Lincoln household. 
 
SECOND NEW HOME-^VISIONS OF WEALTH. 85 
 
 It is said by Mr. Lincoln's biographers that at this time he was the 
 roughest looking man that one could imagine. He was so tall, so 
 angular, so ungainly, and wore trousers made of flax, cut tight 
 at the ankle and baggy at the knees — ^that he indeed made a comical 
 and ridiculous looking figure. He was known to be exceedingly poor, 
 but yet he w^as a welcome guest in every house at which he ever called. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 GETTING ACQUAINTED WITH HIMSELF 
 
 GOING back to the neighborhood from whence he came but a few 
 months previous, he was told that John D. Johnston and hi^ 
 uncle, John Hanks, had been engaged by a trader named Denton 
 Offutt to take a "boatload of stuff" to New Orleans. They were indeed 
 glad to have their relative put in an appearance at this time, for he had 
 been down the river and his experience, united with his good sense, 
 made him a very acceptable party. For a small consideration they 
 engaged Abraham Lincoln to pilot the raft and help them dispose of 
 
 the cargo. 
 
 ABRAHAM BECOMES A CLERK 
 
 When the men returned and reported an unusually good sale Mr. 
 Offutt realized that the management of the entire trip and its success- 
 ful issue was the result of the young man's good judgment. The trader 
 offered him a position in his country store. Abraham Lincoln was more 
 than pleased and eagerly accepted the offer. Mr. Offutt soon became 
 impressed with the honesty and capacity of his new clerk and intrusted 
 him with the entire business of his store, and his mill as well. 
 
 It was during his term of service with Mr. Offutt at New Salem, III., 
 that many of Abraham Lincoln's traits of character were thoroughly 
 tested. Upon one occasion he discovered that he had overcharged a 
 customer, and in order to rectify his mistake and return the money he 
 was obliged to walk several miles, but that fact did not alter his pur- 
 pose, and he tramped the entire way in order to refund the money. 
 
 WHIPPING THE BULLY 
 
 He was living in a community containing some coarse and vulgar 
 men who had no respect for women; Abraham Lincoln had upon several 
 occasions reproved some of these roughs, and the bully of the town un- 
 
 86 
 
GETTING ACQUAINTED WITH HIMSELF, 87 
 
 dertook to pick a quarrel with him. Sauntering into the store, and in the 
 presence of several women, the rude fellow began a tirade of profane 
 and obscene language. Leaning over the counter and speaking in a 
 low tone Mr. Lincoln politely requested the young man to cease using 
 such words. The bully said in reply "that he'd like to see the man that 
 could stop him from saying anything that he chose to say,'' and still 
 persisted in insulting the customers. After the departure of the women 
 the bully began to abuse Mr. Lincoln, and dared him to come out and 
 fight. Striving to calm the young man's anger by keeping perfectly 
 cool Abraham Lincoln was at last obliged to retaliate. Patience had 
 ceased to be a virtue, and, remarking to the crowd that had gathered 
 about, "Well, if he must be whipped, I suppose I can do it as well as 
 any other man." Mr. Lincoln without further parley proceeded to give 
 him a sound thrashing, and for further punishment rubbed his face 
 and eyes with a sharp and stinging weed, until the bully fairly roared 
 with pain and anger. 
 
 LINCOLN MASTERS GRAMMAR 
 
 It was while young Lincoln was engaged in the duties of "store life" 
 that he commenced the study of English grammar. He could not, 
 however, obtain a text-book in the neighborhood, but, hearing that a 
 friend of his, Mr. L. M. Green, a lawyer, living eight miles distant, 
 possessed a grammar, he walked to his friend's home and succeeded ini 
 borrowing the book, which he studied diligently at every spare moment, 
 and whenever his friend would come to New Salem Lincoln would take 
 him aside and ask him to explain some of the most obscure and difficult 
 parts. At last the book was completed and the young man observed 
 that "if grammar was a science he reckoned he could master others." 
 It was during this period of his life that Abraham Lincoln became 
 interested in debate, and many of the "sparring matches" as they were 
 called by the young men of that section, were held in Mr. Offutt's store. 
 It was here that Abraham Lincoln made his first political speech, and 
 its delivery gave evidence of his powers of oratory. At the end of the 
 year, business and trade having been so slack, Mr. Offutt was obliged 
 to close the store and shut down the mill, and in consequence Abraham 
 
88 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 Lincoln was out of employment. Though he had received small wages 
 and performed constant service yet the year's hard experience had not 
 been lost. He had made new and valuable acquaintances, had read 
 many books, had won a host of friends, and had established a name that 
 was more valuable than all the rest. Everywhere and by everybody he 
 was called "Honest Abe." This reputation and name won for him 
 honor, respect, and power then, as it afterward did throughout his 
 entire career. 
 
 He was a pacificator, an arbitrator, everybody's friend, and an 
 authority. He was called the homeliest young man, but at the same 
 time the kindest, the gentlest, the strongest and the best natured fellow 
 in all the country about. 
 
 LINCOLN GOES TO WAR 
 
 'Abraham Lincoln, now being out of business, concluded to enlist in 
 what wa?- known as the Black Hawk War. Many of the recruits were 
 from New Salem and the country about and were personal friends of 
 Mr, Lincoln. The method of selecting army ofiScers in those days was 
 rather unique. The candidates were placed opposite each other and 
 the soldiers were told to make their preference. Abraham Lincoln was 
 the successful candidate, and when those who had just chosen his 
 opponent changed their minds and also came over to Lincoln's side he 
 could scarcely repress his delight. It is said that Mr. Lincoln subse- 
 quently confessed that no other success of his life gave him the genuine 
 pleasure that this election did. The Black Hawk War was not a very 
 remarkable affair and Mr. Lincoln never spoke of it in public other 
 than as an interesting episode in his life. But no doubt he must have 
 related some of his experiences to his relatives, for Mr. Hall said that 
 when "v/e children ast grandpap if Uncle Abe wus allers good natured 
 he said, yes, he never did get mad or out of humor, ^cept onct when he 
 wus in the Black Hawk War, a right smart feller kept imposin' upon 
 him and pickin' at him till he said, ^If you don't dry up, I'll kick you into 
 the river.^ But the feller didn't stop his foolin' and Abe done jest what 
 he said he w^ould and then walked off as cool as could be." 
 
GETTING ACQUAINTED WITH HIMSELF. 89 
 
 TALKING ABOUT UNCLE ABE 
 
 At this point in Mr. HalFs conversation, an old acquaintance of the 
 Lincoln family called to make some inquiries concerning the old home- 
 stead, and catching the final words of Mr. HalPs recital asked if he was 
 talking about Uncle Abe, 
 
 An answer in the affirmative elicited further inquiry, and when the 
 caller understood that I was trying to learn something concerning Mr. 
 Llncoln^s career as a soldier and officer during the Black Hawk War, he 
 volunteered to bring me a book which probably contained the informa- 
 tion I desired. 
 
 As good as his word, the farmer came the next day, bringing the 
 promised book, which contained tjie following humorous reference 
 made by Mr. Lincoln himself to his military career. 
 
 A MILITARY HERO 
 
 It was while Mr. Lincoln was a representative in Congress that the 
 friends of General Lewis Cass, when that gentleman was a candidate 
 for the Presidency, endeavored to endow him with a military reputation. 
 This sort of pretension was so obnoxious to Mr. Lincoln that he used It 
 as an instrument of ridicule, and in a sarcastic and irresistibly ludicrous 
 allusion, said: 
 
 "By the way, Mr. Speaker, do you know that I am a military hero? 
 Yes, sir; in the days of the Black Hawk War I fought, bled and came 
 aw^ay. Speaking of General Cass's career rerainds me of my own. I 
 was not at Stillman's defeat, but I was about as near it as Cass to HulPs 
 surrender; and, like him, I saw the place very soon afterwards. 
 
 DID NOT BREAK HIS SWORD 
 
 "It is quite certain I did not break my sword, for I had none to break; 
 but I bent my musket pretty badly on one occasion. 
 
 "If General Cass went in advance of me picking whortleberries, I 
 guess I surpassed him in charges upon the wild onions. If he saw any 
 live, fighting Indians, it was more than I did, but I had a good many 
 
90 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 bloody struggles with the mosquitoes; and although I never fainted 
 from loss of blood, I can truly say I was often hungry." 
 
 In after years, when Abraham Lincoln was a candidate for the 
 presidency, some of his campaign biographers undertook to make a 
 little political thunder for him out of his connection with the Black 
 Hawk War, but he expressed himself as being quite disgusted wA^h 
 such pretense. 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 LINCOLN'S FIRST CANDIDACY 
 
 THE soldiers engaged in the Black Hawk War from Sangamon 
 County arrived home just ten days before election, and Abraham 
 Lincoln had made himself such a favorite that his comrades 
 requested him to allow his name to be placed among the candidates 
 for the Legislature. Could anyone have been more surprised than was 
 this obscure and humble young man when such honor and recognition 
 were thrust upon him? His nomination was secured, and in accepting 
 it Lincoln made a few quaint and brief remarks, such as ever after 
 characterized his speech. He assured his friends that if elected he 
 would be thankful to them and should always do his duty, but if not 
 elected it w^ould be just the same. 
 
 LINCOLN'S DEFEAT 
 
 Mr. Lincoln received a large vote — his friends worked for him, his 
 soldier comrades voted for him, but the State of Illinois was too gen- 
 erally Democratic, and he was therefore defeated. Can anyone doubt 
 that Abraham Lincoln was not a disappointed man? The first excite- 
 ment over he looked about and found himself a stranded man, with no 
 occupation, trade or profession. He now began to think seriously of 
 learning the blacksmith's trade. Notwithstanding he had made up his 
 mind to pursue this course yet he was so anxious and ambitious to live 
 in a more elevated sphere of thought and action that he was ready to 
 catch at any straw as a drowning man might, and when an immediate 
 opportunity offered itself he became a partner in a dry goods firm. His 
 associate, however, proved a worthless, dissipated man and soon 
 wrecked the entire business. The venture was both unfortunate and 
 valuable. Though it left Mr. Lincoln burdened with debt, yet he was 
 rich in experience. 
 
 91 
 
92 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 Wherever he went or whatever he undertook he made friends. One 
 of his biographers has said: "Lincoln had nothing, only plenty of 
 friends," and when his financial trouble overtook him some of his ad- 
 mirers asked for his appointment as postmaster. He was delighted 
 with the office. It gave him a chance to read every newspaper that 
 went through the postofQce, and now for the first time in his life he 
 had "a constant feast of reading." The business of the office was very 
 insignificant and he did not feel as if he was morally compelled to 
 spend his entire time at the office. The postoffice he carried with him, 
 and Uncle Sam's servant took off his hat, looked over the mail and dis- 
 tributed it wherever the public found himo He kept the position of 
 postmaster until the mail delivery was removed to Petersburgh. 
 
 ABE LINCOLN'S HONESTY 
 
 One of the most beautiful exhibitions of Mr. Lincoln's honesty oc- 
 curred in connection with the settlement of his accounts with the post- 
 office department several years afterwards. 
 
 It was after he had become a lawyer, and at a period in his life 
 when he was distressed financially. He had but just acquired his law 
 education under unusually adverse circumstances. He was perplexed 
 and worried and so exceedingly poor that many another man would 
 have yielded to temptation and appropriated, if only as a loan, the 
 money that he had in his possession. But it was safe with Abraham 
 Lincoln, though he had starved. 
 
 It was one day after he had formed a law partnership with Major 
 Stuart, that the agent of the postoffice department entered and inquired 
 if Abraham Lincoln was in. Mr. Lincoln answered in the affirmative, 
 and the agent told him that he had called to collect the balance due the 
 department since the New Salem postoffice had been discontinued. 
 
 THE OLD TrN BOX 
 
 Mr, Lincoln seemed annoyed, and a friend who was present offered 
 to loan him the required amount. Making no reply Mr. Lincoln rose 
 and pulled out from under a pile of papers a small tin box. Turning 
 around he faced the agent and asked him what the amount was. The 
 
LINCOLN'S FIRST CANDIDACY. 93 
 
 sum was named. Mr. Lincoln took from the box a package, unfastened 
 the wrapping, and counted out the exact amount, which was a little 
 more than seventeen dollars. 
 
 After the agent left the room Abraham Lincoln quietly remarked 
 that he "never used any man's money but his own." Although the 
 money had been in his possession for several years, and he had often 
 been hungry for food, he had never used one cent of it, even for a 
 temporary purpose. It was this rigid honesty that made Mr. Lincoln 
 so responsible and trustworthy. This quality of honesty in Mr. Lincoln's 
 character was his strongest fortification, and through all the years of 
 his career, in which there were many epochs of absolute penury, he did 
 not swerve one iota from the straight and narrow path. 
 
 In these days of money-getting and money-keeping, it is well for the 
 young lad to pause and consider this lesson. The reputation that Mr. 
 Lincoln won as Honest Abe was more priceless than money or position, 
 and he had honestly gained the name by actual proof over and over 
 again. Because of this very characteristic, thus it was that an anxious 
 nation trusted him with its welfare, and knew that he would not betray 
 his trust. 
 
 The postoffice having "winked out," as Mr. Lincoln expressed it, he 
 was now ready for something else and it came to him from an unexpected 
 quarter. The surveyor of Sangamon County needed an assistant, and 
 though he found Mr. Lincoln entirely ignorant of the science of sur- 
 veying, yet his employer loaned him a text-book and assigned him 
 quite a large territor5\ 
 
 LINCOLN THE SURVEYOR 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was quite satisfied with the terms, because his employ- 
 ment furnished him with sufficient means to earn his daily living and 
 also procure some books. During his twelve months' engagement he 
 was a close student and constant reader, and he performed his work 
 with such accuracy that the surveys that he made were never disputed. 
 Lincoln had not the least knowledge of surveying, and now having ac- 
 cepted the position he was obliged to acquire the science in the shortest 
 
94 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 |K>ssible time, and he did. He was a close student, and after a brief 
 Btiidy procured a compass and chain and started boldly in at the work. 
 His first attempt ended in discouraging and disastrous results, for 
 Ms chain and compass were attached, to pay a debt for which Mr. 
 Lincoln was surety. The implements were, however, bought by a friend, 
 who immediately returned them to the young man, and bade him fear 
 no more trouble. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 MR- LINCOLN'S POLITICAL CAREER 
 
 MB. LINCOLN was still miserably poor, still a humble man- 
 humble in condition but not in spirit. There is no doubt but 
 even at this time he had begun to think of a political life. He 
 was now thoroughly familiar with the history of the politicians and 
 statesmen of his country. He was already a marked and peculiar man. 
 People were talking about him. His studious habits, his greed for 
 information, his power in story-telling, his quaint, odd ways, and his 
 uncouth appearance were attracting the attention of all classes. 
 Wherever he appeared he was the center of attraction. His duties a» 
 surveyor had brought him in touch with the people of other localities 
 and he had already made something of a record as a "stump speaker.'^ 
 He made no pretension to win favor; he was the poorest and plainest 
 man in all the country about, but yet again in 1834 he became a candi- 
 date for the Legislature and was elected by the highest vote cast for 
 any candidate. He was elected because he had made no enemies, 
 because people were glad to see him rise, and because he was honest, 
 was truthful, was kind and unselfish. 
 
 LINCOLN BEGINS TO STUDY LAW 
 
 During the Black Hawk War Mr. Lincoln had met Major John 
 T. Stuart, a lawyer of Springfield, who then told Abraham Lin- 
 coln that if he could ever be of service to him to let him know. At 
 the close of the canvass which resulted in his election Mr. Lincoln walked 
 to Springfield, borrowed some books from his friend and took them 
 back to New Salem. It was at this time that Mr. Lincoln began the 
 study of law. He itudied as diligently and as thoroughly as he had 
 read. He was so absorbed in his new study that he could think of 
 nothing else, until he was forced to stop for absolute lack of food. A 
 surveying tour would bring him some money, and then he would ievote 
 
 95 
 
96 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 himself again to his books, and so the days passed until the convening 
 of the Legislature, when he dropped his books, hung his satchel upon 
 a stick, slung it across his shoulder and on foot, trudged a hundred 
 miles to Vandalia, then the capital of the State of Illinois. 
 
 THE YOUNGEST MAN IN THE LEGISLATURE 
 
 During this session Mr. Lincoln learned much but talked very little, 
 and in referring to that period of his life Mr. Lincoln said: "By so 
 doing I made no mistakes to be rectified at another session." Though 
 the youngest man in the Legislature, he was always in his place, and 
 faithful to all duties imposed upon him. When the session closed he 
 walked home as he came, and resumed the study of law, but took up 
 surveying again as a means of livelihood. 
 
 Again in 1836 he was honored by the people of his district. The 
 canvass was an unusually exciting one, but, as before, he was elected 
 by a good majority. It was during this campaign that Mr. Lincoln 
 made an unusually brilliant speech. As he grew inspired with his 
 subject, the tall, awkward, homely man became majestic in his bearing. 
 His face was illumined with a radiance unseen before and his dreamy 
 eyes were filled with the light of inspiration. From that day to the 
 day of his death, he was recognized as one of the most powerful orators 
 in the county. Among those who composed the members of the House 
 that session many of them became distinguished men, and it was during 
 this term of the Legislature that Mr. Lincoln associated with and was 
 often pitted against the brightest men of his State. 
 
 CHANGING THE CAPITAL 
 
 Although but twenty-seven years old he was pushed to the front and 
 became an important factor in the work of the House. It was during 
 this session that through his immediate and unceasing efforts the cap- 
 ital of Illinois was changed from Vandalia to Springfield. Thus, with 
 no early education or culture or training, he had achieved what the best 
 educated and most favored would have been proud to do. 
 
 This session of the Legislature was notable for its connection with 
 the beginning of Mr. Lincoln's anti-slavery history. 
 
MR. LINCOLN'S POLITICAL CAREER. 97 
 
 The agitation of the slave question was just beginning to create 
 great uneasiness among the people, both at the North and the South. The 
 slaveholders were as agitated as the politician, and the subject was 
 broached in this session of the Illinois Legislature, A resolution in 
 behalf of slavery was offered, and an attempt was made to stigmatize 
 all who refused to endorse the same. Only two men in the house, 
 Abraham Lincoln and Dan Stone, both from Sangamon County, had 
 the manliness to refuse to vote for the "offensive resolution." It was 
 something for these two men to stand out and declare their principles 
 against the entire House. 
 
 This act was the beginning of Mr. Lincoln's anti-slavery record. 
 This little protest was the platform on which he stood and fought out 
 the great battle whose "trophies were four million freemen" and a 
 redeemed nation. 
 
 MEETING STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS 
 
 It was also at this session that Mr. Lincoln met Stephen A. Douglas, 
 who was then only twenty-three years old and the youngest man in 
 the House. These two young men had now set out on their important 
 careers, one to disappointment and a grave of unsatisfied hopes and 
 baffled ambitions, the other to the realization of his highest dreams of 
 achievement and renown, and a martyrdom that crowns his memory 
 with an undying glory. 
 
 The young solon had made no money, and was still about as poor 
 as they make them. His clothes were shabby and thin, and the weather 
 was raw and cold. 
 
 It is said by one of Mr. Lincoln^s biographers that he complained 
 to a friend, who was alsoi a member of the Legislature, of being cold and 
 chilly. 
 
 An associate said: "Ws no wonder, Mr. Lincoln, that you are cold; 
 there is so much of you on the ground." None of the party appreciated 
 this homely joke at the expense of his big feet more thoroughly than 
 did Abraham Lincoln himselt 
 
98 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 BEGINS THE PRACTICE CF LAW 
 
 The time Iiad come for Mr. Lincoln to leave his old home and his old 
 associates. The natural ability of the man demanded his removal to 
 larger territory and better environment; the future course of events 
 commanded him to shake off the limitations and seek stronger action 
 and greater achievement. 
 
 Springfield, the capital of the State, v^as the most enticing point, 
 and Mr. Lincoln argued that here was the proper place to begin the 
 practice of the law and to secure any further political recognition that 
 he might desire, for Mr. Lincoln was a man of political ambition. 
 
 He had already had just enough of the excitement and fascination 
 of a political career to whet his desire to further taste; just enough 
 political recognition to incite him to further attainment. 
 
 Abraham Lincoln turned his back upon New Salem with many 
 regrets, for his friends had aided him when he needed aid; here his 
 friends had appreciated him and raised him to an elevation, though 
 slight and unimportant compared to the future heights and power he 
 was destined to attain. 
 
 He left behind all the old stepping-stones by which he had bridged 
 the time between now and then, and ascended to homely prominence. The 
 old store, the wrestling matches, the foot races, the lounging places, the 
 insignificant postoffice — these were ever pleasant scenes to memory dear. 
 The few cabin homes were dearer still; the cabin homes in which kindly 
 women dwelt, who, with womanly instincts, detected the manliness of 
 character, and gave to the poor young man a home, "just for his com- 
 pany," as they said. 
 
 It was in the spring of 1837 that Mr. Lincoln went to his new home, 
 and it was with many misgivings that he took up his abode there. 
 
 A FRIEND IN NEED 
 
 Silthougb he had no money, was i>oorly dressed and most ungainly 
 In appearance, yet he had attracted the attention and interest of the 
 Hon, William Butler, a prominent citizen of Springfield, who invited 
 tihn to become a member of his household. This privilege was of great 
 
MR, LINCOLN'S POLITICAL CAREER, 99 
 
 benefit to Mr. Lincoln, for he was now thrown into the companionship 
 of educated men and refined women. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's law practice was not lucrative, nor particularly agree- 
 able. He as other young lawyers had to engage in considerable prac- 
 tice that brought poor returns, hard labor and small fees. It was not a 
 smooth or flowery path that he had chosen. 
 
 THE CIRCUIT RIDER 
 
 The man who practiced law in those days in Illinois "rode the cir- 
 cuit" — ^that is, the lawyers were obliged to follow the judges about from 
 county to county, some on horseback and some in buggies. Mr. Lin- 
 coln's outfit was very primitive and homely and provoked much ridicule 
 from the well-to-do lawyers. The long journeys from county seat to 
 county seat, the stopping at the settlers' home« to eat or sleep or feed 
 his horse, and his evenings at the country taverns, gave Mr. Lincoln a 
 wide and extensive acquaintance. It was during these trips that many 
 incidents occurred which demonstrated his kindness of heart and his 
 entirely unselfish purpose. He would often stop and fall far behind 
 his companions in order to rescue some animal which had »unk into 
 the mire and was struggling to free itself, or he would climb a tree 
 and put back into its nest the little fledgling that had fallen to the 
 ground, thus quieting the shrill cry of the distressed mother bird. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 A THRILLING NIGHT AT THE OLD LOG CABIN 
 
 THE sixth day of our sojourn had begun. Time had been rather 
 indolent in passing and we had hoped for a change, no matter 
 how or what. The coming to-morrow was the Sabbath day, we 
 dreaded its approach, anticipating an usually dull time, and there- 
 fore I determined to do something desperate in order to relieve our 
 minds of the terrible monotony and dreary, every-day humdrum exist- 
 ence. A startling proposition was made to my young friend. She was 
 aghast and sought to persuade me that the experiment would be dan- 
 gerous. I did not share her apprehension and told her that I had con- 
 cluded to dare the danger. 
 
 We had been at the log cabin every day, had viewed it from the old 
 stage road, had seen it from the top of the knoll, had sat upon the rotten 
 old doorsteps, had passed in and out and had climbed into the loft, but 
 we had not spent the night at the wonderful old house. 
 
 A GAME OF CARDS 
 
 The evening of the sixth day dwelt with us and an announcement 
 was made that really startled Uncle John and the boys. My host 
 gravely shook his head and Little Joe said, "You dasen't." This re- 
 mark decided the affair and I informed Mr. Hall that Miss Coleman 
 and myself would pass the night at the "Old Log Cabin." We took 
 our hammocks, pillows and books, and, escorted by the boys, went down 
 to the cabin. We chatted, told stories, and my friend and I made 
 believe we were happy. Darkness descended, we filed into the cabin, 
 lighted a "tallow dip," rolled in some stones, placed upon them some 
 rough boards for seats, hung up our hammocks, and proceeded to tell 
 more stories. Finally the boys were getting restless, and, consulting 
 our watches, we discovered that it was late, quite eleven o'clock. The 
 
 100 
 
'A THRILLING NIGHT. lOl 
 
 boys were too tired and sleepy to stay longer. We promised more 
 stories but that attraction had worn out, and we coaxed in vain until 
 Abe slyly drew from his pocket a pack of soiled cards. Putting them 
 down on the boards he said : "I'll stay and play ye a game of ^seven-up' 
 if yere won't tell paw." I responded to his proposition with alacrity, 
 and, passing the agreement around, the entire company acquiesced. 
 
 A CURIOUS PICTURE 
 
 A picture was created that never can be effaced. The west room of 
 the old cabin was dimly lighted, but the direct rays of the candle fell 
 upon the faces of the party. What a contrast, a woman of mature 
 years, bearing the impress of education and refinement, a young g}rl 
 fashionabl}^ attired, three rough, uncouth lads, all in their shirtsleeves, 
 one bareheaded, the other two wearing caps; one an old fur covering, 
 the other a torn and faded sombrero. 
 
 The uncanny hour was fast approaching and the game was growing 
 exciting, when a slight tap on the window-pane brought a shriek from 
 my young companion, and little Joe declared he "seed a face and it 
 looked jest like the pictur^ of Uncle Abe." 
 
 The young gentlemen decided that they must be going and advised 
 us to give up our valuables into their safe keeping. So watches and 
 pocketbooks were handed over to the boys and my companion and I 
 were left with the night and the solitude. 
 
 Miss Coleman begged me to abandon the idea of remaining alone 
 at the cabin and I frankly admit that I was sorely tempted to call the 
 boys back, abandon the project and ask them to help us "tote^' the 
 bedroom paraphernalia up the hill to the little cottage. My courage 
 received a fresh impetus however and I cast out the cowardly thought. 
 Announcing my final decision I begged Miss Coleman to control her 
 nervous dread and make of herself a more cheerful companion. She 
 could not conquer her distress, and, acquiescing to her pleadings, I 
 made myself very uncomfortable by occupying with her the same ham* 
 mock. 
 
102 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN 
 
 THE FRIGHT 
 
 We selected the one that had been hung in the corner of the west 
 room, and "right where Uncle Abe allers slept when he came back to 
 visit the relations." Nestling close to each other we awaited develop- 
 ments. How long we suffered, it seemed an eternity, and when a rat 
 ambled slowly across the cabin floor we were too paralyzed to even 
 scream. At last the horror passed, the morning dawned. We looked 
 into each other's haggard faces, laughed hysterically and made a sol- 
 emn compact that we would never again indulge in so foolish an under- 
 taking. 
 
 Our limbs were cramped, rigid, sore, and we could scarcely drag 
 ourselves about. Folding up our outfit we "silently stole away." The 
 day was awakening, and the morning sun, stretching out his long, red, 
 fervid rays, bathed the world in a resplendent light. 
 
 Miss Coleman and I, weary and nervous, walked slowly through the 
 dewy grass, and as we neared the cottage discovered the feathered tribe 
 excited and turbulent. The chanticleer filled the air with his loud and 
 warning call, the hens were rushing about, keeping up an incessant 
 cackling, the ducks waddled to and fro, while their incessant quack, 
 quack told us that they too were agitated. The geese stretched out their 
 necks, and, hissing in a defiant manner, demanded the cause of so much 
 excitement, the watchdog came bounding fi'om the rear of the cottage, 
 leaped the fence, and in a thoroughly military fashion guarded the 
 entrance. 
 
 THE STRANGER^S ARRIVAL 
 
 What a wonderful scene revealed itself as we ascended the hill and 
 climbed the rail fence. A fine turnout, to which was harnessed a pair 
 of prancing steeds, stood at the front gate and a stranger was alighting. 
 We now understood why the "dumb brutes" had displayed so much 
 excitement and we too became equally aroused and congratulated our- 
 selves that an adventure was in store for us. Expecting a tale of woe 
 from a lost and benighted traveler we were impatient to have the 
 mystery unravelled. The boys were up and dressed and out of the house 
 
A THRILLING NIGHT, 103 
 
 as soon as possible, and upon demanding from the stranger the cause 
 of his early call he responded by handing ^^Squire" two letters. The 
 boy looked at them dubiously, then observing Miss Coleman and myself, 
 handed me the missives. One was addressed to Mr. Hall, the other to 
 myself. How our hearts throbbed, and we anticipated something, we 
 hardly knew what,. The envelopes were hastily opened and — such a 
 disappointment. Simply letters of introduction and recommendation. 
 
 THE CUSTODIAN 
 
 The "cabin" had now become an object of interest to the country 
 people, and as many sightseers were beginning to visit it the mem- 
 bers of the Lincoln Log Cabin Association had concluded to send out 
 from Chicago a custodian to be put in charge of the cabin, for the pur- 
 pose of protecting and preserving the valuable old homestead from 
 vandalism, and the custodian had been instructed to give the cabin con- 
 stant attention, both night and day. 
 
 Though the event turned out to be rather a tame affair, yet the ar- 
 rival of the stranger was a great event, and we welcomed him right 
 royally. 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 A MEMORABLE SUNDAY 
 
 BREAKFAST was served on short notice, and after the "keen de- 
 mands'' of appetite had been satisfied, the guard was escorted 
 to the "old log cabin" by the entire household. Each one was 
 eager to tell what he knew, or what he had heard, or was anxious to 
 point out some favorite spot and to explain to him where and when. 
 Abraham Lincoln occupied the famous old house. This wonderful Sun- 
 day will ever remain a pleasant memory. 
 
 A COMPANY OF SIGHT-SEERS 
 
 In pointing out and describing the cabin and its particular belong- 
 ings we became so engrossed in entertaining our new acquaintance that 
 the approach of other and stranger sightseers was unnoticed, until the 
 sound of rapidly moving vehicles aroused our attention. Coming down 
 the road we saw three or four wagons containing a number of people, 
 who were shouting at us. The neighbors and country folk from far and 
 near, many of them acquaintances of the Lincolns, were flocking to 
 look at and comment upon the old log cabin. It told its own story, for 
 its dilapidated condition, its poor and homely construction, were object 
 lessons that even the youngest sightseer might appreciate and profit by, 
 
 STALE CREAM 
 
 Awaiting the approach of the small and unpretentious procession, 
 it was soon discovered that it consisted entirely of strangers. The 
 party alighted and a spokesman announced the fact that the party had 
 come out from Charleston to see the old log cabin. The young people 
 were cordially received and shown the old house, both its exterior and 
 interior. The company was composed of young men from fifteen to 
 
 104 
 
A MEMORABLE SUNDAY. 105 
 
 twenty years of age. The watchful and faithful custodian soon de- 
 tected that they were undoubtedly relic hunters, for several had un- 
 dertaken already to chip off pieces from the logs, windows and door 
 frames. Baffled in their attempt to secure some mementos of the old 
 cabin, but bent on further mischief, they thought to make some sort 
 of game out of Mr. Hall, and the leader of the party, turning to our 
 host, asked him if he "Couldn't tell a funny story? You are related to 
 Mr. Lincoln," he said, "and perhaps you have some of his genius in that 
 line." With a peculiar twinkle of his eye, Uncle John Hall quietly 
 remarked: "This yer woman has milked me dry, and I don't want ter 
 use the same cream ag'in; for I reckon it's stale now." 
 
 A look of amusement passed over the faces of the sightseers, and 
 after another effort they succeeded in inducing our host to try his 
 "tongue at story-telling." 
 
 POOR BUT PROUD 
 
 Pausing for a moment to collect his thoughts, then turning to me, 
 he said : "Hev I ever told yer anything about grandpap's britches hold- 
 er?" I could truthfully reply in the negative, and consequently we 
 heard the following tale: 
 
 "Grandpap Lincoln would sometimes wear galluses made out of 
 buckskin, though grandmarm allers kept a pair that she'd made out 
 of the linen that she'd growed and spun. Grandmarm wus a terrible 
 industrious woman. Wal, when grandpap worked he'd sweat like all 
 get out and his galluses would get so stiff that they'd stand alone. One 
 day one of the neighbors comin' in said to him, ^Grandpap, ye haint 
 greased yer galluses lately?' Then grandmarm said, ^There, paw, 1 
 told ye so, and I'm glad on it,' for though we wus poor and humble, 
 grandmarm wus awful proud and lowed her men folks should 
 have the best that was agoing," and turning about quickly 
 he faced a group of young lads and said to them: "Jest to 
 think, boys, how our folks got their clothes, never none of 'em 
 wus so shiftless as to wear store shirts, or coats either. We got our 
 clothes from natur." 
 
106 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 LEATHER BREECHES 
 
 Mr. Hall continuing, said: "The woods ust to be full of deer 
 and whenever grandmarm wanted buckskin to fox the men's pants 
 with she ast grandpap or Uncle John D. Johnston to go out and 
 kill her a buck. Uncle Abe tanned the hides, but he never did the killin' 
 part. Grandmarm allers said that Uncle Abe couldn't stand that part 
 of the bisness, for even when the hogs wus killed he'd go away for fear 
 he'd hear their squealing. Then when the hides wus ready grandmarm 
 would sew it on the men's britches clean up to the knees, so as to save the 
 cloth under it. When it rained and we got wet we'd have to stand in 
 front of the fire place and dry out. Wall, as the buckskin dried it would 
 shrivel and crawl up till it almost reached our knees. One day Grand- 
 pap Lincoln, Uncle Abe and Uncle John D. Johnston wus a standin' in 
 front of the fire dryin' theirselves. Uncle Abe would allers stand 
 and turn and turn around till he wus fully dried, but he wus awful tall 
 and awkward, and his legs wus so long and they looked as red as though 
 they were about blistered. Then the folks would laf fit to kill, and 
 Uncle John D. would allers sing out, Tull down yer britches, Abe, yer 
 old marrer bones need kiverin'.' " 
 
 THE FRIENDLY WRESTLE 
 
 The boys were now intensely interested, and by asking a significant 
 question Uncle John Hall was induced to tell more anecdotes regarding 
 the strength and agility of Abraham Lincoln. In response to a ques- 
 tion Mr. Hall replied: "Ye want to know if Uncle Abe wus strong 
 enough to tackle anything or lick anybody, do ye? Wall, I'd low that 
 didn't concarn him, for Uncle Abe could tackle anything, and onct on 
 a time Uncle Abe and Dan Needham rastled britches holdt and Uncle 
 Abe throwed Dan two times and then he ses, ses he, *Let's quit,' cause he 
 didn't want to hurt Dan's feelings. Why, grajQdpap hisself wus allers a 
 braggin' about how strong and limber Uncle Abe wus. How he could 
 stand with his hands in his pockets and bend over and tech the back of 
 his head on the ground, right level ground, tu. Uncle John D. John- 
 ston wus allers trying to throw Uncle Abe by bein' tricky. Howsom- 
 
'A MEMORABLE SUNDAY, Kdl 
 
 ever, Uncle John D. Johnston wus mighty strong, tu, and whenever he^d 
 try any of his tricks Uncle Abe ud stand with his hands in his pockets 
 and say, *Come on, John, and try to throw me; take a hold anywhere/ 
 Then Uncle John he'd try and try, and Uncle Abe would jest stand and 
 laf and laf. 
 
 LIGHT AS A FEATHER 
 
 "But as for strength, we wus all of us noted for that. While we're 
 talkin' about strength, Grandfather Hall wus a terribly strong, active 
 feller, tu, and he'd often come in and pick up Grandmother Lincoln 
 and pitch her into the bed two or three times, till it peered like she wus 
 a feather, and he'd stand back and fold up his arms and laf and laf, and 
 he'd say, ^Why don't ye stay still, grandmarm?' 
 
 SPLITTING RAILS 
 
 "Now do ye want to know how Uncle Abe got his strength?" and 
 without waiting for an answer Mr. Hall said: "Why he got it splitting 
 rails. Ye knowed it wus down in Illinois near Decatur, and at Buck 
 Grove and Muddy Point that Uncle Abe use to do so much rail-splittin'. 
 Never no tree wus too hard for him to tackle. They'd jest topple right 
 over when Uncle Abe ud chop. He never minded choppin' any trees, 
 nor splittin' rails, nor nothin', nor no kind of work, though one time 
 I remember he did say that the hardest work he ever hed to do and that 
 which worried him the most wus when he loaded a boat with a wheel- 
 barrer., It puzzled him awfully to keep the barrer on the plank, and 
 to catch holt of the handles, and to run it up hurt him mighty. I 
 reckon it wus because he wus so tall." 
 
 Mr. Hall paused and appeared to have exhausted his fund of stories, 
 but the interest of the boys was now at fever heat and they fairly begged 
 Mr. Hall to tell them just one more. Young Davis, the brightest lad 
 in the party, suggested that Mr. Hall relate the story of the celebrated 
 rail-splitting bee at which Mr. Lincoln had been the victor. But Uncle 
 John Hall thought he had something more important and significant 
 than the President's rail-splitting, and he proceeded to tell the follow- 
 ing story: 
 
108 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 NOT EXACTLY THOSE RAILS 
 
 "John Hanks told me about a piece that Uncle Abe spoke onct, and 
 I reckon it wus the first time that he ever made a political speech. It 
 wus down at Salem, a little town nigh to Springfield. Wall, they had 
 a spruce speaker from the big town, who thought he could tell the 
 country people all they ought ter know. He spouted away for a while 
 and after he hed finished, John Hanks, who wus a cousin of Uncle Abe^s 
 tu, told the folks he could produce a rail-splitter who could beat that 
 feller all to pieces. Cousin John, he got a lot of rails and piled 'em up in 
 a heap and then took Uncle Abe up by 'em and told him to go ahead, 
 which he did, and of course he knocked the other feller all to flinders. 
 When Uncle Abe hed got thru speakin' the feller that hed talked first 
 come up and askt him if he split them rails piled up thar. Uncle Abe 
 looked at 'em purty carefully and then said, ses he, ^I can't say that I 
 exactly split those particular rails, but I have split just as good ones,' 
 which wus the truth, fer I myself hev seed Uncle Abe make the slickest 
 rail ye ever looked on." 
 
 The day was waning, the shadows were lengthening and we all real- 
 ized that Mr. Hall would soon send his boys off to attend to the evening 
 chores. Their departure meant an interruption and probably an end, 
 for that day, to story-telling. An appealing look directed to me from 
 one of the young men of the party decided my course of action, and I 
 concluded to take this occasion to ask Uncle John to relate the circum- 
 stances connected with Mr. Lincoln's first law case, a reminiscence 
 which he had promised to give me for some time, but had never seemed 
 in the mood for that particular story. 
 
 Without comment or delay Uncle John Hall gave us the following 
 account of Mr. Lincoln's first lav/suit: 
 
 LINCOLN^S FIRST LAWSUIT 
 
 "The folks round here in our neighborhood use to hold camp meetin' 
 down to Paradise onct a year. Uncle Joe Hall, he went over one time 
 with a lot of young people. He bought a flask of whisky and took it 
 along with him and when he got on to the camp grounds he hid it in 
 
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 The original photograph of this half-tone of Abraham Lincoln 
 was taken just previous to his nomination as president. 
 
(By courtesy of H. W. Fay, DeKalb, 111.) 
 
 ABBAHAM LINCOLN AND HIS SON ''TAD.'* 
 
A MEMORABLE SUNDAY. 109 
 
 the wagin. The preacher hed been watching him and noticed whar 
 he put the flask, so he jest walked along and picked it up and put it 
 into his pocket and carried it into the pulpit with him, and jest before 
 he began to preach he held up the whisky and told the people that he 
 hed found it on the camp grounds and wus agoin' to preach a sermon 
 about it, when Uncle Joe jest stood right up and said to the minister, 
 ^That's my bottle and the whisky in it is mine, tu; and I'll take it if 
 you please/ But the preacher wouldn't give it up, and Uncle Joe 
 knowed it wouldn't cost him nothin' to hev a suit, as we hed a lawyer 
 in the family, so he kept still, said nothing, and the first time that 
 Uncle Abe come up yere after that he got him to sue the preacher for 
 the whisky, the flask and for hurting his feelings by exposing him before 
 the gal he took along with him. Uncle Abe tried the case and got 
 twelve cents damages, but the preacher wus so mad that he carried 
 it up to a higher court. Uncle Abe jest laffed and said, ses he, ^We^U 
 beat 'em ag'in,' and shore nuff he did, and got the judgment raised two 
 cents more; that made fourteen cents now, and the other feller hed all 
 the costs to pay, which wus a whole lot. Of course we knowed all the 
 time Uncle Abe would win anythin' he set out tu." 
 
 ss 
 
 HE-OH-A-NAY, WHOOP" 
 
 Mr. Hall rose from the low seat and stepped within the old cabin. 
 He looked about the room for a moment, and seeming to forget the 
 presence of others, said in a low voice: "Poor grandpap and grand- 
 marm, they wus so good and kind. When Uncle John D. Johnston 
 lived with us grandpap wus awful fond of his children, and if any of 
 them wus sick or worrisom he allers hed one favorite song he ust to sing 
 to them. This it wus, ^He-oh-a-nay, He-oh-a-nay, whoop.' It would 
 allers stop the children cry in', and he'd say, ^That is what the Injuns 
 sing to their pappooses.' I can still hear him singing that Injun song." 
 Then facing the little company. Uncle John Hall brushed a tear from his 
 bronzed cheek and exclaimed: "How I wish ye could have seen and 
 knowed grandmarm. Jest after my third child was born she got 
 crippled, but she couldn't lay still in bed, nohow. So she got my woman 
 to tie a string to the cradle, and there she would lay and rock the baby. 
 
no THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 I lowed not to have her, but she would. Well, she couldn't be no other 
 way but kind, and good and patient, nohow, 'cause she wus the 
 best woman I ever knowed." 
 
 THE FAMOUS BUREAU 
 
 With many thanks for their pleasant reception, the party was re- 
 luctantly preparing to leave, when Mr. Hall offered to show them the 
 very bureau that Grandmarm Lincoln had brought from Kentucky to 
 her new home in Indiana. The young men were delighted, and inviting 
 us to ride "around the road to the cottage," we were soon at Mr. Hall's 
 "new" house, and following the old gentleman into the kitchen, the 
 valuable family relic was pointed out by Mr. Hall, who called attention 
 to the brass handles, which were objects of especial family pride. The 
 party was given the privilege of closely inspecting the old piece of fur- 
 niture, and when all were satisfied and the numerous questions an- 
 swered, Mr. Hall opened the upper drawer and with a mysterious and 
 solemn air took from it a package. Carefully unwrapping it, he handed 
 me a book. Great was my astonishment when I discovered that I had 
 before me the old family Bible. It was old and finger-worn and bore 
 the date of 1799. The party clamored for a sight of the family record, 
 but Mr. Hall shook his head and, using a few unmentionable words, said, 
 "Uncle Dennis Hanks took it long enough to have it copied and never 
 returned it, fur he sold it to a relic hunter and got a right smart price 
 fur it," and with another burst of indignation Mr. Hall again mourned 
 the loss of the valuable relic. 
 
M 
 
 CHAPTER XVIIl. 
 
 LOVE, COURTSHIP AND MARRIAGE 
 
 B. LINCOLN'S legal career was now begun in earnest, and he 
 entered into the most trivial cases with as great zest and enthu- 
 siasm as he did the most important ones. The poorest client 
 could expect as thorough and conscientious work as the richest and most 
 influential citizen. Though his profession claimed his attention, yet 
 the special session of the previous Legislature, held during 1839 at Van- 
 dalia, found Mr. Lincoln in his seat, and he was faithful to legislative 
 duties, although he felt that his business was suffering thereby. 
 
 When Mr. Lincoln was placed upon the legislative ticket in 1840 
 he consented to run, as he would not be obliged to entirely sacrifice his 
 business, for the capital had been changed to Springfield. He wais of 
 course re-elected, for he had now become so thoroughly a man of the 
 people that he could easily carry his district, and apparently for any 
 office that he might run for. 
 
 During this session Mr. Lincoln took part in all the debates. Some 
 of them were political, while others were entirely local; but no matter 
 how important or unimportant, he had proven himself able to cope 
 with them. If of vital importance he handled the issue with great 
 ability, but if deserving of dismissal or riddance, he showed an equal 
 ability in overcoming the nuisance. 
 
 A STORY FOR EVERYTHING 
 
 From an entirely different standpoint, however, was the latter situa- 
 tion handled. The tactics which he here used were begun in his early 
 youth, and he had now grown wonderfully adept in them. 
 
 If a man broached a subject which he personally did not want to 
 hear, he told a story that immediately changed the conversation. If he 
 
 was called upon to answer a question that he did not care to answer 
 
 111 
 
112 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 direct, a question was put in turn and the other fellow had the worst 
 of it. 
 
 He had a story for everything, either real or imaginary, and his 
 faculty for finding or making these apropos stories was indeed won- 
 derful. Every fact or combination of facts seemed to revolve themselves 
 into allegorical or real form, and without seeming effort, unrolled to suit 
 the occasion. His mind was so full of these quaint stories that one 
 wonders how the store house was supplied. 
 
 It was during this session of the Legislature that Mr. Lincoln used 
 a "fiction point" with great success. A member from Wabash County 
 had been very troublesome over an exceedingly unimportant point. At 
 last his constant appearance and vociferous utterance became unpleas- 
 antly annoying to the members in general, Mr. Lincoln included. 
 
 THE MEMBER FROM WABASH 
 
 One day when the member aforesaid had discharged all of his bat- 
 teries concerning his pet object, Mr. Lincoln took the floor, and with 
 one of his quizzical expressions and in an unusually drawling tone, ad- 
 dressed the speaker. Becoming exceedingly personal, he began by 
 saying: 
 
 "The member from Wabash reminds me of an old friend. He^s a 
 peculiar looking fellow, with shaggy, overhanging eyebrows, and a pair 
 of spectacles under them. One morning just after the old man got up, 
 he imagined, on looking out of his door, that he saw rather a lively 
 squirrel on a tree near his house. So he took down his gun and fired 
 at the squirrel, but the squirrel paid no attention to the shot. He 
 loaded and fired again and again, until at the thirteenth shot he set 
 down his gun impatiently and said to his boy, who was looking on: 
 ^Boy, there's something wrong about this rifle.' ^Rifle's all right, I 
 know 'tis,' responded the boy, ^but w here's your squirrel?' ^Don't you 
 see him humped up about half way up the tree?' inquired the old man, 
 peering over his spectacles and getting mystified. *No, I don't,' re- 
 sponded the boy, and then turning and looking into his father's face, he 
 
LOVE, COURTSHIP AND MARRIAGE. 113 
 
 exclaimed, ^I see your squirrel; you have been firing at a louse on your 
 eyebrow.' " 
 
 The story needed no application or explanation. The House was in 
 convulsions of laughter, and the member from Wabash was completely 
 routed, so much so that he was very careful during the entire session 
 not to provoke any allusion to his "eyebrows." 
 
 FORMED SECOND LAW PARTNERSHIP 
 
 At the close of the legislative session Mr. Lincoln severed his con-, 
 nection with Major Stuart and immediately formed a business associa- 
 tion with Judge S. T. Logan, of Springfield, one of the ablest lawyers in 
 the State. He entered upon this new partnership with a full determin- 
 ation to devote his entire time to his chosen profession, but the people 
 would not permit him to do so. He was called upon from all quarters 
 of the State, and from that time and until his election to the Presidency 
 of the United States he engaged in the many exciting and important 
 political campaigns between the years eighteen hundred and forty and 
 eighteen hundred and sixty. 
 
 A BIG MAN AND A HIGH HAT 
 
 He was now considered by the old neighbors and friends and rela- 
 tives a "big man," and in speaking of him they nearly all referred to 
 him as wearing a "high hat, but never being no different, nohow." His 
 love and sympathy and kindness did not decrease in proportion as his 
 popularity increased, but on the contrary he now felt that as he was 
 earning something more than a living a greater responsibility rested 
 upon him, and he still continued to bear the burdens and share the anx- 
 ieties of his immediate familv. About this time he assumed the debt 
 that rested upon his father's little farm, located in Coles County, and 
 always visited the old homestead twice a year in order to pay up the 
 interest, and from time to time lessen the principal, which had been 
 borrowed by his father from the school funds. This debt Mr. Lincoln 
 finally succeeded in canceling after many years and many sacrifices. 
 He alwavs walked to the old home in order to save liverv hire, and the 
 
114 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 money which he would have used for that purpose was given to his 
 mother. 
 
 After his father's death he deeded the land to Daniel D. Johnston, 
 the son of his stepmother, in consideration of a promise that he would 
 support her as long as she lived. 
 
 MR. LINCOLN'S RESPONSIBILITY 
 
 What a remarkable thing to do. The stepson paying the mother's 
 son a consideration for the care of his own mother. But so it was 
 throughout his entire life; Mr. Lincoln was ever looking out to defend 
 the weakling, to protect the innocent, and to succor some needy one. 
 
 Friend or foe, relative or stranger, irrespective, received his kindly 
 thoughts and active efforts. An unfortunate man was a subject of his 
 sympathy no matter what his business relations to him might be. Un- 
 paid notes were returned too and rather than cause further discomfort 
 he would cancel the obligation of such an one. 
 
 Legal counsel and services were freely given to those who were un- 
 able to compensate him. Mothers' sons were pardoned and restored 
 to their homes through the kindness of the great-hearted man. Dumb 
 animals were rescued from cruel treatment, and little children were 
 caressed and always given a tender greeting. 
 
 When a great and mighty nation called upon him in its extremity 
 he was not found wanting. No cowardly fear filled his soul. The 
 pilot stood at his post, and the ship of state was carried safely through 
 treacherous waters, past dangerous rocks, into a safe harbor. 
 
 LINCOLN'S MARRIAGE 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was now thirty -three years of age and already a great 
 favorite with the young ladies of Springfield. In November of this 
 year (1842) he was married to Miss Mary Todd, daughter of the Hon. 
 Robert S. Todd, of Lexington, Ky. Miss Todd was quite a belle and 
 had often met Mr. Lincoln at the home of her sister, Mrs. Edwards, of 
 Springfield. When criticised by her relatives and friends for bestow- 
 ing her affections upon so awkward, homely and uncouth a man, she 
 remarked: "I am marrying a man great enough to be the President 
 
ZOVE, COURTSHIP AND MARRIAGE. 115 
 
 of the United States," and we know that her prophecy became a verity. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln now undertook to give himself up to the pleasures of 
 domestic life and professional work, but the people would not be con- 
 tent, and he was constantly called into political service. He had not 
 married earlier in life because circumstances would not permit, and 
 in fact had hitherto denied himself the companionship of women, 
 because of his limited means, although he was especially fond of their 
 society. 
 
 A glimpse of his domestic life shows the same unpretentious atmos- 
 phere that had always characterized every situation, condition and 
 circumstance in the man's career. 
 
 The newly married couple began life by taking cheap rooms at one 
 of the hotels in Springfield, and it was not until some time afterwards 
 that Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln moved into more pretentious quarters. 
 
 This new relationship did not change Mr. Lincoln's habits; he was 
 the same unaffected and simple-hearted man. His home was modest in 
 the extreme, his relation to his children was that of a comrade rather 
 than a monitor. His visits and intercourse with his "poor relations" 
 were not discontinued, nor less cordial. 
 
 I LOW YE^VE GOT HYSTERIOKY 
 
 This very fact led me to speculate upon how the announcement of 
 his marriage was received by his old friends and relatives, and I won- 
 dered if his wife had ever visited his father and mother. Sitting upon 
 the dilapidated doorstep of the "old log cabin" I fell into a dreaming 
 mood and my thoughts ran away back more than half a century. Had 
 not this quiet, sad-eyed man, through all the years of his young man- 
 hood, which had been so full of sorrow, poverty, privations and hard- 
 ship, never known the joy of love before? In fancy, however, I heard 
 the bashful and clumsy youth telling a coy and gentle maiden the old, 
 old story. Her answer, low and sweet, was interrupted by a shadow 
 falling across the little path that led to the front gate, and I looked up 
 quickly. The living figure of Mr. Lincoln confronted me. Uttering a 
 shriek of terror, I sprang from my low seat and attempted to flee, but 
 the voice of Uncle John Hall brought me back to the present, and re- 
 
IIG THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 assuring me, he said: "Sho, woman, that night at the cabin has made 
 ye narvous, and pon my soul I low je've got hystericky." My only reply 
 was, "But you looked so much like Mr. Lincoln." With a quiet voice 
 again he said, "So I've ben told nigh onto a hundred times." 
 
 YE TAKE MY BREATH AWAY 
 
 The opportunity had arrived and I must take advantage of it. Ie- 
 viting him to sit beside me on the decayed old doorstep, I plied him 
 with the following questions: What did the old friends and relatives 
 say when they heard that Mr. Lincoln was to be married? Did his 
 wafe visit them? Did you ever see the children? Pursuing my ques- 
 tions further I also asked if Mary Todd was the only sweetheart that 
 Mr. Lincoln ever had. 
 
 Looking at me in a curious way, he answered: "Yer take my 
 breath away with so many questions all to once." Then, after the man- 
 ner of a philosopher, he looked wise and appeared to have some im- 
 portant information. Fearing that if I interrupted his meditations I 
 would altogether lose my answer, I awaited patiently his pleasure. 
 Distracting moments passed by before he replied: 
 
 LINCOLN^S FIRST LOVE 
 
 "It wus after a little visit to us, and when we heard that Uncle Abe 
 w^us goin' to be married, then we axed grandmarm if Uncle Abe never 
 hed a gal before, and she said, ses she, 'Well, Abe wus never a hand 
 nohow to run round visitin' much, or to go with the gals neither, but 
 he did fall in love w^ith Ann Rutledge, who lived out somewhere near 
 Vandalia or Springfield, and after she died he come home and told all 
 about her, and cried dreadful, and he never could talk of her nohow but 
 he'd shed tears.' 
 
 SHE IS BUSY AND COULDN^T COME 
 
 "He told grandmarm onct they wus promised to be married, and 
 that's all any of us ever heerd about that love affair; but after 
 Uncle Abe hed lived at Springfield for a w^hile we heerd he wus a 
 goin' to marry a Kantucky woman, and nothin' more than that. Be 
 
LOVE, COURTSHIP AND MARRIAGE. 117 
 
 the next time Uncle Abe come up to see us he told us he wus already 
 married, and when we ast him why he didn't bring his wife up to see 
 us he said, *She is very busy and couldn't come/ But we knowed better 
 than that- You see, he wus too proud to bring her up, 'cause he 
 knowed nothin' would suit her, nohow. Of course she hadn't been raised 
 the way we wus, and wus different styled from us, and we heerd tu that 
 she wus as proud as spades. No, and he never brought nary of the chil- 
 dren, either. They were young before they went to Washington, and 
 Uncle Abe could not bring them without her to nuss and take care of 
 them. But he allers come himself twice a year, and there wus no dif- 
 ference in him, as I can recollect, from the first time I ever seed him." 
 
 Mr. Hall paused for breath and fell into a silent mood. Hoping he 
 might have something further to say if I did not disturb him, and thus 
 change the current of his thoughts, I also remained silent. 
 
 His meditation grew tiresome, and annoyed by his long abstraction, 
 I gave up hope and sought information elsewhere. 
 
 Gathering up my papers I consulted my correspondence, and dis- 
 covered that many of Mr. Lincoln's immediate associates had considered 
 him queer and at times constrained or absent-minded, as they termed 
 it. Quoting from a personal letter, the writer said: 
 
 ^^Although one of the most even tempered men that ever lived, Mr. 
 Lincoln was the subject of great varieties of mood and extremes of 
 feeling. He was often oppressed with a deep melancholy, weighed down 
 by the great problems of his own life and of humanity in general. At 
 other times he was as happy as a boy, and took delight in the most 
 trivial things, and would laugh immoderately over incidents and stories 
 that would hardly interest many another man in his position. 
 
 MY CHILDREN ARE MY HAPPINESS 
 
 "He was heard to exclaim more than once: 'Oh, how hard it is to die 
 and not to be able to leave the world any better for one's little life in it.' 
 ^Again he would be as jolly as others and would then say: 'My children 
 are my happiness, and I feel that God is good to me for having conferred 
 upon me the privilege of bringing into the world innocent children.' " 
 
118 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 This all reminded me that some of Mr. Lincoln's biographers had 
 intimated as a fact the possibility of suicide, and as Uncle John Hall 
 was returning to the affairs of this particular globe, I asked him if he 
 believed that Mr. Lincoln had ever attempted or even contemplated 
 suicide. 
 
 His answer was short and to the point: "No; don't ye believe sech 
 trash as that. Uncle Abe knowed too much to do sech a foolish act. 
 Why, he couldn't be peart all the time, and jest because he took some 
 of his time to be a thinking how he was going to run the United States, 
 then folks called him sad like." 
 
 Our conversation drifted along and Mr. Hall acknowledged that Mr. 
 Lincoln had said to him more than once, "that there were some things 
 so hard to bear that one felt like getting rid of it all." Then, looking 
 at me suspiciously, he said: "Sho, woman, don't 'low sech things to 
 trouble ye, for Uncle Abe thought too much of hisself to ever think of 
 sech a cowardly deed." 
 
 GIVING UNCLE ABE A SEND OFF 
 
 The day was done. A call from the little house on the hill conveyed 
 the welcome news that supper was ready. Mr. Hall proposed that we 
 return to the cottage by way of the traveled road. As we walked along 
 Uncle John Hall pointed out here and there some particular spot sacred 
 to by-gone recollections. "Right in this yer corner of the fence Grand- 
 pap Lincoln dug a yarb that cured my first baby of the chills and fever. 
 Over yander we all found a turkey's nest full of eggs, and whether or 
 not it wus our particular turkey that didn't make no difference, nohow, 
 because we claimed the young turkeys by right of takin' care on 'em. 
 You know, don't ye, that young turkeys is mighty easy to kill, and we 
 had a lot of trouble with that particular brood, for it wus out of sea- 
 son; but we wus expecting Uncle Abe up fore long, and as he'd been 
 down to Washing-ton to Congress, we hed lowed to give him a send off, 
 and we nussed the turkeys very particularly. Wall, Uncle Abe come 
 and wus jest the same, and never put on no airs, nohow, but jest told his 
 cur'us stories, went round barefoot like the rest of us, and split kind- 
 
ZOVE, COURTSHIR AND MARRIAGE. 119 
 
 ling wood jest as handy as ever." The homely anecdotes were told so 
 naturally and so vividly that it took no effort whatever to feel the pres- 
 ence of the departed household as each had followed this self-same 
 path. 
 
 I'D LIKE TO SEE UNCLE ABE 
 
 We were now entering the gate, and Mr. Hall paused, looked up 
 and down the road, as if expecting some one, then, seeming to address 
 an invisible person, said: 
 
 "Grandmarm allers took this track when she walked over to Mr. 
 Phipps onct a year to get bled. She never failed and would walk the 
 mile and a half as spry as a young gal. She use to tell us that every- 
 body should be bled in the spring, so as to keep well and healthy. She 
 allers had the big vein in her ankle jint opened. I reckon she did that 
 because she was so proud and didn't want a scar on her arm." Then 
 pointing to the cabin, whose dim outlines were just discernible, Uncle 
 John Hall spoke in a voice so low that one could hardly catch the words: 
 "How I'd like to see grandmarm and grandpap and Uncle Abe onct 
 ag^in." 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 MR. LINCOLN IN CONGRESS 
 
 THE political biographers of Mr. Lincoln have said that in 1846 he 
 was "induced to accept" the nomination for Congress from the 
 Sangamon district. Would it not be quite as well to acknowl- 
 edge, with his own frankness and directness, that Mr. Lincoln did not 
 wait Macawber-like for something to turn up, but admit that his own 
 shrewdness and prudent, diplomatic effort secured his nomination? Al- 
 though at this time he was leading a rather unimportant and circum- 
 scribed life in Springfield, simply following his profession and attend- 
 ing to his domestic duties, yet he had not been idle in political plans. 
 
 Having received the nomination, Mr. Lincoln did, after the manner of 
 Western nominees, stump his district. He had plenty of material for 
 discussion and he handled anything that he undertook with the same 
 thoroughness, determination and ability that had always been a part 
 of his nature from his earliest boyhood. 
 
 There had been important changes in the acquisition of new terri- 
 tory, for Texas had been admitted to the Union during the winter of 
 the preceding year, and the war with Mexico had commenced. The 
 country had a foreign war on its hands, a war which the old Republican, 
 or rather Whig, party considered unnecessary and unjustifiable. 
 
 The issues between the two political parties were pronounced and 
 the difference clearly shown. Mr. Lincoln's position was so clearly out- 
 lined that his friends and the community were not in doubt as to his 
 views. He convinced the many and set the few thinking by his clear 
 and just reasoning, and his terse and comprehensive way of putting the 
 truth before the people secured his election. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was elected by an unprecedented majority, and "there 
 seems to be no doubt but that this remarkable plurality was because of 
 the popular faith in Mr. Lincoln's earnestness, conscientiousness and 
 integrity." 
 
 120 
 
MR, LINCOLN IN CONGRESS, 121 
 
 He took his seat in the Thirtieth Congress December 6, 1847. Mr. 
 Lincoln was from the first alive to the interests of his party. He made 
 himself master of every subject that he undertook to discuss, and his 
 earnestness, honesty, clearness and deep unselfish interest in questions 
 of public concern won for himself the respect, at least, if not the admi- 
 ration, of the more polished members from the cultured East, who had 
 been led to believe that the member from the Sangamon district was 
 an ignorant clown. 
 
 THE TALLEST MAN \N CONGRESS 
 
 It was during this Congressional session that Mr. Lincoln became 
 better acquainted with the Hon. Stephen A. Douglas, who was also a 
 member from Illinois. Mr. Lincoln was the tallest man in the House 
 and Mr. Douglas the shortest man in the Senate. It was a peculiar 
 coincidence that these two unique characters, so strangely unlike, 
 should soon meet in forensic battle, standing out before their State 
 and country as the champions of the policies that divided the American 
 people. 
 
 The fourteenth day of August the first session of the Thirtieth Con- 
 gress came to a close. The session had beei. one of great importance, 
 and excitement Mr. Lincoln had discharged his duties ably and cop 
 scientiously, though he had not entirely pleased his constituency. 
 
 The second session was comparatively a quiet one and the fourth 
 of March brought Mr. Lincoln's congressional career to a close. While 
 he had maintained a most respected position in the House, he had not 
 made any great impression either upon the members or the country at 
 large. 
 
 Upon his return to Springfield Mr. Lincoln again entered upon the 
 duties of his profession. He gave himself up to the enjoyment of do- 
 mestic and social pleasures and to further and broader research in 
 study and investigation. His children were a constant and continual 
 feast of joy to him. He was so tenderly fond of them that he exercised 
 no paternal government except to tax the disobedient child with having 
 broken his heart when it did wrong. 
 
1»» THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 LINCOLN'S REGRETS 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's lack of early advantages and his limited education were 
 now indeed a source of great irritation and annoyance to him. His 
 intercourse with the distinguished men of the country and the culti- 
 vated society of Washington no doubt had deeply impressed him with 
 the fact that he was wofully lacking in society manners. Yet with all 
 of these drawbacks facing him he was never a humble man, for he 
 recognized his own strength of moral character and thus ever lived up 
 to the highest ideals — sincerity, generosity and absolute honesty. 
 
 It was at this time that Mr. Lincoln embraced every method and 
 opportunity for further mental development. From the year eighteen 
 hundred and forty-seven up to the year eighteen hundred and fifty-four 
 Mv, Lincoln led a quiet professional life, and seemed to have been 
 rather indifferent to the course of political affairs. But now at this 
 time a new political era was opened. Events of great interest were 
 eeeurring and the slavery question was begun, an agitation which was 
 destined not to cease until slavery itself should be destroyed. Mr. 
 Lincoln had always known and felt that slavery was wrongs — a blot 
 upon the nation's otherwise fair fame — but to wipe out that institution 
 which had been for so many years the woof and web of the fabric which 
 had formed the Southern man's home and his industrial world, meant 
 such a breaking up of established ideas and methods and beliefs that 
 the stoutest heart quailed at the mere thought of what such a move- 
 ment might mean. 
 
 But now the entire complexion of things was changed. Stephen A. 
 Douglas, the member of Congress during the period of Mr. Lincoln's 
 congressional service, and who had since remained continually in Con- 
 gress as the distinguished and brilliant member from Illinois, was the 
 responsible author of that important and disgraceful bill which, if 
 passed, would disregard the compromise made in 1820, barring slavery 
 from the Northwest. Under such an enactment as Mr. Douglas pro- 
 posed certain Territories, Kansas and Nebraska, would then be free to 
 choose whether they would have slavery as an institution or not. 
 
MR. LINCOLN IN CONGRESS. 123 
 
 AN EARLY VERDSCT 
 
 Mr. Lincoln felt that the intent of the bill ^was, without doubt, to 
 force slavery upon the Territories and thus make it impossible for them 
 ever to become free States. Mr. Lincoln reasoned that if this were so, 
 then the greatest political crime of the age had been committed and 
 so he said, "There is to be no peace on the slavery question until either 
 freedom or slavery shall triumph." Mr. Lincoln's great soul was 
 wrought up to the highest pitch of indignation and he determined the 
 people, of his own section at least, should understand the iniquity of 
 such a political crime. Challenging Mr. Douglas to open debate, he 
 made the subject of discussion the Kansas-Nebraska bill. When Mr. 
 Douglas returned to Chicago, the city of his adoption, he met with such 
 a vigorous protest from the leading men of his party that he knew he 
 had made a fatal mistake, but he tried to overthrow public opinion by 
 speaking at various towns in the State. 
 
 In September of 1854 Mr. Douglas found himself in Springfield. The 
 State fair was in operation and he took this occasion to speak to the 
 large concourse of people in attendance. 
 
 Mr. Douglas was a man known to the whole nation, and was the 
 recognized leader of his party in Illinois. He was experienced in debate, 
 had great ability, strong will and unconquerable ambitions; all these 
 characteristics made him a dangerous antagonist to other than his 
 equal or superior. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln, compared with Mr. Douglas, was inexperienced; he was 
 unknown to the country, save in his own State; was slow of speech, and 
 up to the present time devoid of brilliant action. He was known far 
 and wide throughout the State as Honest Abe, the backwoodsman, but 
 his oratory had hitherto remained unchallenged and his speeches had 
 been confined to less important issues. 
 
 REPLY TO DOUGLAS* SPEEOH 
 
 On the day following the speech of Mr. Douglas, Abraham Lincoln, 
 who had listened to him, replied, and the former speaker was present. 
 Mr. Lincoln began by saying that he intended to tell the people the 
 
124 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 truth, for to that they were entitled, and further remarked that if Judge 
 Douglas should catch him saying anything that was untrue, he was 
 at liberty to correct him. This willingness on the part of Abraham 
 Lincoln for fair play was turned against him by Mr. Douglas, who 
 interrupted him continually, not because the speaker had made any 
 false statement, but simply for the purpose of breaking down his 
 antagonist. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln humored this ungentlemanly behavior and answered all 
 of Mr. Douglas' criticisms. At last Mr. Lincoln could no longer bear the 
 annoyance, and he reproved Mr. Douglas by saying: "Gentlemen, I 
 cannot afford to spend my time in quibbles. I take the responsibility 
 of asserting the truth myself, relieving Judge Douglas from the neces- 
 sity of his impertinent corrections." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was permitted to proceed without further interruption, 
 and at the close of his speech the assembly gave abundant evidence of 
 its appreciation. 
 
 THE HOUSE STILL AS DEATH 
 
 The Springfield Journal described the occasion in the following 
 language: "He," meaning Mr. Lincoln, "quivered with feeling and 
 emotion. The whole house was as still as death. He attacked the bill 
 with unusual warmth and energy, and all felt that a man of strength 
 was its enemy, and that he intended to blast it if he could by strong 
 and manly efforts. He was most successful; and the house approved 
 the glorious triumph of truth by loud and long-continued huzzas. 
 Women waved their handkerchiefs in token of woman's silent but heart- 
 felt consent. 
 
 "Mr. Lincoln exhibited Douglas in all the attitudes he could be placed 
 in friendly debate. He exhibited the bill in all its aspects, to show its 
 humbuggery and falsehoods, and when thus torn to rags, cut into slips, 
 held up to the gaze of the vast crowd, a kind of scorn was visible upon 
 the face of the crowd and upon the lips of the most eloquent speaker. 
 At the conclusion of the speech, every man felt that it was unanswer- 
 able — that no human power could overthrow it or trample it underfoot. 
 The long and repeated applause evinced the feelings of the crowd, and 
 

 
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 Appointed commanding general of all the armies by President Lincoln in 1864. 
 
MR, LINCOLN IN CONGRESS. 125 
 
 gave token of universal assent to Lincoln^s whole argument; and eveijj 
 mind present did homage to the man who took captive the heart, and 
 broke like a sun over the understanding." 
 
 When Mr. Lincoln concluded his speech, Mr. Douglas hastened to 
 mount the stand and made the statement that he had been abused, 
 "though in a perfectly courteous manner." He continued to speak until 
 adjournment for supper, but knew in his heart that he had made a 
 failure of the whole business. 
 
 A WONDERFUL SPECTACLE 
 
 What a wonderful spectacle. The man of refinement, culture, edu- 
 cation, position and fame worsted by a "common man of the people." 
 It only goes to show that no matter how falsehood and injustice is 
 coated and veneered with the semblance of reality, right will at last 
 prevail, and the everlasting and enduring truth is generally discovered 
 and dug out of the mire and mud by an honest and faithful toiler. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln, as well as his friends, were now convinced of his power 
 and strength, and the excitement of success and the triumph of right 
 over wrong uplifted and filled the man with a vigor and exaltation of 
 conviction. 
 
 He had partaken of the "strong wine" of righteous doing, but he was 
 not drunken therewith, only exhilarated and free. 
 
 The little giant, as Mr. Douglas was called, went to Peoria, 111., and 
 to that place Mr. Lincoln followed him, and again, as at Springfield, 
 challenged him to debate. At Peoria the victory for Abraham Lincoln 
 was more marked than at Springfield. 
 
 DOUGLAS STUNNED 
 
 Mr. Douglas seemed stunned with the crushing blows that Mr. Lin- 
 coln dealt, and so wonderful was the "backwoodman's" power over the 
 audience that Judge Douglas did not attempt to reply to Mr. Lincoln'^ 
 speech. 
 
 It should be remembered by all aspiring young men that Mr. IJlncoln 
 did not reach the zenith of his oratorical fame by any of the trickery 
 
Ub THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 that tlie stump speaker usually resorts to. He was always in earnest 
 and closely followed his subject, never swerving from his idea concern- 
 ing the truth of the question up for debate. To be sure he told stories, 
 many stories, and very humorous and pithy ones. He never told them 
 for the mere purpose of amusing the crowd, but always with the intent 
 of illustrating some vital point. The real issue was never lost sight of, 
 and he never undertook to raise a false notion or attempted to dodge 
 the real issue. His words were always plain and contained no pyro- 
 technical display, but he covered the field, and their meaning was never 
 foggy; always clear and understandable. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln wished to continue these discussions between himself 
 and Mr. Douglas, throughout the State, but Mr. Douglas felt that he 
 had had enough for a while at least, and so expressed himself. Abra- 
 ham Lincoln did not, however, feel inclined to abandon his purpose, and 
 therefore made several other speeches which produced a political revo- 
 lution. 
 
 FURTHER HONORS 
 
 During his absence from Springfield and while he was engaged in 
 making these political speeches, the people of his own district had 
 placed his name for nomination, without his consent, and again he was 
 elected. Again he was a member of the Legislature, but the honor was 
 not accepted. He resigned without taking his seat. 
 
 Abraham Lincoln was steadily and slowly, but surely, climbing the 
 ladder of fame. He was, however, the same humble and unassuming 
 man. He had not acquired wealth, he had no possessions. The same 
 simple habits were kept up; his home was unaffected but hospitable. 
 He had sons, little boys, and they were very dear to him. It was a 
 common sight to see the tall, ungainly man wheeling through the streets 
 of his city a baby carriage containing a robust but uneasy infant, while 
 with the disengaged hand he pulled along a small cart in which another 
 healthy but older child was riding. Even at this period of his career 
 he filled the position of maid-of-all-work, and was often seen helping 
 Ais wife with the household duties. He never became too great or too 
 
MR. LINCOLN IN CONGRESS. 137 
 
 proud to lend a helping hand, no matter how insignificant op common 
 the work, and the service was never too menial for him to render it. 
 
 THE FAMOUS SPEECH 
 
 On May 29, 1856, we find Abraham Lincoln attending a convention 
 at Bloomington, 111., and with the powerful assistance of this now truly 
 great man the Republican party was organized. 
 
 From the date of this meeting, Mr. Lincoln felt that a party had 
 been organized to whose platform he could give his honest support. He 
 had become very pronounced in opinion concerning the rights of the 
 black man, and upon this occasion he made a speech full of power and 
 eloquence. One of Mr. Lincoln's biographers makes the following state- 
 ment: "Never was an audience more completely electrified by human 
 eloquence. Again and again, during the progress of its delivery, they 
 sprang to their feet and upon the benches, and testified by long and 
 continued shouts and the waving of hats how deeply the speaker had 
 wrought upon their minds and hearts." 
 
 Abraham Lincoln thus proclaimed his ever strongest characteristic, 
 — protection, support and sympathy for the weak and defenseless. The 
 tender and loving heart of the boy would not let him stand idly by and 
 offer no assistance to the helpless. The strong and vigorous man could 
 not resist the suppliant's appeal, and now the black man had gained a 
 staunch and fearless champion. 
 
 THE ABSORBING QUESTION 
 
 This act of recognition by Abraham Lincoln was but the forerunner 
 of greater and more powerful deeds, when his simple spoken words] 
 broke the shackles of slavery, and four million bondmen stood erect as 
 freemen of the common soil. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was now regarded, not only by the Republicans of 
 Illinois, but by all the Western States, as their first man. ITis name 
 was presented to the national convention as their candidate for the 
 Vice-Presidency. He was defeated on the informal ballot, and this of 
 course decided the matter against him, but the vote was a great com- 
 
128 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 pliment to this common son of the Western soil, and was really his 
 formal introduction to the nation. 
 
 From this time to the close of his life he was almost entirely ab- 
 sorbed in political affairs. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's hatred of slavery had been constantly growing. He 
 was the exponent of a party whose avowed purpose it was "to resist 
 the extension of slaver^^ and to shut it up in the territory where it 
 held its only rights under the Constitution," and thus he felt himself 
 more of a free man in politics than ever before. 
 
 The slavery question was now the great absorbing question of Mr. 
 Lincoln's life. He threw himself into it and attacked it with all the 
 vigor and strength of his great and powerful nature. He said, "I shall 
 speak for freedom and against slavery as long as the Constitution 
 of my country guarantees free speech, until everywhere on this wide 
 land, the sun shall shine and the rain shall fall and the wind shall blow 
 upon no man who goes forth to unrequited toil." 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 THE NEIGHBORS' VERDICT 
 
 OUR custodian proved to be faithful and efficient, and there now 
 seemed no danger in leaving the ^^cabin" to his entire care and 
 protection. Therefore I began to plan a series of rides about 
 the country for the purpose of interviewing the old neighbors and 
 friends and relatives of the Lincolns. 
 
 A DISCOVERY IS MADE 
 
 Finding Mr. Hall in a particularly good humor on the morning of 
 my eighth day's sojourn, I suggested to him that he needed more rec- 
 reation; a change would be both beneficial and pleasurable, and im- 
 mediately I began to arrange for the different excursions that I had 
 mentally arranged. My proposition startled him. He flatly refused t(> 
 spend so much time in "chasing around after old women's stories." 1 
 explained more fully, and candidly acknowledged that his consent to 
 my plans would give me great pleasure. Mr. Hall hesitated, but final- 
 ly said: "Wall, if I hed a buggy I'd like to take ye. I low I'm a 
 good deal like Grandpap Lincoln, poor and unfortunite." Should I 
 permit so commonplace an object as a "buggy" to interfere with my 
 "sight-seeing?" No, indeed, and a suggestion that almost anyone of 
 the good neighbors would loan us a vehicle finally succeeded in im- 
 pressing Mr. Hall with the same idea. Still he debated and seemed 
 exceedingly reluctant to undertake such an errand. I did not give up, 
 but continued to urge the matter. Finally a discovery was made. Mr. 
 Hall did not wish to secure, even from a neighbor, a buggy without pay- 
 ing for the use of it. That objection being overcome by promising to 
 pay the bill myself. Uncle John at once departed and slowly descended 
 the hill toward the little village of Farmington. 
 
 129 
 
130 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 GIT READY, WOMAN 
 
 His return was anxiously awaited, and when I discovered him ap- 
 proaching the house I fairly trembled with a nervous dread that he 
 might not have been successful. Not a word passed between us. He 
 entered the gate, walked to the rear of the house and disappeared within 
 the barn. My curiosity was whetted to intensity. The large barn door 
 swung open with a bang and a span of mules appeared with harness 
 on. Mr. Hall sang out, "Git ready, woman, and we'll be off in right 
 smart time." My expectations and desires were soon to be realized, a 
 week of seclusion and retirement from the busy world had rendered 
 me childishly joyous, and I awaited Mr. HalPs return with an almost 
 nervous anxiety, imagining that he might not after all be prepared to 
 take the outlined trip. 
 
 Mr. Hall soon, however, "hove in sight," seated in a real old "demo- 
 crat," cracking his whip with the vigor of a much younger man. We 
 were now on our way to Charleston, a small town nine miles northeast 
 of the old cabin. 
 
 MIGHTY DEEP AND ROARING 
 
 The day was hot and dusty, and the mules were allowed to drag 
 themselves leisurely along. Notwithstanding all these drawbacks I 
 enjoyed the trip and as place after place was pointed out to me that was 
 in some way connected with the early life of Mr. Lincoln, my ride be- 
 came exceedingly interesting. We crossed Indian Creek and the Kick- 
 apoo, which used to be, so said Uncle John, "mighty deep and roarin' 
 wide," but now a mere ribbon and so narrow in many places that one 
 was surprised to find a rippling flow still further on. 
 
 THE TRIP TO CHARLESTON 
 
 We reached Charleston at noon. The town was dead, not sleeping, 
 and really appeared to have died an untimely death. The streets were 
 deserted and the sun's hot rays in actual loneliness glinted here and 
 there, hoping to melt, by chance, some unwary straggler. 
 
 Newcomers and visitors, especially at this season of the year, were 
 
THE NEIGHBORS' VERDICT, . 131 
 
 so rare that our arrival was widely observed, and when the ne w« spread 
 about the little community that a woman connected with tie press of 
 'Chicago, and engaged in the interests of "The Lincoln Log Cabin Asso- 
 ciation," had come to town, questions and information poured in from 
 all directions. 
 
 THE OLD COURT HOUSE 
 
 The town of Charleston is full of associations connected with Mr. 
 Lincoln. He was a familiar figure on the streets. The country stores 
 were his lounging places, where the loitering community gathered to 
 hear his quaint and humorous stories. The law ofifices were often honored 
 with his presence; the dilapidated old court house that stands in the 
 center of the square on which the business portion of the town faces 
 was the scene of many a legal battle in which Mr. Lincoln played a 
 conspicuous part. 
 
 Charleston was then, as in former years, politically opposed to Mr. 
 Lincoln, and many things were told me defamatory of him and his 
 family. Some of his relatives who live here still displayed more malice 
 than strangers, and why? Simply because he did his duty as he saw it. 
 
 Charleston has a place in the nation's history and all on account of 
 a riot that took place in the court house yard, where several citizens 
 were killed and wounded. The evidences of the struggle are still to 
 be seen and are always pointed out and explained to sightseers. 
 
 During the Rebellion when war and carnage filled the land with a 
 nameless terror and the nation was sorrowing for her slaughtered sons, 
 this riotous scene took place. Of course I was anxious to hear all about 
 the particulars and through my own observation see the telltale evi- 
 dences; Uncle John and I sauntered into the yard, where the bullets are 
 tetill embedded in a tree close by the court house. We went into the 
 queer old-fashioned building and here I found a relative of Mr. Lin- 
 coln's who volunteered to show me about and to also point out the very 
 exact spots "that Uncle Abe had stood on." The brief tour of inspec- 
 tion was very interesting and when we came out of the court house 
 I begged Mr. Hall to give me an account of the riot. He appeared to be 
 quite eager to impart the information and at once said: 
 
132 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 THE RIOT 
 
 "Wall, now, Pll hev to tell ye all about it and then ye'll know how 
 Uncle Dennis Hanks got in to see Uncle Abe, after he got to be Presi- 
 dent. During the war things got purtj hot over to Charleston and the 
 copperheads got sassy. One day Colonel York wus makin^ a speech in 
 the court house yard because Captain Mitchell wus takin' his company 
 off to the train to go to war. While the crowd wus all gathered there 
 a wagon-load of these yere Southern sympathizers drew up and begun 
 to pick a quarrel. Their wagon wus full of straw and in the bottom of 
 it wus a lot of guns. Hard words wus said, and Colonel York wus shot 
 and killed. William Hart wus killed, tu, and one of the copperheads, 
 Jesse Cooper, wus killed, tu, and several others wounded. Wall, you 
 know the government tried the fellers who did the killin' and sent them 
 all off to the Dry Tortagus. 
 
 THE APPEAL 
 
 "After a while the friends of these men got Colonel Ficklin 
 of Charleston to go down to Washington and get Uncle Abe to let 
 'em off. Colonel Ficklin knowed Uncle Abe jest like a book and he 
 said he w^us sure he'd get the men released, so down he goes as peart 
 as you please and told the story to Uncle Abe. Uncle Abe wus 
 orful glad to see him and when Colonel Ficklin hed told the yarn Uncle 
 Abe jest says to him, ses he, ^I think a heap of you because you like your 
 mother so well and take care of her, though we are on different sides 
 of politics.' Then Uncle Abe asked him to name over the fellers who 
 had ben sent to the Dry Tortagus, and when he come to the name of 
 young Winkler, who use to be one of Uncle Abe's boy friends, he said: 
 ^I did not expect anything better of him because he always spelled 
 everything backwards.' And then he told him he guessed he would 
 let 'em stay there a little longer. So Colonel Ficklin hed to come back 
 without getting any of the boys off, and would you believe it. Uncle 
 Dennis Hanks up and said he'd bet ten ag'in one that he could get in 
 to see the President. 
 
THE NEIGHBORS' VERDICT. 133 
 
 UNCLE DENNIS BRAGS 
 
 "Uncle Dennis made sech big brags that some of the citizens of 
 Charleston said: ^Hanks, we will give you twelve hundred dollars if 
 you'll get the boys off.' " Interrupting Mr. Hall I thrust upon him the 
 hasty question, did he secure the release of the prisoners? "Sho, 
 woman, don't be in tu big a stew, I'll take ye down to see Uncle Dennis 
 and he'll tell you the story himself, fur he's orful proud of what he did. 
 He likes to tell it over and over ag'in." Looking at me with a merry 
 twinkle in his eye, Mr. Hall said: "He's allers a adding each time some 
 new part that we hadn't heerd before." 
 
 Of course I was impatient and wanted to start for Uncle Dennis' 
 at once, but when Mr. Hall informed me that his relative lived down 
 at Paris I knew that I must postpone the trip until some future day. 
 This fact made me feel very uneasy, as Mr. Hanks was then ninety-one 
 years old, and I realized that delay was dangerous. 
 
 Mr. Hall noticed my disappointment and sought to comfort me by 
 telling in his own peculiar way and earnest manner "a story of the 
 
 war": 
 
 SENTENCED TO BE SHOT 
 
 "Onct during the war," he said, "when Charley Conzert, who wus 
 born and raised in a tavern down in Greenup, deserted from the army, 
 Captain Talbot was sent to capture him, and the Captain stayed 
 all night with me in the ^old log cabin.' Grandmarm Lincoln, when she 
 found what wus goin' on, begun to cry about Uncle Abe, and said: 
 ^Them fellers are cuttin' up and actin' so dreadful, some of them will kill 
 him, cause he'll do right though he knowed he wus goin' to be shot 
 the next minute.' The next mornin' I hitched up and took the Captain 
 and Charley down to Charleston and those fellers (copperheads I call 
 'em) who hed their Golden Circle lacked only one vote of takin' me out 
 and hangin' me to a tree cause I'd delivered up the prisoner. Wall, 
 Charley wus tried and sentenced to be shot, but Uncle Abe saved him 
 fur he promised to go back into the war ag'in and be a good soldier, 
 and then Uncle Abe said to some of the big fellers down to Washington, 
 
134: THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 'Charley used to be a neighbor of mine and I know what kind of stuff 
 he's made of. HeMl do as he says.' So he let him go and Uncle Abe'si 
 words proved true. After Uncle Abe wus killed and many a time 
 sence Charley Conzert has sent word to us that he thought so much of 
 Uncle Abe cause he saved him that he'd lay down his life fur any of his 
 blood kin." 
 
 During the afternoon we called upon several of the relatives who 
 would give me no information, except upon a paying basis. I also dis- 
 covered that even those that had held offices under Mr. Lincoln's admin- 
 istration seemed to have forgotten the ways and mannerisms of their 
 distinguished dead relative, and expressed very few kind words for the 
 great man. 
 
 LINCOLN^S PREFERRED POSITION 
 
 After dinner we called upon Mrs. Colonel O. W. Ficklin, whose hus- 
 band was a most intimate friend of Mr. Lincoln. Her greeting was 
 cordial and friendly and under her guidance we called upon several old 
 citizens who had known the lamented and martyred chieftain. Among 
 the very few reminiscences collected from them was the following, 
 related by Mr. Abram Highland, who said: "Mr. Ficklin and Mr. Lin- 
 coln were often pitted against each other in their profession, both hav- 
 ing a large law practice in our district. Upon a certain occasion, the 
 case being one of considerable importance although it was held in a 
 very small and dilapidated school house out in the country, Mr, Lincoln 
 was compelled to stoop very much in order to enter the door and the 
 seats were so low that he doubled up his legs like a jack-kii?fe. Mr. 
 Lincoln was obliged to sit upon a school bench and just in front of him 
 was another, making the distance between him and the seat m front of 
 him very narrow and uncomfortable. His position was almost unbear- 
 able and in order to carry out his preference which he secured as often 
 as possible, and that was 'to sit as near to the jury as convenient,' he 
 took advantage of his discomfort and said to the justice, 'Your Honor, 
 with your permission I'll sit up nearer to the gentlemen of the jury, for 
 it hurts my legs less to rub my calves against the bench than Vt, does 
 to skin my shins.' " 
 
THE NEIGHBORS' VERDICT, - 135 
 
 THE WEIGHT OF THREE HOGS 
 
 A quotation from a personal communication to the same party was 
 also repeated. The letter was chiefly upon the political issues of the 
 times, and Mr. Lincoln said: "We now have three parties in the field, 
 the Kepublican, the Democratic, and the Knownothing; but it is just 
 as easy to prophesy the result of the election as it is to count the weight 
 of three hogs." 
 
 LINOOLN'S OOUSIN 
 
 Before our departure for home we walked around to the house of 
 Mrs. Tom Darling, a cousin of Mr. Lincoln, and from her heard 
 nothing but words of praise for the good man. Mrs. Darling told us 
 that the first letter she ever wrote was addressed to Mr. Lincoln and his 
 reply was very kind, full of wise counsel and loving words. 
 
 After Mr. Lincoln was married and little children came into his 
 life he sent for this cousin to come to Springfield and help his wife 
 take care of the little ones. 
 
 Mrs. Darling was at the Lincoln home for quite a year. Her account 
 of the many kind acts that Mr. Lincoln bestowed upon her was but 
 additional testimony to his greatness of heart 
 
 GITTING HYSTERICKY 
 
 Late in the afternoon we started homeward. Again the ride was 
 most enjoyable, and again my host related many anecdotes of his rela- 
 tives. As the twilight shadows deepened I became uncomfortable and 
 imagined the departed were hovering near, and so uncomfortable was 
 the feeling that I suggested the mules be forced into a trot at least that 
 we might not be overtaken by the darkness. 
 
 Uncle John Hall smiled and accused me of getting "hystericky ag'in.'^ 
 "I'll chirk ye up right smart with a circus story," he said, and at once 
 proceeded to tell the following: 
 
 THE CIRCUS STORY 
 
 "In the year 1835, one time when Uncle Abe was in Charleston, he 
 thought he'd jest look around and see what the ^^u^cus amounted to. 
 
136 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 This wus the first that ever showed up at Charleston, so he went down 
 by the big tent and when he seed the little one for the performers to 
 dress in he ast one of the circus fellers what that side pocket wus fur, 
 and all the time he never cracked a smile but wus jest as ser'ous as a 
 deacon. When the feller told Uncle Abe what it wus fur he jest winked 
 one eye and crossed his legs." 
 
 THE MAPLE SUGAR PULL 
 
 The little village of Farmington was just ahead of us and Mr. Hall 
 suggested that we drive down the road a short distance and call on, 
 some of the old neighbors. I gladly consented and after a drive of 
 nearly a mile we drew up at the house of Mr. Samuel Ohowning, who 
 lived nearly opposite the little cemetery in which old Mr. and Mrs. 
 Lincoln are buried. 
 
 We found the master of the house absent but his wife who had lived 
 near neighbor to the Lincoln family cordially received us and cheerfully 
 related the following little episode: 
 
 "In the spring of 1833 when I wus then a girl of only sixteen years 
 Grandpap Lincoln as usual ^sugared off,' and John D. Johnston invited 
 the young folks to come over some evening, when Abe Lincoln wus up 
 to the old home. John D. Johnston sent us word that Brother Abe had 
 come and we made up a little party. Well, John D. and Abe Lincoln 
 took me across the river in a canoe. John had promised us young folks 
 some taffy and purty soon he said to Grandpap Lincoln, *I want some 
 taffy for the girls.' You know John D. Johnston was mighty good 
 lookin' and awful takin' and we knowed he'd get some taffy for us. We 
 girls didn't care much about Abraham Lincoln, though, for he wus so 
 quiet and awkward and so awful homely, and he never made up to the 
 girls anyhow, so none of 'em cared about asking any favors of him. 
 Grandpap Lincoln wus terrible savin' and said, 'No, John, I can't have 
 the 'lasses wasted that I have worked so hard to get.' But Abe Lincoln 
 talked to John D. in a low voice, and purty soon when grandpap had 
 scooped out all but a little in the bottom of the kettle, John D. caught 
 up a bucket of cold water and throwed it into the kettle. When the 
 sugar rose to the top he stuck his hands in and pulled it all out in 
 
THE NEIGHBORS' VERDICT, 137 
 
 a lump and divided it among us. Of course we all laughed and shouted 
 but grandpap only stuck his lips out and pouted a little and said, 
 ^John, yer allers wastin' somethin'.' " 
 
 MORE OLD NEIGHBORS 
 
 We tarried a few moments longer and again Mr. Hall kindly pro- 
 posed a ride around to Janesville and said, "Perhaps we'll see some more 
 of the old neighbors." As we drove through the small burg, many eyes 
 peered curiously at us. At last we pulled up in front of old Mr. Peter 
 Furry's house. As is customary in this locality a "Hallo, neighbor!" 
 brought "the man of the house" to the door, while the entire family 
 without further ceremony dashed out, and the younger members of the 
 household perched themselves upon the rail fence. Our errand was 
 made known and Mr. Furry, a pleasant and kind-hearted old farmer, 
 was delighted to tell me all that he knew about the Lincoln family. 
 
 re 
 
 EVERYBODY KNOWED IT" 
 
 Without further parley he began : "Yes, I was bom and raised right 
 near to Tommy Lincoln's. Pap's farm joined his'n and so you see I 
 knowed a great deal about the old gentleman. They wus a purty shift- 
 less set the whole of them, even Abraham Lincoln, who was afterwards 
 the President of the United States. When he'd come up to visit the old 
 folks he'd lay around jest like the rest; go barefoot, get out under a tree 
 and lay looking into the sky fur half a day at a time. That thare cabin 
 that yere going to write about w^us as full of human critters as a nut 
 is full of meat, they wus a jest hanging out of the Avinders, but Abraham 
 Lincoln wus somehow giA^en the best place in the house and almost 
 every one round yere looked up to him. He had the respect of every- 
 body and yet I could never see jest how he got it. He wasn't proud 
 nor nothing like that, he seemed to be no more nor no better than the 
 rest of his folks, but somehow he wus and everybody knowed it." 
 
 ts 
 
 BEEF TO MY SORRER" 
 
 After questioning the old man concerning the inmates of the house- 
 hold he replied: "All of Grandmarm Lincoln's relatives wus there 
 
138 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 a living right along and they kept old man Lincoln in a heap of trouble. 
 John D. Johnston, that wiis her boy, wus the most shiftless and good- 
 for-nothing feller ye ever seed; he wus no good no how, allers a gala- 
 vanting around the country to see the women folks and disposing of 
 anything that wus Grandpap Lincoln's without ever saying by your 
 leave. Why, one time he rode off on the old horse, the only one they 
 had, and wus gone two or three days. While he wus aw^ay he traded 
 off the horse for a pair of young steers. Wall, when he brought 'em 
 home it wus nigh onto ten o'clock and all the family hed gone to bed. 
 Anyhow, John D. Johnston wus so eternally shiftless and didn't like to 
 do no work no how, he jest tied the steers to a young saplin'; they wus 
 yoked together, and of course they got to trampin' around in the night 
 and raisin' cain, and when Grandaddy Lincoln got up in the mornin' 
 he found them both on the ground ston' dead. He wus of an awful 
 savin' turn of mind (everybody knowed that) and so he went right on 
 takin' off their hides. By that time I went along by there and when I 
 seed the old man skinnin' the critters I called out to him and said, ses I 
 (I thought I'd plague him a little), *Got some beef, Grandaddy?' He 
 didn't look up but jest growled out, *Yes, beef to my sorrer.' " 
 
 Though this homely incident was pathetic in the extreme, yet it was 
 so ludicrous that we all joined in the merriment which the story evoked, 
 and even the children, hanging on the gate, appreciated the humor, for 
 the youngest tot begged grandpa to tell another "funny story." 
 
 THE KEY TO LINCOLN^S METAPHORS 
 
 The old man looked up with a twinkle in his honest blue eyes and 
 asked the question, "Will all that I say go into the paper? If so, I 
 ken spin out as many yarns as you want." My reply to his question in 
 the affirmative actually caused Mr. Furry to remove his old, greasy cap, 
 the good wife came a step nearer and the children descended from their 
 perches, and, coming close up to the buggy, eyed me with keen curiosity. 
 Here was an unthought of circumstance. A real live "writing woman," 
 and at their own house, too. 
 
 Again the old gentleman broke out and related the following: 
 "Ag'in, one time when I wns goin' by, I seed Grandaddy Lincoln out 
 
THE NEIGHBORS' VERDICT. 139 
 
 grubbin' up some hazelnut bushes, and so I said to him: Why, Grand- 
 pap, I thought you wanted to sell your farm?' ^And so I do,' ses he, ^but I 
 haint goin' to let my farm know it.' " 
 
 Really there is more truth than poetry in the above homely state- 
 ment, and its wisdom is clearly shown. So seemingly unimportant and 
 commonplace was this original saying of Thomas Lincoln's that the 
 casual observer would undoubtedly have passed it by unheeded, but 
 that very quaint expression is the keynote to an important discovery, 
 and one plainly sees from what source Abraham Lincoln received his 
 peculiar talent for apt and trite sayings. 
 
 A GOOD RELIGION 
 
 The old gentleman now appeared to have run out of stories, the 
 evening was far advanced and I suggested to Mr. Hall that we had bet- 
 ter remain no longer for the family and my companion would no doubt 
 be anxious for our safety. Evidently Mr. Furry felt he had not fur- 
 nished me with enough newspaper matter to make him immortal, there- 
 fore he insisted that we should ^^git out of the buggy" and come into 
 the house. Accepting his kind invitation, but insisting that we could 
 remain but a very little while, we went into the plain old-fashioned 
 house and awaited developments. Apparently deep in thought Mr. 
 Furry preserved a dignified silence for a moment, then with a sudden 
 energy that fairly startled the little gathering he related the follow- 
 ing: 
 
 "Old man Lincoln wus quite religious, you know; why, he allers 
 walked dow^n to Charleston, most ten miles away, every Saturday night. 
 Stayed there all day Sunday so he could enjoy both the mornin' and 
 evenin' meetin's and then walked back ag'in Monday mornin'. I don't 
 think Uncle Abe was nigh so religious as his father, fur he didn't belong 
 to no church, but then he wus mighty good and allers when he come 
 down to see the old folks he^d walk over from Charleston so as to save 
 payin' for a team because he wanted to give 'em some money to pay 
 off the debt on the old home and a little besides so that both grandpap 
 and grandmarm 'ud feel a little independent. Most every time he come 
 to see 'em he'd give 'em ten dollars, and onct I see him give 'em two 
 
140 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 hundred dollars. Now, to my thinkin', that's about as good a religion 
 as I know of — ^honor your father and mother/ if one of 'em is your 
 stepmother.'^ 
 
 MY VOW 
 
 After some further conversation we thanked him for his kind atten- 
 tion and really interesting information and departed. A pleasant drive 
 of an hour or more brought us again to the little cottage. Our pro- 
 tracted stay and the lateness of the hour had caused the family so much 
 anxiety that our arrival was hailed with joy. Of course I related to 
 the family the adventures of the day, and exacted a promise from my 
 host that he would again take me for a drive, provided he could obtain 
 the necessary requisites. A thought struck me and I silently regis- 
 tered a vow, that before my taking leave of this kind-hearted and simple 
 folk something should be done to make existence more pleasurable 
 and thus relieve the monotony of their excessively humdrum life, 
 especially the younger members of the family. I kept my vow and 
 afterwards succeeded in bringing to the household some of the modem 
 comforts and conveniences of the nineteenth century. Further on I 
 Bhall tell my readers all about the transaction and describe the startling 
 state of affairs that came about through its accomplishment. 
 
HOME OF JOHN HALL. 
 
 This cottage on the Hillside is the present home of Uncle John Hall, late owner of the 
 
 Lincoln Log Cabin, 
 
 THE FAMOUS GRIND-STONE. 
 
 The above picture is a photograph of the west end of the Lincoln Log Cabin, showing the 
 old grind-stone. Upon this clumsy and rude stone Abraham Lincoln sharp- 
 ened the axe which split the famous rails that were used 
 in his first presidential campaign. 
 
UNCLE JOHN HALL AND CHILDREN. 
 
 Photograph of Uncle John Hall, Abraham Lincoln's cousin, his daughter, Sis, and his 
 
 boys. Bud, Abe and Little Joe. 
 
 THE AUTHOR AT WORK. 
 
 Front view of the Lincoln Log Cabin, showing the secretary of the Lincoln Log Cabin 
 Association, the stenographer, the superintendent and the two architects. 
 
 The face at the broken window is Abe Hall, the nephew of Abraham Lincoln. 
 
CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 WHY LINCOLN NEVER USED PROFANE LANGUAGE 
 
 STILL anticipating and longing for the promised visit to Uncle 
 Dennis Hanks at Paris, I tried to be patient and pleasantly excuse 
 Mr. HalPs habits of procrastination and inability to arrange for 
 our second trip. 
 
 The- days were hot, the air was oppressive and the monotonous 
 country life was making inroads upon my spirits. This day had been 
 a particularly trying one, and we had been so uncomfortable that 
 life was almost a burden. Evening approached, a light breeze sprang up, 
 our hearts were gladdened and our spirits revived. We betook our- 
 selves to the grassy lawn and dreamy moonlight. Myriads of fireflies 
 flitting about us presented a charming sight, and it took no stretch of 
 imagination to fancy we were dwelling in fairyland. 
 
 Elfs, gnomes and wonderful giants were expected and talked about 
 A form appeared in the doorway of the little cottage and the "boggie 
 man'' appeared, not a cruel one, though, and said, "Sho, woman, don't 
 put sech nonsense into the heads of the young folks, ye'll spile 'em." 
 
 I begged Mr. Hall to come out and enjoy with us the beautiful night 
 and tell us just one story about his beloved relatives. He refused in a 
 rather decided tone, but when ^Tdttle Joe" joined in and pleaded too, 
 the father could not refuse. He took this opportunity to give his boys 
 a lesson in morals and told them their Grandfather Lincoln never swore, 
 and to illustrate he related the following, which he said was the worst 
 words he had ever heard their grandfather use: 
 
 A GOOD EXAMPLE 
 
 "Your Grandpap Lincoln," he said, "never used no slang words, no- 
 how; but he hed a favorite expression which he allers used when he 
 wus suprised or bothered, and that wus, ^By dear!' Uncle John D. 
 Johnston would drop an ear of corn on the ground every time we un- 
 
 141 
 
142 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 loaded jest to plague grandpap, and he would say, 'By dear! John, now 
 shiftless ye are/ iWall, down at the cabin he allers kept his seed sweet 
 potatoes between the two houses, the east room and the new part. He 
 allers packed them in sand and I liked 'em so much when a boy that I'd 
 eat 'em raw till I wus fit to bust. Grandpap, when he ketched me at it, 
 he would allers say, *By dear, by dear, the boy will eat up all my taters, 
 and I won't hev none for plantin'.' So yer can see, boys, yer hev a purty 
 good example to foller." 
 
 An emphasis on certain words and the significant manner with 
 which Mr. Hall related this brief moral lesson led me to believe that 
 he had a particular purpose in telling his boys this simple little inci- 
 dent. My suspicions were proven when young Abe said : "Wall, paw, 
 didn't Grandpap Lincoln never swear, nohow, when, he wus a young 
 feller?" "I am sorry to say that he did," said Mr. Hall, "fur grandpap 
 hisself told me he used to rip out an oath every time he got mad," I 
 felt a curiosity to know how this bad habit had been remedied, and I 
 asked Uncle John Hall if he knew why Mr. Thomas Lincoln stopped 
 swearing? To which question he replied: "I reckon I du, fur grand- 
 pap told me. When they wus livin' down in Kantucky Uncle Abe^s 
 sister, little Sary jest spoke right out one day with a right bad swear 
 word, and Uncle Abe's mother said, Tather, did yer hear yer little 
 baby?' He never swore no more, nohow, arter that." 
 
 SAYING GRACE 
 
 Mr. Hall pausea, and, fearing he would request us to retire^ I said, 
 "I suppose Mr. Thomas Lincoln's first wife was a very religious 
 woman?" "I reckon she wus," said Mr. Hall; "but both grandmarm 
 and grandpap wus awful religious, tu. They wus awful good church 
 members, tu, bein' Baptists away long back. Then they jined the 
 Christians or Oampbellites. We allers held meetin' in the east room 
 of the old log cabin, and Stanley Walker, who used to live in Kantucky, 
 ud come and preach every fourth Sunday. Uncle Abe heard him a 
 heap uv times, tu, in the old log house. Grandpap wus so terrible re- 
 ligious that he never ud eat nothin', nohow, without sayin' grace, and 
 I can reckerlect as plain as can be jest what he said. It wus short, but 
 
LINCOLN AND PROFANE LANGUAGE, 143 
 
 it wus allers the same, and he never failed to say it, Tit and prepare us 
 for humble sarvice. Beg fer Christ's sake. Amen/ '' 
 
 Mr. Hall could not say enough in praise of the religious character 
 of his relatives, but continued to relate more stories. 
 
 "Both Grandpap and Grandmarm Lincoln prayed so much,'' said 
 he, "that they hed a wonderful power about 'em to cure folks. Why, 
 grandmarm could draw out fire and grandpap could cure a felon. Folks 
 would come for ten miles around to get grandpap to cure 'em, and all 
 he'd do wus jest to hold the sore finger in his hands a few minutes and 
 say somethin' in a whisper, and every time he'd cure 'em shore nuff. 
 Grandmarm, she would jest lay her hand on the burn and shet up her 
 eyes and say two or three words and it would never hurt you no more. 
 She hes drawed the fire out of my hands lots of times, and onct she told 
 me that if she told arry a woman she'd never hev the power to cure no 
 more, but that if she told a man it wouldn't make no difference, and 
 she did tell me afore she died what she said when she cured 'em, but I 
 can't tell nobody." 
 
 LIKE UNCLE ABE 
 
 I said to Uncle John Hall that it was a lucky circumstance that his 
 people did not live at the time of the Salem witchcraft agitation, for 
 they would surely have been burned at the stake. This allusion to that 
 period of our country's history proved most unfortunate, for I was com- 
 pelled to tell the young people the story of the Salem witchcraft, and 
 its recital turned the tide of conversation. 
 
 Coming back to the realities of the time and place, I asked Mr, Hall 
 to kindly relate a few more Lincoln stories. He said, "S^pose I should 
 tell yer something about myself and grandpap, would yer mind?" 
 
 Of course I was pleased to hear anything that might contribute to 
 my history of the Lincolns and their humble home. Convincing Mr. 
 Hall of my sincerity and desire to hear a personal story, he proceeded by 
 saying: "Grandpap wus a good deal like Uncle Abe, allers trying to 
 make us all feel happy by saying somethin' kind or giving us some 
 little present, but he didn't hev quite the same way Uncle Abe did, no- 
 how. When he got to be an old man he didn't hev much to give away, 
 
144 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 *cept what Uncle Abe let him hev, nor much before that nuther, 1 
 reckon. 
 
 "The only medder land grandpap hed wns two acres and a half a 
 little north of the house in the east forty. But he said to me one day, 
 ^If you will mow the medder I'll give you a yo.' I was seventeen years 
 old then, but bein' a sickly boy all my life, this wus the first mowing 
 I ever tried to do, I wus purty well tuckered out, but grandpap went 
 around behind me with a fork and tossed the grass up into shocks. I 
 got my yo, and the next spring she found three lambs for me, and saved 
 'em all. In two or three years I sold ten sheep out of my flock at |1.25 
 a piece, and so you see I got quite a start. When I talked with Uncle 
 Abe about my money he jest said, ^Now you can get married and 
 build a home of your own.' " 
 
 Before I could interrupt him Mr. Hall again repeated, almost word 
 for word, what he had told me before concerning Mr. Lincoln's visits to 
 his people. 
 
 BED TIME STORIES 
 
 "Twice a year," he said, "Uncle Abe come up to the 'old log cabin' 
 and would stay from one to three days 'cordin' to his business, and allers 
 when he come he'd bring somethin' every time for grandmarm and 
 grandpap and Uncle John D. Johnston and the balance of the family. 
 He'd spend most of his time lookin' around the old place and out in the 
 woods huntin' paw-paws and readin' on every occasion. Wall, of course 
 all the old neighbors and friends would come in when they heerd he'd 
 come hum, and he'd entertain 'em tellin' cur'ous stories till bed time. 
 He never did seem no different, nohow; he treated us jest the same, 
 and allers made us feel as if the hull world had left when he went 
 away. 
 
 "I reckolect one time when Uncle Abe wus up a visitin' us he said, 
 *It is remarkable to see so large a family stay together so long, but when 
 they begin to go they will all go at once.' And shore nuff, so it wus. 
 Grandpap Lincoln wus taken with smotherin' spells and we sent for 
 Uncle Abe. He come up and stayed a few days and then his father got 
 better. Uncle Abe went back, but he'd hardly got hum before Grand- 
 
LINCOLN AND PROFANE LANGUAGE. 145 
 
 pap Lincoln went off mighty sudden like. He died of heart disease, and 
 we sent for Uncle Abe, but he wus so busy with important bisness he 
 couldn't come up to the funeral. Shortly afterwards he come up to 
 straighten out the property, for Uncle John D. Johnston lived with 
 Grandpap and Grandmarm Lincoln, and Uncle Abe he'd give Uncle 
 John a piece of writin' which said the property should be his'n for the 
 sum of $200 without interest, and he could hev his life time to pay for it 
 in if he stayed and took care of grandmarm and grandpap and then re- 
 mained on the premises a year after both of 'em wus dead. I reckolect 
 right well that Uncle Abe told Uncle John D. Johnston when he come 
 up that he wus afraid he'd never be able to buy the place, and he wus 
 perfectly willing to deed him the place if he'd promise to stay with 
 grandmarm, for Uncle Abe said: ^I am just as anxious to have mother 
 cared for as I was before father died.' So Uncle John D. Johnston 
 give Uncle Abe a promise on a piece of paper and Uncle Abe fixed the 
 bargain up with a piece of writing, which give the property to Uncle 
 John D. Johnston fur takin' care of grandmarm." 
 
 THE LEGAL DOCUMENT 
 
 Mr. Hall now invited us into the house and showed me the legal 
 document that conveyed the old homestead to Mr. Lincoln's step- 
 mother's son. 
 
 The boys were as interested in the "piece of writin' " as my com- 
 panion and I were, and appeared to enjoy the reading of the same as 
 much as we did, though no doubt they themselves had often read the 
 legal instrument. 
 
 The following is a correct copy of the original : 
 
 This indenture made this twelfth day of August, in the year of our 
 Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-one, by and between Abra- 
 ham Lincoln and Mary Lincoln, his wife, of the City of Springfield, 
 County of Sangamon, and State of Illinois, party of the firsit part, and 
 John D. Johnston, of the County of Coles, and State aforesaid, party of 
 the second part, witnesseth: 
 
 That the said party of the first part for and in consideration of the 
 sum of one dollar to them in hand paid, the receipt whereof is hereby 
 
146 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 acknowledged, have remised, released and forever quit-claimed and by 
 these presents do remise, release and forever quit-claim to and in favor 
 of the said party of the second part, his heirs and assigns forever, all the 
 right, title, interest and estate which the said party of the first part 
 have in and to the northwest quarter of the southeast quarter, and 
 the northeast quarter of the southwest quarter, both of section twenty- 
 one, in township eleven, north of range nine, east of the third principal 
 meridian, situated in the said County of Coles, and together containing 
 eighty acres, more or less, the interest of the said party of the first part 
 in and to said lands being that derived as sole heir at law of the late 
 Thomas Lincoln, now deceased, and subject to the right of dower of 
 Sarah Lincoln, widow of the said Thomas Lincoln, deceased. 
 
 To have and to hold to the same party of the second part and to his 
 heirs and assigns forever the interest aforesaid in and to the above 
 described lands, together with all and singular the privileges and ap- 
 purtenances thereto belonging. 
 
 In testimony whereof the said party of the first part have hereunto 
 set their hands and seals this day and year first above written. 
 
 A. LINCOLN. (Seal.) 
 M. LINCOLN. (Seal.) 
 
 QETTSNQ POSSESSION OF LINOOLN HOMESTEAD 
 
 Mr. Hall, his family, Miss Coleman and myself returned to the front 
 room. Looking up at the old-fashioned timepiece, our host said: "If 
 'twarn't so orful late I^d tell yer what a time I^ve hed buyin' and keepin' 
 this yere place where the old log cabin stands." 
 
 To our little company time was no objection, and we all clamored 
 for the story. Mr. Hall began at once and said: "Grandpap hedn't 
 ben dead very long before Uncle John D. Johnston got oneasy and 
 wanted to go away and sell out, which of course he couldn't do legally, 
 I don't suppose. Wall, as soon as I heerd of it I made up my mind that 
 I would buy the farm and live with grandmarm. I hed found a gal, 
 and we hed hitched up and wus livin' down in Farmington with my 
 mother, who hed married again and hed quite a good house thare. I 
 
LINCOLN AND PROFANE LANGUAGE. 147 
 
 went over to see Uncle John D. Johnston and we talked the business 
 over, and he took me up and said he considered it a good bargain. 
 
 "I paid Uncle John D. Johnston for his interest and he give me a piece 
 of writin' which said the property wus mine. I moved right in and 
 took care of grandmarm till she died, which wus in the month of April, 
 1869. One day I got to thinkin' about the paper, and ses I to myself, 
 now the piece of writin^ that Uncle Abe give Uncle John reads, 'To his 
 heirs,' and I made up my mind that his children could come back on 
 me for their father's interest, and I jest thought I would speak about 
 It. St> one time when Uncle Abe wus visiting us, and as soon as I 
 ketched 'em all out of the house but me and Uncle Abe, I ses to him, ses 
 I, 'Now, Uncle Abe, couldn't you change that bond you give Uncle John 
 D. Johnston or else give me a piece of writin' that will make me safe; 
 for his piece reads, "To his heirs," and when Uncle John D. Johnston is 
 dead his folks may make me trouble, and I hev honestly paid him $50 
 and always expect to take care of grandmarm jest the same as if she 
 wus my own mother.' But Uncle Abe ses, 'No, John,' ses he, 'I made 
 that bond jest as obligatory as I could and no one will make you any 
 trouble, I am sure.' 
 
 A REQUEST TO ROBERT LINCOLN 
 
 "I didn't like to trouble Uncle Abe, and so I didn't say nothing more 
 about it, nohow; but shore nuff, jest as soon as grandmarm wus dead, 
 Tom Johnston, Uncle John's oldest son, tried to sell me out round among 
 the neighbors for f 200, but none of them would tech it. After a while 
 I got to thinkin' about it, that Uncle John's heirs hed no right to 
 sell out, cause he hedn't kept his promise to Uncle Abe to take 
 care of grandmarm, and so the property must still belong to the heirs 
 of Uncle Abe. I wus orful worried and I got a right smart lawyer at 
 Charleston to write to Major Conely, of Sipringfield, and jest ask Bob 
 Lincoln, Uncle Abe's oldest son, if he'd ever try to get it away from 
 me. He wrote, and Uncle Abe's son sent back word that he didn't want 
 no money for it, nohow, and didn't want to tech it, and to tell me it wus 
 all right, and fer me not to feel afraid. Wall, anyhow, my tax titles is 
 
148 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 clear and I hev been in peaceable possession for nigh onto forty yearSj 
 and so I reckon the property is mine." 
 
 The children as well as the older members of the household 
 listened attentively to the recital, and upon its conclusion each one of 
 the little party gathered about Mr. Hall and began to ply him with 
 questions, but our host insisted that we should retire immediately, for 
 there would be no further story-telling that night. 
 
CHAPTER XXII 
 
 LINCOLN SURPRISED HIS PHOTOGRAPHER 
 
 ALTHOUGH the Springfield lawyer had visited Chicago, and been 
 engaged in trials at that place, he was unknown to the general 
 public. 
 
 A few lawyers and some of their friends had formed the acquaint- 
 ance of the peculiar man, and had expressed themselves as believing 
 the odd and strange man would "be heard from." 
 
 Some time during the year 1857 Mr. Lincoln came up to Chicago to 
 conduct some legal affairs, but so little known was he beyond his own 
 locality that when he went into a studio for the purpose of having his 
 photograph taken he was not recognized. Mr. Hessler, the photog- 
 rapher, was both amused and surprised to hear the awkward, homely 
 countryman say, "I believe I will have my picture taken for some of 
 the lawyers at the court house may want to have it." The photographer 
 was too amai^ed and surprised to reply, but he placed the sitter in posi- 
 tion and simply said: "Have you any objections to having your hair 
 pushed back from your forehead?" The unknown sitter smiled and 
 made brief response. Mr. Lincoln's hair was properly arranged accord- 
 ing to the photographer's fancy, and the "picture" was pronounced a 
 success. 
 
 Mr. Hessler says in a letter written some time afterwards to a prom- 
 inent citizen of Chicago: "Can you imagine my astonishment and sur- 
 prise when I discovered that the negative which I had in my possession 
 of a supposed ordinary, though rather peculiar, countryman was no 
 other than Abraham Lincoln, the Presidential candidate." 
 
 It has been my good fortune to secure the copy of a letter written 
 by Mr. Hessler to a w^ell-known citizen of Chicago, regarding the above- 
 mentioned photograph. A copy verbatim of the letter is reproduced 
 for my readers' benefit: 
 
 149 
 
150 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 THE PHOTOGRAPHER^S STORY 
 
 Dear Sir. My first acquaintance with Mr. Lincoln was in Feb 
 1857 when he came into my studio in the Metropolitan Block and sat 
 for his negative and as he explained it "So that the lawyers over at 
 the Court House that wanted my picture bad enough to buy it could 
 come and get copies." 
 
 His tall, gaunt figure at first sight impressed me with the thought 
 Avho could want your picture? but when seated, a glance at his head 
 and face struck me as one of rare power and goodness — His hair was 
 very long and full over his eyes and forehead. I asked him if I might 
 arrange it to which he replied "Fix it to please you." I ran my 
 fingers through his hair throwing it off from his forehead. The result 
 was the picture in profile showing his magnificent head and strength 
 of character, never since portrayed. This picture was greatly admired 
 by all who loved his genial and expressive face and mouth. 
 
 After his nomination came the demand for a likeness more smooth 
 and dressed up, with hair not so long and more "smoothed down." I 
 was requested to make one such, accordingly I wrote to Mr. Lincoln 
 at Springfield to know if he was soon coming to Chicago, he kindly 
 replied that his friends had decided that he should remain in Springfield 
 until after the election "but if I would come there he would give me sit- 
 tings." 
 
 I went down the last of June 18G0 — (it was the day of the great 
 Camanche cvclone that caused such dreadful destruction across the en- 
 tire state, striking Lake Michigan just north of Winetka — and secured 
 a number of good negatives. Prints from these were reduced and 
 scattered by thousands all over the country and convinced the people 
 that such a noble head was the one to lead and govern the mighty peo- 
 ple. 
 
 After he reached Washington he was persuaded to hide his strong 
 and good, honest features by wearing his beard, thinking no doubt that 
 by hiding the rugged noble features to enhance his beauty but then his 
 real beauty was lost to sight and the strong features were gone. 
 
LINCOLN SURPRISED HIS PHOTOGRAPHER. 151 
 
 From a photograph with his hair suit on an engraving was made SO 
 smoothed and idealized that the real man is lost. 
 
 Mr. Volk the sculptor has the only true likeness of him in clay 
 that has been made and if ever Mr. Lincoln is perpetuated in marble 
 by true History, his will be the likeness chosen. A. HESSLEE. 
 
 The "true likeness" which Mr. Hessler refers to is a bust of Mr. 
 Lincoln, life size, and taken of him soon after his nomination to the 
 Presidency of the United States. 
 
 THE SCULPTOR^S STORY 
 
 Mr. Volk's letter describing Mr. Lincoln's sitting, writing to Mrs. 
 Judge Bradwell, a prominent citizen of Chicago, is herewith repro- 
 duced: 
 
 "Mrs. Myra Bradwell — My dear Madam: Mr. Lincoln gave me about 
 a dozen sittings before the first nomination in the old wigwam for the 
 Presidency. He was always quite prompt and patient, and seemed 
 interested in the modeling in clay, it being the first he had ever seen in 
 his life, and at the same time telling me many of his unparalleled funny 
 and amusing stories. 
 
 "One Sunday he sat nearly all day, saying as he entered my studio 
 on the fourth floor of the Portland block, that he would rather sit to 
 me for his bust than go to church and hear a cut and dried sermon, and 
 that when he heard a man preach he liked to hear him preach as if he 
 were fighting bees, at the same time accompanying the words by ener- 
 getically throwing out his long arms. 
 
 "But I am digressing. About the last sitting he gave me was on a 
 pleasant morning. As he entered he appeared a little hurried, and 
 being desirous to represent as nearly as possible his neck, shoulder and 
 breast in the model, in order to harmonize with the head and face, I 
 invited him to loosen his garments so I could see plainly. He remarked 
 that he would strip right off with coat, vest, collar, cravat and shirt, and 
 I would then have a fair chance. 
 
 "He hastily removed all the above mentioned articles and placed 
 them on a chair. His undershirt he pulled down to the waist and tied 
 the sleeves together in the front. I worked as rapidly as I could to 
 transfer correctly to clay his brawny, muscular shoulders, which were 
 soon destined to be applied to the government wheels. 
 
153 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 "Upon the conclusion of the sitting, Mr. Lincoln hastily readjusted 
 his toilet all right, as he supposed, declining any assistance, saying that 
 he could do it just as well alone. And being intent on finishing some 
 point in clay while fresh in my memory, I did not notice him particu- 
 larly while rearranging his dress. After his usual inquiry when he 
 should come again and a cordial good-morning, he passed out into the 
 hall and started downstairs. 
 
 "Suddenly I heard him retracing his steps, and immediately the door 
 opened without much ceremony. 
 
 " 'Hello, Mr. Yolk,' said he, with a slightly embarrassed air, but very 
 humorous countenance, *I forgot to put my shirt on and thought I had 
 better come back and do it before going into the street.' Looking at 
 him I noticed that the said shirtsleeves, which he had tied together, 
 were dangling below his coat skirt. By our joint and united efforts he 
 was again dressed up properly (this time) about as quickly as any person 
 ever was in the world. Yours very sincerely, 
 
 "LEONARD W. VOLK.'' 
 
 "Chicago, July 15, 1876." 
 
CHAPTER XXIIL 
 
 DENNIS HANKS' VISIT TO THE PRESIDENT AND WHAT 
 
 CAME OF IT 
 
 THE weather continued hot and oppressive, the sky was like molten 
 brass, the air filled with dust, the grass dry and crackling. The 
 setting sun, red and hot, was sinking below the western horizon. 
 A breeze sprang up. The low and distant rumbling of thunder was 
 heard, clouds were scurrying across the sky, a tiny drop of water fell 
 on my upturned face, then another, till finally the floodgates of Heaven 
 were loosed and the grateful deluge descended. 
 
 Now was my opportunity; the roads would be free from dust and the 
 morning would come to us sweet and cool. Mr. Hall had not offered to 
 keep his promise in regard to our call upon old Uncle Dennis Hanks, 
 and I had felt rather delicate in urging the matter; but the change of 
 weather and the receipt of a bulky package which came from Chicago 
 the day before was my incentive. Therefore I determined to inveigle 
 Mr. Hall into another excursion. With considerable anxiety I broached 
 the subject, asking that the following day should be given to the trip. 
 Imagine my surprise and delight; Uncle John was not only willing, but 
 appeared delighted and began to arrange for a longer drive than I had 
 planned. 
 
 THE PROMISE FULFILLED 
 
 It was decided that we should again drive over to Charleston and 
 from that point take the train to Paris, where old Dennis Hanks was 
 now living. The anticipated enjoyment of the coming day actually 
 drove away nature^s sweet restorer, and after a night of restless toss- 
 ing I arose with the meadow lark and sang outright. My impatience 
 and uneasiness aroused the entire household, and "Sis," with her usual 
 good will and helpful nature, soon had breakfast ready. After par- 
 taking of a hurried meal, we said our good-byes to the inmates of the 
 
 153 
 
154 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 little cottage and departed, leaving behind us a dejected household. 
 
 Promising to return as soon as possible, we drove rapidly away. A 
 glance backward revealed a pleasant sight; the entire company w^ere 
 waving their hands and shouting their adieus. My impetuous nature 
 asserted itself, and answering with a call equally as loud, I cried out, 
 'Watch for the surprige." The startling statement brought out a vol- 
 ley of questions from the little group at the gate, while the boys leaped 
 the fence and insisted upon an explanation. At my suggestion Mr. 
 Hall urged our patient and homely steeds into an ambling trot, and we 
 soon outdistanced the male trio, who, realizing our advantage, gave up 
 the chase. 
 
 The morning was cool and delightful, and the very beasts seemed to 
 understand my impatience and nervousness, for we bowled along right 
 merrily, and even Mr. HalPs reminiscences were of a pleasant and 
 humorous nature. 
 
 We arrived at Charleston just as the little village was putting on 
 her morning dress. Upon inquiry we found that we could not leave 
 Charleston for Paris until the noon hour. Driving down the main 
 street a little distance, we came to the "best" hotel, and after ordering 
 an early dinner Mr. Hall suggested that "we'd better take in the town 
 ag'in, fur I reckon we'll run across somebody that knowed Uncle Abe." 
 
 I had already decided to not only "take in" something at Charles- 
 ton, but also to take out something, and that something was the surprise 
 that I had imprudently charged the family to watch for. Little did I 
 imagine that fate had ordered otherwise, and that Mr. Hall and I w^ould 
 not return home that night. 
 
 A TRANSFORMATION 
 
 The "leading" dry goods store in Charleston was visited, and I in- 
 sisted that Mr. Hall should be fitted out with a suit of clothes, hat and 
 a pair of boots thrown in. The garments that Mr. Hall wore were no 
 doubt agreeable to the weather, for his attire was exceedingly simple, 
 and consisted of a pair of baggy blue jean pants, a checked shirt, a 
 pair of low shoes, and a broad-brim straw hat, with a cotton string for 
 a band. Anticipating a refusal upon the grounds that only city chaps 
 
DENNIS HANKS' VISIT. 151 
 
 wore store clothes, his reply fairly staggered me. Uncle John Hall 
 looked at me searchingly; his eyes were full of meaning, and to my 
 utter astonishment and bewilderment he said: "I low'd ye^d be 
 ashamed of me, but I can't pay for these yer clothes, nohow." 
 
 After being convinced that the outfit was a present from the Lincoln 
 Log Cabin Association, he retired into a closet and shortly reappeared. 
 The vision bewildered me. It was a transformation scene; coat, 
 trousers, vest, white shirt, collar, necktie, derby hat and polished boots. 
 What a metamorphosis. The grub had become a butterfly. "Mr. Hall, 
 Esquire," was introduced, but what had become of Uncle John? 
 
 A turn about across the street and I insisted upon going into a car- 
 riage shop. Before Mr. Hall could collect his scattered wits I had 
 selected a good, substantial, two-seated, family buggy, paid down a gen- 
 erous instalment, and promised that Mr. Hall would be able to meet 
 future payments. Our business finished, the proprietor politely bowed 
 us out and promised to have the buggy fastened to our "democrat," 
 which we informed him was at the "livery barn." 
 
 FULFILLMENT OF THE VOW 
 
 Poor "Sis" had for many long years been the comfort and joy 
 of the household, a mother to her young brothers and sisters, patiently 
 and uncomplainingly had she toiled for them, and with no hope of re- 
 ward. Her work had been a labor of love; she had none of the com- 
 forts of life, nor even the conveniences. Was there no one to speak for 
 her? Yes, I had determined to lessen and alleviate her home duties, 
 to lighten her drudgery, to reward her patient, heavy soul, to furnish 
 some respite from labor and bring pleasure into her dull and monoton- 
 ous life. 
 
 The thought that was uppermost in my mind I voiced. Mr. Hall 
 looked unutterable things, but before he could speak he was whirled 
 into the "most reliable" hardware store in the town, and the clerk was 
 showing us the latest and most improved gasoline stove. Mr. Hall ap- 
 peared to be paralyzed, for no sound escaped his lips, and a dozen ex- 
 pressions chased one another over his weather-stained face. Finally 
 he opened his mouth as if to speak, but a warning gesture from me 
 
156 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 bade him hold his peace. The stove was purchased and Mr. Hall said 
 very meekly, "Send it to the ^accommodation barn/ whar I left the 
 ^democrat.' " 
 
 Immediately upon the conclusion of our noonday meal we walked 
 rapidly to the depot and were soon steaming away, with Paris as our 
 objective point. Some difficulty was experienced in finding the resi- 
 dence of Mrs. Nancy Schoaff, Uncle Dennis Hanks' eldest daughter, 
 and with whom he lived. The meeting of the cousins was quite affect- 
 ing. A number of years had passed since they had seen each other, and 
 many changes had come to both families. 
 
 A UNIQUE INTRODUCTION 
 
 Mr. Hall introduced me by saying "this yur woman hes come all the 
 way from Chicago to see Uncle Dennis and hear some of his stories 
 about Uncle Abe." Mrs. Schoaff received me cordially, but informed 
 me that her father was very aged, being now ninety-two years old, and 
 somewhat infirm, owing to the fact that he had fallen during the 
 early part of the summer and injured his hip so severely that he was 
 confined to his bed. Without further delay, however, Mrs. Schoaff con- 
 ducted us to the old gentleman's apartments. 
 
 To be sure we found Mr. Hanks in bed, but in nowise sick or in- 
 firm in intellect. Mr. Hall's greeting to his aged uncle was indeed 
 touching, while tears glistened in the old man's eyes. Dennis Hanks 
 received me graciously, and before long was spinning his yarns con- 
 cerning "Abe" and the old folks. However, he first informed me that 
 if I was a reporter, a newspaper woman, or a collector of Lincoln 
 stories, he'd have nothing to say to me, for the "hull posse of them kind 
 had never paid him a cent for all the information he had given 'em." 
 
 I succeeded in pacifying the old gentleman, and adroitly obtained a 
 series of anecdotes concerning Mr. Lincoln and his family, among them 
 the famous story of "How Dennis Hanks got in to see the President." 
 
 "In the first place," said Mr. Hanks, "I think I ought ter hev some 
 credit and lots of money, tu, cause if it hadn't been for me tliar'd hey 
 been nothin' for folks ter make sich fools of theirselves." After im- 
 pressing me with his importance, h^ proceeded to relate the story of 
 
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FAMOUS BEDSTEAD. 
 
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 which Abraham Lincoln's father and mother died. In the lower 
 
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 SPINNING WHEEL. 
 
 Interior of ea^st room of the Lincoln Log Cabin, showing Grandmother Lincoln's Spinning- 
 wheel and cooking utensils. 
 
DENNIS HANKS' VISIT. 157 
 
 "Little Abe's" rescue from a watery grave, which had already been told 
 
 to me by Mr. Hall during the first days of my visit at the "old log 
 
 cflbm " 
 
 THE FAMOUS TALE 
 
 Time was precious, the hours were slipping away, and I was getting 
 anxious lest we should be obliged to leave before I had heard the famous 
 tale. Without waiting for Mr. Hanks to bring up further incidents 
 that might interfere with my desire, I undertook to force the subject by 
 saying: "Mr. Hanks, I believe you had the honor of visiting Mr. Lin- 
 coln at the Executive Mansion in Washington, did you not?" He 
 looked at me a moment, and laughing heartily, said: "So that's the 
 yarn ye're after, is it?'' Chuckling to himself for a moment, he winked 
 his eye at Mr. Hall and then his tongue became as nimble as a school 
 girPs. "Ye've heerd how some fellers down at Charleston got into 
 trouble and wus sent to the Dry Tortagus, ain't ye?" said Mr. Hanks. 
 I informed him that I knew all about that, and begged him to proceed 
 with his own part in the drama. He proceeded, saying: "Wall, some 
 of 'em smart lawyers down to Charleston tried to get Abe to let the 
 boys come home, but they didn't fetch 'em worth a cent. So I ses to my- 
 self, Dennis y'ur the boy to du it, and I jest told the citizens of Charles- 
 ton so, and they said, ^Hanks, we will give you twelve hundred dol- 
 lars if you will get the prisoners released.' Ye better believe that I 
 took that offer up and waded right in, got my ticket, rode down to Wash- 
 ington and went right up to Uncle Abe's house and asked to see Presi- 
 dent Lincoln. The feller what stood at the door told me there wus 
 jest a certain way to get in, but anyhow, the President wus crowded 
 now. Says he, ^There's lots of fellers in talking with him and more 
 that want to get in that come before you did.' Then I said to him, ses 
 I, if you'll jest show me the hole where the President goes in and out 
 I'll get to see him. The feller at the door then said to me, ^Who are 
 you?' I ses my name is Hanks, Pm an American citizen, and I want to 
 see Abe Lincoln. Then another feller says, ^Vhere are you from?' I 
 ses, ses I, wall, I am from Charleston, Coles County, Illinois. Then 
 some other feller said, ^That man talks like the President, Ms voice 
 sounds like his, and maybe he is a relation.' 
 
158 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 ABE KNOWED MY VOICE 
 
 "I waited a minute and nobody done nothing, so I jest speaks up 
 ag'in and ses I, *Ef ^^ou'll take me up to his bedroom I'll have no trouble 
 in gettin' in.' A feller took me up to a door to where Seward wus a 
 settin', and I looked through a bunch of men and saw Uncle Abe by 
 a stove playin' with his little bo}^, and handin' him some lemonade or 
 somethin' like that and laughin' and talkin' with him. I looked at him 
 a little bit and spoke out in a loud voice, *Abe, what you doin' thur?' 
 Abe knowed my voice, straightened up, and said, ^Dennis, is that you?' 
 He then invited me in and asked Mr. Seward and the other fellers to 
 jest step out a few minutes, ^fur,' said he, ^I want to see this man private- 
 ly.' So they all went out but me and Uncle Abe. He then askt me, 
 *How is mother gettin' along and all the balance of the family?' 
 
 "I jest open'd up and told Abe my business, and let him know what I 
 hed come fur. Abe then told me that Colonel Ficklin hed ben thar 
 twice on the same business, but he hed not then thought the men hed 
 ben punished long enough, so he ses, ees he, ^Now I guess they can go 
 home and take care of their families and try to be good men.' He 
 wrote out a piece of writin' and told me to hand that to Stanton. Wall, 
 I took it to him, but he flew into a passion and ses he, ^They did too 
 bad a deed to be pardoned.' He talked a little bit with me and then 
 said, *I will go and see Mr. Lincoln,' and took me with him. Abe talked 
 with me a little and then he turned around and spoke to Mr. Stanton, 
 and said, ^These men all have families and they w^ant to go back and 
 take care of them and behave themselves, and now whose business is 
 it?' Stanton jest shet up and never said no more, nohow. 
 
 "Abe told me to look around the city and enjoy myself. 'Twould be 
 all right,' he said, so I did, and shore nuff when I got back to Charles- 
 ton I found the fellers hed got thar afore me and everybody was re- 
 joicing." 
 
 After having related the above he rambled off and began to talk 
 about other things entirely irrelevant to my desires. I was determined 
 to hold him to his subject, and thus remarked: "Was there not some 
 romance or daring adventure in your family?" 
 
DENNIS HANKS' VISIT. 159 
 
 NOT ROMANCE, BUT POVERTY 
 
 He looked at me askance and muttered a reply: "Romance, did ye 
 say? No! no! it wus nothin' but poverty and toil and labor and hard- 
 ships. We hed our noses to the grindstone year in and year out." 
 
 At this point in our conversation I made a remark that angered 
 Dennis Hanks and was anxious lest I had forfeited his confidence. In 
 speaking of Mr. Lincoln's tragic death I alluded to the fact that the 
 nation was plunged into the deepest grief, for which there was no re- 
 lief: The old man glanced at me and remarked: "I onct met a fool of 
 a preacher who said the same thing to me, and then he began to snivel." 
 The old man ceased speaking. I held my breath and hoped he had ex- 
 hausted that subject, but breaking out again, he said: "Abe wasn't 
 nobody nor nothin'. The people made him and he wasn't worth cryin' 
 over." 
 
 Mr. Hall shook his head gravely and gave me a significant look, 
 which I interpreted as a warning, and therefore quickly changed my 
 tactics by leading the old man into a different vein of conversation. 
 
 After a moment's silence the old man spoke aloud, saying: "Every- 
 body round here is allers telling how shiftless and good-for-nothing 
 Uncle Tommy Lincoln wus, but Abe wus jest as shiftless as his father 
 wus and now^ I am goin' to tell you what a lazy trick he cut up when he 
 wus postmaster. You hev heerd that Abe wus postmaster, haven't ye?" 
 Before I could reply he proceeded: "Wall, he wus, and carried the mail 
 in his hat, tu. He use to go fishin' sometimes and whenever he got 
 started he didn't like to be disturbed and so he jest thought he'd take 
 the letters along in his hat and when the folks called for 'em he left a 
 piece of writing on the door which said, ^It's just as easy for you to come 
 to me as it is for me to go to you.' That's the way he sarved his country." 
 
 The conversation was again taking a turn that was decidedly un- 
 pleasant. In order to escape the old man's further tirade, I thanked 
 him for the information he had given me and bade him a hearty good- 
 bye. 
 
 Though I thanked Dennis Hanks for his attention and interesting 
 anecdotes, I could not forget the spirit that he displayed, a spirit which 
 
160 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 differed so materially from his illustrious relative who died as he had 
 lived, "with malice toward none — with charity for all." 
 
 Mr. Hall and I descended the stairs and passed into the dining-room, 
 where a delicious lunch had been prepared for us by Mrs. S'choaff. 
 She insisted and we remained to partake of the hospitable fare, thus 
 failing to catch the first train for Charleston, 
 
CHAPTER XXIV, 
 
 RECOVERY OF THE LINCOLN FOLK-LORE STORIES 
 
 THE next "flyer*' was belated. This delay was most annoying. At 
 last the iron horse steamed into the station and we boarded the 
 train, arriving in Charleston some twenty minutes past twelve 
 o'clock midnight. Mr. Hall and I proceeded immediately to the livery 
 barn but we failed to find the regular attendant. Our purchases had 
 not been properly cared for, although we had left explicit orders to 
 have everything in readiness upon our arrival. 
 
 After considerable parley, a man, apparently connected with the 
 establishment, came from a concealed corner and in a sleepy tone 
 offered to assist us. Upon investigation one of the barn hands told us 
 that he was neither proprietor nor employee, but only "a stranger 
 around here." 
 
 Mr. Hall now undertook to find some one who would assist him in 
 fastening the buggy to the "democrat," "hoist" the stove into the 
 "wagin" and harness the mules. During his absence the stranger 
 accosted me and fired at me a volley of questions concerning myself, my 
 business, my companion, until at last his manner not only became 
 obnoxious, but disgusting; and before Mr. Hall returned another 
 would-be proprietor joined the questioner. To all appearances the 
 second stranger was utterly intoxicated and immediately began to also 
 ask me similar questions. 
 
 THE THEFT 
 
 I was becoming alarmed, but Mr. HalPs appearance reassured me. 
 He was accompanied by the bam hands, who deliberately set about 
 assisting him in packing his purchases. After some considerable delay 
 it was decided that "everything was ready," and I proceeded to take my 
 seat in the "democrat," but before so doing I missed a parcel that I had 
 placed in the buggy, which was fastened behind the democrat. The 
 
 161 
 
163 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 bundle contained several valuable articles, among them my notes that 
 had been recorded that afternoon at Paris — Mr. Hanks' conversation, and 
 I was greatly annoyed. Taxing the barn hands with the theft I threat- 
 ened to send for an officer of the law. 
 
 The stranger and his companion had disappeared, and the tw^o young 
 men again denied the accusation. After some further talk back and 
 forth, the younger man called me aside and, whispering to me, said: 
 "That stranger has been hanging around the barn ever since you and 
 Mr. Hall came here and said that you were going down to Paris and 
 wanted the team ready to go out home to-night, and he wanted me to 
 either sell or lend him a pistol.'* 
 
 The situation was really becoming serious and I insisted that an 
 officer should be summoned at once. The young man who had given 
 me the information left the barn and soon returned with the sheriff, 
 who tried to convince me that I had left my package "back in Paris, on 
 the train, or somewhere else." I stuck to my first statement and in- 
 sisted that the parcel must be found. The intoxicated specimen of 
 humanity was discovered, aroused and threatened. 
 
 In a short time the package was restored, and the story of the pistol 
 was told to the officer, who now began to take some interest in the 
 affair, and after advising us not to undertake to go home at that late 
 hour accompanied us to the "best hotel." 
 
 BREAKFAST AT THE HOTEL 
 
 Morning came and when Mr. Hall and I went in to breakfast we were 
 the lions of the hour. Exaggerated accounts had gone out and been so 
 multiplied that the citizens were surprised to see murdered people 
 "climb" into a buggy and drive about the streets of the little town "as 
 natural as life." 
 
 What I had been sighing for had come to me, an adventure, a real 
 live one, too. 
 
 Leaving Charleston at an early hour, Mr. Hall urged the mules into 
 a lively canter as we wished to reach home at the earliest opportunity, 
 realizing that the entire family were doubtless alarmed at our absence. 
 Our conviction w^as confirmed, for as we came out into the main road 
 
LINCOLN FOLK-LORE STORIES. 163 
 
 and "hove" into sight "Little Joe" spied us, and communicated the news 
 to the remainder of the family, who dashed pell mell out of the house 
 and gave us a noisy welcome. 
 
 MORE SURPRISES 
 
 Before a word was exchanged, however, the buggy and its contents 
 caught the attention of the young people, who were too surprised and 
 astonished to ask questions. They were fairly dazed. The buggy was 
 unfastened and when Mr. Hall told the boys that it was all their own 
 they simply gathered about it and seemed content to merely look at it. 
 There was no noisy demonstration. The surprise and the unthought of 
 pleasure had robbed them of speech. 
 
 The gasoline stove was taken out, carried into the kitchen, filled, 
 lighted and its merits explained. "Sis" seemed fairly dazed while we 
 were explaining and demonstrating. When I had finished and had told 
 her that she was mistress of this "wonderful household invention,'' she 
 quietly remarked: "Wall, I'd think." 
 
 This even t was indeed an epoch in tne history of the family and the 
 entire day wi s spent in answering questions and rehearsing the tragic 
 events of the ^vrevious night. When the custodian of the cabin came up 
 for his noonda^v meal, young Abe Hall asked me to tell the story how 
 "Dad and ye je&t missed being killed stun dead." 
 
 LAST NIGHT^S JOB HAS DONE mE UP 
 
 At an unusually nnd ridiculously early hour Mr. Hall began prepara- 
 tions for retirement, and insisted that all the members of the house- 
 hold should go to bed and sleep too, for as he said, "last night's job hes 
 done me up." 
 
 The night was excessively sultry and the air unusually humid. 
 The idea of going into a hot and stifling house, when life was hardly 
 endurable out of doors, was not to be thought of. The entire family 
 groaned, and with one accord insisted that they'd rather suffer almost 
 any punishment than be obliged to enter the little domicile under the 
 present distressing circumstances. We coaxed and tried to persuade 
 the master of the house that we would preserve the utmost silence. 
 
164: THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 We also agreed to enter into no conversation whatever, and promised 
 faithfully that when we came in we would use the utmost caution that 
 we should not awaken him. But the events of the previous night had 
 indeed made Mr. Hall unusually peculiar, and he still refused to permit 
 us to remain in the open air. 
 
 After I had concluded that further attempt would be in vain, and 
 considering his refusal final, I followed the example of my host and 
 went into the cottage quite disconsolate and indeed really unhappy. 
 
 THE WELCOME VISITOR 
 
 My unhappiness was of short duration, however, and that unpleasant 
 state of mind was changed into delight and expectancy, for no sooner 
 had we entered the house than an unrecognized voice called from the gate, 
 and hasty steps, on the graveled walk, betokened the approach of a late 
 caller. As usual the entire family rushed to the door, for evening visitors 
 were so rare that such occasions always created surprise and pleasure. 
 
 A cheery "Hello" and "How are ye, brother John?" revealed the 
 identity of the late visitor. 
 
 The boys surrounded Uncle Bill, and Mr. Hall called out: "What 
 brings ye over here?" Without waiting for his brother's reply the older 
 man said: "It's the woman from Chicago and her yarns about Uncle 
 Abe, I 'low." 
 
 Mr. William Hall did not deny the accusation, and was formally 
 introduced to me and my young friend. 
 
 The conversation soon drifted into the ordinary channel in which 
 all our conversations had run during my sojourn at the famous old log 
 cabin, and in response to a question put by myself Mr. William Hall 
 said: "Uncle Abe wus much older than any of our family, yit he never 
 seemed to feel above any of us. He'd set around and tell us the 
 curousest stories ye ever heerd." 
 
 Then addressing his brother, who had fallen asleep in his chair, 
 he roused him by asking him if he remembered what Uncle Abe "hed 
 told them about the sun?" The reply was rather obscure, and the 
 brothers began to discuss more personal affairs. 
 
LINCOLN FOLK-LORE STORIES. 165 
 
 Uncle John Hall and his younger brother indulged in many 
 reminiscences of their early life, and I waited patiently an opportunity 
 to interrogate the new comer in regard to the sun story. 
 
 THE SUN STANDS STILL 
 
 The following incident was related to me, and is here reproduced in 
 William HalFs own vernacular: 
 
 "I wus visiting brother John," said he, "and we wus all a laying out 
 on the grass under the big locust tree at the west end of the cabin, and 
 the sun wus jest a sinking behind the clouds, when some of us spoke up 
 and said, ^the sun is going down and we'd better be doin' the chores.' 
 Uncle Abe wus visitin' there then," and with a, decided movement that 
 startled me faced about quickly and addressed himself to me, fairly 
 thundering out his question: "Wall, what do ye suppose Uncle Abe 
 told us that night r 
 
 I could not imagine, nor did I try to, but politely insisted that the 
 new comer should unfold the wonderful tale without further delay. 
 
 Again reverting to the afternoon scene, Mr. Hall proceeded to tell 
 the story in the same quaint manner that had distinguished all the 
 conversations of his elder brother. "As I was a saying, the sun wus 
 sinking, and when I mentioned the fact to Uncle Abe he jest stood right 
 up and in sech a funny way said, ^No, the sun isn't a sinking, but we are 
 sinking.' We all thought Uncle Abe had taken a crazy fit, and when 
 he went on to tell us the world wus round and a turning around, too, 
 we didn't know what to think of him. So as soon as we got into the 
 house we jest told Grandmarm Lincoln, and she said, ^Abe knowed 
 what he wus talking about, if it did sound crazy.' " 
 
 Mr. Hall paused in his recital, the intermission taking on the com- 
 plexion of a question, and I preserved silence, feeling sure that instinc- 
 tively I had sized up my man, who, when once wound up, would "go on 
 forever." 
 
 Breaking out with this remark, Mr. Hall said: "Grandpap Lincoln's 
 house wus as full of folks as it could stick, and all of us, both big and 
 little, begun to poke fun at Uncle Abe, who said, 'Just wait until after 
 
166 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 supper and I'll show you how we sink, while the sun is standing still.' 
 We all laughed fit to kill, and I remember how Daniel D. Johnston 
 asked Uncle Abe ef he wus'ent ^cracked?' '' 
 
 Mr. Hall again paused, but after a moment's silence said: "After 
 supper Uncle Abe got a 'tater and put a pin through a button and stuck 
 it on the 'tater, saying, ^That's us right here/ Then he turned the 'tater 
 round and round, and sometimes the button would be on the top and 
 then again it w^ould be on tother side. When the button wus on the 
 top Uncle Abe said 4t wus daytime^ and when it wus on the bottom 
 he said 4t wus night.' Then we all hollered and lafed, and some of us 
 asked Uncle Abe what kept the folks from falling off when the 'tater 
 wus bottom side up. 
 
 A NEW KIND OF GLUE 
 
 "Uncle Abe jest looked at us in a curous way and told us that there 
 wus 'a kind of glue called gravity that made people stick.' " Again 
 Mr. Hall paused, wath the expectancy that I would question him further, 
 but getting no audible suggestion from me, he proceeded by saying: 
 "What do ye reckon Uncle Abe meant?" 
 
 I answered by propounding a question: "Did you never find out 
 what Mr. Lincoln meant?" said I. "Not exactly," answered Mr. Hall, 
 "but I know that Uncle Abe was'ent fur from right when he said the 
 world wus round and the sun stood still, fur my folks has been to school 
 and the teacher says that's true." 
 
 At this juncture in the conversation Mr. William Hall announced 
 his intention of spending the night with his brother, and fearing that a 
 postponement of the stories till morning might seriously affect them, 
 I determined to gather more information that very night. 
 
 After having settled the important fact that the younger man could 
 share the bed with his elder brother, and that little Joe would sleep on 
 the floor, we drifted into further conversation. 
 
 As a preface I suggested that Mr. Lincoln might have been told or 
 perhaps had read of the aforesaid facts concerning the sun, but both 
 brothers insisted that Uncle Abe did more thinking than reading, and 
 
LINCOLN FOLK-LORE STORIES. 167 
 
 thej both declared that their illustrious relative "hed thought the hull 
 thing out." 
 
 'LL JUST LAY AROUND AND THINK 
 
 Immediately, Uncle John Hall, in order to illustrate the habit "fur 
 thinking" that Mr. Lincoln possessed, told the following little incident: 
 
 "'Twas during the summer of 1846 or '47," said Mr. Hall, "that 
 Uncle Abe come up to the old log cabin and stayed almost a month, 
 'twas two weeks anyhow, and the reason that he stayed so long wus 
 because he wanted to study something out about the law. Uncle Abe 
 hed walked all the way from Springfield, about a hundred miles, and 
 seemed kinder tired fur the first two or three days, and so he said. 
 Til just lay around and think.' 
 
 "Wall the days went along and Uncle Abe kept doin' jest the same 
 kind of studying, a laying and a thinking, till after a while he said, 
 ^I've done enough studying and I reckon I'd better go back to Mary.' " 
 
 Uncle John Hall now addressed his brother and said to him: "Don't 
 
 ye remember we hev talked with Uncle Dennis Hanks sence Uncle 
 
 Abe's death about his doin' his studyin' in sech a curous way, and Uncle 
 
 Dennis allers said ^it wus more laziness than studyin' or thinkin' 
 
 either.' " 
 
 THE HANKS AMBITION 
 
 Wondering why Dennis Hanks should speak so disparagingly of Mr. 
 Lincoln I asked for the reason. It was a mystery to both of the 
 brothers, who declared that Uncle Abe had always been extremely 
 kind and cordial to his cousin, but agreed that there was one thing 
 that Uncle Abe had not done for his relative, and that was, he had 
 failed to bestow upon Uncle Dennis Hanks an ofiicial position. 
 
 We fell into a speculative turn of thought, and tried to make up 
 our minds what position Dennis Hanks would have asked for. Uncle 
 John Hall settled the matter by saying that "Uncle Dennis and Uncle 
 Abe both hed the Hanks ambition, and that nothin' Avould hev suited 
 either of them but the Presidency of the United States." Therefore we 
 all concluded that it was genuine jealousy and envy that possessed the 
 soul of Uncle Dennis Hanks. 
 
168 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 I reverted to my recent visit at Uncle Dennis Hanks' and remem- 
 bered that he had, upon several occasions, spoken very unpleasantly 
 of Mr. Lincoln; consequently I addressed the following question to the 
 brothers : 
 
 "Did not Dennis Hanks ever speak kindly or admiringly of Mr. 
 Lincoln?" 
 
 Both brothers hastened to reply, but Uncle John Hall interrupted 
 his brother's speech by saying: "Don't ye mind, Bill, how Uncle Dennis 
 often bragged up Uncle Abe, and sed he allers knowed he was a nateral 
 lawyer, and expected he wus goin' to git to the top of the ladder? 
 
 THE RABBIT STORY 
 
 "It WUS right after Uncle Abe wus elected to be the President of the 
 United States that Uncle Dennis told how Uncle Abe ust to try cases 
 when he wus a young feller, and said 'Abe could try 'em jest as good 
 as a reglar lawyer.' 
 
 "I remember a rabbit story that Uncle Dennis told me about. It 
 wus when they all lived in Indiany, and Uncle Abe was jest a real 
 young feller. He ketched some boys chasing a poor rabbit about until 
 it was scared to death. Then Uncle Abe got up what they call a mock 
 trial, and when he sentenced the feller that hunted the rabbit to death 
 Uncle Abe said he wus too mean to be hung by the neck, and he ordered 
 him hung by the heels." 
 
 Uncle John Hall continued to quote from Uncle Dennis, who had 
 further informed him that Mr. Lincoln was constantly going here and 
 there to hear great men speak, and upon one occasion, when the family 
 also lived in Indiana, Abraham Lincoln had walked a good many miles to 
 hear a famous lawyer plead at a murder trial, and when he returned 
 home — to usft Mr, Hal^s own words — "He got all the folks together and 
 went over the hull performance, and it wus so good that everybody 
 clapped their hands and hollered, while Grandmarm Lincoln said, 'I'd 
 'low Abe 'ull be a lawyer hisself.' " 
 
 A FAMOUS LAWYER 
 
 No doubt this famous lawyer that Uncle Dennis Hanks referred to 
 
LINCOLN FOLK-LORE STORIES. 169 
 
 was the Hon. John A. Breckenridge, for several of Mr. Lincoln^s 
 biographers quote him as saying to Mr. Breckenridge in later years, 
 when that gentleman called upon the President at the White House 
 and suggested that he did not recognize him : 
 
 "Yes, I do; you are John A. Breckenridge. I used to walk thirty-four 
 miles a day to hear you plead law in Boonville, and listening to your 
 speeches at the bar first inspired me with the determination to be a 
 lawyer." 
 
 We continued our conversation until a late hour, and the two 
 brothers exchanged so many kindly sentiments concerning Mr. Lincoln 
 that I could not doubt that their avowed admiration for their illustrious 
 relative was as sincere as it was outspoken. 
 
 HE WAS PROUD OF HIMSELF 
 
 A pause in the conversation led me to fear that story-telling for 
 that evening at least was over, but again Uncle John Hall broke out 
 with his favorite remark: "Ye mind how proud Uncle Abe wus, don't 
 ye, Bilir 
 
 This remark of Uncle John's and another diametrically opposed 
 amused me greatly, for he had repeatedly said to me, "Uncle Abe wus 
 orful proud," and in the next breath had affirmed that "Uncle Abe never 
 did nohow seem any different from the rest of us." 
 
 Criticising the discrepancy in these two statements, I called Uncle 
 John's attention to the fact. Immediately he undertook to explain the 
 difference, and in homely fashion determined the discrimination by 
 simply saying, "Wall, Uncle Abe wus jest proud of hisself." 
 
 Again we referred to great men, and when I asked the brothers if 
 they had ever heard Mr. Lincoln mention his acquaintance with Henry 
 Clay they had no difficulty in remembering the fact that Mr. Lincoln 
 himself had said that his admiration for the famous orator and pro- 
 found statesman was unbounded as a young man and before he had 
 met him, but after a personal interview his idol was shattered. 
 
 LINOOLN VISITS HENRY CLAY 
 
 Again referring to Mr. Lincoln's biographers, it is universally con- 
 
170 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 ceded by many of them that Mr. Lincoln was disappointed in Mr. Clay 
 as a speaker. 
 
 Hoping to find, however, in a personal interview the realization of 
 that wonderful personality which he had hitherto bestowed upon his 
 favorite, Abraham Lincoln sought and obtained an introduction to Mr. 
 Clay. Again the man was disappointed, but upon receiving an invita- 
 tion to call upon the statesman at his own beautiful home, Ashland, 
 Mr. Lincoln thankfully accepted the courtesy. 
 
 Again Mr. Lincoln w^as bitterly disappointed, the humble and ad- 
 miring man had met the profound and eloquent orator at the threshold 
 of his own castle; upon "common ground" each had touched the per- 
 sonality of the other. So much in common between them, but yet so 
 widely apart; and how was it thus? 
 
 Both were self-made men; one of obscure parentage, the other of 
 humble birth. Both of limited education; both reaching the acme of 
 fame by the self -same road, daily and persistent exercise in reading and 
 thinking aloud; both talking in the cornfields, both talking in the forest; 
 one with only the silence of nature and "dumb brutes" to hear; the other 
 receiving the hearty applause of a rude and lowly but appreciative 
 gathering. 
 
 One eloquent and magnetic, holding the interest and appreciation of 
 cultured .and distinguished audiences; the other forceful, simple and 
 singular; swaying the common populace to almost uncontrollable en- 
 thusiasm. 
 
 Both expressing themselves with an equal fervor upon the slavery 
 question; both believing and emphasizing the fact that slavery was 
 wrong, and both condemning any effort looking to a sudden and violent 
 termination of the institution. 
 
 One dying before the awful insurrection had begun that led up to 
 the final climax; the other living to be the instrument of retribution 
 and annihilation. 
 
 BOTH WERE LEADERS 
 
 Both leaders; both controlled by amazing wills; both equally daunt' 
 less and courageous; both coming in contact with men of all ranks and 
 
LINCOLN FOLK-LORE STORIES, 171 
 
 professions; the one proud and dignified, the other humble and gentle, 
 yet neither one felt that he was in the presence of a man superior to 
 himself. 
 
 Both were men of whom the country was never in doubt as to their 
 opinions or purposes. Both vieve men of whom their fellow-countrymen 
 pronounced soul-inspiring eulogies. 
 
 Mr. Breckenridge, a life-long friend of Mr. Clay, said of him : "If I 
 were to write his epitaph I would inscribe on the stone which shall 
 mark his last resting place, 'Here lies a man who was in the public 
 service for fifty years and never attempted to deceive his countrymen.' " 
 
 Mr. J. G. Holland, one of America's famous authors, wrote of the 
 dead President: 
 
 "In Mr. Lincoln's life and character the American people have re- 
 ceived a benefaction not less in permanent importance and value than 
 in the revolution in opinion and policy by which he introduced them 
 to a new national life. He has given them a statesman without a states- 
 man's craftiness, a politician without a politician's meannesses, a great 
 man without a great man's vices, a philanthropist v/ithout a philan- 
 thropist's impracticable dreams, a Christian without pretensions, a 
 ruler without the pride of place and power, an ambitious man without 
 selfishness, and a successful man without vanity. On the basis of such 
 manhood as this, all the coming generations of the nation will not fail 
 to build high and beautiful ideals of human excellence, whose attractive 
 power shall raise to a nobler level the moral sense and moral character 
 of the nation. This true manhood — simple, unpretending, sympathetic 
 with all humanity, and reverent toward God — is among the noblest of 
 the nation's treasures; and through it God has breathed, and will con- 
 tinue to breathe, into the nation, the elevating and purifying power of 
 His own divine life." 
 
 Why was it that these two great and good men, not dissimilar in 
 many respects, the one in the habit of graciously receiving homage, the 
 other in the habit of graciously bestowing homage, were not attracted 
 to one another? 
 
 This repulsion, or rather unattraction, was a curious circumstance, 
 
172 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 and will no doubt be a subject of speculation for a long time to come 
 among those who read and study the character of these two great men. 
 
 I KNOW WHAT MADE UNCLE ABE SAD 
 
 ^fter the above slight digression, returning to the brothers, we find 
 them still recounting incidents and reminding one another of many 
 simple and unforgotten events which took place at the different occa- 
 sions upon which Mr. Lincoln came up to the old homestead. 
 
 In a very decided manner Uncle John Hall made the following very 
 startling proposition : 
 
 "I believe," he said, "that I know what made Uncle Abe so sad like 
 and allers thinkin' of somethin' away off." 
 
 Naturally I was alert and asked him to give us his judgment con- 
 cerning the cause of Mr. Lincoln's sadness. Nearly every one of Mr. 
 Lincoln's biographers in referring to those frequent spells of extreme 
 melancholy which overcame him attributed the cause to an early love 
 affair, and I was fully prepared to hear Mr, Hall rehearse the same 
 statement. 
 
 Upon this occasion I listened rather impatiently to his usually 
 peculiar way of telling a story, and was not particularly interested in 
 the first details, although I carefully heeded the preface. 
 
 Tipping back in his chair and putting on an air of importance and 
 mystery, he described the time and place. 
 
 It was twilight and "Uncle Abe" and himself were strolling through 
 the woods, when Mr. Lincoln suddenly became abstracted and remained 
 silent so long that the abstraction and silence could no longer be 
 endured, and Uncle John Hall broke in upon his relative's reverie by 
 saying: "What's up, Uncle Abe? Are ye sad 'cause Ann Rutiedge 
 died?" 
 
 "Uncle Abe shook his head and said, 'It isn't that, John; it isn't 
 that.' Then he got orful still again, and I ast him ef I could help him 
 out of his trouble. He said, *I wish to God you could, John.' 
 
 "After waiting a few minutes longer he kinder looked around, and 
 then in a low tone, almost a whisper, said, 'I can't bear to think I don't 
 
LINCOLN FOLK-LORE STORIES. 173 
 
 know who my grandfather was.' Wall, I vow, I really thought he hed 
 gone crazy, and I said tu him rather peart like, ^Why, what's the matter 
 with ye. Uncle Abe? I hev heerd you and grandmarm many a time 
 talking about yere grandfather what was killed by the Injuns.' Uncle 
 Abe looked at me solemn like and said, ^I don't mean him; I mean my 
 mother's father/ 
 
 HAWKSs NOT HANKS 
 
 "I thought that was rather a queer thing to feel bad about, so I jest 
 said to Uncle Abe, *Why don't you ask Uncle Dennis about it? He ort 
 to know.' 
 
 "Uncle Abe said he hed and that Uncle Dennis hed told him that 
 his mother's name was Hawks and not Hanks, and that the name got 
 changed after they came to Kantucky.* 
 
 "Uncle Abe couldent stop talking about his grandfather that he 
 dident know, and looking at me kinder sad like he said, ^I hope you 
 won't feel bad, John, but I can't think that I am jest exactly like the 
 rest of the relatives, and I firmly believe that my grandfather was a 
 cultured gentleman from Virginia.' 
 
 "Wall, Uncle Abe wus allers so curous like that I amost laffed right 
 in his face, but he appeared so distressed about what he dident know I 
 hedent the heart tu. 
 
 "Many a time I hev thought over and wondered what difference it 
 made to Uncle Abe whether he knowed or dident know who his grand- 
 father wus." 
 
 WHAT'S IN A NAME 
 
 The members of the family were now requested by Mr. Hall to retire, 
 and as the hour was exceedingly late no opposition was made to his 
 request. 
 
 I could not sleep, and for hours speculated upon what I had heard. 
 
 Was not Mr. Lincoln correct in his surmise? Would not his ex- 
 planation account for his natural genius, his strong characteristics, his 
 
 *This statement was corroborated by Dennis Hanks, upon whom I made a «econd 
 brief call. 
 
174 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 love for education, his ambition for elevation, and his success in reach- 
 ing the pinnacle of fame? 
 
 The Bible tells us that the iniquities of the fathers and mothers 
 shall descend to the third and fourth generations. Then why may 
 not likewise the talents and good traits manifest themselves in the 
 succeeding generations, even to the fourth descent? If Mr. Lincoln's 
 hypothesis is true then much in his character that heretofore seemed 
 miraculous and unaccountable, is justified, and his peculiarities and 
 characteristics were the outcome of natural laws. 
 
CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 MEETING THE LITTLE GIANT IN DEBATE 
 
 ONE of the most remarkable events in Abraham Lincoln's life 
 was his contest with Senator Douglas, in 1858, for the seat in 
 the United States Senate, which was soon to be vacated by 
 the expiration of the term for which the latter had been elected. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln often remarked that he had watched the career of Mr. 
 Douglas with great interest. That his admiration for his tact was un- 
 bounded and the power that Douglas had over the people called forth 
 his respect. 
 
 The more modest man had seen the powerful and influential man 
 winning the highest honors, and if he did not envy him it was not 
 because he was not ambitious, but because envy had no place in the 
 heart of the humble man. 
 
 From the original manuscript the following is clipped, and in 
 Mr. Lincoln's own words: "Twenty-two years ago Judge Douglas and I 
 became acquainted. We were both young then — he a trifle younger 
 than I. Even then we were both ambitious — I, perhaps, quite as much 
 as he. With me the race of ambition has been a failure — a flat failure; 
 with him, it has been one of splendid success. His name fills the nation, 
 and is not unknown even in foreign lands. 
 
 "I affect no contempt for the high eminence he has reached. To 
 reach that the oppressed of my species might have shared with me the 
 elevation. I would rather stand on that eminence than wear the richest 
 crown that ever pressed a monarch's brow." 
 
 DOUGLAS RENOMINATED FOR SENATOR 
 
 On the 21st of April, 1858, the Democratic convention of Illinois 
 assembled and endorsed Mr. Douglas for Senatorial honors, and on the 
 16th of June, nearly two months later, the Kepublican convention con- 
 vened, and the following resolution was unanimously adopted: 
 
 175 
 
176 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 "That Hon. Abraham Lincoln is our first and only choice for United 
 States Senator, to fill the vacancy about to be created by the expiration 
 of Mr. Douglas' term of office.'' 
 
 Mr. Lincoln did not plead ignorance concerning the intention of the 
 convention, but, anticipating a favorable result, had prepared a 
 speech with unusual care, and in the subject matter of that speech he 
 had incorporated the issues of the campaign, and had laid out the 
 ground upon which he proposed to stand. 
 
 Before going to the State House to deliver his speech, Mr. Lincoln 
 read the opening paragraph to his law partner, who advised him not 
 to give utterance to the sentiments that it contained. Although true, 
 he did not consider it wise to voice them at that time. 
 
 The particular sentence to which his partner objected is the follow- 
 ing: "I believe this Government cannot endure permanently half slave 
 and half free." Mr. Lincoln replied: "The proposition is true, and I 
 will deliver it as it is written." 
 
 The entire speech was read, and its earnestness and patriotism con- 
 vinced the convention that he had chosen wisely. 
 
 The two stalwart partisans retired to prepare for the oncoming 
 battle of words. And now the grand senatorial campaign of 1858 was 
 begun, and Mr. Lincoln either followed close at the heels of Mr. Douglas 
 or Mr. Douglas came in just after Mr. Lincoln's round. In this fashion 
 the campaign went on, until Mr. Lincoln concluded to arrange for closer 
 work, and to that end in view he sent to Mr. Douglas the following 
 communication: 
 
 DOUGLAS ACCEPTS THE CHALLENGE 
 
 Hon. S. A. Douglas. 
 
 My dear Sir: Will it be agreeable to you to make an arrangement 
 
 for you and myself to divide time and address the same audiences the 
 
 present canvass? Mr. Judd, who will hand you this, is authorized to 
 
 receive your answer, and, if agreeable to you, to enter into the terms 
 
 of such agreement. 
 
 Your obedient servant, 
 
 A. LINCOLN. 
 
MEETING THE LITTLE GIANT IN DEBATE. 177 
 
 To this communication Mr. Douglas replied that recent events had 
 arisen that would exclude such an arrangement. Yet, while he declined 
 the general invitation, he said he was willing to make an arrangement 
 for seven joint debates which should take place in districts where they 
 had not already spoken. 
 
 Some further correspondence passed between them until a satis- 
 factory agreement was reached and equally satisfactory terms accepted. 
 When the final arrangements had been completed, there yet remained 
 three weeks before the joint debate should take place. In the interim, 
 both of the gentlemen kept on with their independent work. 
 
 At last the day arrived, and the first meeting of the series agreed 
 upon was held at Ottawa, 111., according to appointment. A gathering 
 of citizens, estimated at twelve thousand, had gathered to witness the 
 wonderful struggle, a struggle between two giants — one who believed 
 he was doing his duty, and the other who certainly could not believe that 
 his own propositions were just and honest. 
 
 And thus the two great men were pitted against each other, the one 
 a college-bred man, cultured, brilliant, eloquent, the associate and com- 
 panion of distinguished men and accomplished women; the other a 
 plain man, self-made, awkward, homely, uncultured, lonely, and sad, 
 the early associate of untutored men and women, but always, then as 
 now, a great soul, honest, faithful, kind — the defender of the weak and 
 the downtrodden, the protector of the innocent and helpless — his great 
 personality filled with the inspiration of love and righteousness. 
 
 BATTLE OF INTELLECTS 
 
 Crowds of men and women flocked to witness the battle of the intel- 
 lectual giants. The enthusiasm was intense. Men and women grew 
 dizzy with excitement, and as the debate lengthened and proceeded the 
 interest did not flag, but, if possible, increased and grew more intense. 
 "Never was an audience more completely electrified by human elo- 
 quence." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's logical reasoning and humorous attacks were so well 
 directed and his exposures of the iniquities and untruths of Mr. Doug- 
 
178 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 las' legislative action were so convincing and overwhelming that the 
 *^little giant" knew that he was worsted, was beaten by the power of 
 honest thought, made into honest words and delivered by an honest 
 man. Thus the little giant was defeated and thus he retired, promising 
 to speak no more during that campaign. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was beaten in his contest for the seat of Mr. Douglas in 
 the Senate, but how it happened was quite a mystery to the ordinary 
 person, for Mr. Lincoln's plurality was four thousand one hundred and 
 forty-four votes over Mr. Douglas. Had the people been permitted to 
 decide the question, he would have secured the Senatorial honors; but 
 the State Legislature was the tribunal that was to pass finally upon it, 
 and its decision was against Mr. Lincoln's election. There were four- 
 teen Democratic members in the State Senate and forty in the House, 
 thus it was that Mr. Douglas was reseated. 
 
 Abraham Lincoln was defeated after having passed through a pow- 
 erful and persistent contest, a contest that had been fought by him, 
 fairly, good-naturedly, magnanimously, and with a skill rarely if ever 
 surpassed. 
 
 TOO BIG TO CRY 
 
 No doubt Mr. Lincoln felt disappointed at his defeat, for he fras 
 human, and to be human is to be ambitious; however, he made no 
 further allusion to the matter than to give one of his characteristically 
 quaint and humorous replies when he was asked how he felt, as the 
 returns came in announcing his defeat. "Too badly to laugh," he said, 
 and "too big to cry." 
 
 Though defeated in the senatorial contest he did not retire to the 
 privacy of a "done-up politician." The admiration of the people for 
 Abraham Lincoln was greater than ever, and the masses in the West 
 cherished profound respect for the man, whose purpose had always 
 been to serve the highest and best. 
 
 His masterly effort in handling the great and oncoming issue of the 
 country; his significant and solemn words concerning the result if 
 unwise or careless action should be employed, and his promises and vows 
 
MEETING THE LITTLE GIANT IN DEBATE. 179 
 
 to stand by the people in their liour of perplexity and doubt, built up for 
 him a reputation that could never be overthrown and a love that could 
 never be repudiated. 
 
 The year 1858 and the following one found Mr. Lincoln in compara- 
 tive leisure, although he had all of the professional business that he 
 could attend to. His enemies and many of his friends and acquaintances 
 said, "Lincoln appears to be pretty quiet now-a-days," and many wise- 
 acres shook their heads gravely, and solemnly declared that the contest 
 through which he had recently passed and the defeat he had suffered 
 liad "completely used up Abe Lincoln." 
 
 It w^as not so, for the man towards whom these thoughts were 
 directed and of whom these words were spoken was quietly biding his 
 time, preparing for the struggle that he knew was coming to the nation. 
 
 After this period of rest and apparent lack of interest in national 
 affairs, the silent man bestirred himself, and again appeared in the 
 political arena. 
 
 THE WESTERN TRIP 
 
 His attention was turned to the people of that territory which was 
 embraced in Mr. Douglas' proposed bill, and to that district he directed 
 his course of action. 
 
 Westward, ho! he went, and the people of that land received him 
 and made of him an elder brother; aye, even more than that, they wel- 
 comed him as the champion of justice and the hero who had fought their 
 battles with such masterly ability and skill. On entering the principal 
 towns he w^as met by large processions of people and escorted by them 
 to the places of assembly. Dense crowds gathered upon the sidewalks 
 that lined the passage, while windows, doors and porches were filled 
 with women and children anxious to catch a glimpse of the man whose 
 cry of warning had gone out and reached the people of this Western 
 world. 
 
 The time arrived for his speechmaking. The halls were crowded to 
 suffocation, and the audiences were wild with enthusiasm. When his 
 Western tour was ended, he had gained the affections and secured the 
 
180 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 trust of nearly every man and woman in Kansas and its adjacent 
 territory. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was now aroused to such a strong conviction of the com- 
 ing struggle that he laid aside personal comfort, and went into the fight 
 with all the determination and vigor of a soul that realizes the danger 
 ahead and is preparing to meet the onslaught 
 
 WHO SHOULD SAY HISVi NAY 
 
 Mr. Lincoln may have had ambition for greater political honor than 
 he had yet received. Be that so, the service that he was rendering 
 his country was grand, powerful, honest and well-directed, and if he 
 desired to hold the reins of Government who had the right to say to 
 him nay? Who could decry his works? Who could defame his honor? 
 Who could assail his intent? And who could question his purpose? 
 What other man in the broad land could equal him in word or deed? 
 What other man could stand side by side with him and deal as forceful 
 blows for right and justice? What other man had so clearly outlined 
 the perils that threatened the country? What other man had so boldly 
 proclaimed the result that surely would come to a divided nation? 
 What other man had the courage to antagonize a large and prosperous 
 section because he believed that the wrong should be righted and the 
 oppressed delivered? No one. Then why should not this man use his 
 strength and exercise his power? 
 
 Abraham Lincoln had made a tremendous impression upon all who 
 had heard him. His strange and peculiar influence was quietly leaven- 
 ing the whole mass, and many were watching his future with intense 
 interest He was now a central figure, an unique figure, that stood 
 out boldly and defied the opinions of men. 
 
 WHO IS ABRAHAM LINOOLN 
 
 He was a representative man, and already was regarded, by the 
 masses of the new party, at the West, as the best man for the next Presi- 
 dential campaign. 
 
 His masterly debates with Mr. Douglas had been talked about and 
 
MEETING THE LITTLE GIANT IN DEBATE, 181 
 
 had been read; but still he was not much known among the people of 
 the East 
 
 His field of labor and speech was so distant and so peculiarly simple 
 and plainly honest that the cultured politicians and their followers 
 knew but little of the great Western giant. Had they been told that 
 in so short a space of time, less than two years, that Abraham Lincoln 
 would be elected President of the United States many, very many, 
 would have said, "Who is Abraham Lincoln ?'' But at the West every- 
 body knew "Old Abe." He was the friend of the people, "the cham- 
 pion of freedom and free labor." To look upon him wasi to look upon 
 a lion. To shake hands with him was such a privilege that the favored 
 one was boastful in the extreme. 
 
CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 THE HONEST LAWYER 
 
 THOUGH Mr. Lincoln had been intensely absorbed in and devoted 
 to the political issues of the times, yet he had established an ex- 
 tensive law practice, although not a particularly lucrative one. 
 Many of his clients were poor and unfortunate, and the "good man" 
 had defended them without fees, for his generous heart could never 
 refuse an appeal for help. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln^s career as a lawyer covered a period of a quarter of a 
 century, beginning in 1835. 
 
 When he began his professional life, he was an obscure and un- 
 promising youth, with but little learning. Step by step, with patient 
 industry and unflinching determination, he climbed the ladder of pro- 
 fessional advancement, until he stood among the foremost lawyers of 
 the West. 
 
 For the benefit of young men contemplating a legal profession, would 
 it not be interesting to go over the ground covering Mr. Lincoln's life as 
 a student at law and a practitioner? 
 
 No doubt an account of the hard and severe lines drawn around his 
 earliest attempts and subsequent years of endeavor and effort will 
 reconcile many a discouraged man to the lesser hardships of the present 
 time. The history of his legal battles, the successes of his later years 
 and the reputation that he established for honesty, fairness and achieve- 
 merif will urge the aspiring student to renewed effort and direct his 
 thoughts into healthful channels. 
 
 The study of law with Mr. Lincoln had been long and tedious. He 
 had picked it up at odd times, as he could secure, now and then, a few 
 spare moments from duties that were often disagreeable and of seem- 
 ingly no importance. 
 
 After having waited upon a customer in the little country store, he 
 would turn to his book and snatch a sentence here and there. Then 
 
 182 
 
THE HONEST LAWYER. 183 
 
 again he would rise early in the morning or sit by the flickering light 
 of a tallow dip late into the night striving to read and ponder over the 
 words, and sentences, and phrases that made up the only law book that 
 he possessed. 
 
 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES 
 
 How different from now-a-days, when the young student has all the 
 advantages of a complete law library. He finds all of the books that 
 he desires or needs in the offices of the lawyers with whom he is study- 
 ing. Or, if combining the study of law with his means of a livelihood, 
 he goes to the public libraries, which are always open, and spends his 
 evenings and any other time that he may command as his own in the 
 quiet and comfortable rooms, set apart for reference and reading. The 
 poor boy has the same privilege to study and use the lore that his rich 
 neighbor has, and thus he is denied neither books, warmth nor light. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln^s struggle for an education, and especially a legal edu- 
 cation, went on into the years of his manhood until at last he had 
 acquired sufficient learning to admit him to the bar, but the unyielding 
 struggle for a livelihood still kept up. 
 
 All the first years of his legal experience were hard and severe, and 
 his lack of a thorough legal education was hard to overcome, but the 
 man did not give up, though he may have lost heart oftentimes. 
 
 There were then, as now, great lawyers, scholarly men, deep and 
 able, and these men Mr. Lincoln came in contact with. They did not 
 dishearten or abash him, but gave him the incentive to strive more and 
 struggle harder for the mastery. 
 
 This he could not fail to accomplish, for industry, energy and per- 
 severance always succeed, and all those qualities he possessed. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln took whatever came to him, and put his best efforts into 
 his work. It was soon discovered by his legal friends or opponents and 
 his clients that his great common sense led him into a just and fair 
 conception of a man's legal rights, and upon this principle all his suits 
 were tried. This truth never w^ent back on him, and thus from year to 
 year his experience ripened and his education went right on. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln^s legal career was remarkable because of the extreme 
 
184 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 disadvantages under which he secured the right to practice law. It Is 
 an example that every boy should profit by, and see in it the possibility 
 of accomplishing any result, no matter how difficult and thorny the path 
 may be that leads up to it. 
 
 A POWERFUL ADVOCATE 
 
 This wonderful man had so won the esteem and admiration of the 
 people of his own town and State that he was alluded to as the first 
 lawyer in the State. Although not regarded by his legal friends and 
 associates as a learned counselor, he was considered a powerful 
 advocate. 
 
 Into all the years of his professional life he carried his principles of 
 fairness, and never resorted to trickery or chicanery. He was shrewd 
 to be sure, but never cunning; he was clever, but never dishonest. He 
 always made it a point not to take a case in which he did not believe 
 that he was on the side of justice. But before deciding in his own mind 
 he employed every possible means to get at the truth, and if he then de- 
 termined to reject the case he charged no fee for the work that had been 
 done, no matter how laborious, nor how much time had been engaged. 
 Upon the other hand, however, a cause once espoused he entered into the 
 legal arena with all the force and vigor of an ancient Spartan. Mr, 
 Lincoln used none of the legal tactics entertained by the ordinary 
 modern lawyer. 
 
 He did not attempt to confuse or badger a witness. His questions 
 were plain and practical, and ever had a direct bearing upon the point 
 at issue, and never otherwise. 
 
 RIGHT WUST PREVAIL 
 
 Then the fairness that he was wont to represent was real and n^ 
 mistake about it. Coming from the people, and having passed all the 
 years of his life among them, he understood all their methods, manners 
 and ideas, and it was this knowledge of their daily life and his sym> 
 pathy in their affairs that made him so successful and popular. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln devoted himself to the real issue of the question to the 
 rights of his clients, irrespective of himself or his distinction; therefore 
 
THE HONEST LAWYER. iS5 
 
 he did nothing to dazzle the juiy or to captivate the audience, the 
 simple eloquence of justice and the divine power of equity were his 
 armaments. So sure was he that right would prevail and that dis- 
 honesty and fraud would be their own executioners, that he merely 
 led the unwary victim quietly and surely along the fatal plank which 
 carried him to his just doom. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's legal fees were regarded by the brethren of the "law 
 craft" as ridiculously small, and more than once he was chided by 
 lawyer associates, who taxed him with robbing the profession of its 
 just dues. To these remarks it is said Mr. Lincoln replied, "The law 
 permits no man to be robbed, and neither does it rob any man." 
 
 ARBITRATION VERSUS CONTESTS 
 
 He was the poor man's friend, the widow's adviser and the orphan's 
 counselor. Their appeals and claims were never rejected. Unselfish 
 attention was only given to their complaints, and such counsel admin- 
 istered as lawyers generally indulge in. Arbitration rather than contest 
 was his motto, and upon this healthful and wise method were hisi 
 decisions based. 
 
 It is the universal testimony of many of his old associates that more 
 cases, by his advice, were settled without trial than were ever carried 
 by Lincoln into the courts, and oftentimes without charge to his clients. 
 
 A biographer of Mr. Lincoln testifies to the use of his time and talent, 
 and the fact that he was a poor man, in the following statement, "That 
 with greater love of money and less sympathy for his fellows, he might 
 have easily acquired a fortune." 
 
 Perhaps it would be rather strong language to say that Mr. Lincoln 
 never tried a case for the money that was in it, but he was known to 
 have conducted many cases without finding any money in them. 
 
 The poor and weak never applied to him in vain. He was ever ready 
 to defend them, and often instead of receiving a fee for his services, paid 
 out money to carry on the case. 
 
 In one instance, if not in more, he did not wait to be called upon, but 
 offered his services without monev and without price. 
 
1S6 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 THE FAMOUS MURDER TRIAL 
 
 The son of a woman who had been kind and helpful to Mr. Lincoln, 
 when a poor young man, had been held to trial for an alleged murder. 
 The scene of the murder was some distance from Springfield, and Mr. 
 Lincoln knew nothing of the merits of the case, but he knew that his 
 old friend was in sore trouble. He wrote immediately to the distressed 
 mother and offered his serrices, and they were thankfully accepted. The 
 excitement attending the circumstance of the murder was so great 
 that Mr. Lincoln felt that justice could not be secured at any price, 
 therefore a postponement of the trial was secured, and then Mr. Lincoln 
 took time to inquire thoroughly into the particulars of the case. He 
 became convinced that the man was innocent, and in his own wav he 
 set to work to clear him of the foul charge. 
 
 A change of trial was obtained and the case came up at the appointed 
 time. To all but Mr. Lincoln it seemed a hopeless affair, and everyone, 
 without a single dissenting voice, declared that the man would be found 
 guilty. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's destruction of the evidence against the prisoner was 
 wonderful, and his plea for the freedom of the accused was powerful. 
 Bo completely overthrown was the damaging evidence and so convinc- 
 ing was the plea of innocence that the jury returned with a verdict of 
 "Not guilty" in less than an hour. 
 
 The thankful mother and grateful son could not express their grati- 
 tude in adequate words. Mr. Lincoln relieved their embarrassment and 
 anxiety by simply saying, "I have now discharged an old debt." 
 
 Abraham Lincoln never forgot a kindness, no matter how small or 
 insignificant. He treasured the deed and ever kept it in grateful re- 
 membrance, hoping and longing for the day when he should be able 
 to not only return the favor but add to it the interest of love and 
 faithfulness. 
 
 VISITS CHIOAGO 
 
 Though Mr. Lincoln's practice was, as heretofore stated, largely a 
 country clientele, yet he now and then came to Chicago for the purpose 
 
THE HONEST LAWYER. 187 
 
 of attending such cases as he might have in the United States District 
 Court 
 
 Unlike most men who, having been brought up in the country, 
 usually seek the ordinary street sights and evening pleasures of city 
 life, Mr. Lincoln rather avoided them and rambled along the quiet 
 shores of the great lake. His various homes had all been located in 
 inland territory, and the vast expanse of water which greeted his vision 
 at Chicago delighted him. 
 
 Spending an evening with a friend who resided on Michigan dvenue, 
 and from whose house an uninterrupted view" of the lake was obtained, 
 Mr. Lincoln remarked to his hostess, "I am sure there can be no more 
 beautiful sight than this before us." 
 
 The moon was at its greatest brilliancy, and not a cloud obscured 
 its splendor. A gentle breeze stirred the bosom of the lake, and the 
 moonbeams played hide and seek with the frolicsome ripples. They 
 lapped the shore in sportive play and their musical monotone fell on 
 listening ears. 
 
 The man so unacquainted with other than plain and undiversified 
 country was deeply affected, and said to his friends, "I hope some day 
 to visit the beautiful and picturesque countries of foreign lands and 
 view their wonderful scenery." Pausing a moment, then rising to his 
 full height, he bent forward and scrutinized the scene. His face was 
 aglow with delight. Turning to the little group of people he said with 
 unusual enthusiasm, "I have always wanted to see the Bay of Naples, 
 but can there be anything more splendid than this magnificent sheet 
 of water?" 
 
 Mr. Lincoln possessed even at this period in his career a number of 
 admirers among the then prominent citizens of Chicago, w^ho recognized 
 the man's sterling worth long before the outside world talked of him, 
 and prophesied his future greatness. 
 
 AN ARRAY OF LEGAL TALENT 
 
 Though Mr. Lincoln was modest in the extreme, so far as his mer itir 
 worth or ability were concerned, yet when his self-esteem was touched 
 
188 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 or his ideas of right and propriety attacked, he wa» as quick to resent 
 such affronts as any other man. 
 
 An important suit, McCormick versus Manney, was pending in Cin- 
 cinnati, and Mr. Lincoln had been engaged by the defense to make a 
 speech, the fee for the same being one thousand dollars and paid in 
 advance. 
 
 The day arrived and Mr. Lincoln set out for Cincinnati, where he 
 arrived in a most deplorable condition. His tall, gaunt figure was en- 
 cased in a long linen duster, soiled with the grime and dust of a long 
 journey and streaked with perspiration. A high hat perched upon his 
 head added to his unusual stature, and he did indeed present a ludicrous 
 picture. 
 
 The verdict was given by the citizens of Cincinnati that the Western 
 lawyer might, perhaps, be something of a speaker, but versed in legal 
 lore — oh, no! never. 
 
 The array of legal talent upon either side was most brilliant: Hon. 
 Eeverdy Johnson, for the McCormicks; and the Hon. Edwin M. Stanton, 
 with several other lawyers equally as great, and Abraham Lincoln, for 
 the defense. 
 
 THE WESTERN LAWYER 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's attire and Western manners attracted even more com- 
 ment in the court room than they had upon the streets, and when he 
 entered the halls of justice and took his seat with the other legal gen- 
 tlemen his droll appearance created considerable amusement. 
 
 Mr. Stanton refused to speak if Mr. Lincoln did, giving for his excuse 
 that he did not care to publicly associate himself with the uncouth 
 Western lawyer. 
 
 Abraham Lincoln was apprised of the statement that Mr. Stanton 
 nad made, and though surprised and offended simply acquiesced. When 
 it came Mr. Lincoln's turn to make the speech which he had prepared, 
 and, without exposing Mr. Stanton, he quietly and dispassionately 
 remarked, "I have nothing to say." 
 
 It was contrary to Mr. Lincoln's sense of right to accept remunera- 
 
EARLY PHOTOGRAPH OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 (By courteyy of H. W. Fay, DeKalb, HI.) 
 
 The above photograph was taken at the time of Lincoln's famous 
 Cooper Institute speech, N. Y. City. 
 
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THE HONEST LAWYER, 189 
 
 tion for unperformed service, and the man's reputation for honesty was 
 so thoroughly established that his friends were not in the least surprised 
 when they learned that he had returned the fee. 
 
 At this time Mr. Lincoln was a poor man, a very poor man, and to 
 many another man, in the same situation, the temptation would have 
 been great indeed, so great that no doubt the money would have been 
 retained, claiming that it was no fault of his that he did not perform 
 the service. 
 
 ABOVE RESENTMENT 
 
 Mr. Lincoln never forgot the slight, but did not allow the matter 
 to interfere with an after conclusion that Mr. Stanton was the proper 
 man to serve in his cabinet as Secretary of War. 
 
 With Mr. Lincoln's modest estimate of his own services and his 
 friendly feeling to all of his clients it is not to be wondered at that 
 he made no money, that he was not able to indulge in luxuries, and 
 oftentimes lacked the modest comforts of daily life. 
 
 But w^hat is wealth compared to his matchless character, to his 
 manly deeds, to his kind and considerate thought^ to his honesty and 
 integrity, to his sympathy and tenderness, to his unflinching purpose 
 and his glorious death? 
 
 The boy is father to the man. His childhood was pregnant with the 
 possibilities of his wonderful future, his youth was prophetic of his 
 manly character, his manhood was the realization of all loveliness, and 
 his translation was the birth of an archangel. 
 
CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 THE FAMOUS EASTERN TRIP 
 
 THE latter part of 1859 and the first months of 1860 Mr. Lincoln 
 had visited various portions of tjie United States and delivered 
 a number of masterful speeches. His fame as a political speaker 
 was growing, and now the Eastern cities were calling him. 
 
 It would be foolish to think that Abraham Lincoln was not flattered 
 with the honor thus conferred upon him ; that he should really be de- 
 sired by the learned and cultured citizens of the older and more 
 advanced section of the United States. 
 
 He was delighted at the prospect of so extended a trip, and also 
 pleased that he had won the right to addresis such audiences as he 
 would meet in the large and wealthy cities of the East. He hoped also 
 that he might have the opportunity of meeting in debate his old antag- 
 onist. Judge Douglas. 
 
 The opportunity came at last through the press of New York, and 
 an invitation was extended to him to speak in Brooklyn at Henry Ward 
 Beecher's church. 
 
 On Saturday, the 25th day of February, 1860, Mr. Lincoln arrived in 
 New York city, and learned that instead of speaking at Mr. Beecher's 
 church, as heretofore announced, it had been arranged to have him give 
 his address at the Cooper Institute in New York city. On learning 
 that he was expected to speak in New York instead of Brooklyn, he 
 went immediately to his hotel and spent the entire day in modifying 
 and changing his manuscript thus making it the most elaborate speech 
 of his life. 
 
 AGITATED POLITICIANS 
 
 On Sunday, Mr. Lincoln attended Mr. Beecher^s church, and after- 
 wards expressed himself as being highly pleased with the sermon and 
 the church service in general. 
 
 190 
 
THE FAMOUS EASTERN TRIP, 191 
 
 When waited upon on Monday by representative members of the 
 Republican Club, under whose auspices he was to appear, he surprised 
 and rather mortified the elegant and prominent citizens of the great 
 Eastern metropolis, for they found him attired in a new, cheap, un- 
 ifaehionable and badly wrinkled suit of black clothes. 
 
 The Western orator seemed to this committee of polished gentlemen 
 an exceedingly curious, homely man, and when Mr. Lincoln, sensing 
 their criticisms, talked freely of his unbecoming and common attire, 
 and furthermore expressed, like a schoolboy, his delight at finding 
 himself in a large city, the gentlemen felt great misgivings and feared 
 the committee had made a grave blunder in inviting a man apparently 
 so uncultured and uncouth to speak before so distinguished an assem- 
 blage as they knew would gather to listen to one who it was reported 
 had so ably combated the little giant in the West. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln had prepared no copies of his speech, and this extreme 
 ignorance of the methods of Eastern speakers, and his remark that he 
 doubted very much whether any of the daily papers of so great a city 
 would care to publish it entire, was fresh cause for alarm, and a number 
 of the members were agitated and fearful of the outcome. 
 
 LINCOLN'S ESTIMATE OF WEALTH 
 
 Being at leisure all that day, he accepted an invitation to ride about 
 the city. Some of the more important streets were passed through, and 
 a number of large establishments visited. Mr. Lincoln was delighted 
 with all that he saw, and expressed his pleasure in plain language, 
 language which did not conceal his ignorance of city affairs, nor cover 
 up the fact that he was a traveler of very small pretensionsu 
 
 At one place he met an old acquaintance from Illinois. Mr. Lincoln 
 addressed him after the manner of Western greeting by inquiring how 
 he had fared since leaving the West. His acquaintance replied: "I 
 have made a hundred thousand dollars since I came to New York, but 
 have lost it all." Then questioning Mr. Lincoln, he said: "How is it 
 with you?" The reply was characteristic of the man, but its sentiment 
 surprised and amazed a wealthy New York banker, who was a member 
 
192 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 of the committee and accompanied Mr. Lincoln on his tour of inspection: 
 "Oh, very well," said Mr. Lincoln; "I have the home at Springfield and 
 about eight thousand dollars in money. If they make me Vice-Presi- 
 dent with Seward, as some say they will, I hope I shall be able to 
 increase it to twenty thousand, and that is as much as any man ought 
 to want." 
 
 In a photographer's studio on Broadway, Mr. Lincoln was introduced 
 to Mr. George Bancroft, the historian. The contrast which he presented 
 to this cultured and polite gentleman was certainly not to his advant- 
 age, but there was an indefinable natural grace and kindness of heart, 
 though rather brusk of manner and untutored in the w^ays of the polite 
 world, that secured the respect and involuntary good will of all who 
 knew or ever met him. 
 
 FEAR OF STAGE FRIGHT 
 
 Mr. Lincoln w^as now becoming oppressed with the unusual scenes 
 about him. The studied politeness of the committee annoyed and fretted 
 him. His own insignificance, which was the verdict of the people as he 
 then supposed, and his anxiety over his important work for the evening, 
 were beginning to tell upon him. Excusing himself, he went to his hotel 
 and gave way to reflection and meditation. 
 
 It was acknowledged by Mr. Lincoln's associates that he afterward 
 told them of his misgivings and almost sheer despair, and in referring 
 to the state of mind he was in at that time he said, "I suppose I was 
 suffering from that unpleasant and disagreeable disease, 'stage 
 fright.' " 
 
 It was a strange fact but it was quite true, that Mr. Lincoln was 
 very apt to be oppressed with a sense of his own insignificance, and 
 equally as true that while he had exalted aspirations and ambitions, 
 and was ready to undertake high and difficult tasks, yet he always 
 bore about with him a sense of his imperfections and experienced a sort 
 of surprise at every success. Indeed, his triumphs became the subjects 
 of his study. They really puzzled him, and in frequent conversations 
 with others he betrayed his desire to find the secrets of his own newer. 
 
THE FAMOUS EASTERN TRIP, 193 
 
 THE SECOND FAMOUS SPEECH 
 
 The evening arrived, and when Mr. Lincoln entered the hall he found 
 the room filled; there had arisen a great and widespread curiosity to 
 see him. That subtle and mysterious means of communication from 
 mind to mind had sounded the tocsin and a multitude had gathered. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln had not entirely recovered from his depression and 
 anxiety, and when he mounted the platform and passed to the front the 
 cynosure of all those elegant men and accomplished women seated 
 thereon he made no visible sign, but his fine intuition and mental alert- 
 ness told him that his unusual height, his gaunt form, his awkward 
 manner and his ordinary clothes were the subjects of much criticism. 
 
 He was somewhat relieved of his embarrassment and annoyance by 
 the graceful manner in which the venerable William Cullen Bryant 
 introduced him. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln began his speech in a low and somewhat monotonous 
 tone, but as his embarrassment wore off and also discovering that his 
 audience were giving him most respectful attention, he warmed up to 
 his subject in his own way, and, as though addressing an open-air audi- 
 ence, his voice took on the familiar tones and rose loud and clear, until 
 every one in the vast gathering caught every word. 
 
 His speech contained words of profoundest wisdom, and as he broke 
 down the statements of falsehood and upset illogical reasoning, the 
 crowd broke into "sudden and hearty" applause, not so boisterous or 
 demonstrative as the applause of his Western audiences, but fully as 
 enthusiastic and genuine. 
 
 THE DYING INJUNCTION FULFILLED 
 
 Here the backwoods orator found one of his most appreciative audi- 
 ences, one which gave abundant testimony that it was listening to a 
 masterly effort. 
 
 In this gathering of cultured and distinguished citizens of New York 
 city "Honest Abe" had struck a responsive note, the chord of harmony 
 vibrated, and set up an answering sweetness of melody that returned 
 to the great soul, in the future years, over and over again. 
 
194 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 Nancy Hanks Lincoln's boy had become a great man. Her dying 
 injunction to the child, "Be kind to your little sister, to your father and 
 grow up a good and great man," had all come true. This was a moment 
 of triumph. Why should not the mother descend from the shining court 
 and bend in loving tenderness and holy benediction over her obedient 
 son? 
 
 Mr. Lincoln had finished his wonderful speech, so wonderful and 
 so full of facts and statements concerning unexplored fields that the 
 gentlemen who prepared his speech for an after campaign document 
 were surprised by the amount of research that it required to be able 
 to make the speech, and the time that it took for the purpose of verifying 
 the statements contained in the address. 
 
 THE FIRST CLUB DINNER 
 
 At the conclusion of the meeting Mr. Lincoln was invited to supper 
 by some of the most distinguished gentlemen in New York. The party 
 adjourned to the Atheneum Club, and among these friends Mr. Lincoln 
 opened his heart and talked like a boy. He had been successful and he 
 knew it. He was full of humor, and entertained the company with 
 peculiar jokes and quaint stories till a late hour, and when Mr. Lincoln 
 parted with his new friends they were as much charmed with his natural 
 and inborn grace of character as they had been instructed by his won- 
 derful speech. 
 
 The city papers were filled with his speech, and favorable comments 
 upon it. The Western rail-splitter was a lion. "Critics read the speech 
 and marveled at its pure and compact English, its felicity of statement 
 and its faultless logic." 
 
 The boy born and reared in a cabin, with almost absolutely no 
 advantages, had become a peer. His days of manual labor, hardships 
 and privations were over, but days of greater suffering and toil were 
 before him. The intellectual giant stood before the world, the gentle 
 and tender man was in their presence, but the great emancipator, the 
 struggling gladiator and the dying martyr appeared in the hazy dis- 
 tance and was fast approaching. 
 
THE FAMOUS EASTERN TRIP, 195 
 
 A VISIT TO THE MISSION SUNDAY SCHOOL 
 
 Mr. Lincoln spent several days in New York city viewing the won- 
 ders, most of his explorations being made alone and unattended, and 
 he was thus free to seek what interested him most. 
 
 In relating afterwards his experience to a personal friend, he re- 
 marked that his visit to the Sunday school at Five Points Mission 
 was exceedingly interesting. Mr. Lincoln's peculiar and unusual 
 appearance always attracted attention wherever he went, and as soon 
 as he entered the Sunday school the teachers and pupils noticed the 
 stranger. His interest in the boys, who had been gathered from the 
 streets, was so noticeable that the superintendent invited him to speak 
 to the children. As usual, his audience was so greatly pleased that 
 when he stopped the boys insisted that he tell more stories. He did not 
 announce his identity until he was leaving the building, and then, in 
 answer to the superintendent's inquiry as to whom the boys were in- 
 debted for the kind and pleasant address, he merely said, "I am 
 Abraham Lincoln of Illinois." 
 
 Invitations were now sent to Mr. Lincoln from all parts of the New 
 England States, and he always spoke to immense audiences. 
 
 A VISIT TO SON ROBERT 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was heard to remark, after his return home, that his trip 
 had been exceedingly pleasant and beneficial, for he had combined 
 pleasure and duty. 
 
 During his engagements in Massachusetts he had taken the oppor- 
 tunity of visiting his son Robert, who was then a student at Harvard, 
 and here Mr. Lincoln had the pleasure of meeting many distinguished 
 professors. In alluding to his son's standing in college, he said, "If 
 reports are true, the boy already knows much more than his father." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln had alvv^ays impressed it upon his friends and acquaint- 
 ances that they should give to their children all the educational advant- 
 ages that were possible, for, as he said, "My own lack of schooling has 
 been a source of mortification to me and the hard labor of older years 
 
196 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 to secure what little education I have, I would not impose upon a 
 dumb brute." Carrying into his home life the same advice that he gave 
 his friends, he bestowed upon his children a thorough educational 
 training. 
 
 No doubt the young readers of this book will be interested to know 
 that the young Harvard student, Robert Lincoln, whom Mr. Lincoln 
 referred to as knowing more than his father, is now a prominent and 
 distinguished attorney in the city of Chicago. 
 
 "A MAN^S A MAN FOR A^ THAT" 
 
 Mr. Lincoln returned to his Western home exceedingly gratified by 
 the kindness and attention that had been extended to him in the East, 
 by the expressions of good will and by the praise and adulation be- 
 stowed upon him. He did not receive all this extraordinary approval 
 and commendation with a spirit of pride and arrogance, but appeared 
 more full of humility than ever, and declared that he was quite unworthy 
 such tribute. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was still a simple-hearted, ingenuous man, and his tri- 
 umphs were an enigma to himself. All this seemed wonderful to Mr. 
 Lincoln, for he really had no anticipation of such extravagant success 
 among the learned and literary men of the Eastern States. He had 
 learned, however, that the people of the United States judge a man by 
 the same unfailing rule, "What he is, and what he can do. Not by the 
 clothes that he wears, nor the wealth that he possesses, nor the blood 
 that flows in his veins." 
 
CHAPTER XXVIIl. 
 
 PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION 
 
 ANOTHER year of a Presidential campaign, with its excitement 
 and election, had been reached, and the people recognized that 
 the issues were tremendous; that the course of action involved 
 serious thought, that the leader must be wise, strong, faithful, brave, 
 heroic and trustworthy. 
 
 The Eastern world advanced its claims as to age and superiority, 
 and presented its strongest and ablest candidates. The people of 
 the Western section rent the air with cries for a "man of the people,'' 
 and presented their claims. Vigor and strength belonged to the new 
 country, and the populace clamored for its honest and faithful candi- 
 date, a son of the soil who possessed courage, firmness and wisdom. 
 
 A KANGAROO PARTY 
 
 This adulation for the "uncouth Westerner" was embarrassing to 
 the political leaders, who felt that it would be suicide to put up such a 
 candidate, and yet were convinced that some kind of political honor 
 would be demanded for this man, Abraham Lincoln. Accordingly, a 
 Cameron and Lincoln club was organized in Chicago and a committee 
 appointed to wait upon Mr. Lincoln and ask him to run on the Repub- 
 lican ticket as Vice-President with the Hon. Simon Cameron, of Penn- 
 sylvania, as the Presidential candidate. 
 
 The chairman of the committee found Mr. Lincoln a vastly different 
 man than he had expected to meet, just the reverse of a coarse, unpol- 
 ished, rude backwoodsman. A quiet, dignified gentleman received him. 
 Mr. Lincoln listened to the gentleman from Chicago with perfect com- 
 posure and unconcern, and to the surprise of the gentleman from the 
 Windy City Mr. Lincoln did not appear to feel honored by the compli- 
 ment that the politician flattered himself he was paying him. 
 
 The committee waited in surprised silence at Mr. Lincoln's delayed 
 reply. The great man meditated, then looking directly into the faces 
 
 197 
 
198 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 of the committee, displayed in his brief reply the shrewdness of the 
 most astute and diplomatic politician by saying: "Gentlemen, wouldn't 
 that be a sort of kangaroo ticket^ with the heiaviest part on the tail 
 end?" The distinguished gentlemen from Chicago quietly withdrew, 
 "sadder but wiser men." 
 
 Shortly after this the movement towards making Mr. Lincoln the 
 Republican candidate for the Presidency took form. Many "wise 
 heads" looked unutterable things, but the enthusiasm and love of the 
 common people created a sentiment that could not be overlooked. 
 
 THE RAILSPLITTER 
 
 The State Republican Convention was held at Decatur, 111,, on the 
 10th of May, 1860, and though Mr. Lincoln was present only as a spec- 
 tator, yet when he entered the hall he was greeted with such enthusi- 
 asm as few men are favored with. He had hardly taken his seat when 
 it was announced "that an old Democrat from Macon desired to make 
 the convention a present." The offer was accepted, and two old rails 
 were borne into the convention, gaily decorated and bearing the inscrip- 
 tion, "Abraham Lincoln, the rail-splitter, candidate for the Presidency 
 in 1860." 
 
 The effect upon the audience was instantaneous, and prolonged 
 cheers made the very roof vibrate. Mr. Lincoln was called upon to ex- 
 plain the matter of the rails. This he did, telling of his first work in 
 Illinois, which was felling trees, splitting them into rails and fencing 
 his father's little farm. Mr. Lincoln said : "I have no doubt but that 
 splitting rails is a commendable and necessary occupation, but still I 
 cannot see how rail-splitting is in any way allied to the duties of the 
 Presidency." 
 
 The West clamored for the national convention, and the East sup- 
 posed that there was no other place on the continent than the territory 
 lying between the Atlantic ocean and the Alleghanies. 
 
 The shuffle was lively and interesting. Were there ever such claims 
 presented? Now one district was considered for its accommodations 
 and conveniences, now the other for its access and freedom, and so the 
 shuttle flew back and forth until, weary of its struggles, it stopped and 
 
PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION, 199 
 
 rested upon the destined place. The inter-ocean city had harbored the 
 toiler; the chosen place of convention passed into history, and Chicago 
 took on a new and more important attire. 
 
 CHICAGO AND THE WIGWAM 
 
 The city, young and ambitious, lay along the western shore of Lake 
 Michigan. It felt its honors and w^as in gala day attire; every house 
 and building was decorated with bunting and flags. The delicious 
 breezes, laden with the aroma of wild flowers, and filled with the 
 strength and energy of freedom and space, came rushing along over the 
 Western prairies and caught the nation's insignia, swirling and whirl- 
 ing and tossing it till the air was a sea of colored harmony. Red, white 
 and blue flaunted their brilliant colors against the somber gray of the 
 buildings, and mingled with the pale green and sapphire tints of the 
 great lake, stretching out against the distant horizon. 
 
 The railroad trains were constantly discharging their loads of 
 human freight and the city was filled with eager spectators. Many were 
 in some way connected with the convention; more had merely come 
 out of curiosity. New delegations were arriving, banners were flying, 
 and bands were playing. The hotels were filled with distinguished men 
 and the streets were full of sightseers. Women and children were out 
 in large numbers, and they made a gay appearance with their bright- 
 colored dresses and gay decorations. 
 
 THE MOMENTOUS OCCASION 
 
 The Republican convention assembled at Chicago on the sixteenth 
 day of June, 1860. Everybody knew that a severe political storm was 
 ahead, and consequently there was an unusual excitement attending the 
 Presidential nomination. An immense crowd had gathered in Chicago, 
 and a huge building called "The Wigwam" had been erected for the 
 sessions of the convention. From the first it became evident that the 
 contest for Presidential honors lay between the Hon. William H. Seward, 
 of New York, and Abraham Lincoln, of Illinois. 
 
 The morning of the seventeenth arrived, and the air was full of 
 greater and more intense excitement than on the preceding day. The 
 
200 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 hotels and private houses were crowded to suffocation, and "The Wig- 
 wam" was taxed to its uttermost. The streets were literally jammed with 
 men and women from the outlying districts, who came in on the early 
 "morning trains and left on the late afternoon trains — men and women 
 who represented humble homes, evidently "hewers of wood, drawers of 
 water and tillers of the soil." These were the populace, and the people's 
 choice was bravely and fearlessly defended by the faithful champions. 
 The chiefs of the Eastern delegations looked on with contempt and 
 derision, and were more than self-confident that a candidate, backed 
 by such a motley crowd, could never secure the vote of the convention. 
 The sights and soundsi of the streets beggar description, so says an eye- 
 witness. 
 
 "ABE LINCOLN IS NOMINATED" 
 
 The proceedings of the convention were carried on under unusual 
 excitement and interest, and when the final ballot was announced and 
 the people realized that their favorite had been chosen, for a moment 
 a deathlike stillness prevailed, then a storm of wild and uncontrollable 
 enthusiasm rent the air. The news was communicated to the guard 
 stationed on the roof, who sang out to the surging crowds in the streets 
 below, "Abe Lincoln is nominated." When the cheering inside the 
 wigwam died away the roar on the outside began again and the enthu- 
 siasm reached such a tumult of excitement that the thundering salute 
 of the cannon was unheard by many in the convention hall. 
 
 The entire city of Chicago was wild with delight, guns were fired 
 and decorated and illuminated rails were carried about the streets. 
 The news spread over the country like wild fire. Brazen tongues and 
 iron throats added their praise to the multitude of human voices that 
 echoed and re-echoed the glad tidings. 
 
 THE TELEGRAM AND WHAT BECAME OF IT 
 
 In the little city of Springfield, two hundred miles away from the 
 scene of the boisterous tumult exhibited in the city of Chicago, Abra- 
 ham Lincoln sat quietly awaiting the news. It was an awful moment 
 
PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION. ,^01 
 
 He would soon be the commanding figure of a great nation, or a cast- 
 off politician, with his hopes and ambitions forever blighted. Sudden- 
 ly, in the midst of a silent and anxious waiting, the telegraph messenger 
 entered and excitedly announced the wonderful news. One of the gen- 
 tlemen present who had been keeping Mr. Lincoln company, jumped 
 upon a table and shouted, "Three cheers for Abraham Lincoln, the next 
 President of the United States." The message was then handed to Mr. 
 Lincoln, who read its contents silently, then aloud. After the excite- 
 ment had in a measure subsided he rose from his sitting posture, pock- 
 eted the telegram, calmly remarked that there was a "little woman 
 living on Eighth street who had some interest in the matter,'' and im- 
 mediately went to his home. 
 
 THE RED-LETTER DAY 
 
 This was a red-letter day for Springfield, the citizens thronged his 
 house and expressed their joy in enthusiastic congratulations. 
 
 On the following day, which was Saturday, the President of the Ke- 
 publican convention, at the head of a committee, visited Springfield to 
 apprise Mr. Lincoln officially of his nomination. His friends in Spring- 
 field had presented him with hampers of wines and liquors in order that 
 he might extend to the committee the usually expected hospitality. 
 This matter troubled Mr. Lincoln sorely, but true to his convictions of 
 right and wrong he returned the gift, and made ready for the reception 
 according to his own ideas of hospitality. If the gentlemen wondered 
 at the total absence of stimulants no one heard any remarks concern- 
 ing this unusual proceeding. 
 
 The chairman of the committee presented to Mr. Lincoln the official 
 announcement of his nomination. Mr. Lincoln's reply to the chair- 
 man of the committee was saturated with a sad gravity. There was 
 no pride in his manner, no exultation in his speech. The pressure of 
 a new and great responsibility weighted his spirits and was clearly 
 noticeable in his reply to the gentleman who had announced his nomina- 
 tion. 
 
202 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 ACCEPTING THE NOIVIINATION 
 
 On the twenty-third day of June Mr. Lincoln penned his letter of 
 formal acceptance and sent it to the committee. 
 
 Abraham Lincoln was now placed before the nation a candidate for 
 the highest honor that it is possible to bestow upon man. 
 
 Born in the humblest of dwellings, of obscure parentage, and living 
 for fully thirty years in an environment of severe and homely conditions, 
 he had raised himself by his own exertion and force of manly charac- 
 ter into national recognition. A popular and unique personage, he com- 
 manded the affectionate solicitude and curious interest of thirty mil- 
 lions of people in his own country and a host of nations throiighout 
 the civilized world. 
 
CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 THE CAMPAIGN 
 
 ANEW and entirely unknown life was now begun, and could not 
 be stayed. Its import and greatness oppressed Mr, Lincoln, not 
 because he feared to stem the criticism of his new associates in 
 regard to his manners and habits; not because he dreaded the cere- 
 monies and fashionable life at the capital ; not because he feared defeat, 
 but because he had measured the length and breadth of the tortuous 
 and dangerous way that lay before him if he should be the people's 
 choice. 
 
 The summer and fall months of this eventful year rolled by. The 
 campaign had no parallel — the enthusiasm of the people was like a 
 great conflagration, like a prairie fire before a tornado ; it was a crusade 
 against oppression., In every city in the Northland wigwams were 
 built, eloquent addresses were delivered by the great men of the land. 
 Every hamlet and every burg had their rousing stump speeches from 
 ambitious and loyal aspirants, wide-awake processions were formed, 
 and men, women, boys and girls turned out and joined the noisy and 
 enthusiastic processions. 
 
 It was universally conceded that Mr. Lincoln would be elected 
 and he was treated as one already having the reins of government in 
 his hands, yet he remained the same kind-hearted and simple-minded 
 man as heretofore; in fact, he was more humble and sympathetic than 
 ever. He extended the same kind and helpful consideration to all and 
 maintained the same friendly intercourse with those who had shared 
 his poverty and obscurity. He took pains to prove to them that no 
 change of circumstances could make him cease to love them or cause 
 him to neglect them. None of his old heartiness or simplicity left him. 
 The old and the new friends who entered his home expecting to find him 
 changed or conscious of the great honor conferred upon him, were sur- 
 prised to find him the same honest, affectionate, true-hearted and gentle- 
 minded man that he had always been. 
 
 203 
 
204 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 TOO MUOH COMPANY 
 
 The Lincolns did not engage help, and Mr. Lincoln answered the 
 bell and accompanied the visitors to the door when they left. As the 
 domestic duties increased, and Mrs. Lincoln could not attend to them 
 all, a relative of Mr. Lincoln's was sent for, and the young woman as- 
 sisted in the household duties. As one family they worked together for 
 several weeks, and until necessity demanded experienced help. 
 
 As has previously been said, the Lincoln establishment was still, 
 as well as at all future times, run upon the same unpretentious and 
 simple methods. Mr. Lincoln continued to personally attend to certain 
 domestic affairs, and Mrs. Lincoln did not hesitate to call him from 
 the parlor and away from distinguished callers whenever she saw fit. 
 
 To the "young relative,'' who had, In response to Uncle Abe's request, 
 come to Springfield to assist in the housework, I am indebted for the 
 following humorous and homely incident: 
 
 Before beginning the recital of the story proper. Cousin Sarah told 
 me that she had visited her distinguished relative a few years previous, 
 and had enjoyed her sojourn exceedingly; but with such honors con- 
 ferred upon Uncle Abe she feared that she might find him changed; 
 therefore accepted the invitation with considerable reluctance. Her 
 fear was unfounded when the same unostentatious relative greeted her. 
 
 It seems that the particular time to which Cousin Sarah referred 
 was an occasion when Mr. Lincoln had invited an unusual number of 
 callers to stay for supper, and the decided increase of guests taxed the 
 household larder beyond its capacity. Mrs. Lincoln called her husband 
 into the kitchen and made the fact known to him. 
 
 Without saying a word, Mr. Lincoln put his hat on and went to the 
 fiftore for an additional supply of food, soon returning with his arms full 
 of parcels. 
 
 His wife undid the packages and was quite displeased with the but- 
 ter, which she declared was frowsy, and again called Mr. Lincoln out 
 into the kitchen and told him to change the butter for something "fit 
 to eat." 
 

 
 
 
 
 
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MRS. ABRAHAM LINCOLN". 
 
 Photograph taken after the death of the President. 
 
THE CAMPAIGN, 205 
 
 DOES THAT SUIT YOU, MARY? 
 
 To quote verbatim, this country relative said: "Uncle Abe did not 
 say a word, but picked up the butter, pla,te and all, and seemed to throw 
 it out the door. Then he put on his hat and went again to the grocer. 
 In a few minutes he came back with some more butter, and after his 
 wife had smelt of it, he said, *How does that suit you, Mary?^ She was 
 satisfied with this lot of butter and told him that it was all right. 
 
 "Cousin Abe then looked at me with a funny smile and kinder whis- 
 pered, ^ Where ignorance is bliss 'tis folly to be wise.' 
 
 "I didn't have a chance then to ask Cousin Abe what that meant, 
 but the next day I said to him, What did you mean when you said that 
 it was foolish to be wise.' He laughed fit to split, and told me that 
 there would be many times in my life *When knowledge of certain 
 things would make me very unhappy.' 
 
 "I never quite knew what it was all about, but somehow I sort of 
 think Uncle Abe fooled his wife." 
 
 A DIVIDED HOUSE CANNOT STAND 
 
 The common, everyday incidents in Mr. Lincoln's home life would 
 fill many a chapter, and the lessons of patience, forbearance and loving 
 thought and deed would benefit the neglectful and complaining man 
 of to-day, A study of his gentle tenderness and forgiving nature would 
 establish harmony and joy in many unhappy households by leading 
 men to an appreciation of home duties and an effort to assist in the 
 character building of their little children. 
 
 The home is not a one-sided establishment, and cannot be so man- 
 aged. As Mr. Lincoln said concerning national affairs, "A house divided 
 against itself cannot stand." The saying is as applicable to the 
 family's home as it is to the nation's home. The training and care of the 
 children are as much a part of the father's duty as the mother's, and so 
 thought Mr. Lincoln. His boys were his companions, his comrades and 
 his friends from their boyhood till his death. 
 
 It is a mistaken idea that the future career of a child, whether good, 
 bad or indifferent, depends altogether upon the mother's training and 
 
206 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 influence. Such an opinion is entirely illogical, and is so proven by the 
 child himself, who demonstrates sooner or later, that he inherits equally 
 with the mother's, the father's characteristics. At an early age the child 
 accepts its father's example and advice, whether good or bad, and not 
 always outspoken, however, but an actual demonstration, which is a 
 more powerful object lesson than ten thousand audible words. 
 
 ABRAHAM LINCOLN LOVED CHILDREN 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's affection for and devotion to the little people was not 
 entirely confined to his own children, but embraced all little ones alike. 
 Children understood his real nature, and a strange baby would yield 
 to his caresses as readily as to those of its own mother, while many chil- 
 dren were heard to say, "Why, Uncle Abe isn't a homely man!" The 
 mother of a little girl who lived in Springfield related to me the follow- 
 ing simple but tender little incident: 
 
 In going to the store, on an errand, the lady's little daughter met 
 Mr. Lincoln. He took the child up in his arms, kissed her curly head, 
 gave her some pennies, and said to her, "Poor little girl." Upon re- 
 turning home little Fanny asked her mother why Mr. Lincoln had 
 called her a poor little girl. Not comprehending Mr. Lincoln's reason, 
 the mother so told the child, who crept into her lap and asked her "Why 
 she had called Mr. Lincoln ugly?" The mother replied, "Because I think 
 he is a very homely man." The child was silent for a moment, then 
 getting down from her mother's lap, said in a very decided voice, "Well, 
 I think Mr. Lincoln is a very handsome man." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln did not allow his new life and its increasing demands 
 to interfere with his children's comfort or pleasure. He kept up the old 
 habits, and his boys were permitted to go about with him as hereto- 
 fore — ^to and from his ofiQce, and in fact, whether in the house or in his 
 office or elsewhere in the town, his children were at his heels. Some- 
 times he was talking and laughing merrily with them; at other times 
 he was striding along while the youngest one was having a hard time 
 to keep pace with him. So intent was he upon his thoughts that often- 
 times the children's questions were unheeded until their imperious 
 
THE CAMPAIGN. 20r 
 
 demands brought him to his senses. Then the heretofore silent and 
 abstracted man would in many pleasant ways make amends for his 
 forgetfulness and inattention. 
 
 SUFFER LITTLE ONES TO COME UNTO ME 
 
 Mr. Lincoln w^as criticised in his town by his older friends for 
 giving so much time and attention to his children. It was also said 
 by some of his fellow-citizens that he possessed a great weakness in 
 not being able to correct his own children, and also in his avowed 
 charity for other children's misdemeanors. 
 
 Some of the severe critics called him childish and dubbed his 
 familiarity with children "schoolboy pranks." How little these people 
 understood the great man's tender and loving nature that so sweetly 
 recognized God's greatest boon to humanity — the children. They are 
 gifts that keep men's hearts green, they are the pledges of God's 
 beneficence, they are the instruments which turn men from sin and 
 despair, and their translation is the means that lead many a bitter 
 and desperate man to the truths of glorified immortality. 
 
 It is not the weak man that loves children and mourns for them, 
 but it is the strong and loving nature that yields to their infantile 
 prattle and delicious caresses. 
 
 When the children were chided for pressing close to the Master^ 
 Jesus rebuked the older folks and said to them, "Suffer the little chil- 
 dren to come unto Me, for of such is the Kingdom of Heaven." 
 
 MRS. LINCOLN AND THE BOYS 
 
 Mrs. Lincoln and the young members of the family entered into the 
 excitement of company and the anticipation of removal to the White 
 House, but Mr. Lincoln did not share their enthusiasm. He knew what 
 was before him. 
 
 From now until the moment of his death, Abraham Lincoln had not 
 a leisure hour. Friends came from far and near to tender congratu- 
 lations upon his nomination and to express their hope of his election. 
 
 The certainty of his election was, from the first, a foregone con- 
 clusion, the conditions that were then existing and the fear of serious 
 
208 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 trouble, made the people of both parties in the North turn to the man 
 whose life had been filled only with deeds of kindness, words of love, 
 and acts of honor and responsibility. 
 
 The universal belief in his election gave him a unique position, and 
 no other Presidential candidate was ever before beset with such "place- 
 seekers or lion-hunters." The sanctuary of the home was invaded at 
 all hours, and the family were becoming weary with the incessant 
 coming and going, and it was fast becoming apparent that extra help 
 must be secured, therefore a colored servant was engaged to wait upon 
 the door. The faithful domestic was a great addition to the family, and 
 relieved Mr. Lincoln from his excessive labor. But the cordial man 
 could not entirely divest himself of the old habits, and still continued 
 to give many of his callers his personal attention. 
 
 The summer passed and the throng of visitors did not diminish. 
 They still poured in from distant parts of the State. 
 
 Among them were many old neighbors and acquaintances of former 
 years. To these poor and humble people Mr. Lincoln gave particular 
 attention, and he did not fail to bring out every incident of his life 
 with which any of them were associated, thus making them doubly 
 happy. 
 
 MORE HONORS 
 
 The interruption of his domestic life and family affairs became in- 
 tolerable, and it was decided by the citizens of Springfield that Mr. 
 Lincoln should hold his receptions and also receive all visitors at the 
 State House. Accordingly the executive chamber was set aside for this 
 purpose. 
 
 Here he met strangers and friends alike, and the procession of daily 
 visitors kept up its incessant appearance until his departure for Wash- 
 ington. From morning until night he was busy, either satisfying the 
 curiosity of strangers, giving friendly greeting to his associates or 
 listening to the claims of office seekers. Mr. Lincoln performed these 
 unpleasant duties with conscientious care and unwearying patience. 
 
 There were a thousand humorous incidents connected with this 
 promiscuous calling, and a recital of them would fill a book. There 
 
THE CAMPAIGN, 209 
 
 were young men coming to see him in order to compare tlieir height 
 with his. There were old women coming who brought up days long 
 past, and trembled lest the great man should forget that he had par- 
 taken of frugal meals in their humble homes; there were young girls 
 wanting his autograph; there were mothers bringing their children 
 to be named by the distinguished man; there were men coming to 
 talk over the various public questions that had now taken on grave con- 
 ditions, and so the days went by, — ^joy, pleasure, humor, pathos, and 
 anxiety intermingled. 
 
 The future was very dark and portentous. Events were beginning 
 to array themselves in a manner that boded trouble, and Mr. Lincoln 
 realized that he was entering upon a path full of danger. With the 
 added cares of his new life, the anxieties that beset him, and the burden 
 of the nation already upon his shoulders, he was often bowed down 
 with deepest despondency. 
 
 WORK TO DO FOR THE WIASTER 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was often known to remark to intimate friends that 
 he believed he was an instrument in the hands of God for the accom- 
 plishment of a great purpose. 
 
 It was a fact beyond dispute that Abraham Lincoln had many 
 enemies, not only in the ranks of the opposing party but enemies in 
 his own party; enemies at a distance and enemies in his State; enemies 
 among the citizens of his own town; enemies among his old associates, 
 and enemies among his supposed friends. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln became so convinced of treachery among the citizens of 
 his own town, that some friends secured for him a canvass of Springfield. 
 •A list of his opponents was thus furnished him, and as he examined 
 it, leaf by leaf, he could not cover up his feelings. He found among 
 them the names of nearly all the ministers of Springfield, and, drawing 
 a Testament from his pocket, he remarked to a friend standing near, 
 who watched his examination of the list with amused interest, "With 
 this book in their hands, in the light of which human bondage cannot 
 live a moment, they are going to vote against me. I do not understand 
 
210 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 it all." Giving way to another burst of indignation, he fell into a mood 
 that but few of his friends ever witnessed. 
 
 In a manner tiresome and tedious to Mr. Lincoln, the months 
 dragged along. In the meantime his political opponents had 
 given up the contest, but at the same time took every means to insult 
 the man. Mr. Lincoln was called the Illinois ape, a clown, and a boor, 
 and all manner of false representations were made against him. But 
 no abuse could provoke him to utter a word in self-vindication. He 
 held his tongue, and calmly awaited the result. Mr. Lincoln was a wise 
 candidate. 
 
 During all this period of anxious waiting, Mr. Lincoln carried a 
 calm exterior, but the trend of affairs gave him intense anxiety, and 
 filled every leisure hour with painful thought. He saw the gathering 
 storm, and felt that upon him it would expend its wildest fury. Yet 
 he had no censure for the men who were vilifying him and leading the 
 nation into dishonor and destruction. He wrapped them in the mantle 
 of charity, and simply called them mistaken men. 
 
CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 JOURNEY TO THE CAPITOL 
 
 THE sixth of November, 1860, arrived and the voice of the people 
 was heard. A tremendously wonderful verdict announced a 
 magnificent triumph for Mr. Lincoln, 
 
 The result of the election was cause for great rejoicing at the North, 
 and the people were fairly mad with the intoxication of success. Fires 
 burned fiercely, bells clanged, flags waved and the voice of rejoicing 
 was heard. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln had now become the most important man on the con- 
 tinent. The entire nation was agape with curiosity as to the man's 
 career at Washington. His enemies predicted that a buffoon could not 
 grace the executive mansion. His friends were anxious that he commit 
 no grave blunders of etiquette, and the nations across the ocean smiled 
 at the idea of a rail-splitter holding the reins of power over 30,000,000 
 people. 
 
 None of this anxiety or derision troubled him. Though he had 
 known nothing of drawing-rooms or social functions in his youth, he 
 did not let this fact alarm him; "though his hands were large, they 
 had never taken bribes;" though his feet were heavy, they had been 
 willing and trusty messengers; though his frame was huge and homely, 
 yet within it beat a heart so loyal and strong and true that it had never 
 wronged a single person. If he could not win admiration for his per- 
 sonal graces, he had won love — and plenty of it — for his personal 
 goodness. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was now the lion of the day, and wherever he went he 
 found a royal welcome awaiting him. Chicago extended a magnificent 
 greeting, parties and receptions everywhere were gwen in his honor. 
 Still he retained his modest demeanor and greeted everyone in the old 
 unaffected and cordial manner. 
 
 211 
 
212 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 PREPARING FOR THE WHITE HOUSE 
 
 The confusion and discomforts attending moving were about him. 
 Mrs. Lincoln and the boys were making constant demands upon his 
 time and pocketbook. Tailors were clothing him and his family 
 in fashionable garments; photographers were taking his pictures; 
 reporters were interviewing him; politicians were selecting his cabinet, 
 and friends in general were giving him copious advice. 
 
 Through it all Mr. Lincoln retained his usual placid manner, and 
 kept his own counsel. These trivial affairs of receptions and dress, of 
 picture-taking and cabinet making were of small moment, for graver 
 things were troubling him. 
 
 During all that anxious period of waiting, from the time of his elec- 
 tion to his departure from his modest home at Springfield, Mr. Lincoln 
 wore a calm exterior, though portentous events were transpiring that 
 gave him the most intense uneasiness and filled every leisure moment 
 with painful apprehension. 
 
 Silently and with sad forebodings he waited in Springfield the 
 opening of the approaching storm. He saw it coming. Business was 
 depressed; the North was affrighted; the South was seething with 
 excitement, and Washington itself was full of treason. 
 
 THE DEPARTURE FROM SPRINGFIELD 
 
 On the eleventh of February, 1861, Mr. Lincoln bade adieu to all that 
 had been most precious to him, and started on his journey to the capitol. 
 
 There is no doubt but that he dreaded to go, for already hints 
 of assassination had reached his ears. His enemies had openly bragged 
 that "Old Abe" should never be inaugurated as President of the United 
 States. He did not fear any of these threats, but an anxious dread 
 disturbed the sweet serenity of his soul, for he knew that oppressive 
 duties awaited him. 
 
 The morning of the eventful day had arrived, and although the 
 weather was exceedingly unpleasant, a cold and drenching rain having 
 set in, yet a large concourse of curious folks gathered at the depot hours 
 before the schedule time for departure. 
 
JOURNEY TO THE CAPITOL. 213 
 
 The President-elect was escorted from his house to the railroad sta- 
 tion bj friends and neighbors and the general public. From the rear 
 platform of the train he bade the large gathering an affectionate fare- 
 well. The following brief description of the final moments preceding 
 the departure of the special train by an eye witness are here recorded: 
 
 "Mr. Lincoln having slowly and with almost a reluctant and halting 
 gait ascended the steps of the car, faced about and gazed oyer the sea 
 of upturned faces. For fully a minute he remained silent before utter- 
 ing a word, then with a manner and voice that betokened extreme 
 sadness and regret, he spoke to the waiting crowd." The exact words 
 were not remembered by the lady who gave me the interview, but 
 nearly coincided with the following printed remarks taken from one 
 of the many histories of Mr. Lincoln's life, and are as follows: 
 
 "'My friends: — No one — not in my position — can realize the sad- 
 ness I feel at this parting. To this people I owe all that I am. Here 
 I have lived for more than a quarter of a century. Here my children 
 were born, and here one of them lies buried. I know not how soon I 
 shall see you again. I go to assume a task more difficult than that 
 which has devolved upon any other man since the days of Washington. 
 He never would have succeeded except for the aid of Divine Provi- 
 dence, upon which he at all times relied. I feel that I cannot succeed 
 without the same Divine blessings which sustained him; and on the 
 same Almighty Being I place my reliance for supi>ort. And I hope you, 
 my friends, will all pray that I may receive that Divine assistance, 
 without which I cannot succeed, but with which success is certain. 
 Again, I bid you an affectionate farewell.' " 
 
 These brief and rather commonplace remarks were tinged with 
 gratitude to, and sweet remembrance for, the people who had stood by 
 the man through all the strange and weary years of his life; with a rec- 
 ognition of great responsibility and impending danger, and with suppli- 
 cation for higher aid and guidance than human wisdom can offer or 
 grant. 
 
 The cars pulled out of the station amid the loud and continued 
 «heers of the people, who fairly kept pace, for some distance, with the 
 
214 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 moving train. The distinguished party consisting of the President, 
 Mrs. Lincoln, the three sons, Robert, Willie and Tad, and a number of 
 prominent citizens, among them Governor Yates of Illinois, Dr. W. M. 
 Wallace, Judge David Davis, Colonel E. E. Ellsworth, and Messrs. John 
 M. Hay and J. G. Nicolay, settled themselves comfortably, each after his 
 own particular fashion. 
 
 The two younger boys, Willie and Tad, were wild with delight, full 
 of boyish pranks and bubbling over with innumerable questions, which 
 the father throughout the entire journey was never too wearied or pre- 
 occupied to answer. Tad was an especial favorite with all. His bright 
 and winning ways relieved the journey of much of its weariness and 
 pressure. 
 
 The route was now mapped out and the special stops designated 
 and the various ceremonies arranged and discussed. Mr. Lincoln was 
 now given full information concerning the elaborate programme which 
 had been so planned, with the understanding that the President should 
 address the people at certain stations through which the special train 
 passed and at all of the larger cities where receptions were to be given 
 and the parades announced. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln felt that the most difficult task of his life was now before 
 him for the entire Northland was hanging upon the words he might 
 speak to them on his journey to the National Capitol. Thousands were 
 waiting to criticise him, while as many more were fearful lest he should 
 say something that might disappoint his friends and supporters, that 
 would please and further antagonize his enemies, or that should inflame 
 the South. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln said to a member of the party: *^I feel unequal to this 
 task, for I have never acquired and never can acquire the faculty of 
 uttering graceful nothings." It was afterwards related that one of 
 the party who accompanied Mr. Lincoln remarked that "the man who 
 won the profound admiration of the gifted and learned at the Cooper 
 Institute, when on the platform of a railroad car or before an august 
 committee of city magnates, was as much at a loss as a school boy would 
 have been." 
 
JOURNEY TO THE CAPITOL. 215 
 
 TRIUMPHAL TRIP TO WASHINGTON 
 
 The ovation that Mr. Lincoln received along the entire route waa 
 extraordinary. Expressions of good will abounded, and the people 
 pledged the President their faithful support 
 
 On, on sped the train bearing the Presidential party, passing slow- 
 ly through the smaller towns and villages, but stopping only at the 
 large cities — Cleveland, Cincinnati, Buffalo, Albany, New York and 
 Philadelphia. 
 
 Indianapolis was the first stopping place, but Mr. Lincoln was 
 called to the platform at several places en route. 
 
 On arriving at Indianapolis the party found the city ready and in 
 order. Business was suspended, flags were floating everywhere, and 
 when, at five o'clock, the train rolled into the station, a salute of 
 thirty-four guns announced the arrival of the distinguished party. The 
 Governor of Indiana gave the address of welcome, and Mr. Lincoln and 
 his friends were escorted through the principal streets by a procession 
 composed of both Houses of the Legislature, the municipal authorities 
 and the firemen. Upon arriving at the principal hotel, Mr. Lincoln 
 addressed the assembled crowd from the balcony. 
 
 On the following day the Presidential party left for Cincinnati. An 
 immense concourse of people gathered at the depot, and as the train 
 moved the crowd cheered lustily. 
 
 The special train passed en route the burial place of General Harri- 
 son, who had occupied the Presidential chair, and here the family of 
 the dead patriot was assembled. Mr. Lincoln bowed his respects to the 
 group and to the memory of his predecessor. 
 
 SPEEOH AT CINOINNATI 
 
 The specially decorated train steamed into Cincinnati on the after- 
 noon of the twelfth. The crowd at the depot was immense, a distant 
 cannon announced the approach of the train, and then there went up 
 from the people such a cheer as only an enthusiastic multitude can give. 
 "Honest Abe^' was in their midst, and the people clamored for a sight 
 
216 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 of him. It was with great difficulty that the police forced a passage 
 through the surging crowd. 
 
 Six white horses drew the carriage in which Mr. Lincoln sat. He 
 was surrounded by a detachment of police, who were constantly busy 
 trying to keep the people from actually climbing into the carriage. As 
 it was, one stout German broke the ranks, and, taking up a little girl 
 in his arms, succeeded in holding her so near to Mr. Lincoln that he 
 was able to take the flower from the little child's hand. The thoughtful 
 man acknowledged the child's pretty act by stooping and kissing her. 
 
 The hotel was reached and Mr. Lincoln appeared upon the balcony 
 and addressed the people. His speech Y\^as received with warm applause. 
 The crowd called for an expression touching his public policy, but Mr. 
 Lincoln begged to be excused from such expression, and said, "I deem 
 it due to myself and the whole country, in the present extraordinary 
 condition of the country and of public opinion, that I should wait and 
 see the last development of public opinion. I shall give my views at 
 the time of my inauguration, and I hope at that time to be false to noth- 
 ing you have been taught to expect of me." 
 
 SPEECH AT COLUMBUS 
 
 The morning of the thirteenth the party started for Columbus, the 
 capital of the State. The scenes of the previous day were repeated all 
 along the route. As the train approached the station, the crowd be- 
 came almost unmanageable, and Mr. Lincoln was obliged to appear in 
 order to appease the people. On alighting and entering a carriage, the 
 scenes at Cincinnati were re-enacted. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was received in the hall of the House of Representatives, 
 and the Governor introduced him to the Legislature. The President 
 of the Senate gave the welcoming address, and Mr. Lincoln's response 
 was exceedingly agreeable. At the conclusion of the formalities, Mr. 
 Lincoln went to the western steps of the capitol to say a word to the 
 people. It is said by an eye-witness that the hand-shaking was really 
 fearful. The man who always made himself master of every circum- 
 stance took in the situation, and with a cordial and enthusiastic man- 
 
JOURNEY TO THE CAPITOL, 317 
 
 ner extended both hands and allowed the crowd to seize them at their 
 
 will. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln at last escaped, and took refuge in the Governor's 
 residence. Although he was greatly fatigued he held a levee at the 
 State House in the evening, where he met the citizens of Columbus in 
 a more quiet way. 
 
 RAIN BROUGHT DISAPPOINTMENT 
 
 On the morning of the fourteenth the Presidential party left Colum- 
 bus for Pittsburg. The train did not arrive in the latter town until 
 quite late in the evening, and a drizzling rain had set in that greatly 
 interfered with the preparations. 
 
 At the hotel Mr. Lincoln addressed the assembled people, but his 
 more formal remarks were deferred until the next morning. 
 
 The rain continued all night, and when morning came had not 
 abated. The unpleasant condition of the weather interfered with the 
 ceremonies, and the programme was considerably curtailed. 
 
 The most noticeable remark of his address here was his advice to the 
 people in regard to the anticipated trouble. He said, "My advice is 
 to keep cool, and if the great American people will only keep their 
 temper on both sides of the line, the trouble will come to an end, and 
 the question which now distracts the country will be settled just as 
 surely as all other difficulties of like character which have originated 
 in this Government have been adjusted." 
 
 RECEPTION AT CLEVELAND 
 
 The next place to be visited was Cleveland, and the party set out 
 for the beautiful city in a hard shower of rain. There were the usual 
 incidents along the road, and at foar o'clock the train arrived at the 
 station, where a large escort waited to conduct Mr. Lincoln to his hotel. 
 Notwithstanding the unpleasant weather, the streets were crowded, 
 and the enthusiasm was as great here as elsewhere. 
 
 Early the next morning the party took leave, but already many had 
 assembled at the depot, and Mr. Lincoln departed from Cleveland amid 
 the cheers of the crowd and the flutter of waving handkerchiefs. 
 
318 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 SPEECH AT BUFFALO 
 
 The next public reception was at Buffalo, where the party arrived 
 late in the afternoon of the sixteenth. On the arrival of the train at 
 the station, Mr. Lincoln was met by a large concourse of citizens, with 
 Ex-President Fillmore at their head. After being conducted to his hotel, 
 the formal welcome was made, and Mr. Lincoln responded with hearty 
 thanks. 
 
 From Buffalo to Albany was a long stretch, but all along the route 
 the train passed through enthusiastic crowds, thankful to catch even a 
 passing glimpse of Uncle Abe. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was now very tired, as were also the members of his 
 family and the accompanying party. This respite from formalities and 
 actual contact with crowds was a genuine relief and all were grateful for 
 this brief but much-needed rest. Even the young boys were tired of 
 the repeated scenes, and remarked that they "didn't see why the people 
 should make such a fuss over their father, for he seemed to be just the 
 same as he ever was." 
 
 SPEECH AT ALBANY 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was met at Albany by a delegation headed by the 
 Governor of the Empire State, and here again he was conducted into 
 the presence of the Legislature, where he had another formal reception. 
 
 In response to the welcoming address, Mr. Lincoln said, among 
 other equally characteristic phrases, "It is true that, while I hold 
 myself, without mock modesty, the humblest of all the individuals who 
 have ever been elected President of the United States, I yet have a 
 more difficult task to perform than any one of them has ever encoun- 
 tered. When the time comes, according to the custom of the Govern- 
 ment, I shall speak, and speak as well as I am able, for the good of the 
 North and of the Souths — for the good of the one and of the other, and of 
 all sections of it. In the meantime, if we have patience, if we main- 
 tain our equanimity, I still have confidence that the Almighty Euler 
 of the universe, through the instrumentality of this great and intelligent 
 
JOURNEY TO THE CAPITOL. 219 
 
 people, can and will bring us through this difficulty, as He has here- 
 tofore brought us through all preceding difficulties of the country." 
 
 GREETINGS AT NEW YORK CITY 
 
 On the nineteenth the party left Albany for New York city, and again 
 Mr. Lincoln was in the great metropolis, — not as before, the mark of 
 criticism, — but now as a chieftain, while the prominent citizens of the 
 proud city paid him homage and tendered him a mighty welcome. 
 
 Places of business were generally closed, and the streets presented 
 such an appearance as only the streets of New York city can present. 
 The Mayor received the Presidential party and made the address of 
 welcome. 
 
 Here, again, this man, a son of poor and humble parents, was the 
 cynosure of a great concourse. His homely figure and awkward gait 
 were overlooked, his ignorance of polite society was ignored, and his 
 poverty and obscure origin were forgotten; only his loving words, his 
 tender deeds and his strong personality were remembered. The nation 
 was looking to this humble and common man for advice, for support 
 and for protection in her hour of coming sorrow. 
 
 Again his angel mother bent over him, and the words of the dying 
 woman were repeated, while no one heard them save the man who was 
 looking towards his long journey that leadeth into pleasant paths. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was beginning to realize that the least said about his 
 policy the better, and therefore he confined himself almost exclusively 
 to the impulse of the moment in his public utterances. 
 
 In his remarks at New York, in response to the address of welcome, 
 Mr. Lincoln overlooked every allusion to his policy and contented him- 
 self with declaring his faithfulness to his country. He said, "In my 
 devotion to the Union, I hope I am behind no man in the nation. In 
 the wisdom with which to conduct the affairs tending to the preser- 
 vation of the Union, I fear that too great confidence may have been 
 reposed in me; but I am sure that I bring a heart devoted to the 
 work." 
 
320 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 END OF TRIUIYIPHAL JOURNEY 
 
 On the twentieth Mr. Lincoln left New York for Philadelphia, step- 
 ping at some of the intermediate places. Upon his arrival at the City 
 of Brotherly Love, he was received with great enthusiasm and many 
 demonstrations of popular regard. 
 
 Here ended the triumphal procession. A private detective at that 
 point furnished Mr. Lincoln and his friends with such irrefutable evi- 
 dence of a premeditated assault upon the incoming President that both 
 Mr. Lincoln and the gentlemen of his party were convinced that a 
 cowardly attack was contemplated. It was believed that violence 
 would be committed upon Mr. Lincoln as the Presidential train passed 
 through Baltimore. After consultation between the detectives and his 
 escort it was arranged to have Mr. Lincoln abandon the special train 
 and proceed to Washington upon the regular express, but not until, 
 however, Mr. Lincoln had met certain obligations that he had assumed 
 for that day. 
 
 To the gentlemen who tried to persuade Mr. Lincoln to cancel the 
 day's programme he said : "I have promised to raise the American flag 
 on Independence Hall on the morning of the 22d of February, Washing- 
 ton's Birthday, and have accepted an invitation to a reception by the 
 Pennsylvania Legislature for the afternoon of the same day. Both of 
 these engagements I will keep," said Mr. Lincoln, "if it costs me my 
 life; for the rest of my journey you may make such arrangements as 
 you think best to insure my safe arrival in Washington.'' 
 
 The ceremonies at Philadelphia were very significant and brought 
 together a great concourse of people. The Western giant stood within 
 the room where the Declaration was framed and signed, and pledged 
 himself anew to its principles. Then in the presence of the great 
 throng he ran up the glorious Stars and Stripes, the nation's symbol of 
 freedom and liberty. Old Glory proudly floated and the people rent the 
 air with prolonged cheers. 
 
 THE SECRET ARRIVAL AT THE CAPITAL 
 
 At the conclusion of the ceremonies at Harrisburg, the cap- 
 
JOURNEY TO THE CAPITOL, mi 
 
 ital of the State, Mr. Lincoln retired to his rooms at the 
 hotel to remain over the night, as the people supposed, and 
 then to leave for Washington on the morning of the next day. A dif- 
 ferent arrangement, however, had been planned, and at six o'clock 
 in the afternoon of the same day he passed unobserved from 
 his hotel to a carriage and was driven rapidly to the railroad station, 
 where a special train was awaiting him. The moment the train left 
 the depot the telegraph wires were cut. Upon the arrival of the party 
 in Philadelphia the regular train was boarded, and Mr. Lincoln and his 
 escort retired to their sleeping berths. Passing directly through Balti- 
 more the distinguished party reached Washington without change of 
 cars, and Mr. Lincoln and his escort arrived at the capitol city unan- 
 nounced at six o'clock the next morning. Mr, Lincoln went directly 
 to the Willard Hotel, and a few minutes later was talking over his 
 adventure with the Hon. Mr. Seward, the future Secretary of State. 
 
 It was indeed a shameful fact that Abraham Lincoln, a man who 
 was destined "to lay anew the cornerstone of the Republic; baptize it 
 with his own blood and then leave it to the nation as a perpetual me- 
 morial," who declared "that the government of the people, by the people 
 and for the people shall not perish from off the earth," should be obliged 
 to enter the capital of the United States like an escaped fugitive from 
 justice. 
 
 The City of Washington was thrown into a flutter of excitement by 
 this unexpected arrival. Mr. Lincoln's foes ridiculed the idea of as- 
 sassination and his friends were angry that he had consented to "sneak" 
 into the city, but the sequel conclusively shows whether the fears of 
 those who advised Mr. Lincoln to take the precaution of secret and un- 
 expected transportation were groundless or not. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln immediately proceeded to make himself at home in 
 the city. He conversed freely with his friends and gave himself up to 
 the pleasures of the occasion. He called at the capitol, and visited both 
 Houses of Congress, and on his way back to the hotel went into several 
 other public buildings. 
 
223 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 RETURNING GOOD FOR EVIL 
 
 On the twenty-seventh the Mayor and the municipal authorities 
 gave him the formal welcome of the city. Mr. Lincoln's reply was 
 brief, but he took this occasion to say to the Mayor and the other 
 gentlemen present, that he should treat them with the same consider- 
 ation that he had always shown his neighbors, and confidently believed 
 that the better they became acquainted the more they would like each 
 other. 
 
 Here was the supposed buffoon, of the Western wilds, assuring the 
 elegant gentlemen that they would be treated with consideration and 
 respect. The very first circumstance in Mr. Lincoln's new life was 
 colored with his natural thoughts. He was not thinking of how other 
 people should treat him, but how he should treat other people. He was 
 always in his own mind a giver and not a receiver. 
 
 On the second evening after his arrival, the Kepublican Association 
 tendered him the courtesy of a serenade, which attracted a large crowd 
 of friends and curious spectators. Mr. Lincoln appeared upon the 
 balcony of the hotel and made a few pleasant remarks. 
 
 The days that preceded the inauguration were rapidly passing away. 
 In the meantime, although General Scott had been busy in making 
 efi&cient military preparation for the occasion, many were fearful lest 
 scenes of violence would be enacted upon that day. 
 
 It was a fearful time Df uncertainty. The leading society of Wash- 
 ington hated Mr. Lincoln and the principles he represented. There was 
 probably not one man in five in the capital city who, in his heart, gave 
 Mr. Lincoln a welcome. 
 
CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 THE INAUGURATION 
 
 THE fourth of March was looked forward to with nervous dread 
 by the entire North. The morning of that day was beautifully 
 clear and bright. The usual ceremonies attending the occasion 
 were observed, and Mr. Lincoln was safe within the capitol building. 
 
 There was a great desire to hear Mr. Lincoln's inaugural address. 
 At an early hour, Pennsylvania avenue was a scene of unusual activity, 
 and throngs of people were bending their steps towards the capitol. 
 
 The incoming President, his escort and the carriages containing the 
 participators in the ceremonies had passed. The grounds about the 
 capitol building were a mass of moving human beings; flags were 
 flying, bands were playing, and the air was full of the hum and stir of 
 excited demonstration. 
 
 Prominent men and fashionable women were seated upon the plat- 
 form; and the immense, surging crowds were standing about waiting 
 to see the new President and his escort of distinguished gentlemen. 
 Among them were many strangers to Mr. Lincoln, some of his friends 
 and a number of his political antagonists. 
 
 TRUE POLITENESS 
 
 One of the most notable and significant details connected with the 
 occasion was the fact that the Hon. Stephen A. Douglas, Mr. Lincoln's 
 old antagonist, stood at his side during the entire reading of his address 
 and politely held the President's hat. 
 
 There was not a very hearty welcome accorded to the new President 
 as he passed out to the front balcony of the capitol to deliver the inaugu- 
 ral address, for his enemies were many and his friends were too wise to 
 exasperate or further antagonize by a too fervent demonstration. 
 
 The inaugural address was given the closest attention by all who 
 could hear, and the patriotic allusions to the Union were as patriotically 
 received, the people in the standing crowds cheering vociferously. 
 
 223 
 
234 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 The address delivered and the oath administered, the august cere- 
 monies of the occasion were concluded. Passing back through the 
 Senate chamber, the President was escorted to the White House, where 
 Mr. Buchanan, the ex-President, took leave of him, and where the people 
 were received by the new President in large numbers. 
 
 One of the callers asked Mr. Lincoln if he was frightened while 
 delivering his address, in consequence of the threats of assassination. 
 His reply was as characteristic of the man as in the old life. He told 
 the curious inquirer that he had experienced greater fear in addressing 
 a dozen western men on the subject of temperance. 
 
 THE NEW HOME 
 
 Abraham Lincoln and his family fitted into the White House as if 
 they had always lived there, or at least as though they belonged there. 
 There was no confusion shown, no argument made and no authority 
 exhibited in the selection of the different apartments. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln chose for his office and informal visits a room whose out- 
 look particularly pleased him. The view from this room was exceed- 
 ingly beautiful, a well-kept lawn had spread its velvet carpet down 
 the gentle slope, while its delightful verdure stretched away in the dis- 
 tance and the eye followed the broad emerald ribbon till it rested upon 
 the then unfinished Washington Monument, with the Smithsonian In- 
 stitute near by. The beautiful scene continued and increased as the 
 historical Potomac revealed itself, with Alexandria in the distance and 
 dear Mount Vernon further on. Just across the Potomac were Arling- 
 ton Heights and Arlington House, the ancestral home of General Robert 
 E. Lee. 
 
 OLD GLORY 
 
 The beautiful hills about on which the President delighted to look 
 were in a short space of time dotted with the encampments that sur- 
 rounded Washington. The green of the forest, the white tented cities, 
 the brilliant colors of the national flag, the purple haze of the distant 
 clouds and the golden splendor of the setting sun was a panorama that 
 
THE INAUGURATION. 225 
 
 constantly claimed his attention and a color picture that never grew 
 tiresome to him. 
 
 Here with this view ever before him the President received his 
 visitors. Here he received every one, from the Chief Justice and Lieu- 
 tenant-General to the private soldier and the humblest citizen. 
 
 Custom had established certain rules of procedure and the order in 
 which officials should be received, but Mr. Lincoln transgressed all 
 former rules and regulations and received the people as they asked for 
 admittance. They came to him as children come to their father. He 
 saw every one and all classes approached him with familiarity, while 
 many no doubt wasted his precious time. Here in this room, day after 
 day, often from early morning till late at night, the President sat, lis- 
 tened, talked and decided. To all he was patient, just, considerate, and 
 
 hopeful. 
 
 A RETURN TO OLD HABITS 
 
 During the first few weeks of his life at the White House Mr. Lin- 
 coln, for the sake of his wife and family, tried to adopt some of the ex- 
 pected conventionalities, but at last gave it up as a bad job and fell 
 back into his old simple ways. His native sweetness and straightfor- 
 wardness of manner served to disarm criticism and impress the visitor 
 that he was before a man, "pure, self-poised, collected and strong in 
 unconscious strength." To the men and women worth knowing he was 
 in mind and heart, the very highest type of soul-development? and by 
 these he was admired and loved for his true worth. 
 
 THE NATION IN PERIL 
 
 The great and masterful work of Mr. Lincoln's life was begun. The 
 humble boy, born and reared in a wretched log cabin, was now the most 
 prominent and important man in the nation, and at a time in the most 
 perilous period of the nation's history. 
 
 His first duty was the formal designation of a cabinet, and when 
 the entire cabinet was completed, no one for a moment doubted that Mr. 
 Lincoln had settled his choice of secretaries before he left home. 
 
 The men brought into his cabinet were prominent candidates for the 
 presidency at Chicago. To the Hon. Wm. H. Seward, the man who had 
 
226 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 kept in the race for Presidential honors, neck and neck, with Abraham 
 Lincoln until the final impetus overthrew him, was assigned the highest 
 position in the cabinet. 
 
 And now came the sifting process. Mr. Lincoln was determined to 
 retain only faithful and efficient men; men whose integrity could be 
 relied upon; men whose country was to them a sacred trust; men whose 
 hearts beat with loyalty and patriotism, for the Government was be- 
 trayed every day by its own agents. The task was an herculean one, for 
 Mr. Lincoln could not take a step that some spy in the departments, or 
 some traitor in his confidence, did not report to his enemies. 
 
 GLOOMY DAYS 
 
 The days were dark and gloomy for Mr. Lincoln. The South was 
 determined to force him to do something that would justify the Confed- 
 eracy in declaring war. The press and his supporters were clamoring 
 for something, too, hardly knowing what, and for the sake of calling 
 their impatient and unjust criticism by some name, they called it Mr. 
 Lincoln's "inactivity." But all through the portentous years of his 
 administration Mr. Lincoln's usual characteristics — judgment, prudence, 
 foresight and honest, thoughtful conviction — carried the nation safely 
 through its awful carnage of war and desolation and restored the Union 
 to a mourning and mistaken people. 
 
 There was neither time nor opportunity for enjoyment of domestic 
 life, for Mr. Lincoln's days, hours and minutes were full of distracting 
 anxiety and desperate worry. There was treason everywhere. His 
 foes, North and South, were busy with their schemes for the destruction 
 of himself, his party and his country. He was thronged with office- 
 seekers, to whose claims he gave his personal attention. He was in 
 almost hourly intercourse with prominent men from every section of 
 the country; he was holding protracted cabinet meetings; he was per- 
 forming the most exhausting labors. 
 
 His only hours of recreation were in the early morning, when seated 
 on the veranda or in the beautiful grounds around the White House, 
 he called his boys about him and entered into all their youthful con- 
 
THE INAUGURATION. 227 
 
 versation with a sympathy that lacked neither interest nor enthusiasm, 
 jjrhen he threw aside business and anxiety, and in his old simple way 
 entertained his boys and friends with genial story and cordial manner. 
 
 SOCIETY AT WASHINGTON 
 
 The society ways of Washington did not embarrass him, in fact he 
 did not allow them to enter into his life. The presence of cultured and 
 elegant callers did not interest him, and the array of servants did not 
 surprise him, but the fine music which soon became a notable feature in 
 Washington thoroughly pleased him. The bands were his especial de- 
 light, and it became his general custom throughout his entire adminis^ 
 tration to personally thank the serenaders. 
 
 A few weeks after the Preeident's arrival in Washington he was the 
 recipient of an exceedingly fine serenade. Upon this particular occa- 
 sion the music was so entirely acceptable that he wished to make a 
 more than ordinary demonstration and in order to show a full apprecia- 
 tion he sought out Mrs. Lincoln and invited her to join him in acknowl- 
 edging the delightful pleasure. Mrs. Lincoln acquiesced and the two 
 appeared together. 
 
 As usual any ludicrous situation struck him bo irresistibly that he 
 was always compelled to entertain it in some way, peculiarly his own, 
 and without explanation or preface he simply said, "The long and the 
 short of it thank you," turned about and went back into the house. 
 
 WHAT TROUBLES YE. ABE? 
 
 The recital of the above very funny incident recalls a story that was 
 told to me by Dennis Hanks, but well-nigh forgotten. 
 
 The year was 1843, the scene Charleston, Illinois, and leaning against 
 the side of the old court-house was Abraham Lincoln; his attitude was 
 dejected, his air melancholy, and his face expressive of trouble and 
 deep thought. 
 
 Dennis Hanks came across his relative, and as usual his curiosity 
 asserted itself. Accosting his cousin with the usual greeting of 
 "Howdy," he continued by saying: "What troubles ye, Abe?" Mr. 
 Hanks had of course noticed my anxiety to learn the remainder of the 
 
228 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 story, and pausing intentionally, he waited for me to ask of him Mr. 
 Lincoln's answer. I promptly did so, and received the following in- 
 formation: 
 
 "Wall," said Uncle Dennis, "Abe jest looked at me with one of his 
 pecoolar expressions and told me that he was ^worrying about his little 
 baby Bob/ 
 
 " ^What's the matter with him?' ses I. Ses Abe, ^Nothing now, but 
 I was wondering what I should do if the child grew up with one leg 
 short and the other leg long. Mary is low and I am tall, you know, and 
 that's the long and short of it.' " 
 
 I could not control myself and laughed so long and immoderately 
 that Mr. Hanks looked at me in perfect contempt, and said, "Wall, 
 'twa'n't no laughing matter to me, I ken tell ye." And "Why not?" 
 said I. 
 
 Mr. Hanks' manner indicated that he considered me the most per- 
 fect ignoramus that he had ever met, and, metaphorically giving me the 
 cold shoulder, replied, "Wall, I recken ye ain't ust to Abe's ways. When 
 he wanted to get rid of a feller he'd think of the blaimdest things to say 
 that ever ye heerd of. I tell ye there wus no mistakin' his meanin'." 
 
 AN ORDINARY CmZEN 
 
 Mr. Lincoln did not change his habits in any way. He was genial 
 and humorous, without being immoderate or clownish; he was grave 
 and dignified, without being solemn or impressive; he was cordial and 
 sympathetic, without being extravagant or obtrusive. 
 
 The days came and went, and yet his high position did not endow 
 him with an air of importance. 
 
 He was interested in other people's affairs. The most trivial thing 
 claimed his thought, and he gave as much attention to the child's com- 
 plaint or delight as he did to the sorrows or joys of older folks. 
 
 He walked about the city and greeted friend, neighbor or stranger 
 with the same familiarity and freedom that he always exhibited in 
 accosting his associates or chance acquaintances in the West. 
 
 Had it not been for his unusual stature and strange personality, he 
 would have passed along the streets of Washington as unnoticed as 
 any ordinary citizen. 
 
M 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIK 
 
 THE BEGINNING OF THE REBELLION 
 
 R. LINCOLN was determined that no hostile act on the part of 
 the Government should commence the war, for which both sides 
 were preparing; although an act of open war had already trans- 
 pired in Charleston harbor, for which the South was responsible. 
 
 On the twelfth of April the surrender of Fort Sumter was de- 
 manded. The city of Charleston was full of troops, and for months 
 batteries had been in course of construction. Major Anderson, who was 
 in command at Fort Sumter, had seen these batteries going up, day 
 after day, without the liberty to fire a gun. He declined to surrender. 
 He was called upon to state when he would evacuate the fort. He 
 replied that on the fifteenth of the month he would do so, unless he 
 received other instructions from the Government. The response which 
 Major Anderson received was, "that the Confederate batteries would 
 open on Fort Sumter in one hour from the date of the message." The 
 date of the message being "April 12, 1861, 3:30 A. M.'' 
 
 "At half-past four the batteries opened upon the fort, which, after 
 a long and terrible bombardment and a gallant defense, was surren- 
 dered the following day." 
 
 This was practically the initial act of the war. Mr. Lincoln, by his de- 
 termined forbearance, had thrown the responsibility of the actual com- 
 mencement of war upon the Confederate Government ^^ever by word 
 or deed or concealed intention," he declared, "had he wronged the South, 
 or denied its right under the Constitution." By no hostile act had he 
 provoked war. From the time he began his career as President of the 
 United States, he had breathed none but pacific words. 
 
 THE FALL OF SUMTER 
 
 On Sunday, the fourteenth of April, all Washington was alive with 
 excitement over the news of the fall of Sumter. Churches were for- 
 saken and the opening of the war was the only topic of conversation. 
 
 229 
 
230 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 "The fall of Sumter was the resurrection of patriotism/' Such a 
 universal burst of patriotic indignation as ran over the North under 
 the influence of this insult to the national flag had never been witnessed. 
 It swept away all party lines as if it had been flame and they had been 
 flax. All disloyalty was silenced. It was worth a lifetime of indiffer- 
 ence or discord to feel and to see a nation thus once more united in 
 thought and purpose. 
 
 DOUGLAS OFFERS ASSISTANCE 
 
 A personal friend of both Mr. Lincoln and Mr. Douglas said toi the 
 latter: "Go to the President and tell him that you will sustain him 
 in all needful measures." 
 
 Mr. Douglas demurred and then replied: "I don't know as he wants 
 my advice or aid." The mutual friend insisted. Mrs. Douglas came 
 into the room and added her affectionate influence. Mr. Douglas could 
 not withstand the influence of his wife, and his better nature gave way 
 to her appeal. He relinquished all his enmity, and declared his will- 
 ingness to go to Mr. Lincoln and offer him his earnest and hearty 
 support 
 
 It was nearly dark when the two gentlemen started for the Presi- 
 dent's house. Mr. Lincoln was alone, and on learning their errand gave 
 them a cordial welcome. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln opened his heart and plans to Mr. Douglas, and read to 
 him the proclamation calling for seventy-five thousand troops. When 
 he had finished Mr. Douglas said: "Mr. President, I cordially concur 
 in every word of that document, except that instead of the call for 
 seventy-five thousand men I would make it two hundred thousand." He 
 then enlarged upon the firm, warlike course which should be pursued, 
 while Mr. Lincoln listened with earnest interest, and the two old political 
 foes parted that night perfectly united in a patriotic purpose. 
 
 Mr. Douglas devoted the remainder of his brief life with unwearied 
 devotion to the calls of his country. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln felt his death as a calamity, for he had been of great 
 service to him, especially in bringing to the support of the Government 
 
THE BEGINNING OF THE REBELLION. 231 
 
 an element which a word from him at a favorable moment would have 
 
 alienated, 
 
 THE CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS 
 
 Now was the time for Mr. Lincoln to act. If he had raised an army 
 earlier that would have been an act of hostility. 
 
 On the fifteenth of April the President issued a proclamation calling 
 upon the loyal States for seventy-five thousand men. "I appeal," said 
 Mr. Lincoln in this proclamation, "to all loyal citizens to favor, facilitate 
 and aid this effort to maintain the honor, the integrity and the existence 
 of our national union, and the perpetuity of popular government, and 
 to redress the wrongs already long enough endured." This proclama- 
 tion was received by the people with great excitement, but it was a 
 healthy excitement 
 
 In glancing back over the history of the great rebellion one reverts 
 to the first proclamation and it is with a sense of grim humor, almost, 
 that one again reads that famous document and actually realizes that, 
 not only the President, but nearly the entire North believed that seventy- 
 five thousand men could quell in a short space of three months the 
 tremendous uprising. 
 
 The fight was not between alien races or nations, but brother against 
 brother; the blood that is aroused to drink its own blood knows no 
 surcease. It cries for more and more until the reservoirs are dry and 
 useless. 
 
 That the new generation may appreciate the document and its in- 
 tent, that the call included sufficient number to suppress the insurrec- 
 tion and cause the laws to be duly executed, a true copy of the original 
 proclamation is herewith reproduced: 
 
 PROCLAMATION 
 
 By the President of the United States. 
 
 Whereas, the laws of the United States have been for some time past 
 and now are opposed, and the execution thereof obstructed, in the States 
 of South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, 
 and Texas, by combinations too powerful to be suppressed by the ordi- 
 
232 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 nary course of judicial proceedings, or by the powers vested in the mar- 
 shals by law; now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the 
 United States, in virtue of the power in me vested by the Constitution 
 and the laws, have thought fit to call forth, and hereby do call forth, the 
 militia of the several states of the Union, to the aggregate number of 
 seventy-five thousand, in order to suppress said combinationSj and to 
 cause the laws to be duly executed. 
 
 The details for this object will be immediately communicated to the 
 State authorities through the War Department. I appeal to all loyal 
 citizens to favor, facilitate and aid this effort to maintain the honor, the 
 integrity and the existence of our National Union, and the perpetuity of 
 popular government, and to redress wrongs already long enough en- 
 dured. I deem it proper to say that the first service assigned to the 
 forces hereby called forth will probably be to repossess the forts, places 
 and property which have been seized from the Union; and in every event 
 the utmost care will be observed, consistently with the objects afore- 
 said, to avoid any devastation, any destruction of, or interference with, 
 property, or any disturbance of peaceful citizens of any part of the coun- 
 try; and I hereby command the persons composing the combinations 
 aforesaid to disperse and retire peaceably to their respective abodes, 
 within twenty days from this date. 
 
 Deeming that the present condition of public affairs presents an 
 extraordinary occasion, I do hereby, in virtue of the power in me vested 
 by the Constitution, convene both houses of Congress. The Senators 
 and Representatives are, therefore, summoned to assemble at their re- 
 spective chambers, at twelve o'clock noon, on Thursday, the fourth day 
 of July next, then and there to consider and determine such measures as, 
 in their wisdom, the public safety and interest may seem to demand. 
 
 In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the seal 
 of the United States to be affixed. 
 
 Done at the City of Washington, this fifteenth day of April, in the 
 year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, and of the 
 independence of the United States the eighty-fifth. 
 
 By the President. Abraham Lincoln. 
 
 William H. Seward, Secretary of State. 
 
THE BEGINNING OF THE REBELLION. 233 
 
 The South knew that war must come, and they were prepared. 
 When, therefore, Mr. Lincoln called for seventy-j6.ve thousand men, they 
 met the proclamation with a howl of derision. 
 
 MASSACHUSETTS FIRST TO RESPOND 
 
 Massachusetts was the first State to respond to the call for troops. 
 The marching effect of the Massachusetts Sixth was very great. The 
 hearts of the people were stirred all along their route by the most 
 powerful emotions. They were fed and applauded at every station. 
 Women thronged around the cars, and presented them with Bibles and 
 other gifts^ and gave them tearful blessings. New York City was 
 greatly impressed when the soldiers marched through the great 
 metropolis. Men forgot their business and gave themselves up to the 
 excitement of the day. They praised the men for their prompt and 
 gallant action and bade them godspeed and a quick return. 
 
 On its way through Baltimore the Sixth Kegiment was attacked by 
 a mob carrying a Confederate flag, and several of its members were 
 killed and wounded. This outrage added new fuel to the fire. The 
 North was growing angry; that a loyal regiment could not pass through 
 a nominally loyal city on its way to protect the national capital without 
 fighting its way, aroused a storm of indignation that swept over the 
 whole 9f loyal America. 
 
 Four days after Mr. Lincoln's call for troops he issued a proclama- 
 tion declaring a blockade of the ports of South Carolina, Georgia, 
 Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas. "This call for 
 troops and the establishment of a blockade were the preliminaries of 
 one of the most remarkable wars that have occurred in the history of 
 the human race — a war which for number of men involved, the amount 
 of territory traversed, of coast line blockaded, of material consumed 
 and results achieved, surpasses all the wars of history." 
 
 THE WAR A REALITY 
 
 No one seemed to doubt that the rebellion might be crushed in a 
 few months at most. The people did not comprehend the detail of a 
 war, and patience was a virtue which it took four years to teach them. 
 
234 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 Every loyal man had a direct interest in the war; and he judged every 
 movement and every delay as if it were his own private enterprise. 
 
 There were many inconveniences and much annoyance in this; but 
 In this universal interest lay the secret of those four years of devotion 
 to the war which so astonished the people of other lands and made 
 victory an ultimate success. 
 
 Two days after the issue of President Lincoln's proclamation Presi- 
 dent Davis replied. In his proclamation he stated it as a fact that the 
 President of the United States had declared his intention of invading 
 the Confederacy, and thereby subverting its independence. The Con- 
 federate President invited all who were willing to aid the Government 
 in resisting such aggression to apply for commissions or letters of 
 reprisal. 
 
 TROOPS RESPONDING TO CALL 
 
 The first troops to reach Washington were six hundred Pennsyl- 
 vanians, who arrived on the nineteenth of April, the anniversary of 
 the battle of Lexington. 
 
 States were seceding, and every day brought its startling events. 
 On the third of May President Lincoln issued another call for soldiers. 
 By this time the Government had gained some idea of the sort of 
 task before it, and the volunteers were required to enlist for three 
 years, or for the war. 
 
 Washington and the country about was full of troops, and the 
 whole country, both North and South, was in a turmoil of excitement. 
 
 A secession flag floated over a building in Alexandria, in sight of 
 the capitol at Washington, and the Confederate forces were massing 
 close to the nation's home. 
 
 THE PRESIDENT'S BRAVERY 
 
 There was considerable suspicion, and with good reason, too, that 
 there were men in the National Capitol who would not hesitate to take 
 the life of the President, and government officials were determined to 
 surround Mr. Lincoln with an armed bodyguard. He had an extreme 
 aversion to anything that savored of imperialism, and positively declin* 
 
THE BEGINNING OF THE REBELLION, 235 
 
 Ing the protection of a personal guard, remarked: '*It would never do 
 for a President to have guards with drawn sabres at his door, as if he 
 fancied he were, or were trying to be, or assuming to be, an emperor/' 
 At last, however, a cavalry guard was placed at the gates of the White 
 House for awhile, and it is stated that he said privately he "was worried 
 until he got rid of if 
 
 Finally intimate friends remonstrated, and to them he expressed 
 himself as follows: "If they kill me, the next man will be just as bad 
 for them; and in a country like this, where our habits are simple, and 
 must be, assassination is always possible, and will come, if they are 
 determined upon it." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln, during his entire administration, resisted all efforts to 
 place about him military guards, and would often ride alone in an 
 open carriage to and from his summer home, near Washington. He 
 was also constantly seen about the streets of the city, even after night- 
 fall, unattended by either servant or associate, 
 
 ELLSWORTH^S DEATH 
 
 On the twenty-fourth of May the gallant and lamented Colonel Ells- 
 worth was sent with his regiment of Zouaves to Alexandria. Colonel 
 Ellsworth, on landing at Alexandria without resistance, went per- 
 sonally to the Marshall House, and mounting to the top, pulled down 
 the secession flag with which the proprietor of the hotel for weeks had 
 been insulting the authorities at Washington. On descending, the 
 owner shot him dead. 
 
 Ellworth's death affected Mr. Lincoln with peculiar sorrow. He 
 had known the young man well. At one time he was a student in Mr. 
 Lincoln's law office, and had accompanied the President to Washington. 
 The body of the young martyr was borne sadly back to Washington, and 
 received into the White House itself, where the funeral took place, Mr. 
 Lincoln himself assuming the position of chief mourner. 
 
 FIRST BATTLE OF THE REBELLION 
 
 On the tenth of June occurred, at Big Bethel, the first battle of con- 
 siderable importance. It was badly managed on the part of the Union 
 
236 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 forces; and, in the excited and expectant state of public mind, produced 
 a degree of discouragement all over the North. 
 
 THE NATION^S BIRTHDAY 
 
 The nation's birthday had again rolled around and wonderful sights 
 were presented. The bells rang out and the cannon thundered, but not 
 in commemoration of that Declaration of Independence which eighty- 
 five years previous had stirred the hearts of our forefathers with wild en- 
 thusiasm, as "high in the belfry the old sexton stands" and under the 
 impetus of his trembling hands the little messenger rang out the glad 
 tidings — freedom, liberty, and equal rights. 
 
 The occasion was akin and the silent ranks of the old Continental 
 troops looked down upon twenty-five thousand boys in blue. Their 
 muskets were flashing, the bands were playing, the national insignia 
 was streaming away down the long line of marching troops; men were 
 hurrahing, women v/ere waving their handkerchiefs and children were 
 clapping their hands. 
 
 Everything was excitement and confidence and exultation; but the 
 President stood with head bared, a silent spectator, profoundly sad. To 
 him this was no gala day. He was anxious and troubled, for his in- 
 tuitive perceptions mirrored broken ranks and sorrowing hearts. 
 
 THE BATTLE OF BULL RUN 
 
 A few days later all the troops in Washington crossed the long 
 bridge and marched straight out toward the enemy. 
 
 The large army on the Virginia side of the Potomac was determined 
 to push forward and engage with the Confederate forces, which had 
 been gathered at Manassas. 
 
 The battle began on the nineteenth day of July, and ended on the 
 twenty-first in a most terrible rout of the Union forces. The whole 
 army, upon which the President and the people had rested such strong 
 hope and expectation, was broken in pieces, and came flying toward 
 Washington, panic-stricken, worn out, disorganized and utterly de- 
 molished. 
 
THE BEGINNING OF THE REBELLION. 237 
 
 The loss of this battle cost the country a fearful amount of sacrifice. 
 The loyal masses were put to such a test of their patriotism as they 
 had never before been subjected to. The work had all to be done 
 again under the most discouraging circumstances. Among all the 
 millions to whom this event brought sorrow there was not one who 
 suffered so keenly as the tender-hearted and patient man, who, walking 
 back and forth between the White House and the War Department^ 
 felt the great burden of it all upon his own shoulders. 
 
 THE PRESIDENT'S PROIVIISES 
 
 A few days after this terrible and awful mistake, when Mr. Lincoln 
 had somewhat recovered from his depression, he made a personal visit 
 to the army in Virginia. It is said by his biographers and many eye- 
 witnesses who are still living that he tried to cover his real feeling by an 
 attempt at pleasant raillery, and to General Sherman, who was at that 
 time connected with the army of the Potomac, he said: "I have heard 
 that you have got over the big scare, and I thought I would come over 
 and see the boys." 
 
 The drums beat the "assembly call" and the different regiments were 
 so arranged that Mr. Lincoln could address them. Upon this occasion, 
 as well as upon all similar ones, he promised the soldiers all that the 
 law would permit him to give them, and urged them to appeal to him 
 personally in case they were wronged. 
 
CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 CONTINUATION OF THE WAR 
 
 THE war had now assumed vast proportions. Young men, old 
 men, men in their youth and vigor, men older but patriotic to the 
 core, had been sacrificed. Love and loyalty were extended as free- 
 ly as the gifts of Heaven, money was expended with a lavish hand, and 
 yet there seemed no surcease. 
 
 The great octopus of war was reaching out and crushing and slaying 
 the flower of the country, and how was it all to end? Nothing had 
 been gained; the path ahead was long and dreary, and the nation 
 sorrowed and waited. 
 
 EXTRA SESSION OF CONGRESS 
 
 The President's proclamation called for an extra session of Congress 
 for July the fourth. The great men composing this body came together 
 and received with profound interest the President's message. 
 
 The opening portions of the document were strictly historical of the 
 events of the rebellion up to the date of its beginning. Then the princi- 
 ples that govern the rights and privileges of the people were set forth, 
 and their duties outlined. The question was presented whether a govern- 
 ment of the people by the same people could maintain its territorial 
 integrity against its own domestic foe. It also put the question whether 
 discontented individuals can, upon the pretenses made in the case, or 
 any other pretense, or arbitrarily, break up their government and thus 
 practically put an end to free government upon the earth. 
 
 It recommended Congress to make the contest a short and decisive 
 one, by placing at the control of the Government four hundred thousand 
 men and four hundred million dollars. 
 
 The document had the old metallic ring of the western orator, and 
 Congress was ready to do all that the President desired, and even more. 
 Instead of four hundred million dollars, they placed at his disposal 
 five hundred millions, and instead of confining his levy of troops to 
 
 238 
 
CONTINUATION OF THE WAR. 239 
 
 four hundred thousand, they gave him liberty to call out half a million. 
 They also legalized all steps that he had so far taken for the suppres- 
 sion of the rebellion, and labored in all ways to strengthen his hands 
 and encourage his heart. 
 
 The session closed, having lasted a month, and the President found 
 himself abundantly supported and the means in his hands for carrying 
 on the great contest, 
 
 EFFECT OF LINCOLN'S MESSAGE 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's message accomplished what he had intended it should, 
 although it was criticised by the public printer as not being a campaign 
 document or stump speech, but an important state paper that would 
 become an historic record for all coming time. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's days were too busy, and his thoughts so entirely 
 directed to the pressing needs of the hour, that he had no time to 
 prepare his speeches or writings with the same care that he had pre- 
 viously given to them. When a duty was upon him and a principle 
 needed elucidating, or a burden called for removal, or a sorrow pleaded 
 for sympathy, or a wrong sought justice, then this man was at the head 
 of his cohorts and the first battalion was used; he did not go searching 
 among the gold lace and feather-decorated officers for his support; the 
 rank and file were good enough for him. These he seized upon and 
 pressed into service. They did not respond with laggardly action, 
 but freely and speedily they came to the rescue. He had no desire to 
 look up elegant diction; he had no use for high sounding words, and 
 he had no time to make a choice and symmetrical arrangement of his 
 sentences. 
 
 The need of the awful hour was upon him, and he must command 
 the necessary forces ; he must secure them in the shortest possible time, 
 and he intended to use only the handiest and the most useful tools. 
 
 The phrase to which the public printer called Mr. Lincoln's attention 
 consisted of the two following words, "sugar-coated," and when the 
 man of typography suggested that they were not entirely becoming or 
 dignified for the President's use, Mr. Lincoln good-naturedly replied 
 
240 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 to his no doubt kind but foolishly punctilious friend, "If you think the 
 time will ever come when the people will not understand what sugar- 
 coated means, I will alter it; otherwise, I think I'll let it go." To make 
 people understand exactly what he meant was his grand and only aim. 
 Beyond that, he had not the slightest ambition to go. 
 
 Congress had taken the most vigorous and effective measures for the 
 suppression of the rebellion, having clothed the President with even 
 greater power than he had asked for in the prosecution of the war, and 
 avoided with just fidelity all points which could weaken the loyal senti- 
 ment of the country. The people responded with hearty applause to 
 the patriotic action of their representatives, and the universal temper 
 of the country was one of buoyancy and hope. 
 
 ANXIOUS DAYS 
 
 Anxious days were now again upon the people. Sanguine expecta- 
 tions of prompt and decisive victory had been universally entertained, 
 and the general belief of the country was that the war would be of 
 short duration. But recent reverses had demonstrated the fact that 
 the enemy was well equipped, and its forces were a host of bold and 
 determined soldiers. While the Union army was composed of equally 
 as good men, whose hearts were filled with loyalty and patriotism, yet 
 they knew that they had no common foe to deal with. Neither army 
 had any idea of submission, and thus there was the prospect of a long 
 and bloody war. 
 
 There were a number of engagements of greater or less importance, 
 and the nation was in mourning, for thousands of brave men had given 
 up their lives in desperate struggle, striving to maintain the honor of 
 their country and restore the Union. Three times the number of the 
 dead had been wounded, maimed and crippled for life, and many had 
 been taken prisoners. 
 
 Winthrop, Ellsworth, Baker, C3ameron, Slocum, Ballon, Haggerty- 
 Lyon and Johnson, brave men they, had responded to the last reveille 
 and had gone on to bivouac beside the still waters in pastures green 
 and fair. The ranks did not close up, for the vacant places were quickly 
 filled with other brave men who feared neither danger nor death. 
 
CONTINUATION OF THE WAR. 241 
 
 The hundreds of thousands of troops were pressing forward, and 
 yet the dogs of war would not let go their hold. Mr. Lincoln, who had 
 a long time before so plainly and prophetically seen and declared the 
 present condition of the country, suffered in silence. Suffered because 
 of the terrible destruction of human life; suffered because mothers 
 were agonized; suffered because wives wept; suffered because children 
 were fatherless; suffered because contumely, criticism and censure were 
 heaped upon him. 
 
 THE DEAD AND DYING 
 
 He heard the voice of wailing in the land, but he too was agonized 
 and unreconciled and had no words of comfort for the bleeding hearts ; 
 he heard the unjust words of condemnation, but would not retaliate. 
 He had an abiding faith in the well-doing of all things, that the blood 
 of the martyrs would enrich the hearts of the afflicted and in the days 
 to come the memory of the brave and departed dead would stimulate 
 the people to a renewed and an everlasting love for freedom and liberty; 
 that the intent of his thoughts and the cause of his acts were pure, 
 unselfish and wise; that vindication would come; that the Union 
 would be restored. 
 
 Congress met in regular session on the second day of December, 
 1861. On the next day the President sent in his annual message, which 
 was a statement of the condition of the country and the progress of the 
 war; an exact and detailed account of the expenditures of the year, 
 which of course were enormous; of the interference of foreign nations; 
 of the rights of labor, of the rights of capital, and of the preservation 
 of the nation. 
 
 THE WHITE HOUSE RECEPTION 
 
 The reception given at the White House on New Year's Day, 1862, 
 was a brilliant and memorable affair — not because it was conducted 
 with pomp and ceremony, but because it was attended by dis- 
 tinguished army officers, whose gorgeous uniforms lent unusual bril- 
 liancy to the scene; not only because beautiful and accomplished women 
 
242 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 were present in gay and rich attire; not because famed savants were in 
 attendance; but because everybody was there, the rich and the poor, the 
 millionaire and the pauper, the young and the old. In fact the popu- 
 lace mingled and touched the elbow of the exclusive; the plebeian and 
 the patrician, the priest and the peasant, pushed and jostled each other. 
 It was a motley and never-to-be forgotten throng; some had come for the 
 purpose of curiosity, others to sneer and scoff; but more to touch the 
 hand of the good man and to receive a personal greeting, if but a 
 single word. 
 
 This usual custom of the New Year did not conceal the fact that an 
 awful struggle was going on, did not for a moment palliate the sorrow, 
 the agony and death that had come to thousands upon thousands there* 
 from ; did not conceal the stern facts, nor lessen the President's anxiety 
 and apprehension. It was given merely in accordance with the cere- 
 monial custom of previous years and because the people demanded it. 
 
 IT WAS SLAUGHTER 
 
 The new year 1862 came, but not with the rejoicing of previous years. 
 The land was filled with blood and tears, and the people could not see 
 ahead for the rivers of mist, for the mountains of sorrow and for the 
 doubt of expectancy. 
 
 Still the battle raged and the opposing forces attacked each other 
 with greater violence and stronger determination. It was not fighting, 
 it was slaughter. Slaughter on land and on sea. The country both 
 north and south were sending their brave men and good citizens, and 
 both were struggling with the desperation of a dying man, one fighting 
 for the restoration of the Union and the other fighting for a cause that 
 its people had been led to believe was just and righteous. 
 
 The North was meeting with reverses and the South was confident. 
 
 The horrors of the situation were increasing daily. The dead and 
 the dying were everywhere, and to the country the hurt was well nigh 
 mortal. 
 
 ' LINCOLN'S PERSONAL GRIEF 
 
 In February, 1862, Abraham Lincoln was engulfed in a personal 
 
CONTINUATION OF THE WAR, 243 
 
 grief in the loss of his beautiful son, Willie. Striving to overcome this 
 personal heart sorrow, all his own, but being unable to reconcile him- 
 self to his precious child's death he cried out in agony, "I need the 
 sympathy and prayers of my people in this, the hardest trial of my 
 life." He did not plead in vain, for devout supplication ascended to 
 the Throne of Grace, and the nation sorrowed. 
 
 The nation needed his every moment, and he could take no time to 
 indulge in the luxury of grief. His lesser and more personal grief must 
 give way to the larger and more agonizing sorrow. His son had been 
 carefully nursed through his hours of sickness and pain by a loving 
 mother and a tender father, but the brave and faithful boys of other 
 fathers and mothers had lain upon the battlefield uncared for, with the 
 life-blood ebbing away. Cold, wet, hungry, wounded, dying, lips parched 
 with thirst, heads throbbing with pain, their hearts had cried out for 
 succor and comfort, while strong men with the dew of death upon their 
 brows had wept for a sight of the old home, a touch of the tender hand 
 and a sound of the dear voice ere they left the earthly scenes. Lads 
 with the death rattle in their throats were wailing and sobbing in their 
 agony for the tender care and gentle, loving words of the dear mothers 
 at home, who were watching and praying for their boys' safe return. 
 
 All this agony and sorrow cost the President so much, his faith was 
 nearly exhausted, his heart was almost broken, and his head was 
 throbbing with the intensity of thought. 
 
 RIGHT MUST CONQUER 
 
 Mr. Lincoln had now another great question to grapple with. It 
 had been an ever-present one during all the operations of the year. The 
 question of slavery arose, and on March 6, 1862, the President sent to 
 Congress a message which indicated very clearly the tendency of the 
 President's reflections upon the general relations of slavery to the 
 rebellion. 
 
 The President had upon many occasions tried to convince the people 
 of the Southern States that if they persisted in their efforts to over- 
 throw the Government of the United States, the fate of slavery would 
 
2U THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 sooner or later inevitably be involved in the conflict. The time was 
 steadily approaching when, in consequence of their persistence in the 
 rebellion, this result would follow, and Mr. Lincoln tried in every way 
 to make them understand what it would mean when this question was 
 settled. 
 
 The people in general were in harmony with Mr. Lincoln's views upon 
 the question of slavery, and with him exhausted every means which 
 justice would sanction to withdraw the people of the Southern States 
 from the disastrous war which they were now engaged in. 
 
 Though the more radical and hot-headed men insisted upon imme- 
 diate action, Mr. Lincoln did not believe the time was ripe for an 
 emancipation proclamation and resisted the demand of the agitators, 
 going so far as to say that if the time had come for the liberation of 
 the slaves by proclamation, "the act of Congress to the contrary would 
 not stand in my way." 
 
 The people were denouncing Mr. Lincoln for his lack of backbone, 
 but that did not concern him, for he was determined to take no steps 
 which he should be obliged to retrace, or a step that would in any way 
 interfere with the Constitution of the United States. What he did or 
 did not do was because he had the welfare of the nation at heart, and 
 in one of his public documents he said, "What I do, I do because I 
 believe it helps to save this Union; and what I forbear, I forbear 
 because I do not believe it would help to save the Union.'' 
 
 GOD ISENT DEAD 
 
 Among those who pressed Mr. Lincoln to a sudden and final issue 
 of the slavery question was Frederick Douglass, the distinguished and 
 brilliant colored orator. 
 
 Mr. Douglass had called upon the President and had been admitted. 
 The interview between the representative of the colored people and the 
 Chief Magistrate of the United States had not exactly suited the man 
 who had gone to Mr. Lincoln for the purpose of urging him to strike a 
 quick and decisive blow; to break the shackles of an oppressed race 
 and to liberate an enslaved people. 
 
■"4 
 
 
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 €^'^ 
 
 ABRAHAM LINCOLN'S IDEA OF DEMOCRACY. 
 
 A facsimile of the original written in his early Political Career. 
 This document was presented to an intimate friend of the author by Mrs. 
 Abraham Lincoln. 
 
 BUST OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 This bust was made from life by Leonard Volk, the well-known sculptor of 
 Chicago. The bust is now among the collection of relics belong- 
 ing to the Lincoln Log Cabin Association. 
 
STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS. 
 
 Lincoln's greatest political opponent. 
 
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 NATIONAL LINCOLN MONUMENT. 
 
 (By courtesy of H. W. Fay, Historical rortrait Collector, DeKalb, 111 ) 
 
 This Statue, which was unveiled Oct. 15, 1874, at Springfield, 111,, rep 
 resents Lincoln as holding with his left hand the Eman- 
 cipation Proclamation and in his right hand the 
 pen with which it had just been written. 
 
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CONTINUATION OF THE WAR. 245 
 
 He had left the Executive Mansion and was just emerging from 
 the grounds when he met Sojourner Truth, the black prophetess. The 
 unusually tall and gaunt figure of the giant Ethiopian towered above 
 the stalwart form of Frederick Douglass, and their greeting over, Doug- 
 lass said to Sojourner, "Mr. Lincoln is not inclined to heed the cries 
 of the children in bondage." The uneducated black woman looked at 
 her talented colored brother and quietly remarked, "Why, Frederick, 
 honey! God isent dead." 
 
 SOJOURNER TRUTH AND THE PRESIDENT 
 
 A short pause, and then the aged negress passed on and entered 
 the President's house. Telling the custodian that she wished to speak 
 to "Uncle Abe," she seated herself and prepared to wait her turn. 
 
 The usher recognized that she was no ordinary colored woman, and 
 so told the President, who said, "Send her in; these everyday fellows," 
 meaning the constant stream of office-seekers that persistently sought 
 him, "can wait." 
 
 The dignified and uncommon appearing black woman entered and 
 approached the President. He recognized her rare character and 
 saluted her with an air that conveyed the truth of the fact that he was 
 meeting a superior woman. 
 
 In response to his graceful salutation. Sojourner Truth said, "May 
 God bless you, Abraham Lincoln, and help you to do His holy will." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was so impressed with this extraordinary black woman 
 that he continued their conversation for some time. 
 
 As she was departing he took from her hands a small Testament, 
 which she was carrying, and wrote his name in it. This graceful and 
 unasked courtesy was greatly appreciated by Sojourner Truth, who 
 always exhibited to her many callers the President's signature, each 
 time repeating the story of her interview with Mr. Lincoln, as she did 
 to me when I saw her in 1880. She was then one hundred and six 
 years old. 
 
 THE DELEGATION OF MINISTERS 
 
 The pressure concerning the slavery question was getting to be 
 
246 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 almost unbearable, but Mr. Lincoln was holding on to his convictions, 
 and was more determined than ever to do nothing that could precipitate 
 further trouble or bring about more disastrous results. 
 
 The clamor and insistence became tedious and obnoxious, dele- 
 gates from different parts of the country called upon him. Bodies of 
 august men came to urge him to do that which his judgment told him 
 was not best. A delegation of ministers called upon and almost de- 
 manded that he should act according to their dictates. After listening 
 to their complaints and commands, he told them that he was extremely 
 honored by a call from this delegation representing Almighty God, and 
 he wished them well, but he would have to decline their advice. 
 
 And so the pressure was put upon the heart-sore man, who was 
 more anxious than any other. In the meantime he warned the Southern 
 leaders, he besought them, and advised them to get out of the way of an 
 event that was sure to come. Personally and through his generals he 
 assured the people of the South that he meant them no ill. No father 
 ever dealt more considerately and carefully with erring children than 
 he did with those who were determined to break up the Government. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln had tried faithfully, in accordance with his oath of 
 office and his repeated professions, to save the Union without disturb- 
 ing a single institution which lived under it. 
 
 Emancipation was a measure of ineffable moment It was a measure 
 which upon his knees he had presented to his Maker. 
 
 It was in mid-summer, 1862, without consulting his cabinet, or giving 
 them any knowledge of what he was doing, he prepared the original 
 draft of the Proclamation. 
 
 THE PROCLAMATION OF EMANCIPATION 
 
 The Proclamation was written, and it was quite a month — the first 
 part of August — before he called a cabinet meeting. None of the 
 members knew the occasion of the meeting, and for some time they 
 were unable to ascertain, for there was a delay. 
 
 Here was an august body of men, and Mr. Lincoln had before him 
 a document which he knew was to perpetuate his name to all futurity; 
 a document which changed the policy of the Government and the course 
 
'CONTINUATION OF THE WAR. 247 
 
 and character of the war — which revolutionized the social institutions 
 of more than a third of the nation, and which involved Mr. Lincoln's 
 recognition of the will of the Divine Kuler of the universe. 
 
 It is reported by Mr. Lincoln's biographers that instead of making 
 known at once the cause of calling his cabinet together, Mr. Lincoln 
 took from a shelf a volume entitled "Artemus Ward — His Book," and, 
 reading an entire chapter of the humorous pages, gave himself up to 
 hearty laughter, until some of the dignified personages were far more 
 pained than amused. 
 
 This was Mr. Lincoln's way of getting up steam ; getting ready for 
 the occasion — and this was a momentous occasion. 
 
 A writer of Mr. Lincoln's life says, "On closing the trifling volume, 
 the whole tone and manner of the President changed; and, rising to a 
 grandeur of demeanor, he announced to them the object of the meeting. 
 He had written a proclamation of emancipation, and had determined 
 to issue it." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln had not called his cabinet together to ask their advice 
 on the general question, because he had settled that himself. He merely 
 wished "to inform them of his purpose and to counsel with them upon 
 minor points." 
 
 The document was received with very little criticism, and was 
 heartily endorsed, but, upon the suggestion of Mr. Seward, Secretary 
 of State, the date of this measure was postponed until a somewhat 
 later date than Mr. Lincoln had anticipated? 
 
 On the twentieth of September, Mr. Lincoln held another cabinet 
 meeting, at which he declared that the time for the enunciation of his 
 policy could no longer be delayed, and on Monday, September 22, the 
 proclamation was issued. Though the real issue of slavery involved 
 in the emancipation proclamation was voiced by Abraham Lincoln on 
 this September day, 1862, yet from this sweeping measure he had left 
 an opportunity of escape. 
 
 It was only a preliminary proclamation, for it declared free only 
 the slaves of such states as should be in rebellion on the 1st of Janu- 
 ary, 1863. 
 
 It was Mr. Lincoln's idea only to save the Union, and in this prelim- 
 
us THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 inary manifesto he hoped that the southern states would become lojal 
 in the endeavor to save their pet institution. 
 
 The mistaken people of the South were not inclined to profit by the 
 warning, and on the 1st of January, 1863, the final proclamation of 
 emancipation was issued, and the great act was complete. 
 
 THE NORTH AND SOUTH 
 
 Both sides were feeling the exhaustion of war, for the large armies 
 that had been put into the field were being rapidly decimated by death 
 and disease, and the people at home were speechless with agony and 
 despair. 
 
 Brave men and gallant officers were cut down by the sword, the 
 bayonet and the cannon, while others equally brave and with willing 
 hearts, though sure of certain death, stepped into the gap and faced 
 the enemv. 
 
 McCulloch, Mcintosh, Gladden, Ashley, Griffith, Williams, Bohlen, 
 Taylor, Kearney, Stearns, Reno, Mansfield, Hackleman, Jackson, 
 Terrill, Bayard and Sill, with their hosts of faithful followers, had 
 passed on into pleasant paths and joined the silent and peaceful army 
 of which their former comrades were now sanctified volunteers. 
 
 With all this weight of sorrow upon him, the President was well 
 nigh distracted. He could see no immediate release; there was no way 
 of retreating; the war must go on; the Union must be restored. 
 
 The President received the anathemas of those who disbelieved that 
 his methods were wise; 0f those who were urging him to acts that were 
 unwise; of those whose dear ones were dead, dying and wounded, and 
 thus they heaped upon him censure, vilification, and reproach. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln had now no hours of leisure. His work and his anxiety 
 were pressing, crowding and racking the man. 
 
 Consultations with the wise men of his cabinet were held daily, 
 plans were formulated, new methods were tried, armies were increased, 
 better and wiser service was demanded, personal inspection of the army 
 was made, and the best and truest thought of the now wearied and 
 troubled man was given to all conditions of complaint, and yet the 
 aspect was not very materially changed. 
 
M 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 THE PRESIDENTS KINDNESS 
 
 R. LINCOLN'S habits at the White house were as simple as they 
 were in his old Illinois kome. He never alluded to himself as the 
 President or as occupying the Presidency, and he requested his 
 associates to call him simply "Lincoln." "Mr. President," he said, "has 
 become very tiresome to me." He would walk the streets, even at night, 
 unprotected, talk with the newsboys, and in his old way enjoy his West- 
 ern friends, and when with them always fell into his old habits of homely 
 talk. The great burdens that he was bearing, the terrible anxieties 
 and perplexities that were overwhelming him, seemed to vanish at these 
 times and the peaceful scenes of his Western home would sweep across 
 his memory, bringing back all his childlike tenderness, and then he 
 would tell them of his longing to return to the old life and old labor. 
 To an old associate who once said to him, "When this cruel war is over, 
 the Union restored and yourself vindicated, you will be glad as long as 
 you live," it is reported that the President bowed his head, and, with a 
 look of unutterable sadness, exclaimed, "I shall never be glad any 
 more." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln had been so accessible and so generally a father of his 
 people that they came to him with their troubles. Every man seemed 
 to think that Mr. Lincoln could settle his difficulty, or provide for his 
 little wants, whatever they might be. It was the story of his younger 
 life re-enacted. He had always been a reconciler of difficulties between 
 men; and, while in the Presidential chair, he remarked, "that it seemed 
 to him as if he was regarded as a police justice, before whom all the 
 petty troubles of men were brought for adjustment," 
 
 A TRIVIAL REQUEST 
 
 Some of the matters that were brought to him for consideration were 
 so trivial, when compared with the momentous a:ffairs that he handled, 
 that they seem really ludicrous; for instance, an old woman applied 
 
 249 
 
250 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 to him to have a sum of money reserved from the wages of a clerk 
 in one of the departments, that he might pay her his bill for board. To 
 this class of complaints he always had a funny story to relate, and if 
 he did not settle their affairs for them he certainly could send them) 
 away feeling happy. 
 
 Though Mr. Lincoln continued to tell stories, they were always told 
 for a purpose. The natural trait and the fixed habit could not be eradi- 
 cated. When he was in the deepest trouble and anxiety; when he had 
 been subjected to humiliation, he found relief in this peculiar practice. 
 He could tell a quaint or humorous story in one breath, and in the next 
 melt into tender and sympathetic words for the distressed, 
 
 INTERVIEWS WITH THE PUBLIC 
 
 The thousand and one incidents that transpired at the White House 
 during the years of Mr. Lincoln's administrations would fill books and 
 books simply devoted to this subject. 
 
 The President's meetings with distinguished diplomats; his intro- 
 ductions to aristocratic and accomplished men and women; his inter- 
 views with men of learning — poets, scientists, authors, clergymen, 
 physicians and great generals have been the topics of hundreds of 
 magazine and newspaper articles; they have been the groundwork of 
 nearly all the histories and biographies of Mr. Lincoln and his adminis- 
 tration. 
 
 Foreign journals made vile and senseless caricatures of Mr. Lin- 
 coln's long, thin face, and its anxious and oftentimes pained and 
 wearied expressions, and to these disgusting pictures add further insult 
 to injury by incorporating foolish and false sayings. 
 
 Every fop and fool and aspiring journalist in Washington felt at 
 liberty to make a jest at the expense of his "want of dignity and per- 
 sonal awkwardness," as they pleased to call it. 
 
 He was sneered and scoffed at by the aristocracy, both at home and 
 abroad, who rated him beneath their recognition because he did not 
 employ their particular code of etiquette. "His methods of thought, 
 expressions and action," they said, "had not the stamp of any old 
 
THE PRESIDENTS KINDNESS. 251 
 
 aristocratic tradition," and thus they labeled him a plebeian and put 
 upon him the stamp of their disapprobation. 
 
 He was criticised and censured and reviled by the army of men 
 who called themselves the arbiters of the nation's honor and destiny, 
 and these, too, put upon him the stamp of their dissatisfaction, and the 
 leaders reported their interviews as consisting of funny stories, which 
 in their opinion proved him weak and incompetent. 
 
 Military men dubbed him ignorant and incapable of understanding 
 or planning a war campaign, because he sometimes compared their 
 suggestions and actions with the small operations of the Black Hawk 
 War. 
 
 His cabinet did not altogether understand his peculiar and wonder- 
 ful nature, and some of the members had the weakness to accuse the 
 President of levity. 
 
 To all of this class of incidents and anecdotes I have no contem- 
 plation of going into detail. It is of Mr. Lincoln's everyday life with 
 his family and his intercourse with the common people that we have 
 to do; the private soldier, sick and wounded and discouraged, that 
 came to him for comfort and succor and pardon; the agonized wife 
 and mother who besought him to end the carnage and slaughter of 
 the unholy war. To the distressed and disturbed men and women of 
 the land, who sought him in their hours of disquiet and unrest and 
 begged him to give them some sort of comforting assurance, these are 
 the incidents and pathetic interviews that should interest every man 
 and woman, every boy and girl, and inspire a desire to read and reread 
 them; that should enlist sympathy and love for Abraham Lincoln, the 
 man who for four long weary years bore censure and criticism and yet 
 repined not, 
 
 EVERYDAY FOLKS 
 
 It was the constant intimacy, from his infancy till the day of his 
 death, with the world of "everyday folks" that developed in Mr. Linco/u 
 a strong sympathy for their individual rights and a knowledge of their 
 recognition of general truth. 
 
252 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 He recognized their unfailing sense of justice, and during his entire 
 occupancy of the presidential chair he relied upon the popular feeling 
 and expression of the common people, to a great extent, for his guid- 
 ance. He was a sign upon the earth — ^the sign and the leader of a new 
 order of events, in which the power and prestige should be in the hands 
 of the plain, simple, common people, and not in those of the privileged 
 order. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln believed, as all other wise people do, that the common 
 people — ^the masses — are the brawn and brain of a great common- 
 wealth, and when this class of humanity let go of the rudder or indiffer- 
 ently steer public affairs, then the country must look for a general 
 decline. 
 
 Lower the moral standard of the common people and the nation 
 will die and rot, and its eternal cesspool is forever sending out its in- 
 fection to other weak and degenerate communities. But keep up the 
 moral standard of the common people and the nation will rise to 
 sublimest heights, sending forth healing rays of divine goodness and 
 glorious power; a beacon light inviting all other nations to bathe in 
 its healthful effulgence. 
 
 THE PARDON 
 
 His sympathy for the young soldier's peccadillos was marked in the 
 extreme, and these or even graver acts he could forgive and forget. 
 
 It is related that a friend from Illinois called to plead for the life 
 of a soldier boy, a soldier who was on his way with his regiment 
 through Washington, and, falling out of the ranks, entered a drinking 
 saloon, was overcome with liquor, and failed to join his regiment before 
 it left the city. He was arrested for desertion, and sentenced to be 
 shot. 
 
 The President heard the explanation of the case, and remarked, 
 "Well, I think the boy can do us more good above ground than under 
 the ground," and without further speech wrote the pardon. 
 
 THE PRESIDENT'S PHOTOGRAPH 
 
 Mr. Lincoln could not endure to employ the rigor of the law in regard 
 
WILLIAM H. 
 
 Secretary of State to Lincoln. The above is a 
 
 Dhotograph. 
 
 SEWARD. 
 
 reproduction of the Seward's last 
 
SALMON P. CHASE. 
 
 Secretary of the treasury in Lincoln's cabinet. 
 
THE PRESIDENTS KINDNESS, 253 
 
 to desertion. He always tried to find some excuse for the accused, and 
 if there were any extenuating circumstances he took advantage of 
 them. 
 
 There are several stories related in regard to this peculiar action of 
 Mr. Lincoln that, though hackneyed, are good enough to be rehearsed 
 again. Mr. Lincoln had just written a pardon for a young man who 
 had been sentenced to be shot for sleeping at his post, w^hile on guard, 
 and when questioned why he pardoned him, he said, "It was not to be 
 wondered at that the lad went to sleep, for he was raised on a farm, and 
 was probably in the habit of going to bed at dark. I cannot consent 
 to shoot him for such an act. I could not think of going into eternity 
 with the blood of the poor young man on my head." 
 
 It is further related that the dead body of this same young lad was 
 found among the slain on the field of Fredericksburg, wearing next to 
 his heart a photograph of Mr. Lincoln, beneath which was written 
 "God bless President Lincoln." 
 
 I WON'T DO IT 
 
 'An army officer also relates the following, which is also told to 
 show how loth the President was to inflict punishment or pain. He 
 says, "The first week of my command, there were twenty-four deserters 
 sentenced by court-martial to be shot, and the warrants for 
 their executions were sent to the President to be signed. He refused. 
 I went to Washington and had an interview. I said, ^Mr. President, 
 unless these men are made an example of, the army itself is in danger. 
 Mercy to the few is cruelty to the many.' He replied, *Mr. General, 
 there are already too many weeping widows in the United States. For 
 God's sake, don't ask me to add to the number, for I won't do it.' " 
 
 TOO BUSY TO SEE BOYS 
 
 A little drummer boy came to the White House one day and asked 
 to see the President, but was told by the usher that Mr. Lincoln was 
 "too busy to see boys." Whereupon the lad went out and sat down 
 at the gate, not knowing what to do. 
 
 The President some time later passed out of the grounds about the 
 
254 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 Executive Mansion at the same gate, and there found the boy looking 
 very pale and appearing to be faint and feeble. 
 
 Suspecting that he might have called to see him and had been 
 refused admittance, for the purpose of learning the truth a question 
 was propounded, and the little fellow in response said, "Yes, sir; I 
 wanted to see you, but the man at the door said you were too busy." 
 
 The President questioned the boy still further and discovered that 
 the colonel of his regiment had become angry with him and turned 
 him off; also that the boy had been quite sick and that the surgeon 
 at the hospital had discharged him before he was able to go about, 
 much less do any work. 
 
 The President told the little drummer boy to go home to his parents, 
 but this advice brought out the facts that the boy, who was so very small 
 and frail that he seemed a mere child, had no home, no parents, and in 
 fact no one that he could go to for succor. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln took from his pocket a card and wrote upon it. It was 
 directed to a high official, and contained the following message, "In- 
 terest yourself in the bearer and find a place for him." Then putting 
 some money into the boy's hand he bade him go at once. 
 
 Immediate assistance was rendered, and later, work was given to 
 the fully recovered boy. To-day he is an efficient and valuable clerk in 
 the government employ — a position he has held since the year eighteen 
 hundred and sixty-eight. 
 
 A BABY'S INFLUENCE 
 
 The soldier and his sorrows were ever Mr. Lincoln's care and solici- 
 tude. He could not refuse a request or demand that came from them 
 in any way, and to the mothers of the "boys in blue" he could not 
 withstand their pleadings. If they were seeking their boy's release 
 he must grant it. 
 
 A very pathetic story was told me of a woman who came to the 
 White House to ask for her young son's release, on the grounds that 
 she needed his personal care and support, the father having been killed 
 in battle some months previous, while she herself was ill and had a 
 young babe which was born after her husband's death. 
 
THE PRESIDENTS KINDNESS. 255 
 
 The woman had called at the White House three days in succession, 
 and was still unable to see the President. Crowds of people, who un- 
 doubtedly were bent on similar errands, thronged the outer rooms. 
 
 The hot, sultry afternoon was drawing to a close, and the usher 
 had told her that in all probability she would have to come again the 
 next day. This information completely unnerved her, the tears coursed 
 down her cheeks, and when she attempted to walk she staggered like 
 a drunken woman. The baby, who had been fretful for some time, set 
 up a pitiful wail, thus adding to her further discomfort. 
 
 The child's moans caught Mr. Lincoln's attention, and he sent a 
 messenger to inquire into the matter. The servant investigated, re- 
 turned to the office and reported. He was immediately dispatched 
 again with an order requesting the woman to come in at once. Faint 
 and trembling she went into the President's office. Mr. Lincoln, 
 upon witnessing the distress of the mother and child, arose, gently 
 assisted the woman to an easy chair, and took the child in his strong 
 arms. 
 
 He gave his entire attention to the baby, and under his soothing 
 influence the child soon fell asleep. Still holding the infant, Mr. Lin- 
 coln turned to the mother and said, "My good woman, what can I do 
 for you?" 
 
 Her story was hastily and tearfully told. Having gathered all neces- 
 sary information, a letter was written to the young man's commanding 
 officer, demanding the soldier's release, and then turning to the woman 
 Mr. Lincoln said, "I will forward this immediately." 
 
 The woman had become so intensely excited that now her nervous- 
 ness caused her to anticipate all sorts of delays, and she begged 
 to be allowed to carry the message herself. As usual Mr. Lincoln could 
 not say nay to woman's pleading, and he gave orders to have her 
 properly equipped with the needed documents. Thus the mother be- 
 came the bearer of her son's release. 
 
 The woman took her baby from the President and attempted to 
 thank him, but he stopped her, and pointing to the infant said, "The 
 little one did it." 
 
256 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 TAD AND HIS FATHER 
 
 During the campaign of the Army of the Potomac in the vicinity 
 of Washington, Mr. Lincoln made frequent visits to the front. 
 
 One of these occasions was after a desperate fight on the Peninsula, 
 and the dead and dying were being carried from the battlefield. As 
 stretcher after stretcher was passed the moans of the dying were dis- 
 tinctly heard. The wounded were crying out in their agony. Lips, 
 parched and dry, could scarcely utter the single word water. Hands 
 were clasped in prayer; eyes were strained for a last farewell, and 
 whispered sounds came floating along on the evening breeze. Mother, 
 sister, wife and sweetheart were called in vain. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln bore it as long as he could. His face was ashy white, 
 and he staggered with the weight of horror that was upon him. 
 
 A friend who accompanied the President told me that he leaned 
 upon him heavily. Then bursting into tears, exclaimed, "My God, how 
 much longer must this slaughter go on? I cannot endure it. I cannot 
 endure it. My heart is breaking." 
 
 The President was completely overcome, and immediately left the 
 battlefield. Not a word was spoken by either until they parted an hour 
 later, when he said, "I can never be glad again.'' 
 
 Washington became one great hospital of wounded soldiers, and 
 these places, so full of human agony, were daily inspected by the Presi- 
 dent. He visited them all. The sanitary conditions were most carefully 
 looked into, and the sick and wounded were greeted, each one separ- 
 ately, with some personal message. He shook hands with those who 
 were well enough, and to those who were desperately ill he smoothed 
 the fevered brow, brushed aside the damp locks or tenderly preiBsed 
 the limp hand, bidding each one to take courage and try to live. Those 
 whom he knew could not recover he bade be brave, thanked them 
 for their service, and told them that to die for one's country was the 
 greatest privilege that could come to man. 
 
 In these visits to the camps and hospitals Tad invariably accom^ 
 panied the President. He was his father's comrade and companion, 
 and his presence among the homesick and wounded soldiers was aa 
 
THE PRESIDENTS KINDNESS, 2b7 
 
 welcome as that of his father's. The boy was also a great favorite with 
 the inmates and visitors at the White House, and it is said by those 
 who had daily access to the grounds and the house that Tad was the 
 only bright figure in the otherwise tragic picture. 
 
 He possessed something of his father's wit and humor, and this, 
 coupled with a vivacious spirit, made him an unusually bright and 
 interesting child. Both young and old, men and women, soldier and 
 civilian, paid homage to Tad Lincoln. 
 
 Those who witnessed the boy's grief at the time of his father's death 
 describe it as actually uncontrollable, and it is said that the few after 
 years of his life were tinged with the horror of that tragic death. 
 
 Tad Lincoln joined his father some years later, and thus the love 
 and companionship established on earth were renewed and will con- 
 tinue throughout eternity. 
 
 HALLO ABE. HOW ARE YE? 
 
 It was the custom of Mr. Lincoln during the years 1862, ^63 and '64 
 to open once a week the doors of his office and let each caller approach 
 him in turn. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln said, "These brief interviews, stripped of even the sem- 
 blance of ceremony, give me a better insight into the real character 
 of the person and his true reason for seeking one." 
 
 On these occasions the most curious, amusing and strange things 
 happened. Upon one of these eventful days an old friend from Illinois 
 stood in line for almost an hour. At last he was so near to the Presi- 
 dent that his voice could reach him, and calling out to his old associate, 
 he startled every one by exclaiming, "Hallo Abe; how are ye? I'm in 
 line and hev come for an orfice too." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln singled out the man who possessed the stentorian voice, 
 and recognizing a particularly old friend and one whose wife had be- 
 friended him in a peculiarly trying time, the President responded to 
 his greeting in a cordial manner, and told him "to hang onto himself 
 and not to kick the traces. Keep in line and you'll soon get here." 
 
 They met and shook hands with the old fervor and renewed their 
 friendship. 
 
258 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 His "New Salem" friend began at once to state his desire, but Mr. 
 Lincoln quieted him by sending him away with a friend, who should 
 look after him until he was at liberty to give him more attention. 
 
 The informal reception over, Mr. Lincoln sent for his old friend, and 
 after a more personal greeting the man began to urge his claims. 
 
 After having given him some good advice, Mr. Lincoln kindly told 
 his old associate that he was incapable of holding any such position 
 as he had asked for. The disappointment that the Illinois friend felt 
 was plainly shown, and with a perceptible tremor in his voice he said, 
 "Martha's dead, the gal is married, and Fve guv Jim the forty." Then 
 looking at Mr. Lincoln he came a little nearer and almost whispered, 
 "I knowed I wasent eddlcated enough to git the place, but I kinder 
 want to stay where I ken see Abe Lincoln." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was much affected by this homely display of affection. 
 The friend was invited to stay at the White House for a few days, when 
 he was assigned to some easy and unimportant work in the capitol 
 grounds. 
 
 A book could be filled with Mr. Lincoln's acts of kindness. He made 
 no show of doing. What he did and what he said was just the thing to 
 do or just the thing to say. 
 
 There were no high-sounding words in his advice or sympathy; there 
 was no ostentation in his proffered aid or unrequited service, and there 
 was no announcement of his gifts to charity. 
 
 It was as easy for Abraham Lincoln to give and to do and to make 
 happy the hearts of the afflicted and oppressed as it is for the sun to 
 shine, and make warm and beautiful the earth. 
 
 Charity, pity, mercy, sympathy, these were virtues that reigned at 
 the White House during Mr. Lincoln's occupancy of it. 
 
CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 THE WAR CONTINUES 
 
 THE war still continued, the horrors grew apace and another sad 
 New Year was ushered in. It was a wretched beginning, re- 
 verses were again demanding more men, another call for troops 
 was made, and the flower of the country responded. There was no 
 abating of patriotic desire; there was no delay; the swift-winged mes- 
 sengers answered the bugle's call; platoon after platoon filed by and 
 the dissolving panorama of blue faded away toward the gray mist of 
 the distant horizon. 
 
 The national and military affairs of 1863 were momentous; nine hun- 
 dred millions of dollars had been borrowed, and the United States issued 
 four hundred millions in treasury notes bearing interest and a hundred 
 and fifty millions without interest; and now, in addition to'the calamity 
 of war, the nation was burdened with debt, — a debt so great that it 
 seemed well nigh impossible to ever lift it. 
 
 MAGNITUDE OF REBELLION 
 
 When Congress adjourned, it left the President strong in power and 
 with unquestioned means necessary for the successful prosecution of 
 the war. He had financial support, power to arrest and hold suspicious 
 persons, and the authority to call out the State militia. 
 
 The military events of the year were stupendous, and the people 
 had come to realize that the heretofore prosperous and peaceful nation 
 was steeped in blood and carnage. The list of dead was long and it was 
 terrible. All other wars sank into insignificance. 
 
 The magnitude of the rebellion was almost beyond belief; the area 
 of territory covered by the armies was tremendous, and the loss of 
 human life incomparable with that of any other nation while engaged 
 in warfare. 
 
 Eighteen hundred and sixty-three was the year sii battles. The 
 
 259 
 
26© THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 heavens reverSerated with the roar of cannon and the discharge of 
 musketry. The air was filled with the lament of the sick, the wail 
 of the wounded, and the moan of the dying. The very foundations of 
 the earth trembled with the heavy and irregular tread of the tired and 
 exhausted campaigners, the double-quick of the excited and eager 
 battlemen, and the slow and measured step of the funeral march. It 
 was the tramp, tramp of the soldier host. 
 
 BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG 
 
 The battle of Gettysburg had been fought, — ^that fearful battle, that 
 raged with terrific energy for three days. That battle will pass into 
 history as the most horrible massacre and slaughter that human souls 
 have ever endured and that human eyes have ever looked upon. More 
 than sixteen thousand were killed and wounded on the Union side, 
 while the loss to the Confederate forces was much greater. 
 
 The battle of Gettysburg will live forever. The blood that mois- 
 tened that earth enriches and brings to perfection the beautiful flowers 
 that grow thereon; the mists that hang over it pulsate with an agony 
 yet untold; the skies that bend over it are bluer than elsewhere; the 
 clouds that float softly across it discharge their pure waters in pitying 
 showers, and the sun sheds upon it his warm and gentle rays in tender 
 benediction. 
 
 On the nineteenth day of November of the same year, the battlefield 
 was dedicated to the memory of the slain. 
 
 The camp of the dead was put in order, and above the silent bivouac, 
 where the blue and the gray had gone down in mortal affray, Abraham 
 Lincoln dedicated the sacred spot with his immortal words: 
 
 LINCOLN'S IMMORTAL WORDS 
 
 "Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth upon this 
 continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the propo- 
 sition that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a great 
 civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and 
 so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of 
 that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final 
 
THE WAR CONTINUES. 261 
 
 resting-place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might 
 live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. But 
 in a larger sense we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot 
 hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled 
 here have consecrated it far above our power to add or detract. The 
 world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here; but it can 
 never forget what they did here. It is for us, the living, rather to be 
 dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here 
 have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedi- 
 cated to the great task remaining before us, that from these honored 
 dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the 
 last full measure of devotion; that we here highly resolve that these 
 dead shall not have died in vain; that this nation, under God, shall 
 have a new birth of freedom, and that the government of the people, 
 by the people, and for the people shall not perish from the earth." 
 
 RIGHT VERSUS WRONQ 
 
 Upon the Fourth of July, the day after the battle of Gettysburg, 
 the President sent the news flashing over the country, that the Union 
 army had "covered itself with glory," and in the victory at Gettysburg 
 there was a "promise of great success to the cause of the Union." 
 
 Other news of great importance also on that day went rushing 
 across the country, carried by the electric messenger into every city 
 and every hamlet. The capture of Vicksburg, the stronghold of the 
 Mississippi River, by General Grant, was announced, and now the 
 hearts of the loyal people took on hope and expectancy. The Confed- 
 eracy was cut in twain, and from this hour its cause was doomed. 
 
 Poor, unhappy South, with its load of sorrow and agony, with its 
 beautiful homes destroyed, with its multitudes of weeping mothers 
 and wailing children; with its brave hearts still struggling cour- 
 ageously, but knowing, full well, that further death and complete 
 disaster were before them. 
 
 This terrible year was drawing to its close, and the national Thanks- 
 giving day was approaching. Mr. Lincoln's proclamation for the 
 
262 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 p^bservance of the day breathed a tender pity for those bereft and a sad 
 gladness for those who rejoiced. 
 
 THE ROLL CALL 
 
 The year and its terrible record had passed and the brave and gallant 
 dead re-formed into silent ranks and answered the roll-call : 
 
 Berry, Whipple, Eeynolds, Weed, Zook, Farnsworth, Garnett, 
 Blakesdale, Semmes, Lyttle, Preston, Smith, Deshler, Helm and Malone. 
 
 For nearly four years the most unholy war had been waged; men 
 were drawn up in battle array, while cannon thundered their awful 
 deadly missiles; the blue and the gray went down in slaughtered heaps; 
 the ranks were thinned, and still the awful holocaust went on. "Uncle 
 Abe'' continued to call for more "defenders of the true faith," and his 
 call was answered by the tramp, tramp of grim warriors shouting their 
 battle-song, "We are coming, Father Abraham, six hundred thousand 
 more." 
 
 Mothers sent their precious sons, wives their devoted husbands, and 
 children gave up their loving fathers. But the struggle went on, the 
 nation wept, and the tender pity and unbounded love of the President's 
 great heart went out and fell like a sweet benediction upon his sorrow- 
 ing people. 
 
CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 SECOND PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION 
 
 AFTER four years of mighty events and wonderful changes, the 
 year of the Presidential election had come again. During the 
 four years of administration, Mr. Lincoln had made many enemies 
 among those who had supported him originally. Some thought he had 
 been too slow, some said he was too severe, others that he had not been 
 slow enough, while many criticised or denounced the President for is- 
 suing the Etnancipation Proclamation. Mr. Lincoln himself said in 
 alluding to it, 'What I did, I did after a very full deliberation, and under 
 a heavy and solemn responsibility. I can only trust in God, I have 
 made no mistake." 
 
 The country was feeling the terrible distress of the war. Call after 
 call had been made for more men, taxation was burdening every man, 
 and still no end appeared. There were many leaders who either 
 believed or made themselves believe that a change of administration 
 was necessary to the wellbeing of the nation and so announced them- 
 selves, but the masses of the people were in favor of Mr. Lincoln. His 
 modest character and honest purpose had won their confidence. Though 
 the future looked dark, the people were satisfied that Mr. Lincoln's war 
 policy was right and if continued would bring ultimate success. 
 
 A WISE CONCLUSION 
 
 It had never seemed to be Mr. Lincoln's aim during his Presidential 
 life to look far ahead, and if he did or planned in his own mind a re- 
 election, he was as silent as the Sphinx, and gave no intimation of 
 further desire than the present moment. 
 
 He had done his best, and was entitled to the full approval of his 
 countrymen; then why should he not receive their appreciation, and 
 why should they not still trust him? It is a pleasant thought to harbor, 
 that one shall receive the plaudits of a great commonwealth, and 
 Abraham Lincoln was human. 
 
 263 
 
264 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 When he was approached by the leaders of the party in regard to 
 his inclination concerning a second term it is true that he said, "If 
 nominated and elected I shall be grateful to my friends; but the in- 
 terests of the country must always be first considered." Then with 
 characteristic frankness and humor he suddenly wheeled about and 
 faced the committee with an apparently new and unthought of conclu- 
 sion. The gentlemen were struck with the evident wisdom of his state- 
 ment, and Mr. Lincoln's manner was so irresistibly quaint when he said, 
 "It is not best to swap horses while crossing a stream," that they quickly 
 withdrew and began operations upon Mr. Lincoln's suggestions. 
 
 UNJUST CENSURE 
 
 The more thoughtful and conscientious men were reluctant to 
 change leaders and rulers, and so the verdict of the wise men prevailed 
 and Mr. Lincoln was again chosen the Presidential candidate. For 
 some unaccountable reason, however, though the campaign was opened 
 with perfect confidence concerning the results, yet a feeling of uncer- 
 tainty and distrust came over many of Mr. Lincoln's former stanch 
 admirers — even the press attacked him. Attacks from either personal 
 enemies or the public press did not affect Mr. Lincoln. It is said by 
 many of Mr. Lincoln's biographers "that he did not read the newspaper 
 attacks and therefore many failed in their object In abusing and vilify- 
 ing the President by his refusal to read the scurrilous attacks." 
 
 It Is related by an Intimate friend of Mr. Lincoln, that after a par- 
 ticularly abusive and offensive attack had been made upon the Presi- 
 dent, this friend alluded to It, expressing his indignation over the affair. 
 The President said to his friend, "That matter troubles me very little. 
 Indeed I feel a good deal about It as the old man did about his cheese, 
 when his very smart boy found, by the aid of a microscope, that it was 
 full of maggots. 'Oh, father,' exclaimed the boy, 'how can you eat that 
 stuff? Just look In here, and see 'em wriggle!' The old man took 
 another mouthful, and, putting his teeth Into It, replied grimly: 'Let 
 'em wriggle!'" 
 
 To the criticism directed against him relating to his disregard of 
 peace propositions, and when leading men wrote to him that "a bleed- 
 
SECOND PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. 265 
 
 ing, bankrupt, almost dying country, was shuddering at the prospect of 
 further wholesale devastations and of new rivers of blood and that he 
 and his supporters did not improve opportunities to secure peace,*' Mr. 
 Lincoln replied: "I should be false to my oath and to the American 
 people who have poured out life and treasure to save the nation, faith- 
 less to an oppressed race to whom emancipation has been pledged, if 
 I entertain any proposition not based upon sectional unity and freedomi 
 to the blacks." 
 
 To all communications sent to him, charging him with lack of action 
 or disregard of opportunity, he invariably replied: "If any person can 
 be found, anywhere, professing to have any proposition of Jefferson 
 Davis, in writing, embracing the restoration of the Union and abandon- 
 ment of slavery, whatever else it embraces, say to him that he may 
 come to me." 
 
 There were so many unpleasant incidents connected with the Presi- 
 dential canvass that Mr. Lincoln's friends urged him not to issue 
 another call for men until after the election had taken place, but his 
 call for six hundred thousand men went out just the same, and to his 
 cowardly advisers he said, "The men are needed, it is my duty to call 
 for them, and I shall call them, whatever the effect may be upon my 
 election." 
 
 VOICE OF THE PEOPLE 
 
 The important and significant day arrived, and Abraham Lincoln 
 was again the people's choice by an overwhelming majority. 
 
 It was an election that demonstrated the abiding confidence in Mr. 
 Lincoln and his administration. Every state but three — New Jersey, 
 Delaware and Kentucky — gave him its electoral vote. It was in fact 
 almost an election by acclamation. "While the votes were being 
 counted in New York city late at night," says Harriet Beecher Stowe, 
 "and this great victory became apparent, the vast surging assembly, 
 at the motion of one individual, uncovered their heads and sang a 
 solemn Doxology — an affecting incident, which goes far to show what 
 sort of feelings lay at the bottom of this vast movement, and how pro- 
 
26G THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 foundly the people felt that this re-election of Lincoln was a vital step 
 in their onward progress." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln would have been more than mortal not to have been 
 gratified with the result. To a company of gentlemen who called upon 
 him on the night of the election to tender him their congratulations, he 
 said: "I am thankful to God for this approval of the people; but, while 
 I am deeply grateful for this mark of their confidence in me, if I know 
 my heart, my gratitude is free from any taint of personal triumph. 
 * * * I give thanks to the Almighty for this evidence of the people's 
 resolution to stand by free government and the rights of humanity.'^ 
 
 CLOSE OF THE WAR 
 
 The military aiffairs of 1864 were of tremendous import and the 
 war was hastening to a momentous crisis. With the advent of the 
 next year the beginning of the end was seen. General Sherman was 
 marching to the sea, the rebel hordes were fleeing before his advancing 
 army, fleeing northward, where they must inevitably meet Grant's hosts 
 who were pressing toward the Confederate capitol. The grand but 
 awful campaign was drawing to a close. Early in April, Lee, with his 
 shattered ranks, had evacuated the Confederate capitol and Richmond 
 had fallen. 
 
 The rebellion was overthrown. President Lincoln had gone to the 
 front, the North was in a frenzy of excitement. From the Atlantic to 
 the Pacific men, women and children shouted the loud hosannas. The 
 cruel war was over, and the sun of peace had fairly risen. The sorrow 
 and agony of the four long, weary years were lifted and anthems of 
 rejoicing were heard. They reverberated from mountain height to 
 mountain height; the valleys caught up the descending praise and sent 
 it aloft. Messengers of love gathered the hallelujahs and flung them 
 again earthward, while the angels sang "Peace on earth, good will to 
 
 men." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln, casting aside all fears of personal danger, took with 
 him his boy "Tad" and left on a man of war for Richmond. He entered 
 the city in a humble and modest manner, no brilliant escort accom- 
 panied him, but on foot and with no guard he and his young son entered 
 
SECOND PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. 267 
 
 the fallen city. His presence, however, soon became known and the 
 liberated people followed him, shouting in their ecstasy of joy, "Glory! 
 Glory to God! May dear Jesus bress President Lincoln!^' 
 
 LIBERTY IS YOUR BIRTHRIGHT 
 
 The streets seemed to be suddenly alive with the colored race. They 
 came from every direction, and surrounded Mr. Lincoln so that there 
 was no escape. It was suggested that if he would make a short speech 
 to these people they would no doubt be satisfied and allow him to 
 pass on. 
 
 Quoting from a history of Mr. Lincoln^s life, the remarks made by 
 President Lincoln that day to the colored people were as follows: 
 
 "My poor friends, you are free, as free as air. Liberty is your birth- 
 right. God gave it to you as he gave it to others. You must try to 
 deserve the priceless boon. Let the world see that you merit it, and 
 are able to maintain it by your good works. Learn the laws and obey 
 them, obey God's commandments and thank Him for giving you liberty, 
 for to Him you owe all things.'' 
 
 Then the President passed slowly along with a hurrahing crowd at 
 his heels. The windows of nearby houses flew open, and all conditions 
 of men and women gazed upon the strange sight. 
 
 On Sunday, April 9, Mr. Lincoln returned to Washington, and there 
 he heard the thrilling news that Lee, with his whole army, had sur- 
 rendered to General Grant. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was happy; the war was terminated and the Union 
 restored. He gave himself up to the luxury of joy, and took part in 
 the demonstration that the city of Washington had prepared. The 
 greatest excitement and enthusiasm prevailed ; flags were flying every- 
 where, cannons were booming, bands were playing and the people 
 suspended business and gave themselves up to the pleasure of the 
 joyful occasion. 
 
 Crowds surrounded the White House and called for the President. 
 He addressed the populace twice that day, in the afternoon and even- 
 ing. 
 
268 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 In this man's administration the world had seen and wondered at 
 the great sign and marvel of our day — a plain workingman of the 
 people, with no more culture, instruction or education than any man 
 may obtain for himself, called on to conduct the passage of a great 
 nation through a crisis involving the destinies of the whole world. 
 
HON. ROBERT T. LINCOLN. 
 
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CHAPTER XXXVIL 
 
 LINCOLN'S ASSASSINATION 
 
 THE great rebellion was ended, General Grant reached Washing* 
 ton on the thirteenth of April, 1865, and held an interview with 
 the President. The people were glad and happy. Washington 
 was illuminated, and Mr. Lincoln was the one man who now received 
 the adulation of a thankful people. His motives were vindicated and 
 his name had been given to the safe keeping of a grateful people. He 
 was the savior of his country and the liberator of an enslaved race. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln had now reached the pinnacle of human fame. From 
 the humble frontier home to the Executive Mansion, he had climbed the 
 ladder of renown and success by his own indomitable purpose and 
 
 honest intent. 
 
 WARNINGS 
 
 The President had, from the time of his departure from Springfield, 
 in 1861, up to the present time, periodically received threatening 
 letters. They did not, however, trouble him, although they did his 
 associates, and so much so that his absolute indifference to his personal 
 safety alarmed his friends. They begged him to be watchful, lest he 
 be attacked in an unguarded moment. Still he treated their anxiety 
 with perfect calmness and composure and refused any official protec- 
 tion, going about the city and its environments alone and unattended. 
 
 The morning of the eventful fourteenth of April dawned. The 
 people were jubilant, and the places of amusement were again 
 thronged. It was announced by the Washington papers that the Presi- 
 dent and General Grant would occupy the State box at Ford's Theater 
 that evening. The result of such an announcement packed the building 
 from dome to pit. General Grant did not desire to go and Mr. Lincoln 
 was also disinclined, but when such announcement had been made and 
 his presence promised he was loth to disappoint the audience, and in 
 his characteristically good natured way he concluded to attend the per- 
 formance. 
 
 269 
 
270 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 THE TRAGEDY 
 
 As the hour approached for leaving for the theater the President 
 was engaged in talking with some unexpected arrivals, and he seemed 
 loth to leave them. His delay caused some surprise, and Mrs. Lincoln 
 came into the room and said to her husband, "We shall be late, it is 
 now nine o'clock." 
 
 The President arose, asked his friends to accompany them to the 
 theater, and upon their refusal Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln immediately en- 
 tered the carriage alone and ordered the coachman to drive them to 
 the house of Senator Harris, where they were to take in some invited 
 friends, who were quite surprised to have had the President delay his 
 appointment. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln were accompanied by two young friends. 
 Major Rathburn and Miss Harris. When the party passed into the 
 private box the entire assembly cheered the President with unusual 
 enthusiasm, and Mr. Lincoln acknowledged the outburst with a more 
 than usual warmth of manner. 
 
 Order was restored and the play proceeded. An excited stranger 
 entered the passage to the President's box, presented his card to the 
 servant in waiting, and said, "The President has sent for me." 
 
 Forcing his way into the box and before anyone could understand 
 or prevent his terrible purpose, the madman, J. Wilkes Booth, fired at 
 the President. The awful messenger accomplished its deadly work, the 
 bullet had penetrated the President's brain. The great man was desper- 
 ately wounded. He made no outcry, he did not move, but now, how 
 was the assassin to escape? His entrance was blocked by the surging 
 and maddened crowd. Major Rathburn sprang upon him, the audience 
 was in a tumult of terror and excitement, women shrieked and fainted, 
 men with awful threats of vengeance added to the noise and confusion. 
 The murderer, parting the starry flag that had draped the front of the 
 President's box, sprang, with a desperate leap, upon the stage; his 
 voice rising loud and clear above the babble and horror, rang out: 
 "Sic semper tyrannis." 
 
 In frenzied desperation the assassin paused for a moment in his 
 
LINCOLN'S ASSASSINATION. 371 
 
 mad career, and again his voice pierced the din of distraction. "The 
 South is avenged," he shouted, and dashed from the theater. Mounting 
 his waiting steed the assassin fled into the darkness and the night. 
 
 Miss Laura Keen, the actress, begged the audience to be calm, and 
 entering the President's box tried to administer water and cordials, but 
 the physicians who had already gathered about saw there was no hope 
 and ordered the helpless form carried from the theater building. 
 
 Directly across the street from the theater Mr. Lincoln was tenderly 
 borne and at seven o'clock the next morning his gentle spirit took its 
 heavenward flight, and death was Lincoln's summons to promotion. 
 The chapter closed, the bullet came, and fixed him in the niche of 
 fame. 
 
 The long, sad morning was filled with the clang of tolling bells, and 
 by common impulse every iron tongue in the broad land echoed the 
 solemn requiem. 
 
 THE FUNERAL TRAIN 
 
 The nation was wrapped in the gloom of profoundest grief. Mil- 
 lions felt the loss a personal one, and the recently liberated black race 
 expressed intense sorrow for their savior. The rich and the poor, the 
 white and the black throughout the Northland were given the oppor- 
 tunity of viewing their beloved dead. The funeral train left Washing- 
 ton on the twenty-first of April, and the body of the martyred chieftain 
 was borne westward to the Prairie State, from whence he had gone to 
 serve his country and his people. Bells rang out their mournful song 
 and solemn dirges filled the sweet spring air. 
 
 The funeral pageant swept on through crowds of weeping humanity 
 to Philadelphia, the cradle of American liberty, to New York, the proud 
 city of the Atlantic coast, where the discharge of artillery, choirs of 
 sweet singers, mourning trappings, solemn requiems and drooping 
 flags all bore testimony to the universal grief. From the great metrop- 
 olis, on the afternoon of the twenty-fourth, the solemn procession de- 
 parted. The funeral train was piloted by the same engine that bore 
 Abraham Lincoln, four years before, on his triumphal journey to the 
 nation's capitol. Albany was reached, then other less important towns 
 
272 THE STORY OP ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 of central New York — onward to Buffalo. From the Empire State to 
 the Buckeye State, Cleveland, Columbus, through to Indianapolis 
 and thence to the welcome of the Prairie State, and to Chicago, the 
 home of his adoption and the birthplace of his immortal renown. 
 
 AT THE CITY OF HIS ADOPTION 
 
 The funeral cortege arrived in Chicago at a late hour, and the casket 
 containing the remains of the President was immediately taken to the 
 city hall. At twelve o'clock a company of distinguished men and 
 women gathered about the bier. The midnight bell tolled out its sad 
 message, the corridors reverberated with the melody of chanted 
 requiem, the prayer of supplication ascended and a holy hush was over 
 all. The scene was solemn and impressive, and one that can never be 
 erased from the memory of those that witnessed it. 
 
 The following day the general public was permitted to look upon 
 the calm and marble features of the dead man. Thousands and thou- 
 sands of men, women and children filed by the casket, paying silent and 
 tearful homage to the nation's illustrious son. 
 
 On the morning of the third of May the funeral train reached Spring- 
 field, passing through a continuous line of weeping spectators. At the 
 State House for a day and a night the steady procession passed the 
 casket and would not cease its incessant tramp until the coffin lid was 
 closed. 
 
 In Oak Ridge Cemetery, about two miles from the city of Spring- 
 field, all that was mortal of Abraham Lincoln was consigned to mother 
 earth. "There, surrounded by the sweetest scenes of nature, his tomb a 
 Bhrine, his name the watchword of liberty," his memory hallowed by 
 every American citizen, "the w^eary patriot was laid to rest." 
 
CHAPTER XXXVIII. 
 
 INDEPENDENCE DAY AT THE OLD LOG CABIN 
 
 ANOTHER day of torrid weather was upon us and so oppressive 
 was the excessive heat and sultry air that I spent the day in 
 reading, retrospection and quiet meditation. My life for the past 
 two v/eeks had been filled with the memories and incidents of the early 
 life of the martyred President. So filled indeed it seemed to me that, 
 rehabilitated, he had assumed again his earthly fashion, and so real was 
 his presence that I lived with him the life of adversity, hardships, toil 
 and severe penury. His struggles became mine, his success and re- 
 nown my pride, and his tragic death my personal grief. Night was upon 
 us and again I besought Mr. Hall to favor me with further anecdotes of 
 the illustrious dead. The boys gathered about and to my entreaties 
 added their supplication, but their father still refused and declared that 
 the boys must retire, "for there wus the crops to be cut to-morrer, and 
 they must get up with the chickens." I interposed and informed my 
 host that to-morrow was the nation's holiday, the glorious Fourth. But 
 he turned a deaf ear to my appeals and still insisted that the boys must 
 "up and to work" early in the morning. 
 
 THE PATRIOTIC STRANGER 
 
 At peep of day the family arose, but the hot weather and continued 
 labor had made such inroads upon the general health and good spirits 
 of our solicitous handmaiden that breakfast dragged, and it was quite 
 six o'clock before we were called to partake of the morning meal. Every 
 member of the family seemed to be possessed by the spirit of procrasti- 
 nation and we lingered at the table discussing the proposed events of 
 the day, when Abe came leisurely sauntering in and calmly informed 
 us that *'paw was wanted at the gate by a man in a buggy, who had 
 come all the way from Greenup to see him." The master of the house 
 arose and went out to see the stranger. The remainder of the family 
 precipitately left the table and peered through the door and the 
 window. 
 
 273 
 
274 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 The stranger seemed excited and his speech was loud and rapid. 
 Mr. Hall's manner as he retraced his steps gave us no idea as to what 
 the stranger wanted. We gathered about Uncle John and impatiently 
 demanded "the news." After keeping us in suspense for a few min- 
 utes, in slow, drawling tones, he related the stranger's conversation. It 
 was as follows: 
 
 A company of loyal friends and neighbors had come all the way 
 from Greenup to celebrate "Independence Day" at the old log cabin. 
 Mr. Hall, his family and his guests were cordially invited to join the 
 party and dinner awaited their pleasure. 
 
 Wonderful events were crowding thick and fast, and the homely 
 cabin was becoming an object of interest. Carriages were sent for us 
 and we were driven by the main road around to the now famous old 
 family homestead. Gathered in the yard was an enthusiastic and happy 
 band of more than thirty souls, all bent on making the most of the day. 
 
 First in order came the dinner. A sumptuous repast was placed upon 
 improvised tables put up in the west room. The intention had been to 
 spread the feast out of doors, beneath the old locust trees which Grand- 
 father Lincoln had planted, but swarms of minute and stinging insects 
 drove the good people within. For several days the air had been filled 
 with the little tormentors, and upon this occasion they appeared to be 
 more than usually offensive and pugnacious. One of the party, a female 
 preacher, a circuit rider, too, gave her opinion that the annoying pests 
 were no doubt one of the same plagues that God had visited upon 
 Pharaoh. 
 
 AN EXPERIENCE MEETING 
 
 At the conclusion of the bountiful meal an enthusiastic admirer pro^ 
 posed that the exercises should take the form of an experience meeting. 
 The suggestion was cheerfully accepted and when the honest country 
 folks, both old and young, paid their simple and loving tribute to the 
 sterling qualities of Abraham Lincoln and his parents methought the 
 angels for very joy paused to listen, and the "radiant witnesses" carried 
 the offering up into the high and shining courts. 
 
 It was quite well known to the little company that the secretary of 
 
INDEPENDENCE DAY AT THE OLD LOG CABIN. 275 
 
 the Abraham Lincoln Log Cabin Association was present and she was 
 urged to give an outline of the societj^'s work, which she did in a brief 
 way. The object lesson which the association hoped to give the young peo- 
 ple of the country, by removing the log cabin to Chicago and reconstruct- 
 ing it, was for the purpose of familiarizing boys and young men with the 
 extreme homeliness and poverty and disadvantages of Mr. Lincoln^s 
 home and early life. To demonstrate to the youth of America that a 
 man can rise superior to his surroundings, circumstances and condi- 
 tions of his childhood, youth and even young manhood. To show the 
 possibilities that may be achieved through honesty of purpose, perse- 
 verance and self-culture. To trace the life of Abraham Lincoln from 
 the log cabin to the Executive Mansion, from a poor, illiterate boy, to 
 a profound statesman, from obscurity to national honor, from common 
 toil and hardship to national service, from humble birth to martyr 
 death and glorious resurrection. 
 
 AN AMATEUR'S SPEECH 
 
 Without further explanation I paused and beckoning to Mr. Hall 
 presented him to the interested group, by saying: This is the man that 
 can tell you more about the President and his people than any other 
 living person. The welcome extended to Abraham Lincoln's cousin was 
 cordial in the extreme and the late owner of the "cabin" stepped upon 
 the rude platform. Looking at the upturned faces of the little gather- 
 ing, he said: 
 
 "I hain't used to speakin' no how, but I'll jest tell yer all how grand- 
 marm used to stand and look down the road out of that air winder 
 (pointing to the south side of the west room) and watch and watch fur 
 Uncle Abe, and when she'd see him comin' she^d put her hands together 
 and drop down on her knees and say, 'Thare comes my boy, my boy.' 
 Grandmarm wus allers the first to see him comin' down the road or 
 across the medder and she^d jest stand still and cry and cry and say, 
 *Thare comes my boy, Abe.' Oh it wus joyful to see those two meet 
 Wall, he nevei' did stop comin' no how, and after he got to be a big 
 man and wore a high hat he come jest the same, and it wus never men- 
 tioned between Uncle Abe and grandmarm that it wus strange or won* 
 
276 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 derful that he should be so great and honored a man for she never 
 thought that nothin', no how, wus tu great for him, and often said, 
 'There's no stoppin' for Abe,' and one time when she said so to Uncle 
 Dennis Hanks he ses, ses he, ^Why, I larned Abe to write with a feather 
 pen made from a buzzard's wing and that's what made him so smart.' 
 But grandmarm 'ud jest smile, quiet like and say, * 'Twas in the boy else 
 it 'ud never come out in the man.' " 
 
 At this point in Mr. Hall's reminiscences Sis moved close to me, 
 and in a whisper said, "Ask paw to tell about Uncle Abe when he come 
 to the cabin after he got to be a Pi^esident." 
 
 I now believed that a most favorable opportunity had arrived, and, 
 taking advantage of the occasion, I called out to Mr. Hall in a rather 
 excited manner and asked him to relate to the little gathering the story 
 of the President's visit at the old log cabin. My words electrified the 
 little audience, and the gathering insisted until Uncle John mounted the 
 platform. Mr. Hall, in his own peculiar way, related the following 
 circumstance : 
 
 THE PRESIDENT AT THE LOG CABIN 
 
 "Jest the day afore Uncle Abe come up, the chimney fell down, and 
 I hed to take grandmarm over to my mother's house. She wus married 
 ag'in and livin' down to Farmington then. Wall, that mornin' when I 
 wus fixin' up the chimney who should drive into the yard and holler out 
 but Uncle Abe, the President of the United States. He got out of the 
 buggy jest as nateral and shook hands and asked after all the relations, 
 but when he found grandmarm gone he said, ses he, 'Come boys, let's 
 all get into the buggy and go over there,' which we did; but before 
 we started Uncle Abe looked the house all over and said, 'It looks jest 
 as it always did,' and then he called me to one side and whispered in 
 my ear, and pointing up with his right hand he said, 'Oh, my God ! John, 
 once the old cabin, now the White House.' After a bit he went out into 
 the yard and Uncle Abe picked up a piece of scantlin' and ast me for a 
 axe. Then he chopped it in two and took out his pen knife and cut two 
 large letters, 'T. L.,' and said, 'I'm going to drive these down at father's 
 head and feet.' Then we went over to the graveyard about two miles 
 
INDEPENDENCE DAY AT THE OLD LOG CABIN. 277 
 
 away where Grandpap Lincoln was buried and Uncle Abe placed them, 
 one at the head, t'other at the foot. From there we druv over to Farm- 
 ington where Grandmarm Lincoln wus and took dinner with the folks. 
 When we went into the house and grandmarm seed him she begun to 
 cry, and said, ^They'll murder you, Abe, and I'll never get to see you no 
 more.' He brought grandmarm a present of a black woolen dress, 
 alapacy I think it wus, and a pattern to make it by. I believe she kept 
 it until she died, and wus buried in it. When the people heerd he hed 
 come home, the neighbors and the old settlers all wanted to see him and 
 the school wus dismissed. Uncle Abe talked with all of the folks and 
 hed a laugh with every one. He talked to them in the house and I 
 recklect one thing he told the women. Ses he, ^I will tell you what 
 would cause a great deal of mourning all over the United States if it 
 were to happen.' Some of them wanted to know what it wus. ^Well,' 
 ses he, 4f the matches should all fail to go off some morning when you 
 got up, there would be a great deal of stir about a fire because none of 
 vou know how to make a fire like we used to in the old times. And now 
 I'll tell you how we made fire when I was a boy. If father got up on a 
 cold morning and the fire was out in the fireplace, he would get a bunch 
 of tow and put it down on a piece of plank, then he would take the 
 powder horn and pour the powder on the tow and take the fiint out of 
 the gun or hunt a piece of flint out of doors and take his knife and shut 
 it up and strike it against the flint, and then if any of the sparks hap- 
 pened to fall on the powder the tow would take fire and blaze up. 
 'Then there was no more trouble after that. So if all kinds of matches 
 fail, don't forget the tow and flint.' 
 
 GRANDMARM^S ESTIMATE OF A BOY 
 
 "Ye can jest believe that wus a big day for us, but nobody would 
 have knowed he wus any more than he used to be. Why, grandmarm 
 allers said he wus the best boy that wus livin' and that he wus allers 
 gentle and kind and good and patient, and I knowed he never would 
 no how hurt nothin'. He'd never shoot a bird nor rob a bird's nest, nor 
 step on a worm ; and allers at hog killin' time he'd go away." 
 
 After thanking the speakers, the little company reformed into line 
 
278 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 and departed. The band wagon headed the procession. The Stars and 
 Stripes floated in the evening breeze, and, as Old Glory rose and fell in 
 undulating waves of tricolored harmony, the little company responded, 
 and three cheers were given for the restored Union and Uncle Abe. 
 
 Reaching the four corners the procession turned into the opposite 
 direction from whence it came, a circumstance which aroused our 
 curiosity. Dispatching one of the boys "cross lots'^ we bade him inter- 
 cept the retinue and learn the cause of so strange a proceeding. Abe 
 Hall returned and told us that "the folks wus goin' over to the grave- 
 yard to put some posies on the graves of Grandpap and Grandmarm 
 Lincoln." We uncovered our heads and remained silent, while tears 
 coursed down Uncle John HalPs cheeks. Presently he said, "How I 
 wish Uncle Abe knowed them strangers did so good a deed." 
 
 ^ 
 
CHAPTER XXXIX. 
 FAREWELL TO THE LINCOLN HOMESTEAD 
 
 THE day was done, and when the excitement of the eventful occa- 
 sion had worn off we found ourselves too weary for further con- 
 versation. Morning dawned. It was the Sabbath day. The very 
 air was filled with a solemn stillness. The beasts of the field and the 
 fowls of the air took upon themselves the restful ness of the holy day. 
 All nature was hushed, and the ennui of languidness overcame us. 
 During the forenoon again we visited the cabin and passed hours in 
 talking of the departed inmates. Still I continued to call upon my host 
 for more information, and after gazing about in a thoughtful mood, 
 Uncle John Hall shook his head and slowly replied : "I hain't any heart 
 fur telling yarns when I think of how they killed Uncle Abe. I never 
 could make out what fur they killed him. He never did no man no 
 harm, and if he hadn't freed the black folks somebody 'ud come along 
 purty soon and done the deed anyway, 'cause it hed to be. When grand- 
 marm heerd how that Uncle Abe wus killed she jest put her apern over 
 her face and cried out, ^Oh, my boy Abe! they've killed him, I knowed 
 they would, I knowed they would.' She never hed no heart after that 
 to be chirp and peart like she used to be." Again the voice of mourning 
 rent the air. Rachael weeping for her children and will not be com- 
 forted because they are not. A mother^s heart stricken with bitter, 
 poignant grief for which there was no present balm. 
 
 THE LEAVE-TAKING 
 
 The eventful sojourn at the old log cabin had been one of peculiar 
 interest and unusual pleasure. To-morrow would be full of leave-tak- 
 ings, parting words, and the final gathering of tangled pen pictures 
 and family relics. 
 
 In order to encompass the day's duties and pleasures, my companion 
 and I retired early that we might secure a restful night, but the 
 joyful expectation of again seeing home and friends filled our hearts 
 
 279 
 
280 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 
 
 with nervous anticipation, and we tossed restlessly about until the dawn 
 of morning. 
 
 At an early hour we heard the tramping of hoofs and the roll of 
 wheels. My young companion and myself exchanged nervous, excited 
 glances and rushed, pell mell, out into the morning air. We were not 
 mistaken, for our friends, who had come down with us from Chicago 
 some three weeks before, had arrived bringing with them other friends. 
 
 There were several carriages filled with interested people, photog- 
 raphers, architects and contractors. Among the newcomers was Mr. 
 J. W. Eoot, the well known photographer of Chicago, who accompanied 
 the party in order to superintend the series of photographs which 
 should include every possible view, both as to exterior and interior of 
 the old Lincoln homestead. 
 
 Arriving at the cabin we found a motley crowd assembled — neigh- 
 bors, friends and relatives. 'Twas a gala day for the inhabitants. They 
 had come from far and near. Every one was in the best of spirits and 
 this Monday, July 6, 1891, will long be remembered by the people of 
 Coles County, Illinois. 
 
 We stayed at the cabin till quite the hour for departure. Measure- 
 ments were taken, groups of the old neighbors and relatives were pho- 
 tographed, reminiscences, stories, and sayings of Uncle Abe and the 
 old folks were related by the more intimate acquaintances. Each and 
 every spot in the cabin or on the grounds about, where Uncle Abe had 
 stood or sat or lain or worked, was pointed out and rails and rafters 
 and beams were reverently touched, while the good people paid tribute 
 to the sacred dead in a thousand tender ways. 
 
 At three o'clock in the afternoon we bade the family farewell, prom- 
 ising to come again before long, and left the cabin securely and safely 
 guarded until it should be removed to Chicago. Our departure was a 
 genuine source of unhappiness to the little family group. 
 
 GOOD RESULTS 
 
 My young companion had been an inspiration to Sis, and my ac- 
 counts of the outside world had awakened a new train of thought in 
 tke minds of the boys. They had actually been traveling in wonderland^ 
 
FAREWELL TO THE LINCOLN HOMESTEAD, 281 
 
 and my commonplace descriptions of city doings were marvelous fairy 
 tales to them. These country folks had lived all of their years so near 
 (just across the Prairie State) to the great throbbing center of human 
 life and its activities and yet so far from its influences and a knowledge 
 of its wonderful intensities that primitive simplicity had marked their 
 daily existence and rural joys had filled their "cup of happiness." 
 
 Our return trip to the railroad station at Mattoon would have been 
 quite monotonous and uneventful save for one little episode. At the 
 country graveyard we halted and here we found the withered flowers 
 that had been placed upon the graves of Mr. Thomas Lincoln and his 
 wife by the company that had spent Independence Day at the old cabin. 
 
 The modest and unpretentious shaft erected to the memory of 
 Thomas Lincoln was photographed, and naturally the question arose, 
 Did Abraham Lincoln erect the monument? If not, who did? A 
 neighbor living across the way from God^s acre had seen the carriages 
 stop at the cemetery, and watched the inmates alight and pass into the 
 graveyard; but as the gathering did not constitute a funeral proces- 
 sion the farmer could not restrain his curiosity and he had come over 
 to see what "the doings was.'' When he heard the question propounded 
 concerning the Lincoln monument he told the story of its placement 
 after the following fashion : 
 
 "While Mr. Lincoln was President he gave money to a friend and 
 asked him to erect a suitable tablet to the memory of his father; but 
 the war coming on and so much care and trouble and anxiety crowding 
 in upon him he had neglected to attend to the matter personally. His 
 supposed friend proved false and failed to perform the commission. 
 Some year's after Mr. Lincoln's tragic death, friends of the family raised 
 a sufficient amount to buy the shaft which now marks the last resting 
 place of Grandfather and Grandmother Lincoln." 
 
 THE RETURN TO CHICAGO 
 
 As darkness closed in about us our party again entered the town of 
 Mattoon and at midnight left for Chicago, where we arrived in time for 
 an early breakfast. The great city was astir and its noisy strife was 
 
282 THE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 indeed grateful, after the monotonous quiet of my late simple, rural 
 life. 
 
 The street cars whirled me through the crowded thoroughfares and 
 out of the down-town traffic. A vision of loveliness burst upon me — 
 Lincoln Park in all its wealth of beauty and fragrance and verdure was 
 revealed, and at the entrance, guarding the lovely scene, stood the mag- 
 nificent statue of the martyred President, Abraham Lincoln. 
 
 Again my mind reverted to the old log cabin and I saw the pano- 
 ramic career of the great soul as a living picture burned upon my very 
 brain. 
 
 "Born as lowly as the Son of God in a hovel, of what real parentage 
 we know not; reared in penury, squalor, with no gleam of light, nor 
 fair surrounding; a young manhood vexed by weird dreams and 
 visions, bordering at times on madness; without grace, natural or 
 acquired; singularly awkward, ungainly, even among the uncouth 
 about him; grotesque in his aspects and ways; it was reserved for this 
 strange being late in life, without name or fame or preparation, to be 
 snatched from obscurity, raised to supreme command at a supreme mo- 
 ment, intrusted with the destiny of a people. 
 
 "Glorious Martyr! Now he belongs to the ages. Blessed Martyr! 
 Pass on ! Pass on through the everlasting kingdom of peace and joy, but 
 the world is lonesome without thee." 
 
 When time has blotted out the pyramids, when it has obliterated 
 the monuments of the world, a solitary shaft bearing the name of 
 l*ncoln will still be standing on the Appian way of history. 
 
A FEW OF LINCOLN'S GREAT SAYINGS 
 
 This, is a world of compensations; and he who would be 
 no slave must consent to have no slave. 
 
 Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for 
 themselves; and, under a just God, cannot retain it. 
 
 If the union of these States and the liberties of this peo- 
 ple shall be lost, it is but little to any one man of fifty-two 
 years of age, but a great deal to the thirty millions of people 
 who inhabit these United States and to their posterity in all 
 coming time. 
 
 I believe that this Government cannot endure perma- 
 nently half slave and half free. 
 
 I do not expect the Union to be dissolved ; I do not ex- 
 pect the house to fall; but I do expect it will cease to be 
 divided. 
 
 We shall not fail — if we stand firm — we shall not fail. 
 
 Even though much provoked, let us do nothing through 
 passion and ill -temper. 
 
 Let us have faith that right makes might; and in that 
 faith let us, to the end, dare to do our duty as we under- 
 stand it. 
 
 In stating a single condition of peace, I mean simply 
 to say that the war will cease on the part of the Govern- 
 ment whenever it shall have ceased on the part of those 
 who began it. 
 
 It may seem strange that any men should dare to ask a 
 just God/s assistance in wringing their bread from the 
 
 283 
 
284 LINCOLN'S GREAT SAYINGS. 
 
 sweat of other men's faces, but let us judge not, tliat we 
 be not judged. 
 
 I intend to point immigration to tbe gold and silver tbat 
 wait for tkem in the West. We shall prove in a very few 
 years that we are indeed the treasury of the world. 
 
 With malice towards none, with charity for all, with 
 firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us 
 finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds, 
 to care for him whO' shall have borne the battle, and for his 
 widow and his orphans, to do all which may achieve and 
 cherish a just and a lasting peace among ourselves and with 
 all nations^ 
 
 I am struggling to maintain the Government, not to 
 overthrow it. 
 
 God bless the soldiers and seamen, with all their brave 
 commanders. 
 
 Gold is good in its place; but living, brave and patriotic 
 men are better than gold. 
 
 So long as I have been here I have not willingly planted 
 a thorn in any man's bosom. 
 
 Thoughtful men must feel that the fate of civilization 
 upon this continent is involved in the issue of our contest. 
 
 The world has never had a. good definition of the word 
 liberty, and the American people, just now, are much in 
 want of one. 
 
 War has caused mourning among us until the heavens 
 may almost be said to be hung in black. 
 
 The man who stands by and says nothing when the peril 
 of Government is discussed, cannot be misunderstood. 
 
PALL-BEARER'S BADGE. 
 
 The above picture is a photograph of the badge worn by Mr. Fernando 
 Jones, one of the honorary pall-bearers at President Lincoln'? 
 funeral ceremonies in Chicago, May 2, 1865. 
 
ABRAHAM LINCOLN IN 1860. 
 
 From an ambrotype taken in Springfield, 111. W. P. Brown of Fhi.a- 
 delphia, who formerly owned it, writes of the portrait: "This picture, 
 along with another one, was presented by President Lincoln to my 
 father, after he had finished painting Lincoln's picture on ivory, at 
 Springfield, 111. The commission was given my father by Judge Read 
 immediately after Lincoln's nomination for the Presidency. One of the 
 ambrotypes I sold to the Historical Society of Boston, and it is now in 
 their possession." The miniature referred to is now owned by Mr. Rob- 
 ert T. Lincoln. It was circulated widely before the inauguration. 
 
'LINCOLN'S GREAT SAYINGS 286 
 
 I shall do nothing in malice. 
 
 I have never studied the art of paying compliments to 
 women; but I must say, that if all that has been said by 
 orators and poets since the creation of the world in praise 
 of women were applied to the women of America, it would 
 not do them justice for their conduct during this war. God 
 bless the women of America. 
 
 My paramount object is to save the Union, and not either 
 to save or to destroy slavery. 
 
 Whatever shall appear to be God's will I do. 
 
 What I did, I did after a very full deliberation, and 
 under a very heavy and solemn responsibility. I can only 
 trust in God I have made no mistake. 
 
 The fiery trial through which we shall pas® will light 
 us down in honor or dishonor to the latest generation. 
 
 In a storm at sea no one can wish the ship to sink; and 
 yet not unfrequently all go down together, because too many 
 will direct^ and no single mind can be allowed to control. 
 
 Labor is prior and independent of capital. Capital is 
 only the fruit of labor, and could never have existence if 
 labor had not first existed. 
 
 No men living are more worthy to oe trusted than those 
 who toil up from poverty — none lessi inclined to take or 
 touch aught which they have not earnestly earned. 
 
 I hold that, in contemplation of universal law, and of 
 the Constitution, the Union of these States is perpetual. 
 
 A husband and wife may be divorced, and go out of the 
 presence and beyond the reach of each other; but the differ- 
 ent parts of our country cannot do this. 
 
286 LINCOLirS GREAT SAYINGS. 
 
 The mystic cord of memory, stretcMng from every battle- 
 field and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone 
 all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the? 
 Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the 
 better angels of our natura 
 
 Would an exchange be an exchange of rights upon 
 principle? 
 
 I turn, then, and look to the great American people, and 
 to that God who has never forsaken them. 
 
 The man does not live who is more devoted to peace than 
 I am. 
 
 May my right hand forget its cunning, and my tongue 
 cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I ever prove false to the 
 teachings of the Constitution of the United States and to 
 the sentiments embodied in the Declaration of Indepen- 
 dence. 
 
 So reached that the oppressed of my species might have 
 shared with me in the elevation, I would rather stand on 
 that eminence than wear the richest crown that ever pressed 
 a monarch's brow. 
 
 Let us have faith that right makes might, and in that 
 faith let us, to the end, dare to do our duty, as we under- 
 stand it. 
 
p=»a.F£t:" II 
 
 JOKES AND ANECDOTES 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 HAVING concluded to add a series of jokes, stories and popular 
 anecdotes to the "Life of Lincoln," which entered so largely into 
 the daily life of Mr. Lincoln, I first wish to define and illustrate 
 the purpose which actuated this habit or propensity. 
 
 His purposes, in "story telling," were many and manifold. One of 
 his modes of getting rid of troublesome friends, as well as troublesome 
 enemies was by telling a story. If a man broached a subject which he 
 did not wish to discuss, he told a story which changed the complexion 
 of the conversation. If he was called upon to answer a question, he 
 answered it by telling a story. He had a story for everything. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's habit in employing homely and humorous language, 
 woven into constructive, convincing and illustrative anecdotal fabric, 
 was not a cultivated habit. It was a natural gift and so natural that 
 it was no effort for his brain to conjure up similes consisting of facts 
 or fiction as the case might be. His faculty of finding or inventing a 
 story to every event to w^hich he bore any relation was indeed marvel- 
 ous. It is not for a moment to be considered that he spent any time in 
 elaborating them, but by some law of association every event that oc- 
 curred suggested some story, and by an involuntary process his mind 
 harmonized and marshaled into line the word picture. His mind was 
 full of stories; and even the great and momentous facts of his life 
 seemed to take up their abode in these peculiarly classified realms, 
 and if the garment did not fit them it w^as so modified and changed that 
 it did. 
 
 Many waiters accuse him of being witty, but this is a mistake, 
 for wit is always an exaggeration of the truth, and the world know^s 
 that Mr. Lincoln never exaggerated. He possessed a mind that always 
 perceived the exact truth, and in illustrating, his humor was never 
 exaggerated. It is said that Mr. Lincoln's stories did not produce 
 
 28f 
 
200 PREFACE 
 
 hilarious laughter. Many of them afforded pleasure, and all of them 
 always amused, though oft en-times expressing reproof, rebuke and 
 satire. He was in no sense a funny man and no act or speech of his 
 life ever conveyed such impression. He was not a buffoon nor a boor, 
 but a quiet humor pervaded his sayings, even when his features wore 
 a melancholy expression. 
 
 He never ridiculed, but often exposed conceit and pretense by an 
 apt and faithful illustration — by a story which uncovered and revealed 
 the true character which had been so subtlely veneered, that the ordi- 
 nary mortal had not discovered the sham and alloy. 
 
 Some writers take delight in publishing an untrue statement that 
 Mr. Lincoln indulged in stories which would not bear the daylight of 
 polite or even decent society, and they conjure up a selection of "smutty 
 yarns" in order to tickle the palate of the morally diseased. 
 
 If this were true would it be wise or well to send them broadcast 
 among the youth? No; better to suppress them. If a great soul, such 
 as Lincoln^s, possessed so sad a frailty would it not be kind and bene- 
 ficial to obliterate and trample out of existence every unclean word? 
 But such is not the fact. 
 
 I am told by a personal friend of Mr. Lincoln that many of his stories 
 may have been vulgar and coarse, but never obscene or lewd. There 
 was no taint upon his moral character and no profanity or obscenity 
 defiled the man. 
 
 The anecdotes, jokes and unique illustrations which make up the 
 addenda to this book have been culled with great care, the most of 
 them having been related to me by relatives and personal friends of 
 Mr. Lincoln. 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES- 
 
 A MUTUAL AGREEMENT 
 
 A gunboat contractor was endeavoring to impress upon Mr. Lincoln 
 the superiority of his boats and made the statement that they would 
 run quite rapidly in very shallow water. The President replied in his 
 peculiar way, and with a solemn mien declared he had no doubt but that 
 these wonderfully constructed boats would "run anywhere, where the 
 ground was a little moist." 
 
 HOMINY AN ANCIENT FOOD 
 
 While discussing the army rations with Secretary Seward a.nd after 
 some considerable talk upon the subject, the conversation between the 
 President and the Secretary of State drifted into other channels and 
 the study of Latin was thoroughly canvassed. During a pause in the 
 conversation Mr. Lincoln remarked: "I studied Latin once." "Were 
 you interested in it?" asked Mr. Seward. 
 
 "Well, yes; I noted some very curious things; for instance, the word 
 hominy." 
 
 Mr. Seward! looked at the President and questioning his hearing 
 said: "Did I understand you, Mr. Lincoln? Is it hominy the food that 
 we were recently talking about?" 
 
 The President very gravely replied, in the affirmative, and when 
 asked to explain gave the following declension of the Latin noun homo: 
 
 "Homo — a man. 
 
 "Hominis — of man. 
 
 "Homini — for man. 
 
 "So, you see, Mr. Seward, hominy being 'for man' comes from the 
 Latin." 
 
292 JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 
 
 PRACTICAL HUMANITY 
 
 When Abraham Lincoln was but fifteen years of age he displayed 
 great fortitude of character and a practical sympathy that ever after 
 characterized his life. 
 
 One evening, while returning from "a raising" in his neighborhood, 
 accompanied by a number of boys and young men, he discovered, stray- 
 ing about riderless, a horse with saddle and bridle upon him. Abraham 
 Lincoln recognized the horse as belonging to a neighbor who indulged 
 in strong drink. Suspecting that the owner was not far away, he began 
 to search for him and soon discovered the hapless man all in a heap, 
 dead drunk. 
 
 Abraham's companions urged the cowardly policy of leaving the 
 wretched man to his fate, although it was a miserably cold and wet day. 
 Young Lincoln would not listen to such an unkind proposition, but re- 
 quested his companions to assist him in shouldering the sot. 
 The drunken man was lifted to the young Samaritan's shoulders and he 
 actually carried him quite eighty rods to the nearest neighbor. Kealiz- 
 ing that the man wasi in a serious condition, Lincoln sent word to his 
 father that he should not be at home that night, and the reason for his 
 absence. He remained the entire night by the drunken man's bedside 
 and administered to the sufferer. 
 
 THE INTERRUPTED CLUCK 
 
 At one time during his boyhood Abraham Lincoln was obliged to 
 take his grist upon the back of his father's horse, and ride fifty miles 
 to get it ground. The mill was very rude in construction, being pro- 
 pelled by horse-power; while the customers had to wait their turn, with- 
 out reference to their distance from home, and then use their own 
 horses to work the machinery. On this occasion Abraham, having ar- 
 rived at his turn, fastened his horse to the lever, and was following 
 closely at its heels and at the same time urging the nag with a switch 
 and clucking to her in a merry manner. He administered a rather 
 vigorous blow which caused the heretofore patient animal to elevate 
 its heels, and Abraham received a kick from her which prostrated him 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 293 
 
 and rendered him insensible. With the first instant of returning con- 
 sciousness he finished the cluck and remarked in his quaint way, though 
 only a boy, "Oh, my! all the stars in heaven came my way." 
 
 NEITHER WAS DESIRABLE 
 
 During the wonderful oratorical contest between Abraham Lincoln 
 and Stephen A. Douglas, the latter insulted Mr. Lincoln by suggesting 
 that he might like a negro woman for his wife. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's usually pale face flushed and in a subdued, but percep- 
 tibly indignant voice he replied: "I do not wish to have a. negro for 
 my wife; neither do I desire a negro for my slave.'' 
 
 A MISCALCULATION 
 
 On one occasion when Abraham Lincoln was a clerk in a country 
 store, at New Salem, 111., he made a slight mistake in adding up a bill 
 of goods. The amount of the bill according to his reckoning wa^ three 
 dollars and ten cents. He received the money and the woman went 
 away. On adding the items of the bill of goods again, to make sure of 
 the correctness of the sum, he discovered he had taken ten cents too 
 much. It was night, and after closing and locking the store, he started 
 out on foot and walked, a distance of nearly three miles, to the home of 
 his defrauded customer where he paid over to her the sum whose pos- 
 session had caused him so much trouble and anxiety. 
 
 A MILITARY HERO 
 
 The Blackhawk War was not a vei*y remarkable affair, and Mr. Lin- 
 coln never spoke of it as anything more than an interesting episode 
 in his life, except upon one occasion when he used it as a means for 
 turning the military pretensions of his colleague into ridicule. 
 
 The friends of General Lewis Cass, when that gentleman was a can- 
 didate for the Presidency, were endeavoring to endow him with a mili- 
 tary reputation. Mr. Lincoln at that time was a representative in Con- 
 gress, and knowing how absurdly ridiculous it was to attempt to cover 
 Mr. Cass with military glory delivered a speech which, in its allusions 
 to General Cass, was keenly sarcastic and ridiculously humorousw 
 
 "By the way, Mr. Speaker," said Mr. Lincoln, "do you know that I 
 
294 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 am a military hero? Yet it is quite certain I did not break my sword, 
 for I had none to break, but I bent my musket pretty badly on one 
 occasion. If General Cass went in advance of me in picking whortle- 
 berries I guess I surpassed him in my charges upon the wild onions. 
 If he saw any live, fighting Indians, it was more than I did, but I had 
 a good many bloody struggles with the mosquitoes; and although I 
 never fainted from loss of blood, I can truly say I was often very hun- 
 gry." 
 
 A SELFISH REASON FOR DOING A KIND ACT 
 
 An amusing incident occurred in connection wuth Mr. Lincoln^s "cir- 
 cuit riding." He w^as passing a deep slough, where he saw a pig strug- 
 gling, and with such little success, that it was quite evident that his 
 pigship must perish unless rescued. Mr. Lincoln looked at the pig and 
 the mud which enveloped it and then glanced at his new clothes, which 
 he had but just donned, and decided against the claims of the pig. He 
 rode on, leaving the animal to an untimely death, but the constantly 
 recurring vision of the pig^s frantic endeavor to release himself could 
 not be gotten rid of, and after riding two miles he turned back deter- 
 mined to rescue the poor piggy. Arriving at the spot, he tied his 
 horse and began immediately to build, of old rails, a bridge which 
 should afford him passage to the now discouraged pig. Walking along 
 this rudely improvised bridge, to the place of imprisonment, he seized 
 the pig and dragged him out. Washing his hands in the brook and 
 wiping them on the grass he mounted his horse and rode home. In exam- 
 ining the motive which actuated him to do this kind but disagreeable 
 act, he remarked to a friend some years afterwards, "I believe I rescued 
 the pig from pure selfishness, for I certainly went to the pig's relief in 
 order to take a pain out of my own mind." 
 
 A BLOODLESS DUEL 
 
 A sharp, sarcastic poem appeared in the Sangamon Journal, a paper 
 published at Vandalia, 111., and edited by Mr. Simeon Francis. The 
 poem had evidently allusion to Mr. James Shields of Springfield, 111., 
 afterwards a United States Senator. General Shields, instead of 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 295 
 
 ignoring or laughing off the matter, demanded of Mr. Francis the au- 
 thor's name, and now the editor was in a great quandary, for the author 
 was a young lady, and how to escape from this serious plight was a 
 question that haunted him day and night. On inquiry among the lady's 
 friends he learned that Abraham Lincoln was one of her admirers and 
 possibly bore a tenderer relation to her. Accordingly he went to Mr. 
 Lincoln and confided in him by explaining the trouble. It was quite 
 evident that somebody would be obliged to fight a duel with Mr. Shields 
 or be branded by him as a coward; and Mr. Francis, though entirely 
 responsible for the publication, was too cowardly to fairly and squarely 
 meet the issue. As soon as Mr. Lincoln comprehended the situation 
 and realized what Mr. Francis expected of him, he told the editor that 
 if Mr. Shields should call again and demand the author's name to in- 
 form him that he, Lincoln, held himself responsible for the poem. The 
 result was as expected and Mr. Lincoln received a challenge from Mr. 
 Shields. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln selected broadswords as the weapons for encounter and 
 immediately began to practice in the exercise of fencing. 
 
 The place of meeting was Bloody Island, a tract of land on the Mis- 
 sissippi River between Illinois and Missouri. The meeting was accom- 
 plished, according to arrangements, but friends interfered and suc- 
 ceeded in securing a reconciliation between the parties. 
 
 In speaking of this incident in after years Mr. Lincoln stated to a 
 friend that he selected broadswords because his arms were so long and 
 because of the length of his arms he would be able to defend himself, 
 while he had not the slightest intention of wounding his opponent. 
 
 THE VACILLATING POLITICAL OX 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's steadfastness of purpose could brook no vacillation 
 and when a member of the National Whig convention which met at 
 Philadelphia June 18, 1848, to nominate a candidate for the Presidency, 
 Mr. Lincoln tried his powers of opposing General Cass again. 
 On this occasion extracts were quoted to show how General 
 Cass had vacillated in his action on the Wilmot Proviso while Mr. 
 
296 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 Lincoln supplemented the following: "These extracts show that in 1846 
 General Cass was for the Proviso at once; that in March, 1847, he was 
 still for it; and that in December he was against it altogether. This 
 is a true index to the whole man. When the question was raised in 
 1846 he was in a blustering hurry to take ground for it; but soon he 
 began to see glimpses of the great Democratic ex-gad waving in his 
 face and to hear distinctly a voice saying, *back, back, sir; back a lit- 
 tle!' He shakes his head, and bats his eyes, and blunders back to 
 his position of March, 1847; but still the gad waves, and the voice grows 
 more distinct and sharper still — ^back, sir; back, I say; further back/ 
 and back he goes to the position of December, 1847, at which the gad 
 is still and the voice soothingly says — *so, stand still at that!' " 
 
 A LIGHT WEIGHT 
 
 The following is only another illustration of Mr. Lincoln's scrupu- 
 lous conscientiousness. It was during his service as clerk in Denton Of- 
 f utt's store at New Salem, 111. : 
 
 Late in the evening a woman entered the store and asked for half a 
 pound of tea. The tea was weighed out and paid for. The next morn- 
 ing Abraham entered to begin the duties of the day when he discovered 
 a four-ounce weight on the scales. He saw at once that he had made a 
 mistake and, shutting the store, took a long walk before breakfast to 
 deliver the remainder of the tea. 
 
 BORROWED CIDER 
 
 In 1854, during the "High Knowing" excitement of that year, Mr. 
 Lincoln was elected to the Legislature, and, much to the surprise of 
 the opponents of the Democracy, they had a majority of one in the Leg- 
 islature. Here was a chance for Mr. Lincoln to secure a seat in the 
 United States Senate, and his friends persuaded him to decline qualify- 
 ing, as the Illinois Constitution barred the election of a member of 
 the Legislature to the United States Senate. Mr. Lincoln complied, and 
 a new election was called, he being confident that an anti-Democrat 
 could be chosen in his place. But the Democrats availed themselves 
 of this confidence, brought out no candidate publicly, seemingly being 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 297 
 
 willing to let the election go by default. But, lo! when the votes were 
 counted, one McDaniel, a Democrat, was discovered to have been voted 
 for — and, worse yet, he had a majority of the votes! This was a serious 
 blow to Mr. Lincoln's friends, who "took on" terribly; but when Mr. Lin- 
 coln heard the result he te-hee^d one of his peculiar laughs and, of 
 course, told a story. He said he was reminded of one of the camp-fol- 
 lowers of General Taylor's army, who had secured a barrel of cider, 
 erected a tent, and commenced dealing it out to the thirsty soldiers at 
 twenty-five cents a drink; but he had sold it but a little while before 
 another sharp one set up another tent at his back and tapped the barrel 
 so as to flow on his side and peddled out No. 1 cider at five cents a 
 drink, of course getting the latter's trade entirely on borrowed capital. 
 The Democrats said Mr. Lincoln had played "know nothing" on a 
 cheaper scale than the real devotees of "Sam," and had raked down his 
 pile with his own cider. 
 
 This incident was taken from "Raymond's Life of Lincoln. 
 
 THE POOR WIDOW 
 
 An old woman of seventy-five years, the widow of a Kevolutionary 
 pensioner, came tottering into Mr. Lincoln's office one day with a pitiful 
 stor^. A certain pension agent had charged her the exorbitant fee of 
 two hundred dollars for collecting her fee. Mr. Lincoln believed her 
 story and made up his mind that she had been swindled. She was very 
 poor and a non-resident of the town; but the distinguished lawyer gave 
 her some money and immediately set about recovering part of her 
 money. The suit was entirely successful and Mr. Lincoln's address to 
 the jury before which the case was tried was peculiarly touching in its 
 allusions to the poverty of the widofw and the patriotism of her hus- 
 band, who had given his life to secure the nation's independence. 
 
 The result was very gratifying to Mr. Lincoln and he sent the 
 woman home rejoicing and with a hundred dollars in her pocket. 
 
 THE BAREFOOT BOY 
 
 A little incident occurred that illustrated Mr. Lincoln's readiness in 
 turning a political point. He was making a speech at Charleston, 111., 
 
298 JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 
 
 when a voice called out: "Mr. Lincoln, is it true that you entered this 
 State barefooted, driving a yoke of oxen?'' Mr. Lincoln paused for a 
 moment, seeming to deliberate whether he should reply to the imperti- 
 nent question, and then replied, that he could prove that fact byi at 
 least a dozen men in the crowd, any one of whom was more respectable 
 than his questioner. This episode seemed to inspireihim and he went on 
 to show what free institutions had done for himself. 
 
 THE MARVELOUS BRIDGE 
 
 The Democratic convention had, after severe and bitter controversy, 
 nominated Stephen A. Douglas for the Presidency, but the anta>gonism 
 between the Southern and Northern sections of the party was irrecon- 
 cilable and it was impossible for the two factions to agree upon a plat- 
 form or a man who would carry either section of the country. Over 
 this state of affairs Mr. Lincoln had his joke and his "little story." "He 
 once knew," he said, "a sound churchman by the name of Brown, who 
 was the member of a very sober and pious committee having in charge 
 the erection of a bridge over a dangerous and rapid river. Several 
 architects failed, and at last Brown said he had a friend, 
 named Jones, who had built several bridges and could undoubtedly 
 build that one. So Mr. Jones was called in. ^Oan you build this 
 bridge?' inquired the committee. ^Yes,' replied Jones, *or any other. I 
 could build a bridge to hell if necessary.' The committee were shocked, 
 and Brown felt called upon to defend his friend. *I know Jones so well,' 
 said he, *and he is so honest a man, and so good an architect, that if he 
 states soberly and positively that he can build a bridge to — to — the 
 infernal regions, why, I believe it; but I feel bound to say that I have 
 my doubts about the abutment on the other side.' "So," said Mr. Lin- 
 coln, "when politicians told me that the Northern and Southern wings 
 of Democracy could be harmonized, why, I believed them, of course, 
 but I always had my doubts about the abutment on the other side." 
 
 WHAT IS YOUR HEIGHT? 
 
 Judge Kelly of Pennsylvania, one of the committee appointed to ap- 
 prise Mr. Lincoln officially of his nomination, was a very tall man, and 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 299 
 
 while he was waiting to be introduced to Mr. Lincoln he had taken in 
 the future President's immense height, by a scrutiny that had not eS' 
 caped Mr. Lincoln's quick eye. So when he took the hand of the judge 
 he inquired: "What is your height?" "Six feet three," replied the 
 judge. "What is yours, Mr. Lincoln?" "Six feet four," responded Lin- 
 coln. ^^Then, sir," said the judge, "Pennsylvania bows to Illinois. My 
 dear man," he continued, "for years my heart has been aching for a 
 President that I could look up to; and I hope I have found him at last 
 in the land where we thought there were none but little giants." 
 
 THE VISION IN THE MIRROR 
 
 The following is from the pen of Major John Hay, one of Mr. Lin- 
 coln's private secretaries, and is reported as nearly as possible in Mr. 
 Lincoln's own words. 
 
 "It was just after my election in 1860," said Mr. Lincoln, "when the 
 news had been coming in thick and fast all day, and there had been a 
 great ^hurrah, boys!' so that I was well tired out and went home to 
 rest, throwing myself upon a lounge in my chamber. Opposite to where 
 I lay was a bureau with a swinging glass upon it, and, looking in that 
 glass, I saw myself reflected nearly at full length; but my face, I noticed, 
 had two separate and distinct images, the tip of the nose of oaae being 
 about three inches from the tip of the other. I was a little bothered, 
 perhaps startled, and got up and looked in the glass, but the illusion van- 
 ished. On lying down again I saw it a second time, plainer, if possible, 
 than before; and then I noticed that one of the faces was a little palef 
 — say five shades — than the other. I got up and the thing melted away, 
 and I went off and, in the excitement of the hour, forgot all about it, — 
 nearly, but not quite, for the thing would once in a while come up and 
 give me a little pang as though something uncomfortable had hap- 
 pened. W^hen I went home I told my wife about it, and a few days after 
 I tried the experiment again, when, sure enough, the thing came back 
 again; but I never succeeded in bringing the ghost back after that, 
 though I once tried very industriously to show it to my wife, who was 
 worried about it somewhat. She thought it was *a sign' that I was to be 
 
300 JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 
 
 elected to a second term of office and that the paleness of one of the 
 faces was an omen that I should not see life through the la^t term." 
 
 THERE ARE EIGHT IN ALL 
 
 At a party in Chicago shortly before Mr. Lincoln's departure for 
 SVashington a little girl timidly approached the great man and paused 
 from utter embarrassment. Mr. Lincoln called her to him and asked 
 her what she wanted. She replied that she wanted his name. Mr. 
 Lincoln looked back into the room and said: "But here are other little 
 girls — ^they would feel badly if I should give my name only to you." 
 The little girl replied that there were eight of them in all. "Then," 
 said Mr. Lincoln, "get me eight sheets of paper, and a pen and ink, and 
 I will see what I can do for you." The paper was brought, and Mr. 
 Lincoln sat down in the crowded drawing-room and wrote a sentence 
 upon each sheet, appending his name, and thus every little girl carried 
 
 off her souvenir. The above was related to me by Mrs. Judge at 
 
 whose home Mr. Lincoln was entertained. 
 
 YOUNG MAN. COME UNDER HERE 
 
 Seated one day in the executive chamber in the State House at 
 Springfield, 111., and in conversation with a distinguished judge, Mr. 
 Lincoln saw two raw, plainly-dressed young "Suckers" enter the room 
 and bashfully linger near the door. As soon as he apprehended their 
 embarrassment he rose and walked to them, saying, "How do you do, my 
 good fellows? What could I do for you? Will you sit down?" The 
 spokesman of the pair, the shorter of the two, declined to sit, and ex- 
 plained the object of the call thus: He had had a talk concerning the 
 relative height of Mr. Lincoln and his companion, and had asserted his 
 belief that they were exactly the same height. He had come in to 
 verify his judgment. Mr. Lincoln smiled, got his cane, and, placing the 
 end of it upon the wall said, "Here, young man, come under this." 
 The young man stepped under the cane, as Mr. Lincoln held it, and 
 when it was perfectly adjusted to his height Mr. Lincoln said: *^^ow 
 come out and hold up the cane." This he did while Mr. Lincoln stepped 
 
THE ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 
 Ford's Theatre, Washington, D. C, night of April 14th, 1865. 
 
 THB ESCAPE OF THE ASSASSIN AND THE PANIC OF THE AUDIENCE. 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 301 
 
 under. Moving his head back and forth to be sure that it worked easily 
 under the measurement, he stepped out, and declared to the sharp 
 young fellow that he had guessed with remarkable accuracy — ^that he 
 and the young man were of the same height. Then he shook hands 
 with them and kindly dismissed them. Mr. Lincoln remarked to the 
 astonished gentleman who had witnessed this democratic incident that 
 he would sooner have cut off his right hand than to have made those 
 young fellows feel that they had committed an impropriety. 
 
 PUT BRICKS IN HIS POCKETS 
 
 In discussing Secretary Stanton's impulsiveness Mr. Lincoln said to 
 a member of his Cabinet: "Well, we may have to treat him as they 
 are sometimes obliged to treat a Methodist minister I know of out West. 
 He gets wrought up to so high a pitch of excitement in his prayers and 
 exhortations that they are obliged to put bricks in his pockets to keep 
 him down. We may be obliged to serve Stanton the same way, but I 
 guess we will let him jump awhile first.'- 
 
 IVHAT DO YOU WANT? 
 
 A paper was handed to the President, who read it over carefully and 
 then remarked: "Yes, that is a sufficient endorsement for anybody; 
 w^hat do you want?" The full reply was not heard by the listener, but 
 enough was caught to understand that the promotion of some i>erson 
 in the army was strongly urged, and a few minutes later the applicant 
 said in a most sarcastic tone: "I see there are no vacancies among the 
 Brigadiers, from the fact that so many Colonels are commanding bri- 
 gades." 
 
 At this remark the President threw himself forward in his chair in 
 such a way as to expose to the lady, who was waiting an interview, the 
 most curious, comical expression of features imaginable. He was look- 
 ing the man squarely in the face, and, with one hand softly patting the 
 other, and a funny look pervading every line of his countenance, he 
 said: "My friend, let me tell you something about that. You are a 
 farmer, I believe; if not, you will understand me. Suppose you had a 
 
302 JOKES 'AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 large cattle-yard, full of all sorts of cattle — cows, oxen and bulls — and 
 you kept killing and selling and disposing of your cows and oxen, in one 
 way and another, taking good care of your bulls. By and by you would 
 find out that you had nothing but a yard full of old bulls, good for 
 nothing under heaven. Now it will be just so with the army, if I don't 
 stop making Brigadier-Generals." 
 
 The man was answered, and he tried to laugh; but the effort was a 
 feeble one. Mr. Lincoln laughed, however, and laughed enough for 
 both parties. 
 
 HOW NORTHERN HOSPITALS WERE ESTABLISHED 
 
 The following long and interesting story is taken from Holland's 
 Life of Lincoln and is given to demonstrate how persistence will accom- 
 plish and to show how utterly exhausted and worn out the President 
 had become: 
 
 "A lady, the widow of one who had died while serving the soldiers of 
 the State of which he was the Governor called at the White House. 
 
 After a brief delay Mrs. was received by Mr. Lincoln. He 
 
 was alone and plainly clad in a suit of black that fitted him poorly. He 
 was sitting in a folded-up sort of way in his arm chair. Nothing more 
 unpretending could be imagined. As she entered, his head was bent 
 forward, his chin resting on his breast, and his hand holding the letter 
 she had sent in. He made a feint of rising; and, looking out from under 
 
 his eyebrows, said inquiringly, "Mrs. ?" She replied "Yes, and I 
 
 am very glad to see you, Mr. Lincoln." He took her hand and "hoped she 
 was well," but gave no smile of welcome. She had come on business 
 which interfered with his policy and plans. He motioned her to a chair; 
 and while he was reading her letter she continued the perusal of his 
 features. After he had finished he looked up, ran his fingers through 
 his slightly silvered brown hair and with an air of almost severity said : 
 "Madame, this matter of Northern hospitals has been talked of a great 
 deal, and I thought it was settled; but it seems this is not the case. 
 What have you got to say about it?" "Simply this," she replied, "that 
 many soldiers, sick in our Western army on the Mississippi, must have 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES 303 
 
 Northern air or die. If you permit these men to come North you will 
 have ten men in one year where you have but one now." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln could not see the logic of this. Shrugging his shoulders 
 and smiling in his peculiar, quizzical way, he said: "If your reasoning 
 were correct your argument w^ould be a good one. I don^t see how 
 sending one sick man North is going to give us ten well ones." The lady 
 replied: "You understand me, I think." "Yes, yes," said he, "I under- 
 stand you; but if they go North they will desert, and where is the dif- 
 ference?" Her reply was: "Dead men cannot fight and they may not 
 desert." "A fine way to decimate the army," exclaimed the President. 
 We should never get a man back — not one, not one." "Pardon me," 
 responded the lady, "but I believe that you are mistaken. They are as 
 true and loyal to the Government as yourself. The loyalty is among the 
 common soldiers, and they are the chief sufferers." Mr. Lincoln replied: 
 
 "This is your opinion, Mrs. ," said he, earnestly. "How many men 
 
 of the Army of the Potomac do you suppose the Government was pay- 
 ing at the battle of Antietam? and how many do you suppose could be 
 got for active service at that time?" She replied : "I know nothing of 
 the Army of the Potomac, except that it has made some noble sacri- 
 fices." "Well, but give a. guess," persisted the President. "Indeed I 
 cannot," was her answer. He threw himself awkwardly around in his 
 chair, with one leg over the arm, and spoke slowly: "This war might 
 have been finished at that time if every man had been in his place who 
 was able to be there; but they were scattered here and there over the 
 North — some on furloughs, and in one way and another gone, so that, 
 out of one hundred and seventy thousand men, whom the Government 
 was paying, only eighty-three thousand could be got for action. The 
 consequence, you know, proved nearly disastrous." The President 
 paused for a moment and her answer came: "It was very sad, but — 
 but the delinquents were certainly not in Northern hospitals, nor were 
 they deserters from Northern hospitals, for we have none; so your argu- 
 ment is not against them." 
 
 The President appreciated this logic and replied: "Well, well; you 
 go and call on the Secretary of War and see what he says." He then 
 
304 JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 
 
 took the lady's letter and wrote on the back: "Admit Mrs. at 
 
 once. She is a lady of intelligence, and talks sense. A. Lincoln." "May 
 I return to you, Mr. Lincoln?'' she inquired. "Certainly," said he gently. 
 She was told by the Secretary that he had sent the Surgeon-General to 
 New Orleans with directions to come up the river and visit all the hospi- 
 tals. Mrs. had no faith in these instructions, and told him so 
 
 — ^told him further, that no good to the Western soldiers had ever 
 resulted from them. She also indicated what she believed to be the 
 reasons for the favorable reports from the Southern hospitals that had 
 uniformly been made. "I believe," said she, "that it is because the med- 
 ical authorities know that the heads of the departments are opposed 
 to establishing so far from army lines, and report accordingly. Can 
 nothing be done?" "Nothing until the Surgeon-General returns," he 
 replied. Personally, he expressed himself in favor of hospitals in every 
 Northern State, but he had to be guided by the medical authorities. 
 
 Mi*s. returned to the President and as he motioned her to a 
 
 chair he inquired what the Secretary of War had said to her. She gave 
 him a full account of the interview and added, "I have nowhere to go 
 but to you." He replied, "Mr. Stanton knows there is an acting Sur- 
 geon-General here and that Hammond will not return for two months. 
 I will see the Secretary of War myself to-night; and you may come 
 again in the morning." He then dismissed her in the kindest manner 
 and with the kindest words. 
 
 In the morning the lady returned, full of hope, expecting to be 
 greeted by the same genial face and cordial manner. The President 
 raised his eyes as she entered the room and said "good morning" and 
 pointed to a chair. He was evidently annoyed at something which had 
 occurred during some previous conversation of the morning, and waited 
 for her to speak. She waited for him. "Well," said he after a minute 
 of delay. "Well," replied his visitor. He looked up under his eyebrows, 
 a little startled, and inquired: "Have you nothing to say?" "Nothing," 
 she replied, "until I hear your decision. Have you decided? You know 
 you told me to come this morning." "No, I have not decided, and I 
 
JOKES AND 'ANECDOTES, 305 
 
 believe this idea of Northern hospitals is a great humbug, and I am 
 tired of hearing about it." 
 
 The lady was surprised and grieved, but replied to this seemingly 
 unkind remark by saying: "I regret to add a feather^s weight to your 
 already overwhelming care and responsibility. I would rather have 
 stayed at home." With a feeble smile he responded: "I wish you had." 
 She was earnest, and replied: "Nothing would give me greater pleas- 
 ure, sir, but a keen sense of duty to this government; justice and mercy 
 to its most loyal supporters' and regard for your honor and position 
 made me come. The people cannot understand why their husbands, 
 fathers and sons are left to die when, with proper care and attention, 
 they ought to live, and yet do some service for their country. Mr. 
 Lincoln, I do believe you will yet be grateful for my coming." Still 
 pleading for the sick soldiers she declared that the unfortunate ones 
 would be benefited by Northern air and Northern scenery. 
 
 DO YOU BELIEVE ME? 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's countenance expressed distress, for he was convinced 
 that she was speaking the truth. His face contracted almost painfully 
 as he said: "You assume to know more than I do." The tears came 
 into the lady's eyes as she replied: "Pardon me, Mr. Lincoln, I intend 
 no disrespect, but it is because of this knowledge, and because I do 
 know what you do not know, that I come to you. If you believe in me 
 you will give us hospitals; if not, well." 
 
 "You assume to know more than surgeons do," said Mr. Lincoln 
 rather sharply. "Oh, no," she replied, "I could not perform an amputa- 
 tion nearly so well as some of them do. But this is true: I do not come 
 here for your favor; I am no aspirant for military favor or promotion. 
 While it would be the pride of my life to command your respect and 
 confidence, still even this I can waive to gain my object. You will do 
 me justice some time. I come to you from no casual inspection, having 
 passed rapidly through the general hospitals with a cigar in my mouth 
 and a rattan in my hand and abusing our generals for not knowing and 
 performing their duty better. It is not thus that I have visited the hos- 
 
306 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 pitals. For eight long months — from early morning until late at night 
 — I have visited the regimental and general hospitals on the Mississippi, 
 from Quincy to Vicksburg, and I come to you from the cots of men who 
 have died, and who might have lived if you had permitted it. This is 
 hard to say, but it is true." 
 
 THEY ARE NOT ALL DEAD 
 
 While she was speaking the last sentence Mr. Lincoln's brow had 
 become contracted and a pained expression had settled upon his face. 
 He asked her how many men her State had sent to the field. She replied, 
 "fifty thousand." "That means," he responded, "that she has about 
 twenty thousand now. You need not look so sober," he continued, 
 "they are not all dead." The veins filled in his face painfully, and one 
 across his forehead w^as fearfully large and blue. Then, with an impa- 
 tient gesture, he said: "I have a good mind to dismiss them all from 
 the service and have no more trouble with them." 
 
 The lady was astonished, for she knew" that he was not in earnest. 
 They sat looking at one another in silence. He had become very pale, 
 and at last she broke the silence by saying: "They have been faithful 
 to the government; they have been faithful to you; they will still be 
 loyal to the government, do what you will with them. But if you will 
 grant my petition you will be glad as long ats you live." 
 
 The President bowed his head and, with a look of sadness, which 
 it is impossible for language to describe, said: "I shall never be glad 
 
 any more." "Oh, do not say so," Mrs. exclaimed, "for who will 
 
 have so much reason to rejoice a;S yourself when the government shall be 
 restored — as it will be." 
 
 "I know — I know," he said, pressing a hand on either side; "but the 
 springs of life are wearing away, and I shall not last." 
 
 Mrs. , feeling that she had occupied too much of his time, rose 
 
 to leave; and, as she did so, said: "Have you decided upon your answer 
 to me?" "No," he replied, "come to-morrow morning; stop, it is cabinet- 
 meeting to-morrow. Yes, come at twelve o'clock; there is not much 
 
 ^^ 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 307 
 
 for the cabinet to do to-morrow." Then he bade his visitor a cordial 
 good morning and she retired. 
 
 When Mrs. called the next forenoon the President sent her 
 
 word that the cabinet would soon adjourn and that she must wait. For 
 three long hours she waited, receiving occasional messages from Mr. 
 Lincoln. 
 
 The cabinet had adjourned. The President did not send for her, but 
 came shuffling into the room, rubbing his hands, and saying: "My dear 
 madame, I am sorry I have kept you waiting so long, but we have this 
 moment adjourned." "My waiting is no matter," she replied, "but you 
 must be very tired and we will not talk to-night." Bidding her to a seat, 
 she having risen as he entered, he sat down at her side and quietly 
 remarked: "I only wish to say to you an order which is equivalent to 
 the granting of a hospital in your State has been issued from the War 
 Department nearly twenty-four hours." 
 
 The lady could make no reply except through the tears that sprang 
 at once. Mr. Lincoln looked on and enjoyed it. When, at last, she 
 could command her voice, she said, "God bless you." Then, as doubts 
 came, touching the nature of the order, she said earnestly: "Do you 
 mean, really and truly, that we are going to have a hospital now?" 
 With a look full of benevolence and tenderness he said: "I do most 
 
 certainly hope so." Mrs. was too much affected to talk; and 
 
 perceiving this he kindly changed the subject, asking her to look at a 
 map which hung in the room, representing the great battle-grounds of 
 Europe. "It is a very fine map," said he; "see — here is Waterloo, here 
 are all the battle-fields about the Crimea." Then suddenly turning to 
 the lady, he said: "Fm afraid you will not like it so well when I tell 
 you who executed it." She replied: "It is a great work, whoever exe- 
 cuted it. Who was it, Mr. President?" "McOellan," he answered, and 
 added: "He certainly did do this well. He did it while he was at West 
 Point." 
 
 YOU ALMOST THINK I AM HANDSOME 
 
 The next morning, sick with the excitement through which she had 
 passed, the lady was at the White House again. She found more than 
 
308 JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 
 
 fifty persons waiting for an audience, so she sent in her name, and said 
 she would call again. Mr. Lincoln, however, sent word by the messen- 
 ger that he would see her very soon. 
 
 A little later afterward as she passed into the President's private 
 office she heard these words from the waiting throng: "She has been 
 here six days; and, what is more, she is going to win." As she entered, 
 Mr. Lincoln smiled pleasantly, drew a chair to his side, and said : "Come 
 here and sit down." As she did so he handed her a copy of the coveted 
 order. She thanked him and after some conversation concerning the 
 naming of the hospital the lady rose and said: "You will not wish to 
 see me again." "I did not say that, and I shall not say it," said the 
 President. "You have been very kind to me, and I am very grateful for 
 it," said his visitor. He looked up at her from under his eyebrows in his 
 peculiar way and said: "You almost think I am handsome, don't you?" 
 His face was full of benevolence, and his countenance lighted by a cor- 
 dial smile; it is not strange that the lady exclaimed: "You are perfectly 
 lovely to me now, Mr. Lincoln." The President colored a little and 
 laughed a good deal at the impulsive response, and reached out his 
 hand to bid her farewell. She took it reverently, bowed her head upon 
 it, prayed : "God bless you, Abraham Lincoln." Then she turned, heard 
 his "good bye" and was gone. 
 
 THE OCCASIONAL VENT 
 
 During the doubts and disasters of 1862 a member of Congress 
 called on Mr. Lincoln for an interview concerning a serious topic, when 
 he began to tell a trifling story. "Mr. President," said the Congressman, 
 rising, "I did not come here this morning to hear stories. It is too 
 serious a time." The smile fled from Mr. Lincoln's face as he replied: 
 "D. sit down ; I respect you as an earnest and sincere man. You cannot 
 be more anxious than I am constantly, and I say to you now, that if 
 it were not for this occasional vent I should die." 
 
 CHARLES LOST HIS HEAD 
 
 There was an earnest desire for peace on both sides without doubt, 
 but Mr. Lincoln could, with truth to himself and honor to his country, 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 309 
 
 make peace only on certain essential conditions; and in negotiations 
 for peace he could not recognize another government instead of the one 
 of which he alone was President. "That," said he, speaking to Mr. 
 R. M. T. Hunter, representing the rebel confederacy, "would be what 
 you so long asked Europe to do in vain, and we resigning the only thing 
 the Union armies are fighting for." To this Mr. Hunter replied that the 
 recognition of Davis' power to make a treaty was the first and indispen- 
 sable step to peace; and to illustrate this point he referred to the 
 correspondence between King Charles the First and his Parliament as 
 a reliable precedent of a constitutional ruler treating with rebels. 
 
 At this point Mr. Lincoln's face wore that indescribable expression 
 which generally preceded his hardest hits, and he remarked: "Upon 
 questions of history I must refer you to Mr. Seward, for he is posted in 
 Buch things, and I don't profess toi be; my only distinct recollection of 
 the matter is that Charles lost his head." 
 
 ROOT HOQ« OR DIB 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was discussing the slavery question with the same Mr. 
 Hunter when the latter gentleman remarked that the slaves, always 
 accustomed to work upon compulsion, under an overseer, would, if 
 suddenly freed, precipitate not only themselves! but the entire society 
 of the South into irremediable ruin. No work would be done, but blacks 
 and whites would starve together. The President waited for Mr. Sew- 
 ard to answer the argument, but as that gentleman hesitated he said: 
 "Mr. Hunter, you ought to know a great deal better about this matter 
 than I, for you have lived under the slave system. I can only say, in 
 reply to your statement of the case, that it reminds me of a man out 
 in niinois by the name of Case, who undertook a few years ago to raise 
 a very large herd of hogs. It was a great trouble to feed them; and 
 how to get around this was a puzzle to him. At length he hit upon 
 the plan of planting an immense field of potatoes; and, when they were 
 sufficiently grown, he turned the whole herd into the field and let them 
 have full swing, thus saving not only the labor of feeding the hogs, but 
 that also of digging the potatoes." Charmed with his sagacity, he stood 
 
310 JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 
 
 one day leaning against the fence, counting his hogs, when a neighbor 
 came along. ^Well, well,' said he, ^Mr. Case, this is all very fine. 
 Your hogs are doing very well just now; but you know out here in 
 Illinois the frost comes early, and the ground freezes a foot deep. Then 
 what are you going to do?' This was a view of the matter which Mr. 
 Case had not taken into consideration. Butchering time for hogs was 
 aAvay on in December or January. He scratched his head and at length 
 stammered: *Well, it may come pretty hard on their snouts, but I 
 don't see but it will be root Jiog or die!^ " 
 
 WOULD HAVE DIED LONG AGO 
 
 In speaking of a prominent politician whose good character was 
 
 defiled by a great personal vanity he said: "If General had 
 
 known how great a funeral he would have had he would have died 
 long ago." 
 
 NO VICES. FEW VIRTUES 
 
 A father called upon Mr. Lincoln and pressed his son's claims for 
 promotion. Something in Mr. Lincoln made the parent fear an appoint- 
 ment was not forthcoming, and in order to present the young man in 
 the most favorable light he said: "My son has no vices." Mr. Lincoln 
 looked at the man steadily for a moment and then quietly remarked: 
 "I have always observed that a man who has no vices has blamed few 
 virtues." 
 
 "DON^T WRITE" 
 
 Secretary of the Treasury remarked to Mr. Lincoln that he was sorry 
 that he had not written to Mr. B. before he left home. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln promptly responded: "Chase, never regret what you 
 don't write; it is what you do write that you are often called upon to 
 feel sorry for." 
 
 A NEAT TURN 
 
 It was a very warm day and the small court-room was crowded, 
 and the lawyers on both sides had removed their coats and vests. At 
 that time shirts buttoned behind were something unusual in the locality 
 in which Mr. Lincoln lived, and as he observed his opponent's shirt was 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 311 
 
 fastened in that manner he took advantage of the fact and thought he 
 would use it against his brother lawyer, for he began to feel confident 
 that he was getting worsted by the city lawyer. 
 
 Knowing the prejudices of the country people against anything that 
 savored of what they called pretense or affectation, he addressed the 
 jury as follows: "Gentlemen of the jury, having justice on my side I 
 don't think you will be at all influenced by the gentleman's pretended 
 knowledge of the law when you see he does not even know which side 
 of his shirt should be in front." There was great hilarity among the 
 country folk and Lincoln won his case. The above was related to m€ 
 by Mrs. Ficklin of Charleston, 111. 
 
 THE SHORT ATHLETE 
 
 In the fall of 1859 Mr. Lincoln made a speech at the Wisconsin State 
 Agricultural Fair, after which he strolled about the fair grounds with 
 the Governor of the State. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln, who had never seen such an exhibition before, was 
 greatly interested in the jugglery of the strong man, who was holding 
 cannon balls on his arms and tossing them about. Looking at the jug- 
 gler and apparently wondering how so short a man could exhibit such 
 feats of strength he accosted him and said: "Why, I could lick salt 
 off the top of your hat." 
 
 HOW BIG IS THE TRUNK? 
 
 A lady who lived in Springfield when a young girl and was near 
 neighbor to Mr. Lincoln relates the following story as illustrative of his 
 unusual kindness: 
 
 She had planned to take a trip on the cars, which was a great event 
 in her life; but somehow the hackman had failed to call for her and 
 her trunk and the time for departure was nearing rapidly. Beginning 
 to fear that she would be left she stepped out of the house and peered 
 anxiously down the street. Mr. Lincoln, coming along, noticed her 
 perturbation and asked the cause of her alarm. 
 
 She told her story, and Mr. Lincoln said: "How big is your trunk? 
 There is still time if it isn't too big." 
 
312 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 "I took him up to my room where my little old-fashioned trunk was 
 standing," she said. 
 
 "Oh, ho," he exclaimed, "wipe your eyes and come quick." 
 
 He seized the trunk, lifted it to his shoulders and strode out of the 
 house. Down the street he went, his long limbs carrying him along at 
 a rapid rate. 
 
 We reached the station in time, and Mr. Lincoln helped me on to 
 the train, kissed me good bye and told me to have a good time. 
 
 rr 
 
 I NEVER HAD A POLICY^' 
 
 Governor John M. Palmer of Illinois called upon Mr. Lincoln in 
 February of 1865 and was admitted at once, although the President 
 iv^as in the hands of the barber. 
 
 Calling out to the Governor, he said, "Come in, you^re home folks. I 
 don't mind being shaved before you." 
 
 After chatting for some time upon various subjects Governor Palmer 
 remarked: "If anyone had told me that in a great crisis like this the 
 people w^ere going out to a little one-horse town and pick out a one- 
 horse lawyer for President I wouldn^t have believed it." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln whirled about in his chair, his face white with lather, 
 a towel under his chin. At first Governor Palmer thought he was 
 angry, but brushing the barber aside he gazed into his old friend^s face 
 and said: 
 
 "Neither would I. It was a time when a man with a policy would 
 have been fatal to the country. I never had a policy. I have simply 
 tried to do what seemed best as each day came." 
 
 I RATHER GUESS NOT 
 
 A man by the name of Thompson had been giving the government 
 considerable trouble, and Charles A. Dana, Assistant Secretary of War, 
 who had heard that the obnoxious party was about to escape to Liver- 
 pool, called upon Mr. Lincoln to tell him of the anticipated departure. 
 
 It was after business hours when Mr. Dana was received by the 
 President, who was washing his hands. Looking up from his ablutions 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 313 
 
 he called out, "Hello, Dana, what is it now?" "The Provost Marshal of 
 Portland," said Mr. Dana, "reports that Jacob Thompson is to be in 
 town to-night, and inquires what orders we have to give." "What does 
 Stanton say," he asked. "Arrest him," replied Mr. Dana. "Well," 
 drawled out the President, "I rather guess not. When you have an 
 elephant on your hands, and he wants to run away, better let him run." 
 
 WHAT NETS? BAYOU-NETS 
 
 A Southern sympathizer was eating at the same hotel table with 
 Mr. Lincoln, and recognizing him by his portrait made a remark that 
 was intended for the President's ears, although pretending not to know 
 him. 
 
 "You can't do anything with them Southern fellows," said the old 
 man. "If they get whipped they'd retreat to them Southern swamps 
 and bayous along with the fishes and crocodiles. You hain't got the 
 fish nets made that'll catch 'em." 
 
 "Look here, old gentleman," the President remarked, "we've got just 
 the nets for traitors in the bayous or anywhere!" 
 
 "Hey! What nets?" 
 
 "Bayou-nets," and Mr. Lincoln gave a practical illustration by spear- 
 ing his food savagely with his fork. 
 
 HOW TO GET RID OF A GOVERNOR 
 
 A Governor of one of the Western States went to Mr. Lincoln one 
 day in a terrible rage, and in relating the fact to a friend some few 
 days thereafter the friend suggested that he had of course to grant his 
 request. 
 
 "Oh, no," Mr. Lincoln replied, "I did not concede anything. You 
 have heard how the Illinois farmer got rid of a big log that wa^ too big 
 to haul out, too knotty to split, and too wet and soggy to bum.'* 
 
 "Well now," said he in response to the inquiries of his neighbors one 
 Sunday as to how to get rid of it, "Well now, boys, if yon won't divulge 
 the secret I'll tell you how I got rid of it — I ploughed around if 
 
 Mr. Lincoln, in conclusion, then said, "Don't tell anybody, but that's 
 
314 JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 
 
 the way I got rid of Governor . I ploughed all round him, but it 
 
 took me three mortal hours to do it, and I was afraid every minute he'd 
 see what I was at/' 
 
 as 
 
 HE^S GOT IT" 
 
 Upon a certain occasion when Mr. Lincoln, with some members of 
 his cabinet, was out some distance from Washington Secretary Stanton 
 remarked that in the hurry of departure he had not had time to consult 
 the President in regard to a telegram received from General Mitchell, 
 who was in Alabama, but had taken upon himself the liberty of reply- 
 
 ing. 
 
 It seems that General Mitchell had asked instructions in regard to 
 a certain emergency case that had arisen, and the Secretary of War, 
 not understanding the exact nature of the contingency, had replied to 
 the telegram, "all right; go ahead." 
 
 After having explained the matter Mr. Stanton turned to Mr. Lin- 
 coln and said: "Mr. President, if I have made an error in not under- 
 standing him correctly I will have to get you to countermand the 
 order." 
 
 "Well, that is very much like the happening on the occasion of a 
 certain horse sale I remember which took place at the cross-roads down 
 in Kentucky when I was a boy," and proceeding further the President 
 related the incident: 
 
 "A particularly fine horse was to be sold and the people in large 
 numbers had gathered together. They had a small boy to ride the 
 horse up and down while the spectators examined the horse^s points. 
 
 "At last one man whispered to the boy as he went by: ^Look here, 
 boy, hain't that horse got the splints?' 
 
 "The boy replied: ^Mister, I don't know what the splints is^ but 
 if it's good for him he has got it; if it ain't good for him he ain't got it.' " 
 
 "Now," said Mr. Lincoln, "if this was good for Mitchell it was all 
 right, but if it was not I have got to countermand it." General Fitzpat- 
 rick is authority for the above. 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 315 
 
 DO NOT LOSE SELF-OONTROL 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's life was a wonderful and marvelous example of self- 
 control. Despite abuse and calumny and falsehood he maintained a 
 serene demeanor and even greeted his enemies with a kind and cordial 
 welcome. His whole career from childhood to the day of his translation 
 was an exemplification of his most quoted saying, "With malice toward 
 none, with charity for all." During his administration it became his 
 painful duty to reprimand a young army officer, who had been court- 
 martialed for a quarrel with one of his associates, and in the following 
 words he addressed him: 
 
 "Quarrel not at all. No man resolved to make the most of himself 
 can spare time for personal contention. Still less can he afford to take 
 all the consequences, including the vitiating of his temper and the loss 
 of self-control. 
 
 "Better give your path to a dog than be bitten by him in contesting 
 for the right. Even killing the dog would not cure the bite." 
 
 GIVE THE REBS A OHANOE 
 
 A Universalist minister, the Rev. Mr. Shrigley of Philadelphia, had 
 been nominated for hospital chaplain when a protesting committee 
 called upon the President and asked him to withdraw the nomination. 
 Mr. Lincoln was quite surprised and asked for the cause of this peculiar 
 request. 
 
 The answer came. "Mr. Shrigley is not sound in his theological 
 opinions." 
 
 "On what question is the gentleman unsound," Mr. Lincoln then 
 demanded. 
 
 "He does not believe in endless punishment," replied the chairman 
 of the committee, and not only so, sir, but he believes that even the 
 rebels themselves will be finally saved." 
 
 "Is that so?" inquired the President. To which inquiry the commit- 
 tee in chorus responded "yes, yes." 
 
 "Well, gentlemen, if that be so, and there is any way under heaven 
 
S16 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 whereby the rebels can be saved, then for God's sake, and their sakes, 
 let the man be appointed/' 
 
 The result of this conference really enhanced the reverend gentle- 
 man's claims. He was appointed by the President and served until the 
 close of the war. 
 
 THEY WILL SQUEAL 
 
 It is quite the fashion of many men folks to let the world know, 
 that in doing their duty, they are having a mighty hard time, and when 
 one of the Northern Generals, who was always complaining against the 
 methods of raising troops, had so annoyed the Adjutant-General that 
 he conferred with Mr. Lincoln and asked him how he should reply to 
 Governor — -^ — 's remonstrances, Mr. Lincoln passed the matter over 
 Avith very little concern and said to the Adjutant-General: 
 
 "Never mind, never mind, those dispatches don't mean anything. 
 Just go right ahead. The Governor is like a boy I once saw at a launch- 
 ing. When everything was ready they picked out a boy and sent him 
 under the ship to knock away the trigger and let her go. 
 
 "At the critical moment everything depended on the boy. He had 
 to do the job well by a direct, vigorous blow, and then lie flat and keep 
 still while the boat slid over him. 
 
 "The boy did everything right, but he yelled as if he were being mur- 
 dered from the time he got under the keel until he got out. I thought 
 the hide was all scraped off his back, but he wasn't hurt at all. 
 
 "The master of the yard told me that this boy was always chosen 
 for that job; that he did his work well; that he never had been hurt, 
 but that he always squealed in that way. 
 
 "That's just the way with Governor . Make up your mind 
 
 that he is not hurt, and that he is doing right, and pay no attention to 
 his squealing. He only wants to make you understand how hard his 
 task is, and that he is on hand per-forming it." 
 
 RESPECT FOR THE EGGS 
 
 A sleight-of-hand performer being present at a boat launching which 
 Mr. Lincoln attended was asked to give an exhibition of his powers; and 
 
I 
 
 2 3 
 
 ► ■go 
 
 £•2 
 
 I ^ 
 
 •e s ^ 
 
 U3 
 
 W 
 
 fe ® r* 
 
 5 
 
 a 9 
 
 CO o '"f 
 
 • s. o 
 
 • a* 
 
 m 
 
 o 
 
 a 
 o 
 
 B 
 
 I 
 
 
VIEWING LINCOLN'S REMAINS. 
 
 City Hall, New York City. 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 317 
 
 when Mr. Lincoln hesitated about sending his hat up to the improvised 
 platform on which the performer stood, as a receptacle for the cooked 
 eggs, he explained by saying : The delay was occasioned "out of respect 
 for the eggs, and not care for the hat." 
 
 PRAISED HIS OPPONENT 
 
 It was quite a common occurrence for rival candidates to tour their 
 district together, and so during the campaign which preceded Mr. Lin- 
 coln's election to the Legislature he and his opponent had many pleas- 
 ant rides in company. 
 
 Upon one occasion, in addressing a gathering of farmers, Abraham 
 Lincoln was lavish in his praise of the opposing candidate. He said: 
 "I am too poor to own a carriage, but my friend ha>s generously invited 
 me to ride with him. I want you to vote for me if you will; but if not 
 then vote for my opponent, for he is a fine man." 
 
 No doubt politicians will consider the above method a queer way 
 of securing votes; but then Mr. Lincoln never did anything as other 
 men did. 
 
 "DON'T BE IN A HURRY, BOYS" 
 
 President Lincoln failed to catch the train which was to take him 
 and a party of friends to New York. The failure on the part of Mr. 
 Lincoln to reach the station in time caused much dissatisfaction among 
 the members of the party; but Mr. Lincoln took the situation good- 
 humoredly and of course told a story. He began: "Out in Illinois a 
 convict who had murdered his cell-mate was sentenced to be hanged. 
 On the day set for the execution crowds lined the roads leading to the 
 spot where the scaffold had been erected, and there was much jostling 
 and excitement. 
 
 "The condemned man took matters coolly, and as one batch of per- 
 spiring, anxious men rushed past the cart in which he was riding he 
 called out, 'Don't be in a hurry, boys^ you've got plenty of time. There 
 won't be any fun until I get there.' 
 
 "That is the condition of things now%" concluded the President. 
 "There won't be any fun at New York until I get there." 
 
518 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 YOU'LL SEE IT AGAIN 
 
 A young attorney who was on the opposite side of the ease met Mr. 
 Lincoln in the streets of Bloomingtoin, 111., and when he was accosted 
 by the future President, who asked how the jury's verdict stood, said: 
 "I've lost the case and it has gone to hell." To which vigorous remark 
 Mr. Lincoln replied; "Oh, well, then you will see it again." 
 
 DO I LOOK NICE? 
 
 Mr. Liicoln was not handsome, in fact very plain looking, and Mrs. 
 Lincoln knew it; but yet she liked to have him as presentable as pos- 
 sible, so when a distinguished delegation wa« sent out from New York 
 to receive the President upon his entrance into the city Mrs. Lincoln 
 felt considerable anxiety for her husband's personal appearance, and 
 just before the train stopped took out her handbag and said: "Abraham, 
 I must fix you up a bit for these city folks." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln lifted her to a seat that she might be able to reach him, 
 while she put his hair into good condition and arranged his necktie. 
 After she had finished the hasty toilet he bestowed upon her an affec- 
 tionate caress and remarked, "Do I look nice now, mother?" "Well, 
 you'll do, Abraham," replied the proud wife. 
 
 TAD^S REBELLION 
 
 Mr. Carpenter, the well-known photographer of Washington, had 
 been engaged to take some views of the President's office, and in select- 
 ing a room to be m^ed as a dark closet the photographer appropriated 
 one that Tad had had fitted up for a theatre. 
 
 After one or two views had been secured Tad concluded that his 
 dignity was infringed upon, because he had not been consulted in 
 regard to the selection of the improvised "dark room," and immediately 
 proceeded to assert his rights by locking the door and putting the key 
 in his pocket. 
 
 The President, who was sitting for a picture, was rather surprised 
 that the artist should remain out so long, when suddenly Mr. Carpen- 
 ter came into the room hurriedly and told Mr. Lincoln what Tad had 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 319 
 
 done. In a mild, persuasive tone the father asked his boy to unlock the 
 
 door. But the young, rebellious fellow refused to obey and went off 
 
 into his mother's room. After waiting patiently a short time for the 
 
 boy to return or to relent and unlock the door the President inquired 
 
 how things were coming out. The photographer reported that the 
 
 young man was still obdurate. Mr. Lincoln rose from his chair and 
 
 compressing his lips disappeared within the sanctity of hisi private 
 
 rooms and in a short time returned with the key which had been the 
 
 cause of so much excitement. 
 
 "Tad," said he, "is a peculiar child. He was violently excited when 
 
 I went to him, but I said: ^Tad, do you know that you are making your 
 
 father a great deal of trouble?' He burst into tears, instantly giving 
 
 me the key." 
 
 A TITLE SHAN^T HURT YOU 
 
 An Austrian Count, having been introduced to the President by 
 the Minister Plenipotentiary of his country, proceeded to dwell upon 
 his aristocratic birth as being a most important reason for his appoint- 
 ment to the army. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln listened attentively to the young man's recommendation 
 and then slapping him familiarly on the shoulder said: "Never mind, 
 you shall be treated with just as much consideration for all that. I 
 will see to it that your bearing a title shan't hurt you." 
 
 EXTREMES OFTEN MEET 
 
 Though Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas were rivals in 
 love and rivals in politics yet they remained the best of friends, and 
 when they were in Congress they were often seen upon the street to- 
 gether, though they made a most comical appearance. "Long Abe" was 
 the tallest man in Congress and the "Little Giant" the shortest man. 
 
 Lincoln was often joked about the matter, but always replied in a 
 serious tone: "Yes, that's about the length and breadth of it." 
 
 DON^T YOU WANT TO SEE THE HOG? 
 
 The following story was related by Lincoln to a morbid and foolish 
 curiosity-seeker, who imagined that he could secure a pass in order 
 
320 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 to inspect the battlefield of Bull's Run the day succeeding the first battle. 
 
 After gazing at the man for a moment and greatly amazed at his 
 effrontery Lincoln told him the following story: 
 
 "A man in Cortlandt county, N. Y., raised a porker of such unusual 
 size that strangers went out of their way to see it. 
 
 "One of them one day met the old gentleman and inquired about the 
 animal. 
 
 *• ^Wall, yes,' the old fellow said, ^I've got such a critter, mi'ty big 
 'un; but I guess I'll have to charge you about a shillin' for lookin' at 
 him.' 
 
 "The stranger looked at the old man for a minute or so, pulled out 
 the desired coin, handed it to him and started to go off. ^Hold on,' 
 said the other, *don't you w^ant to see the hog?' 
 
 " ^No,' said the stranger, ^I have seen as big a hog as I w^ant to see.' 
 
 "And you will find that fact the case with yourself, if you should 
 happen to see a few live rebels there as well as dead ones." 
 
 SMALL FAVORS THANKFULLY RECEIVED 
 
 Dr. Sunderland, a prominent physician, but very short of stature, 
 called upon Mr. Lincoln and urged him to issue the Emancipation 
 Proclamation. It was on New Year's day, and after the Doctor had 
 introduced himself immediately proceeded to say: "I have come, Mr. 
 President, to anticipate the New Year with my respects, and if I may 
 say to you a word about the serious condition of this country." 
 
 The Doctor was so short that he had to nearly throw his head over 
 on to his back in order to see the President's face. With a most quiz- 
 zical smile the President replied to the little man: 
 
 "Go ahead, Doctor, every little helps." 
 
 COULDN^T ACT WITHOUT ASKING 
 
 There were a certain number of generals who could do nothing 
 without the advice of the President. One commander in particular had 
 so little self-reliance that he telegraphed upon the slightest pretext. At 
 last the President became so annoyed with him that he said to Secretary 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 321 
 
 Stanton in referring to this over-cautious general: "He reminds me 
 of a story I once heard about a Tammany man," and straightway pro- 
 ceeded to tell the following anecdote: 
 
 "He happened to meet a friend, also a member of Tammany, on 
 the street, and in the course of the talk a friend, who was beaming with 
 smiles and good nature, told the other Tammanyite that he was going 
 to be married. 
 
 "The first Tammany man looked more serious than men usually do 
 upon hearing of the impending happiness of a friend. In fact his face 
 seemed to take on a look of anxiety and worry. 
 
 " ^Ain^t you glad to know that I'm to get married?' demanded the 
 second Tammanyite, somewhat in a huff. 
 
 "'Of course I am,' was the reply; but, putting his mouth close to 
 the ear of the other, said: 'Have ye asked Morrissey yet?' 
 
 "Now, this general of whom w^e are speaking v/ouldn't dare to order 
 out the guard without asking Morrissey," concluded the President. 
 
 THEY LOOKED GOOD AND SORRY 
 
 There were people and delegations of people who called upon Mr. 
 Lincoln, but were never able to obtain an interview because he knew 
 he was unable to grant their requests. In order to save himself trouble 
 and annoyance he knew that to avoid seeing them was the quickest and 
 best way out of the matter. 
 
 But one day some gentlemen from Kentucky, who had as yet been 
 unable to secure an audience with Mr. Lincoln, were about to give up 
 and leave without having accomplished their mission when they were 
 met in the lobby by Tad, a boy then eleven years old, who overheard 
 them make some uncomplimentary remark about "Old Abe" and dis- 
 cussed among themselves the fact that they had been unable to secure 
 an audience. 
 
 Tad asked them if they were particularly anxious to see "Old Abe," 
 and to their replies informed them that if they would wait a minute he^d 
 see what he could do. Rushing into his father's office he said, "Papa> 
 may I introduce some friends to you?" 
 
333 JOKES AND 'ANECDOTES. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln replied in the affirmative, for he was never able to say 
 nay to his children, whereupon Tad found the Kentuckians and told 
 them that he had arranged an interview. 
 
 Asking the most dignified-looking gentleman his name he told him 
 to come on and bring his friends with him. Leading them up to the 
 
 President he said, "Papa, let me introduce to you Judge of 
 
 Kentucky," and added, "Now, Judge, you introduce the other gentle- 
 men." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln at once realized that these were the very gentlemen 
 which he had been avoiding for the past week; but he took Tad upon 
 his lap, kissed him, and told the little man that it was all right, and 
 that he had introduced his friends like a gentleman. 
 
 Some time afterwards it seems that he asked Tad why he called 
 those gentlemen his friends. "Well," said Tad, "I had seen them so 
 often, and they looked so good and sorry, and said they were from Ken- 
 tucky, that I thought they must be our friends." "That is right, my son," 
 said Mr. Lincoln; "I would have the whole human race your friends 
 and mine, if it were possible." 
 
 WITH A SMALL Q 
 
 It is said by some of Mr. Lincoln's biographers that when he was 
 quite a young man he was known to spell God with a small g. When 
 he was told of it afterward the President immediately replied: "Well, 
 that reminds me of a little story," and forthwith he related the follow- 
 ing: 
 
 "It came about that a lot of Confederate mail was captured by the 
 Union forces, and, while it was not exactly the proper thing to do, some 
 of our soldiers opened several letters written by the Southerners to 
 their people at home. In one of these missives the writer, in a post- 
 script, jotted down this assertion: 
 
 " ^We'll lick the yankees to-morrer, if godlemity spares our lives.' 
 
 "That fellow was in earnest, too, as the letter was written the day 
 before the second battle of Manassas." 
 
JOKES AND 'ANECDOTES. 323 
 
 WON^T DO FOR OLD FRIENDS 
 
 Mr. Lincoln, during the first year of his administration, experienced 
 many difficulties in trying to wear the prescribed kid gloves; but after 
 many annoying and ludicrous attempts to wear them he abandoned the 
 attempt, and at all public receptions appeared with his hands bare. 
 
 The following is one of the many incidents which illustrates a kid 
 glove episode: 
 
 It was with great difficulty that he "pulled" on a pair of tight-fitting 
 white kids, and at this particular reception an old friend from Sanga- 
 mon county. 111., called to pay his respects to the President. When the 
 Illinoisan was presented and Mr. Lincoln recognized the old acquaint- 
 ance (Simpson by name) he welcomed him with a genuine hearty West- 
 ern hand-shake, which was so vigorous that his kid glove split from 
 top to bottom. Mr. Lincoln looked at the ruined kid for a moment, 
 then pulling off the rent glove and raising his brawny hand, cried out, 
 in so loud a tone that the entire procession stopped to hear what he 
 haxi to say: "Well, my old friend, this is a general justification. You 
 and I were never intended to wear these things. If they were stronger 
 they might do well enough to keep out the cold, but they are a failure to 
 shake hands with between old friends like us." 
 
 WASN^T AFRAID FOR HIMSELF 
 
 When Mr. Lincoln returned from Richmond and was greeted by a 
 member of the Cabinet, who told him how uneasy he had been for his 
 safety during his absence, the President replied: "Why, if any one 
 else had been President and had gone to Richmond I would have been 
 alarmed; but I was not scared about myself a bit." 
 
 LINCOLN'S DEFINITION 
 
 Governor Saunders of Nebraska, in a conversation with Mr. Lincoln, 
 incidentally mentioned a settlement in his State which was situated 
 on the banks of a stream called "Weeping Water.'' "Weeping Water," 
 said Mr. Lincoln, "I suppose the Indians call it Minneboohoo, don't 
 they? They ought to, if Laughing Water is Minnehaha in their Ian- 
 
324 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 guage.'^ A friend of the Governor's vouches for the truth of this little 
 
 gem. 
 
 ASKING HELP FROM THE HELPLESS 
 
 It seems that General McClellan was not only incompetent, but 
 appeared to be constantly calling for help, and incessantly annoyed 
 the President vrith telegrams asking for assistance, advice and counsel. 
 A particularly appealing message so annoyed and disgusted the Presi- 
 dent that he remarked to a number of his Cabinet: ^^It seems to me 
 that McClellan has been wandering around and has sort of got left, 
 lie's been hollering for help ever since he went South, and wants some- 
 body to come to his deliverance and get him out of the place he's got 
 into. 
 
 "He reminds one of a story of a man out in Illinois, who, in company 
 with a number of friends, visited the State penitentiary. They wan- 
 dered all through the institution and saw everything, but just about 
 the time to depart this particular man became separated from his 
 friends and couldn't find his way out. 
 
 "He roamed up and down one corridor after another, becoming 
 more desperate all the time, when, at last, he came across a convict 
 who was looking out from between the bars of his cell-door. Here was 
 salvation at last. Hurrying up to the prisoner he hastily asked: 
 
 " *Say, how do you get out of this place?' " 
 
 IT^S ALL HE^S GOT IN THE WORLD 
 
 The following is only another number added to the list of incidents 
 which illustrate Mr. Lincoln's great kindness of heart: 
 
 When the town of Petersburg, 111., was platted the surveying was 
 done by Abraham Lincoln, and some twenty years afterward the prop- 
 erty-owners had difficulty in correctly establishing the boundary lines. 
 A recourse to the official plat did not unravel the difficulty, and after 
 a meeting of the citizens whose property was involved in the tangle 
 it was decided to send a committee to Springfield to consult the now 
 distinguished surveyor. But Mr. Lincoln could give them no relief, as 
 all remembrance of the transaction had passed from his mind. He 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 335 
 
 referred the committee to the records as the only proof of the trans- 
 action. 
 
 The matter was taken up in the courts, and while the trial was pend- 
 ing an old Irishman named McGuire, hearing of the dispute, promptly 
 said : *'I can tell you all about it. I helped carry the chain when Abe 
 Lincoln laid out this town. Over there where they are quan^eling about 
 the lines, when he was locating the street he straightened up from his 
 instrument and said: ^If I run that street right through it will cut 
 
 three or four feet off the end of 's house. It's all he's got in the 
 
 world, and he never would get another. I reckon it won't hurt anything 
 out here if I skew the line and miss him.' " Governor Palmer of Illi- 
 nois when telling the above incident said : "That's not made up, either." 
 
 I^LL FIND THE TRACKS 
 
 It is related by Judge Herndon, of Springfield, Mr. Lincoln's law 
 partner, that he never saw his friend look more cheerful than on the 
 day before his departure for Washington, and when his old law asso- 
 ciate remarked to him, "I believe it will do you good to get down to 
 Washington." The President-elect replied: "I know it will. I only 
 wish I could have got there to lock the door before the horse was 
 stolen. But when I g^t to the spot I can find the tracks." 
 
 nVI MAKING GENERALS NOW 
 
 Mr. H. C. Witney relates the following conversation which he had 
 with Mr. Lincoln during the first year of his administration, and in 
 substance says: "I was in Washington for a few days in behalf of the 
 Indian service. This was just previous to August, 1861, and I merely 
 said to President Lincoln one day: ^Everything is drifting into the war 
 and I guess you will have to put me into the army.' 
 
 "The President looked up from his work and replied good-humoredly : 
 <I'm making Generals now; in a few days I will be making quartermas- 
 ters, and then I'll fix you.' " 
 
 I KIN MANAGE MY OWN AFFAIRS 
 
 It is stated that when the Lincoln family moved from Indiana and 
 located near Decatur, Illinois, that Abe Lincoln carried along a line of 
 
326 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 notions, expecting to dispose of them to good advantage while en route 
 to the new home. 
 
 It was during a debate among the members of the Cabinet upon a 
 serious international problem that Mr. Lincoln referred to the following 
 episode which occurred in connection with the above notion enterprise: 
 
 The meeting was rather heated and the President, being in the 
 minority, found himself in a hole, so to speak, from which he could not 
 extricate himself in a hurry, and, in order to gain time and put off the 
 ultimate decision or action, he related the following apt story: 
 
 "Gentlemen," said he, addressing those seated at the Cabinet table, 
 "the situation just now reminds me of a fix I got into some thirty years 
 ago, when I was peddling notions on the way from Indiana to Illinois. 
 I didn't have a large stock, but I charged large prices, and I made 
 money. Perhaps you don't see what I am driving at." 
 
 It is said that the members of his Cabinet were so thoroughly dis- 
 gusted with what seemed to them entirely out of place at such a critical 
 juncture thait they hardly replied to the President's question, but simply 
 resigned themselves to the inevitable story. 
 
 "I don't propose to argue this matter," the President went on to say, 
 'because arguments have no effect upon men whose opinions are fixed 
 and whose minds are made up^ But this little story of mine will make 
 some things which are in the dark show up more clearly." 
 
 "Just before we left Indiana and crossed into Illinois," continued 
 Mr. Lincoln, "we came across a small farm-house full of nothing but 
 children. These ranged in years from seventeen years to seventeen 
 months, and all were in tears. The mother of the family was red- 
 headed and red-faced, and the whip she held in her right hand led to 
 the inference that she had been chastising her brood. The father of 
 the family, a meek-looking, mild-mannered, tow-headed chap, was stand- 
 ing in the front doorway awaiting — ^to all appearances — his turn to 
 feel the thong. 
 
 "I thought there wasn't much use in asking the head of that house 
 if she wanted any notions. She was too busy. It was evident an insur- 
 rection had been in progress, but it was pretty well quelled when I got 
 
JOKES AND 'ANECDOTES. 327 
 
 there. The mother had about suppressed it, with an iron hand, but she 
 was not running any risks. She kept a keen and wary eye upon all the 
 children, not forgetting an occasional glance at the old man in the 
 doorway. 
 
 "She saw me as I came up and from her look I thought she was of 
 the opinion that I intended to interfere. Advancing to the doorway, 
 and roughly pushing her husband aside, she demanded my business. 
 
 "^Nothing, madam,' I answered as gently as possible. ^I merely 
 dropped in as I came along to see how things were going.' 
 
 " ^Well, you needn't wait,' was the reply in an irritated way ; ^there's 
 trouble here, and lots of it, too, but I kin manage my own affairs with- 
 out the help of outsiders. This is just a family row, but I'll teach these 
 brats their places if I have to lick the hide off ev'ry one of them. I 
 don't do much talkin', but I run this house, an' I don't want no one 
 sneakin' round trying to find out how I do it, either.' " 
 
 "That's the case here with us," the President continued. "We must 
 let the other nations know that we propose to settle our family row 
 in our own way, and teach these brats (the seceding States) if w^e have 
 to lick the hide off of each and every one of them. And, like the old 
 woman, we don't want any ^sneakin' round' by other countries who 
 would like to find out how we are to do it, either." 
 
 "Now, Mr. Seward," said the President, "you write some diplomatic 
 notes to that effect." This very apt illustration was rehearsed by a 
 lady who told me that Secretary Wells was the authority for it. 
 
 HAD A CAMPAIGN OF HIS OWN 
 
 In a conversation with Major-General Garfield, who afterward be- 
 came President of the United States^ Mr. Lincoln said to him: "By the 
 way, Garfield, do you know that Chase, and Stanton, and General Wool 
 and I had a campaign of our own? We went down to Fortress Monroe 
 in Chase's revenue cutter and consulted with Admiral Goldsborough 
 on the feasibility of taking Norfolk by landing on the North shore and 
 proceeding to the town only eight miles away? The Admiral said there 
 was no landing on that shore, and we should have to double the cape, 
 
3^8 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 and approach the place from the south side, which would be a long 
 journey and a difficult one. I asked him if he had ever tried to find a 
 landing, and he replied that he had not I then told him a story of a 
 fellow in Illinois who had studied law, but had never tried a case. He 
 was sued, and, not having confidence in his ability to manage his own 
 case, employed a lawyer to manage it for him. He had only a confused 
 idea of the meaning of law terms, but he was. anxious to make a display 
 of learning, and, on the trial, constantly made suggestions to his lawyer, 
 who paid but little attention to him. At last, fearing that his lawyer 
 was not handling the opposing counsel very well, he lost all his patience, 
 and, springing to his feet, cried out, 'Why don't you go at him with a 
 capias or a surre-butter or something, and not stand there like a con- 
 founded old nudum-poctuno?' 'Now, Admiral,' said I, 'if you don't 
 know that there is no landing on the North shore I want you to find 
 out' '' 
 
 In continuing the account of this narrative Mr. Lincoln said : "The 
 Admiral took the hint, and taking Chase and Wool along with a com- 
 pany or two of marines, he went on a voyage of discovery, and Stanton 
 and I remained at Fortress Monroe. That night we went to bed, but 
 not to sleep, for we were very anxious for the fate of the expedition. 
 About two o'clock the next morning I heard the heavy tread of W^ool 
 ascending the stairs. I went out into the parlor and found Stanton 
 hugging Wool in a most enthusiastic manner, as he announced that he 
 had found a landing, and had captured Norfolk." 
 
 A PRICELESS TREASURE 
 
 Though Abraham Lincoln was looked upon by his early associates 
 and later by his confreres as a lazy man, yet the following account 
 taken from the Boston Advertiser shows' that when not engaged in 
 weighty law problems his hands were not idle, but quite as busy as his 
 brain: 
 
 "Occupying an ordinary and commonplace position in one of the 
 show-ease« in the large hall of the Patent Office is one little model 
 which, in ages to come, will be prized as at once one of the most curious 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 329 
 
 and one of the most sacred relics in that vast museum of unique and 
 priceless things. This is a plain and simple model of a steamboat, 
 roughly fashioned in wood, by the hand of Abraham Lincoln. It bears 
 date in 1849, when the inventor was known simply as a successful law- 
 yer and rising politician of Central Illinois. Neither his practice nor 
 his politics took up so much of his time as to prevent him from giving 
 much attention to contrivances which he hoped might be of benefit to 
 the world and of profit to himself. 
 
 "The design of this invention is suggestive of one phase of Abraham 
 Lincoln's early life, Avhen he went up and down the Mississippi as a 
 flatboatman, and became familiar with some of the dangers and incon- 
 veniences, attending the navigation of the Western rivers. It is an 
 attempt to make it an easy matter to transport vessels over shoals and 
 snags and sawyers. The main idea is that of an apparatus resembling 
 a noiseless bellows, placed on* each side of the hull of the craft, just 
 below the water-line, and worked by an odd but not complicated system 
 of ropes, valves, and pulleys. When the keel of the vessel grates against 
 the sand or obstruction, these bellows are to be filled with air; and, 
 thus buoyed up, the ship is expected to float lightly and gayly over the 
 shoal, which would otherwise have proved a serious interruption to her 
 voyage. 
 
 "The model, which is about eighteen or twenty inches long, and has 
 the air of having been whittled with a knife out of a shingle and a cigar- 
 box, is built without any elaboration or ornament, or any extra appara- 
 tus beyond that necessary to show the operation of buoying the steamer 
 over the obstructions. Herein it differs from very many of the models 
 which share with it the shelter of the immense halls of the Patent 
 Office, and which are fashioned with wonderful nicety and exquisite 
 finish, as if much of the labor and thought and affection of a lifetime 
 had been devoted to their construction. This is a model of a different 
 kind; carved as one might imagine a retired rail-splitter would whittle, 
 strongly, but not smoothly, and evidently made with a view solely to 
 convey, by the simplest possible means, to the minds of the patent au- 
 thorities, an idea of the purpose and plan of the simple invention. The 
 
330 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 label on the steamer^s deck informs us that the patent was obtained; 
 but we do not learn that the navigation of the Western rivers was revo- 
 lutionized by this quaint conception. The modest little model has 
 reposed here sixteen years; and since it found its resting-place here on 
 the shelf, the shrewd inventor has found it his task to guide the ship 
 of state over shoals more perilous, and obstructions more obstinate, 
 than any prophet dreamed of when Abraham Lincoln wrote his bold 
 autograph on the prow of this miniature steamer." 
 
 HE NEVER CAN BE PRESIDENT 
 
 It was during the great and memorable debate that when Mr. 
 Lincoln was preparing certain questions which he proposed to pro- 
 pound to the "Little Giant" that some of his friends urged him not 
 to corner Douglas on a certain point, because he would surely stand 
 by his doctrine of Squatter Sovereignty in defiance of the Dred Scott 
 decision, "and that,'^ said they, "will make him Senator." "That may 
 be," said Mr. Lincoln, "but if he takes that shoot he never can be Presi- 
 dent." 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's keen perception did not fail him here. The position 
 which Douglas took of "unfriendly legislation," was an obstacle which 
 he was never able to overcome. 
 
 I SHALL SEE nAY BOY AGAIN 
 
 One of Mr. Lincoln's favorite diversions was reading Shakspeare, 
 whom he rendered with great emphasis and feeling. One day as he sat 
 reading alone, he called to his aide in the adjoining room, "Colonel, 
 come in here; I want to read you a passage in Hamlet." He then read 
 the discussion on ambition between Hamlet and his courtiers, and the 
 soliloquy which followed. This was followed by passages from Macbeth. 
 Then opening to King John, he read from the third act the passage in 
 which Constance bewails her lost boy. Closing the book and repeating 
 the words: 
 
 "And, father cardinal, I have heard you say 
 That we shall see and know our friends in heaven; 
 If that be true, I shall see my boy again" — - 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 831 
 
 Mr. Lincoln said: "Colonel, did you ever dream of a lost friend, and 
 feel that you were holding sweet communion with that friend, and yet 
 have a sad consciousness that it was not a reality? — just so I dream of 
 my boy Willie." Overcome with emotion, he dropped his head on the 
 table, and sobbed aloud. 
 
 NOT DEAD YET 
 
 When a telegraphic dispatch from Cumberland Gap reached Mr. 
 Lincoln that "firing was heard in the direction of Knoxville," he is 
 reported as having said : "I am glad of it." A gentleman who was pres- 
 ent, and had in his mind the thought of the danger and peril of a certain 
 general who was a personal friend, remarked, that he could not see 
 why Mr. Lincoln was glad. 
 
 "Why, you see," replied the President, "it reminds me of Mistress 
 Sallie Ward, a neighbor of mine, who had a large family. Occasionally 
 one of her numerous progeny would be heard crying in some out-of-the- 
 way place, upon which Mrs. Ward would exclaim, *There^s one of my 
 children that isn't dead yet.' " 
 
 fV 
 
 I INTEND TO GO WITH MY OOLORS FLYING" 
 
 In August, 1864, the President called for five hundred thousand 
 more men, and the Presidential election was not far away. Many of 
 Mr. Lincoln's friends thought that another call for troops would injure 
 his re-election, and one of them hinted as much to Mr. Lincoln. "As to 
 my re-election," the President remarked, "it matters not. We must 
 have the men. If I go down> I intend to go like the Cumberland — with 
 my colors flying." 
 
 A TURN ABOUT 
 
 "On Mr. Lincoln's reception-day, after the nomination," wrote Theo- 
 dore Tilton, in a letter to the Independent, "his face wore an expression 
 of satisfaction rather than elation. His reception of Mr. Garrison was 
 an equal honor to host and guest. In alluding to our failure to find the 
 old jail, he said, ^Well, Mr. Garrison, when you first went to Baltimore, 
 you couldn't get out; but the second time, you couldn't get in.' " 
 
332 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 A DISCREPANCY 
 
 A friend reported to Mr. Lincoln that some of the influential poli- 
 ticians were finding fault with him because certain generals were not 
 given commands. ^'The fact is," replied Mr. Lincoln, "I have got more 
 pegs than I have holes to put them in." 
 
 DON'T CROSS THE BRIDGE 
 
 A preacher from Springfield, 111., called upon the President, and in 
 the course of conversation asked him what was to be his policy on the 
 slavery question. "Well," said the President, "I will answer, by telling 
 you a story. You know Father B., the old Methodist preacher? and you 
 know Fox Kiver and its freshets? Well, once in the presence of Father 
 B., a young Methodist was worrying about Fox Eiver, and expressing 
 fears that he should be prevented from fulfilling some of his appoint- 
 ments by a freshet in the river. Father B. checked him in his gravest 
 manner. Said he: ^Young man, I have always made it a rule in my life 
 not to cross Fox River till I get to it,' and I am not going to worry 
 myself over the slavery question till I get to it." 
 
 STOP YOUR BOAT A MINUTE 
 
 At a public reception, the President was very much annoyed by a 
 rural citizen from one of the border counties of Virginia^ whoi com- 
 plained to him that the Union soldiers, in passing his farm, had helped 
 themselves not only to hay, but went into his orchard and had eaten up 
 his fruit. He requested the President to order the proper officer to 
 inflict punishment upon the transgressors. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln did not reply to the querulous complaint, but proceeded 
 to tell a story, illustrative of the man's foolish request. A stream which 
 contained a dangerous rapids was a source of annoyance and peril to 
 voyagers. For many years these travelers had been safely carried over 
 the rapids in a canoe by a daring fellow who lived on the shore near by. 
 At last it was concluded to build a steamer and make Jack captain of 
 her. He always used to take the wheel, going through the rapids. 
 One day when the boat was plunging and wallowing along the boiling 
 
LINCOLN^S HOME— SPRINGFIELD, ILL. 
 
 This photograph was taken at the time of the President's funeral. The group repre- 
 sents 100 prominent citizens from Chicago, who accompanied President Lincoln's remains 
 to their last resting place. The following is a list of the distinguished gentlemen: 
 
 Hon. N. K. Fairbank, 
 
 Judge James B. Bradwell, 
 
 Judge Gary, 
 
 Judge Van H. Higgins, 
 
 Hon. Matthew Laflin, 
 
 Hon. John V. Farwell, 
 
 Chief Justice M. W. Fuller, 
 
 Rev. Dr. Tiftany, 
 
 Ex-Mayor Benj. W. Raymond, 
 
 Ex-Mayor Isaac L. Milliken, 
 
 Ex-Mayor J. H. Woodworth, 
 
 Julius S. Rumsey, 
 
 Charles M. Gray, 
 
 John C. Haines, 
 
 Alexander Lloyd, 
 
 Alson S. Sherman, 
 
 Charles Randolph, 
 
 T. J. Bronson, 
 
 John C. Dore, 
 
 John F. Beaty, 
 
 Stephen Clary, 
 
 C. T. Wheeler, 
 
 J. Maple, 
 
 S. S. Hayes, 
 
 Mancel Talcott, 
 
 N. W. Huntley, 
 
 Aaron Gibbs, 
 
 Judge E. S. Williams, 
 
 Judge Van Buren, 
 
 Hugh T. Dickey, 
 
 Harvey D. Colvin, 
 
 Thomas Hoyne, 
 
 S. Anthony, 
 
 Ira Y. Munn, 
 
 Oramel S. Hough, 
 
 Charles H. Walker, 
 
 Da\id R. Holt, 
 
 W. D. Houghtelling, 
 
 Gurdon S. Hubbard, 
 
 R. McChesney, 
 
 Iver Lawson, 
 
 B. E. Gallup, 
 
 J. K. Botsford, 
 
 A. B. Johnson, 
 
 J. M. Wilson, 
 
 W. H. Brown, 
 
 Mark Skinner, 
 
 John Alston, 
 
 G. P. A. Healey, 
 
 James H. Goodsell, 
 
 George M. Kimbark, 
 
 William Wayman, 
 
 H. E. Sargeant, 
 
 Chas. G. Hammond, 
 
 George C. Boles, 
 
 Samuel Hoard, 
 
 Peter Page, 
 
 Wm. H. Bradley, 
 
 Daurin P. Hilliard, 
 
 Dr. Wagner, 
 
 J. Gindele, 
 
 George Anderson, 
 
 Uriah P. Harris, 
 
 Dr. James V. Z. Blaney, 
 
 Joshua L. Marsh, 
 
 J. H. McVicker, 
 
 W. F. Tucker, 
 
 Dr. J. P. Lynn, 
 
 Edwin Burnham, 
 
 James Miller. 
 
 Benj. F. Patrick, 
 Dr. D. Brainard, 
 John B. Turner, 
 Silas B. Cobb, 
 W. W. Boyington, 
 Isaac Speer, 
 W. Sheahan, 
 Robert Hervey, 
 M. L. Sykes, 
 John B. Drake, 
 John L. Wilson, 
 Luther Haven, 
 George Schneider, 
 Samuel Howe, 
 W. I. Church, 
 John A. Wilson, 
 Jacob Rehm, 
 H. W. Bigelow, 
 A. H. Blackall, 
 Joseph Medill, 
 A. C. Hessing, 
 J. H. Field, 
 E. W. Blatchford, 
 T. S. Blackstone, 
 Julius White, 
 Capt. James Smith, 
 Robert H. Foss, 
 L. Brentano, 
 Wm. James James, 
 Long S. Goodwin, 
 J. M. Van Osdel, 
 M. John B. Rice, 
 John Jones (colored), 
 John H. Kinzie. 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 333 
 
 current, and Jack's utmost vigilance was being exercised to keep her in 
 the narrow channel, a boy pulled his coat-tail, and hailed him with — 
 "Say, Mister Captain! I wish you would just stop your boat a minute — 
 I've lost my apple overboard !" 
 
 RESIGNED TO PROVIDENCE 
 
 When informed of the death of John Morgan, a man whom Mr. Lin- 
 coln did not exactly love, he replied to his informant: "Well, I wouldn't 
 crow over anybody's death ; but I can take this as resignedly as any dis- 
 pensation of Providence." 
 
 KEEP YOUR FINGER AWAY 
 
 Many prominent and well-meaning people called upon Mr. Lincoln 
 simply for the purpose of advising him in regard to the question of 
 emancipation, and when a distinguished public officer being in Wash- 
 ington, in an interview with the President, introduced the question of 
 emancipation the President replied: "Well, you see, we've got to 
 be very cautious how we manage the negro question. If we^re not, we 
 shall be like the barber out in Illinois, who was shaving a fellow with 
 a hatchet face and lantern jaws like mine. The barber stuck his finger 
 in his customer's mouth to make his cheek stick out, but while shaving 
 aw^ay he cut through the fellow's cheek and cut off his own finger! If 
 we are not very careful, we shall do as the barber did!" 
 
 f DID THE BEST I KNEW HOW 
 
 An attack was made on Mr. Lincoln by the Committee on the Con- 
 duct of the War, for a certain alleged blunder, or something worse, in 
 the Southwest, and an officer came to the President and told him that 
 he possessed official evidence completely upsetting all the conclusions 
 of the committee, and asked if it might not be well to set this matter 
 right in a letter to some paper, stating the facts as they actually tran- 
 spired. 
 
 "Oh, no," replied the President, "at least, not now. If I were to try 
 to read, much less answer, all the attacks made on me, this shop might 
 as well be closed for any other business. I do the very best I know how 
 
'6M JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 — the very best I can; and I meau to keep doing so until the end. If the 
 end brings me out all right, what is said against me won't amount to 
 anything. If the end brings me out wrong, ten angels swearing I was 
 right would make no difference." 
 
 WE^LL GET YOU SAFE ACROSS 
 
 Some gentlemen from the West who were greatly excited and 
 troubled about the commissions or omissions of the Administration, 
 called upon the President and stated their grievances. Mr. Lincoln 
 heard them patiently, and then said: "Gentlemen, suppose all the prop- 
 erty you were worth Avas in gold, and you had put it in the hands of 
 Blondin to carry across the Niagara River on a rope, would you shake 
 the cable, or keep shouting out to him — ^Blondin, stand up a little 
 straighter — Blondin, stoop a little more — go a little faster^ — lean a little 
 more to the north — lean a little more to the south?' No, you would hold 
 your breath as well as your tongue, and keep your hands off until he 
 was safe over. The Government is carrying an immense weight. Un- 
 told treasures are in its hands. It is doing the verv best it can. Don't 
 badger it. Keep silence, and we'll get you safe across." 
 
 KEEP PEGGING AWAY 
 
 When asked by an "anxious" visitor as to what would be done in 
 certain contingencies — provided the rebellion was not subdued after 
 three or four vears the President said: "I see no alternative but to 
 keep *pegging^ away!" 
 
 THE END IS NOT YET 
 
 The Emancipation Proclamation had become a fact in history and 
 the men who had vilified, harassed and abused Mr. Lincoln because he 
 had not acted more promptly in regard to the issuing of that proclama- 
 tion now were loudest in their vociferation that slavery could have 
 been killed long ago. Of these brawlers, Mr. Lincoln said: "I do not agxee 
 with those who say that slavery is dead. We are like whalers who 
 have been long on a chase — we have at last got the harpoon into the 
 monster, but we must now look how we steer, or, with one ^flop^ of his 
 tail, he will yet send us all into eternity!" 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 335 
 
 A REQUEST, NOT A COMWIAND 
 
 The following incident, related by Mr. Carpenter, whose famous por- 
 traits of Mr. Lincoln are easily recognized throughout the broad land, 
 is illustrative of the President's modest bearing and democratic man- 
 ner: 
 
 "The simplicity and absence of all ostentation on the part of Mr. 
 Lincoln is well illustrated by an incident which occurred on the occa- 
 sion of a visit he made to Commodore Porter, at Fortress Monroe. 
 Noticing that the banks of the river were dotted with flowers, he said: 
 ^Commodore, Tad' (the pet name for his youngest son, who had accom- 
 panied him on the excursion) ^is very fond of flowers; won't you let a 
 couple of men take a boat and go with him for an hour or two, along 
 the banks of the river, and gather the flowers?' Look at this picture, 
 and then endeavor to imagine the head of a European nation making 
 a similar request, in this humble way, of one of his subordinates!" 
 
 "I NEVER WISH TO SEE YOUR FAOE AGAIN^^ 
 
 One would imagine that Mr. Lincoln had no backbone when his 
 sympathies were appealed to, but such is not the case. He could detect 
 deceit and sham as quick as any one. The following two stories related 
 by Raymond are good examples of how the President turned the tables 
 on those who did not deserve his approbation or pardon: 
 
 Among the callers at the White House one day was an officer who 
 had been cashiered from the service. He had prepared an elaborate 
 defense of himself, which he consumed much time in reading to the 
 President. When he had finished, Mr. Lincoln replied, that even upon 
 his own statement of the case the facts would not warrant executive 
 interference. Disappointed, and considerably crest-fallen, the man 
 withdrew. A few days afterward he made a second attempt to alter the 
 President's convictions, going over substantially the same ground, and 
 occupying about the same space of time, but without accomplishing his 
 end. The third time he succeeded in forcing himself into Mr. Lincoln's 
 presence, who with great forbearance listened to another repetition of 
 the case to its conclusion, but made no reply. Waiting for a moment. 
 
336 JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 
 
 the man gathered from the expression of his countenance that his mind 
 was unconvinced. Turning very abruptly, he said: "Well, Mr. Presi- 
 dent, I see that you are fully determined not to do me justice!'' This 
 was too aggravating even for Mr. Lincoln. Manifesting, however, no 
 more feeling than that indicated by a slight compression of the lips, he 
 very quietly arose, laid down a package of papers he held in his hand, 
 and then suddenly seized the defunct officer by the coat-collar and 
 marched him forcibly to the door, saying, as he ejected him into the 
 passage: "Sir, I give you fair warning never to show yourself in this 
 room again. I can bear censure, but not insult!" In a whining tone 
 the man begged for his papers which he had dropped. "Begone, sir," 
 said the President; "your papers will be sent to you. I never wish to 
 see your face again!" 
 
 TOO BIG FISH 
 
 Late one afternoon a lady with two gentlemen were admitted. She 
 had come to ask that her husband, who was a prisoner of war, might 
 be permitted to take the oath and be released from confinement. To 
 secure a degree of interest on the part of the President, one of the 
 gentlemen claimed to be an acquaintance of Mrs. Lincoln; this, how- 
 ever, received but little attention, and the President proceeded to ask 
 what position the lady's husband held in the rebel service. "Oh," said 
 she, "he was a captain." "A captain," rejoined Mr. Lincoln; "indeed, 
 rather too big a fish to set free simply upon his taking the oath ! If he 
 was an officer, it is proof positive that he has been a zealous rebel; I 
 cannot releaj:;e him." Here the lady's friend reiterated the assertion of 
 his acquaintance with Mrs. Lincoln. Instantly the President's hand 
 was upon the bell-rope. The usher in attendance answered the sum- 
 mons. "Cornelius, take this man's name to Mrs. Lincoln, and ask her 
 what she knows of him." The boy presently returned, with the reply 
 that "the Madam" (as she was called by the servants) knew nothing 
 of him whatever. "It is just as I suspected," said the President. The 
 party made one more attempt to enlist his sympathy, but without effect. 
 "It is of no use," was the reply. "I cannot release him!" and the trio 
 withdrew in high displeasure. 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 337 
 
 I THINK I CAN BEAT YOU BOTH 
 
 Mr. Defrees, the government printer, called the President's attention 
 to an awkwardly constructed sentence, in one of his messages, and sug- 
 gested that he had better rearrange it in a certain way. Mr. Lincoln 
 acknowledged the force of the objection raised, and said, "Go home, 
 Defrees, and see if you can better if The next day Mr. Defrees 
 took in to him his amendment. Mr. Lincoln met him by saying: "Seward 
 found the same fault that you did, and he has been rewriting the para- 
 graph also." Then reading Mr. Defree's version, he said: "I believe 
 you have beat Seward; but, ^I jings'" (a common expression with him), 
 "I think I can beat you both." Then taking up his pen, he wrote the 
 sentence as it was finally printed. 
 
 A REQUEST GRANTED 
 
 Among the many incidents which have been related by Mr. Lincoln's 
 biographers to show how uniformly kind he was to every one, even the 
 most humble, I have selected the following as a good example of his 
 quick procedure to relieve the annoyance or distress of any worthy per- 
 son who might apply to him. The account is from the pen of Mr. Car- 
 penter, who spent many days at the White House engaged in grouping 
 and painting the President and his Cabinet: 
 
 "Late in the afternoon of the second day, the ^black-horse cavalry' 
 escort drew up as usual in front of the portico, preparatory to the Presi- 
 dent's leaving for the ^Soldiers' Home,' where he spent the midsummer 
 nights. While the carriage was waiting, I looked around for him, wish- 
 ing to say a farewell word, knowing that I should have no other oppor- 
 tunity. Presently I saw him standing half-way between the portico and 
 the gateway leading to the War Department, leaning against the iron 
 fence — one arm thrown over the railing, and one foot on the stone cop- 
 ing which supports it, evidently having been intercepted, on his way in, 
 from the War Department, by a plain-looking man, who was giving 
 him, very diffidently, an account of a difficulty which he had been un- 
 able to have rectified. While waiting, I walked out leisurely to the 
 President's side. He said very little to the man, but was intently 
 
338 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 studying the expression of his face while he was narrating his trouble. 
 When he had finished, Mr. Lincoln said to him, ^Have you a blank card?' 
 The man searched his pockets, but finding none, a gentleman standing 
 near, who had overheard the question, came forward and said, ^Here 
 is one, Mr. President' Several persons had, in the meantime, gathered 
 around. Taking the card and a pencil, Mr. Lincoln sat down upon the 
 stone coping, which is not more than fi\e or six inches above the pave- 
 ment, presenting almost the appearance of sitting upon the pavement 
 itself, and wrote an order upon the card to the proper official to ^examine 
 this man's case.' While w^riting this, I observed several persons passing 
 down the promenade, smiling at each other, at what I presume they 
 thought the undignified appearance of the Head of the Nation, who, 
 however, seemed utterly unconscious, either of any impropriety in the 
 action or of attracting any attention. To me it was not only a touching 
 picture of the native goodness of the man, but of innate nobility of 
 character, exemplified not so much by a disregard of conventionalities 
 as in unconsciousness that there could be any breach of etiquette, or 
 dignity, in the manner of an honest attempt to serve, or secure justice 
 to a citizen of the Republic, however humble he may be." 
 
 ONE WHO IS WISER THAN ALL OTHERS 
 
 In reply to the criticism of a garrulous preacher who had said that 
 Mr. Lincoln did not believe in a God and was trying to run the country 
 "on his own account" Mr. Lincoln rei^lied, "I should be the most pre- 
 sumptuous blockhead upon this footstool if 1 for one day thought that 
 I could discharge the duties w^hich have come upon me since I came into 
 this place without the aid and enlightenment of One who is wiser and 
 stronger than all others." 
 
 OPENED ITS EYES 
 
 While Mr. Lincoln was at City Point and occupying General Grant's 
 tent, he took great pleasure in watching a cat and her kittens, which 
 had been presented to the General, This pastime seemed to relieve the 
 terrible pressure of heart and brain, and just before he left the head- 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 339 
 
 quarters he noticed that the eyes of one of the kittens were still closed. 
 When Richmond had fallen and he was about to start for the front he 
 took up the kitten and said to it: "Little kitten, I must perform a last 
 act of kindness for you before I go. I must open your eyes." And then 
 manipulating the closed lids as tenderly as a mother would have minis- 
 tered to her sick child, he succeeded in opening the closed lids. Putting 
 her down and watching her gambols with delight, he said sadly; "Oh, 
 that I could open the eyes of my blinded fellow-countrymen as easily 
 as I have those of that little creature!" 
 
 A POCKET POSTMASTER 
 
 After having been given a warning by a gentleman as to certain 
 anticipated unkind acts, which were to be enacted by one whom Mr. 
 Lincoln had every reason to believe his friend, the President turned to 
 
 his informer and, with one of his peculiar smiles, said: "Mr. , you 
 
 haven't such a thing as a postmaster in your pocket, have you?" 
 
 The gentleman was completely taken by surprise and for a moment 
 imagined that the President had lost his reason; but when Mr. Lincoln 
 tapped him on the shoulder and straightened himself up and proceeded 
 to answer his own question, Mr. B. knew that a joke came in some- 
 where. "You see," continued Mr. Lincoln, "it's sort of unnatural that 
 you shouldn't have at least a postmaster in your pocket. Everybody 
 I've seen for days past has had foreign ministers and collectors, and all 
 kinds, and I thought you couldn't have got in here without having at 
 least a postmaster get into your pocket." 
 
 NOTHING NEW UNDER THE SUN 
 
 A bunch of wise men had called at the White House to unload the 
 usual amount of advice that Mr. Lincoln received as his daily ration. 
 Upon this occasion the advice was uncalled for and the advisers par- 
 ticularly obnoxious. They were cultured and educated men and the 
 President thought he detected a criticism along the line of his lack of 
 education; so he humbly replied: "I am not an educated man. I feel 
 the need of reading. It is a loss to a man not to have grown up amon 
 books." 
 
 
340 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 "Men of force," replied one of the callers, "can get on pretty well 
 without books. They do their own thinking instead of adopting what 
 other men think." 
 
 "Yes," replied Mr. Lincoln, "but books serve to show a man that 
 those original thoughts of his aren't very new after all." 
 
 This was a turn in the conversation that was not exactly agreeable 
 to the officious man and he suggested to the committee that a hasty 
 departure was advisable. 
 
 HE NEEDN'T LOSE ANY SLEEP 
 
 Another instance of Mr. Lincoln's firmness, when patience was ex- 
 hausted and he was therefore called upon to assert his opinion, is here- 
 with related. 
 
 A certain general had telegraphed to the Secretary of War that he 
 must have more men and when Mr. Stanton showed the message to the 
 President, and before he had time to ask him what he should do about 
 it, Mr. Lincoln said: "I guess he's killed off enough men, hasn't he, 
 and what's the use in sending volunteers down to him if they're only 
 used to fill graves?" 
 
 As Mr. Lincoln paused, seemingly waiting for an answer to his 
 question, Mr. Stanton glanced over the telegram again and then ven- 
 tured to remark: "His dispatch seems to imply that, in his opinion, you 
 have not the confidence in him he thinks he deserves." 
 
 "Oh," said the President, "he needn't lose any sleep on that account. 
 Just telegraph him to that effect; also that I don't propose to send any 
 
 more men." 
 
 APPEARANCES ARE DECEIVING 
 
 A handsome and beautifully gowned woman called upon Mr. Lincoln 
 for the purpose of securing the release from prison of a relative in whom 
 she seemed to be greatly interested. 
 
 She supposed, by her bright and vivacious manner that she had made 
 a great impression upon the President, and when he gave her a sealed 
 letter directed to the Secretary of War, she was certain that her charms 
 Lad won the victory and her friend (?) would be speedily released. But 
 
JOKES 'AND "ANECDOTES, 341 
 
 how great would have been her chagrin had she known the contents of 
 that communication. The following are the mystic words which the 
 President had traced: "This woman, dear Stanton, is a little smarter 
 than she looks." 
 
 TOO GREAT A DISTANCE 
 
 Upon one occasion when the President was passing down one of the 
 aisles in the hospital at Washington, between the long row of cots upon 
 which were seen wounded soldiers in every stage of illness, from those 
 who were dying to those who were convalescing, he noticed an unusu- 
 ally tall fellow, who rose to his feet and stood ready to salute the Com- 
 mander-in-Chief. This soldier from Pennsylvania measured six feet and 
 seven inches. As Mr. Lincoln approached and observed his unusual 
 height, he paused before him, gazed at him from head to foot, extended 
 his hand and exclaimed, "Hello, comrade, do you know when your feet 
 get cold?" 
 
 THE TWO FLAGS 
 
 One of the most touching and beautiful incidents connected with 
 the closing days of the great rebellion is related by an eye-witness who 
 vouches for the truth of the story. 
 
 When the troops were returning to Washington, great crowds col- 
 lected upon the lawn before the White House, and, as the battered and 
 weary boys in blue filed by cheer after cheer rent the air, while the 
 President, with uncovered head, stood amongst the great concourse and 
 raised high above him the starry flag. With every undulation of old 
 glory the people responded with huzzahs which grew in intensity as the 
 minutes went by. In the midst of this tremendous and patriotic demon- 
 stration a strange sight caught the eyes of the almost maddened re- 
 joicers. From the window of the Executive Mansion a small boy leaned 
 out and in his hand was seen the banner of the boys in gray. The wind 
 caught the flag and it too rose and fell with the breeze. It was Tad Lin- 
 coln, the irrepressible, who had seized the flag which had been captured 
 from the Confederates and flung it from an upper window, despite the 
 admonitions, threats and displeasure of those who were in the room 
 with him. 
 
Bi2 JOKES AND 'ANECDOTES. 
 
 An ominous silence took possession of the vast throng, and the Presi- 
 dent turned to discover if he could the cause of so strange a proceeding. 
 He saw his boy hanging from the window, and in his hand the rebel flag. 
 Without a moment's hesitation he waved a signal of assent to the boy 
 and then with a smile upon his pale countenance he faced the crowd 
 and again sent *^01d Glory'' out in graceful waves. The applause was 
 tremendous, for the people could not resent the beautiful spirit which 
 had always characterized the man. "With charity for all, and malice 
 toward none." 
 
 A METAMORPHOSIS 
 
 It was on the 2d of February, 1865, that President Lincoln met 
 Alexander H. Stephens. Mr. Stephens boarded the River Queen, which 
 was then lying at Fortress Monroe, accompanied by his body-servant, 
 a colored man. The Vice-President of the Confederacy was wrapped in 
 overcoats and shawls, and, thus enveloped, one could easily imagine he 
 was a fair-sized man, at least. But when the colored servant began to 
 take off Mr. Stephens' trappings and a small, shriveled up old man 
 greeted Mr. Lincoln, he could not resist the temptation to have a quiet 
 joke. So, turning to Secretary Seward, he said: "This is the largest 
 shrinking for so small a nubbin that I ever saw." 
 
 DO SOMETHING FOR THE DUTCH 
 
 As many complaints had reached Mr. Lincoln's ear that but little 
 had been done for the Dutch, and when some prominent men who were 
 born in the Fatherland suggested that a certain Dutchman would make 
 a good officer, Mr. Lincoln made up his mind that such should be the 
 case, and he sent for the Secretary of War and said to him: 
 
 "Now, I want Schimmelpfennig given one of those brigadiershij)S.'' 
 
 Mr. Stanton did not take kindly to the command, and although he 
 knew that in the end it would be as the President said, he deter- 
 mined to make an opposition at least. 
 
 To Mr. Lincoln he said: "But, Mr. President, it may be that this 
 Mr. Schim-what's-his-name has no recommendations showing his fitness. 
 Perhaps he can't speak English." 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 343 
 
 "That doesn't matter a bit/' the President replied; "he may be deaf 
 and dumb for all 1 know, but whatever language he speaks^ if any, we 
 can furnish troops who will understand what he says. That name of his 
 will make up for any differences in religion, politics or understanding, 
 and I'll take the risk of his coming out all right." 
 
 Mr. Stanton undertook to make some further objections when the 
 President brought his hand down on the desk with a very emphatic 
 blow and said: "Schim-mel-fen-nig must be appointed." 
 
 THE SHRIEKS MUST BE HEEDED 
 
 Mr. Lincoln had great difficulty in securing for his Cabinet a South- 
 ern man, and when Attorney-General Bates handed in his resignation 
 and still the howl went up that a Southern man must be found to fill 
 the vacancy, Mr. Lincoln remarked to a friend concerning the situa- 
 tion: 
 
 "My Cabinet has shrunk up North and I must find a Southern man. 
 I suppose if the twelve apostles were to be chosen nowadays, the shrieks 
 of locality would have to be heeded." 
 
 A MIGHTY THINKER 
 
 The following is related by one of Mr. Lincoln's Washington asso- 
 ciates and is reproduced for the purpose of showing how delighted the 
 President was when he was relieved from a disagreeable duty: 
 
 "Do you know General A ?" queried the President one day to 
 
 a friend who had "dropped in" at the White House. 
 
 "Certainly; but you are not wasting any time thinking about him, 
 are you ?" was the rejoinder. 
 
 "You wrong him," responded the President, "he is a really great man 
 — a philosopher." 
 
 "How do you make that out? He isn't worth the powder and ball 
 necessary to kill him — so I have heard military men say," the friend 
 remarked. 
 
 "He is a mighty thinker," the President returned, "because he has 
 mastered that ancient and wise admonition, 'Know thyself;' he has 
 
344 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 formed an intimate acquaintance with himself, knows as well for what 
 he is fitted and unfitted as any man living. Without doubt he is a re- 
 markable man. This war has not produced another like him.'^ 
 
 "How is it that you are so highly pleased with General A all 
 
 at once?" 
 
 "For the reason," replied Mr. Lincoln, with a merry twinkle of the 
 eye, "greatly to my relief, and to the interests of the country, he has 
 resigned. The country should express its gratitude in some substantial 
 wav." 
 
 HE DIDN^T STEAL 
 
 Franklin W. Smith and his brother, charged with defrauding the 
 government, were court-martialed but the case was brought to the 
 attention of the President by some personal friends of the convicted 
 men, who believed that they were innocent of the guilt charged. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln took up the case and made a careful examination of all 
 the papers pertaining to the court-martial. He disproved the judgment 
 and wrote the following opinion upon the papers: 
 
 "Whereas, Franklin W. Smith had transactions with the Navy De- 
 partment to the amount of a million and a quarter of dollars; and 
 
 "Whereas, he had a chance to steal at least a quarter of a million 
 and was only charged with stealing twenty-two hundred dollars, and 
 the question now is about his stealing one hundred, I don't believe he 
 stole anything at all. 
 
 "Therefore, the record and the findings are disapproved, declared 
 null and void, and the defendants are fully discharged." 
 
 "THEY SCAMPER AWAY" 
 
 The President's desire to accommodate all persons who came to him 
 asking favors was never realized until an untimely disease, which pos- 
 sessed many of the characteristics of one of the most dreaded maladies, 
 confined him to his bed at the White House. 
 
 The rumor was circulated that the President was afflicted with this 
 disease, but the truth was that it was merely a mild attack of varioloid. 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 345 
 
 However, it pleased Mr. Lincoln immensely to have such a report circu- 
 lated, for it relieved him from the rush of office-seekers. 
 
 One day, however, a man from the West, who was not a regular 
 reader of the daily papers, and who wanted to be appointed postmaster 
 in his town, called at the White House. The President, who was now 
 quite well, received him. The caller w^as getting tiresome, when the 
 President interrupted him with the remark that his doctor was due, and 
 he would be obliged to excuse himself. 
 
 "Why, Mr. President, are you sick?" the visitor asked. 
 
 "Oh, nothing much," replied Mr. Lincoln, "but the physician says he 
 fears the worst." 
 
 "What worst, may I ask?" 
 
 "Smallpox," came the answer; "but you needn^t be scared. I'm only 
 in the first stages now." 
 
 The visitor seized his hat, and without a word rushed into the streets, 
 a very frightened man. 
 
 "Now, that's the way with people," the President said, when relating 
 the story afterward. "When I can't give them what they want, they're 
 dissatisfied, and say harsh things about me; but when I've something to 
 give to everybody they scamper off." 
 
 A USELESS DOCUMENT 
 
 After an unusually annoying interview with a committee who had 
 called for the purpose of urging Mr. Lincoln to issue the Emancipation 
 Proclamation, he then and there added to his dismissal the following 
 sentence: 
 
 "I do not want to issue a document that the whole world will see 
 must necessarily be inoperative, like the Pope^s bull against the comet." 
 
 MASTER OF THE SITUATION 
 
 A Unionist, who had been driven away from New Orleans, asked to 
 see the writ by which he was expelled, but the deputation which called 
 on him told him the Government would do nothing illegal, and so 
 they had issued no illegal writ, and simply meant to make him to go of 
 his own free will. 
 
346 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 When this fact was related to Mr. Lincoln by the expelled Unionist 
 he replied: 
 
 "AVell, that reminds me of a hotel-keeper down at St. Louis, who 
 boasted that he never liad a death in his hotel, for whenever a guest was 
 djing in his house he carried him out to die in the gutter.'' 
 
 A NOVEL PORTRAIT 
 
 A gentleman from Philadelphia in being presented to the President 
 was introduced by a friend as follows: 
 
 "Mr. President, this is Mr. S., of the second district of our State, — a 
 most active and earnest friend of yours and the cause. He has, among 
 other things, been good enough to paint, and present to our league 
 rooms, a most beautiful portrait of yourself." 
 
 In an exceedingly nonchalant manner the President shook the hand 
 of the ar-tist and with a comical expression on his face said: 
 
 "I presume, sir, in painting your beautiful portrait, you took your 
 idea from my principles and not from my person." 
 
 I AM GOING TO TRUST YOU 
 
 Here is the story of William Scott, a counti*y lad who, having been 
 found asleep when on duty, was tried by court-martial and sentenced 
 to execution. 
 
 The case was one which attracted the sympathy of the whole regi- 
 ment, for the boy had volunteered to stand guard for a comrade who had 
 been selected but was too ill to do picket duty. The circumstances were 
 exceeding extenuating, for the boy had the night before been on duty 
 also and the day preceding the fatal nap a long march had been en- 
 forced, so that the poor fellow was well-nigh dead. 
 
 The particulars of the case were conveyed to the President, and in 
 the meantime the friends of the unfortunate youth hoped for leniency. 
 
 William Scott was a prisoner in his tent, closely guarded and the 
 sentence of death hanging over him, when Mr. Lincoln stepped within 
 the tented cell and gazed upon the wretched and unhappy boy. 
 
 The conversation which took place between the President and W^il- 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 347 
 
 liam Scott and the sequel which followed is reproduced from Holland's 
 Life of Lincoln: 
 
 "The President was the kindest man I had ever seen; I knew him at 
 once by a Lincoln medal I had long worn. 
 
 "I was scared at first, for I had never before talked with a great man; 
 but Mr. Lincoln was so easy with me, so gentle, that I soon forgot my 
 fright. 
 
 "He asked me all about the people at home, the neighbors, the farm, 
 and where I went to school, and who my schoolmates were. Then he 
 asked me about mother and how she looked; and I was glad I could take 
 her photograph from my bosom and show it to him, 
 
 "He said how thankful I ought to be that my mother still lived, 
 and how, if he were in my place, he would try to make her a proud 
 mother, and never cause her a sorrow or a tear. 
 
 "I cannot remember it all, but every word was so kind. 
 
 "He had said nothing yet about that dreadful next morning; I 
 thought it must be that he was so kind-hearted that he didn't like to 
 speak of it. 
 
 "But why did he say so much about my mother, and my not causing 
 her a sorrow or a tear, when I knew that I must die the next morning? 
 
 "But I supposed that was something that would have to go unex- 
 plained; and so I determined to brace up and tell him that I did not feel 
 a bit guilty, and ask him wouldn't he fix it so that the firing party would 
 not be from our regiment. 
 
 "That was going to be the hardest of all — to die by the hands of my 
 comrades. 
 
 "Just as I was going to ask him this favor, he stood up, and he say& 
 to me: 
 
 " ^My boy, stand up here and look me in the face.' 
 
 "I did as he bade me. 
 
 " ^My boy,' he said, *you are not going to be shot to-morrow. I be- 
 lieve you when you tell me that you could not keep awake. 
 
 " *I am going to trust you, and send you back to your regiment. 
 
 " *But T have been put to a good deal of trouble on your account. 
 
148 JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 a <l 
 
 ^I have had to come up here from Washington when I have got a 
 great deal to do; and what I want to know is, how are you going to pay 
 my bill?' 
 
 "There was a big lump in my throat; I could scarcely speak. I had 
 expected to die, you see, and had kind of got used to thinking that way. 
 
 "To have it all changed in a minute! But I got it crowded down, and 
 managed to say: 
 
 " ^I am grateful, Mr. Lincoln! I hope I am as grateful as ever a man 
 can be to you for saving my life. 
 
 " ^But it comes upon me sudden and unexpected like. I didn't lay 
 out for it at all; but there is some way to pay you, and I will find it after 
 a little. 
 
 " ^There is the bounty in the savings bank; I guess we could borrow 
 some money on the mortgage of the farm.' 
 
 "There was my pay, that was something, and if he would wait until 
 payday I was sure the boys would help; so I thought we could make it 
 up if it wasn't more than five or six hundred dollars. 
 
 " ^But it is a great deal more than that,' he said. 
 
 "Then I said I didn't just see how, but I was sure I would find some 
 wav — if I lived. 
 
 "Then Mr. Lincoln put his hands on my shoulders, and looked into 
 my face as if he was sorry, and said: 
 
 " *My boy, my bill is a very large one. Your friends cannot pay it, 
 nor your bounty, nor the farm, nor all your comrades! 
 
 " ^There is only one man in all the world who can pay it, and his 
 name is William Scott! 
 
 " ^If from this day William Scott does his duty, so that, if I were 
 there when he comes to die, he can look me in the face as he does now, 
 and say, I have kept my promise, and I have done my duty as a soldier, 
 then my debt will be paid. 
 
 " *Will you make that promise and try to keep it?' " 
 
 The promise was given. Thenceforward there never was i*uch a sol- 
 dier as William Scott. 
 
lOKES 'AND "ANECDOTES. 34S) 
 
 This is the record of the end. It was after one of the awful battles 
 of the Peninsula. He was shot all to pieces. He said: 
 
 "Boys, I shall never see another battle. I supposed this would be 
 my last. I haven't much to say. 
 
 "You all know what you can tell them at home about me. 
 
 "I have tried to do the right thing! If any of you ever have the 
 chance I wish you would tell President Lincoln that I have never for- 
 gotten the kind words he said to me at the Chain Bridge; that I have* 
 tried to be a good soldier and true to the flag; that I should have paid 
 my whole debt to him if I had lived ; and that now, when I know that I 
 am dying, I think of his kind face, and thank him again, because he 
 gave me the chance to fall like a soldier in battle, and not like a coward, 
 by the hands of my comrades." 
 
 What wonder that Secretary Stanton said, as he gazed upon the tall 
 form and kindly face as he lay there, smitten down by the assassin's 
 bullet; "There lies the most perfect ruler of men who ever lived." 
 
 A CONCEIT ERASER 
 
 For many years Mr. Lincoln was a target for all the would-be orators 
 and aspiring politicians. His peculiar manner, grotesque appearance, 
 and unfashionable garments were made the butt of many a "Smart 
 Aleck's" conceit. 
 
 Upon one occasion Mr. Lincoln was particularly annoyed by a young 
 sprig who fancied himself a modern Demosthenes and Lincoln made up 
 his mind that he would take the conceit out of his sails. After being 
 interrupted by the impertinent fledgling several times, Lincoln turned 
 and said: 
 
 "I don't object to being interrupted with sensible questions, but I 
 must say that this young man's remarks do not come under that head. 
 He reminds me of a steamboat that used to run on the Illinois river. 
 It was an energetic boat and always busy. In some unaccountable way 
 the builders of this particular boat had made the whistle as long as the 
 boiler, both being six feet in length. In consequence of this strange and 
 peculiar construction, the boat had to stop every time the whistle blew." 
 
350 lOKES "AND ^ANECDOTES. 
 
 TOO STATIONARY 
 
 General McClellan's tardiness and delay in pushing engagements, 
 marches, etc., became at last very annoying and trying to Mr. Lincoln. 
 At last Lincoln threatened to remove McClellan, and when his friends 
 demurred and protested that he was a great engineer, Mr. Lincoln 
 responded, "Well, I do not deny the accusation, but I am convinced 
 that he is too fond of a stationary engine." 
 
 THAT ONE WINS 
 
 Mr. Herndon inadvertently said to Mr. Lincoln that his admirers 
 were feeling considerable concern over the outcome of the forthcoming 
 debate which was soon to take place between Lincoln and Douglas. 
 Lincoln, fixed his eye upon the informant, then drawing himself up to 
 his full height he drawled in unmistakable emphasis the following: 
 
 "You have no doubt seen two men about to fight. Well, one of them 
 brags about what he means to do. He jumps high in the air, cracking 
 his heels together, smites his fists, and wastes his breath trying to scare 
 somebody. The other fellow says not a word. His arms are at his sides, 
 his fists are closely doubled up, his head is drawn to the shoulder, and 
 his teeth are set firm together. He is saving his wind for the fi'^ht, and 
 as sure as it comes oft* he will win it, or die a-trying." 
 
 CHARAOTERISTIO OF THE MAN 
 
 Here is a unique announcement which Mr. Lincoln made when he 
 first opened up a law office. The truth of this announcement, which was 
 written on a plain, cheap card, is vouched for by a personal friend of 
 Mr. Lincoln's and who still has one of the old cards. 
 
 "To my neighbors and friends in the vicinity of my late doings: I 
 have concluded to give up trapsing around. I am going to settle right 
 here and I am in the law to stay. I want you to come and see me. Bring 
 your family and your relations. Come right in and don't be bashful. 
 Tell your troubles and I'll take care of them. Get in. 
 
 "ABKAHAM LINCOLN." 
 
lOKES 'AND ANECDOTES. 351 
 
 TOO MUCH TAIL 
 
 The following pat illustration is reported as having been made to 
 General Grant by President Lincoln during a confidential chat just 
 after Grant had been appointed Lieutenant-General. He said: 
 
 ^'At one time there was a great war among the animals, and one side 
 had great difficulty in getting a commander who had sufficient confi- 
 dence in himself. Finally they found a monkey by the name of Jocko, 
 who said he thought he could command their army if his tail could be 
 made a little longer. So they got more tail and spliced it on to his 
 caudal appendage. 
 
 "He looked at it admiringly, and then said he thought he ought to 
 have still more tail. This was added, and again he called for more. 
 The splicing process was repeated many times until they had coiled 
 Jocko's tail around the room, filling all the space. 
 
 "Still he called for more tail, and, there being no other place to coil 
 it, they began wrapping it around his shoulders. He continued his call 
 for more, and they kept on winding the additional tail around him until 
 its weight broke him down.'' 
 
 After this story was told. General Grant needed no personal advice 
 upon a certain point, and without waiting for further conversation, 
 assured the President that he'd not find him a second Jocko. 
 
 SETTLE, SETTLE, WAS HIS CRY 
 
 It was the constant thought uppermost in Mr. Lincoln's mind that 
 peace should be restored at the earliest possible moment. He was 
 known to ha^e said many times, "This unholy war must close, and I am 
 willing to stop it under any agreement save one, and that is^ that the 
 Union must be preserved. As to any other condition of restoration I 
 care not, for I want peace, peace." 
 
 The politicians w^ere howling about him like a nest of infuriated 
 hornets and were clamoring that as the Confederates were responsible 
 for the rebellion, no mercy should be shown them. To these particular 
 gentlemen he described his feelings by the following pointed story: 
 
352 JOKES 'AND ANECDOTES. 
 
 "A vicious bull in a pasture took after everybody vv^ho tried to cross 
 the lot, and one day a neighbor of the owner was the victim. This man 
 was a speedy fellow and got to a friendly tree ahead of the bull, but 
 not in time to climb the tree. So he led the enraged animal a merry 
 race around the tree, finally succeeding in seizing the bull by the tail. 
 
 "The bull, being at a disadvantage, not able to either catch the man 
 or release his tail, was mad enough to eat nails; he dug up the earth 
 with his feet, scattered gravel all around, bellowed until you could hear 
 him for two miles or more, and at length broke into a dead run, the man 
 hanging on to his tail all the time. 
 
 "While the bull, much out of temper, was legging it to the best of 
 his ability, his tormentor, still clinging to the tail, asked, ^Darn you, 
 who commenced this fuss?''^ 
 
 This was the situation, and so far as which of the two factions com- 
 menced the fuss, the President didn't care a fig; he wanted the war 
 
 ended. 
 
 HOW TO BAG YOUR GAIYIE 
 
 It is a very noticeable fact that when the man who ha^ been censured 
 and condemned at last succeeds his critics are the very ones who try to 
 probe the secret of his success, and having, as they suppose, unearthed 
 the desirable methods, proceed to imitate and undertake to emulate the 
 successful man. 
 
 The result which follows is, of course, the natural outcome, a 
 wretched failure on the part of the spurious actor. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's long experience with this class of fellows led him to 
 many and divers inventions. 
 
 A well-known man from the Empire State asked Mr. Lincoln how 
 he managed to accomplish a certain affair which had been predicted 
 by high officials would result in disaster. To which pointed question 
 Mr. Lincoln replied: "Well, you see it is quite unwise to tell certain 
 individuals how a fellow bags his game when he knows the other fellow 
 is after the same birds." 
 
 After ruminating, however, for a moment the President turned 
 about in his chair and addressed the gentleman from the Empire State 
 
JOKES AND "ANECDOTES, 353 
 
 by saying: ^^If you'll not give the secret away I'll tell you how to al- 
 ways catch prairie chickens.'' 
 
 The distinguished caller promised and the President proceeded: 
 
 "An old friend of mine out in Illinois had better luck in getting 
 prairie chickens than any one in the neighborhood, and when questioned 
 by a fellow sportsman how it was that he always came home with a 
 lot of birds Mr. C replied: 
 
 " ^Oh, I don't know that there's anything queer about it. I jes' go 
 ahead an' git 'em.' 
 
 " ^Yes, I know you do ; but how do you do it?' 
 
 " ^You'll tell.' 
 
 " ^Honest, Jake, I won't say a word. Hope to drop dead this minute.' 
 
 " ^Never say nothing, if I tell you ?' 
 
 " ^Cross my heart three times.' 
 
 "This reassured Jake, who put his mouth close to the ear of his eager 
 questioner, and said, in a whisper : 
 
 " ^All you got to do is jes' hide in a fence corner an' make a noise like 
 a turnip. That'll bring the chickens every time.' " 
 
 It is useless to add that Senator failed to respond to the Pres- 
 ident's low chuckle, and from that time on until the departure of the 
 visitor the conversation dragged. 
 
 THE WONDERFUL VICTORY 
 
 Mr. Lincoln's contempt for the braggart was undisguised. He never 
 failed to convince the man who had a grand account to relate of his won- 
 derful achievements that the true state of affairs was his secret also. 
 
 The following, which illustrates the President's methods in treating 
 the army officers who were given to sounding their own praises, was 
 overheard by Secretary Stanton, who said to a friend, to whom he re- 
 lated the incident: "I would have given my old hat could you have 
 
 seen Colonel 's face when the President had concluded his little 
 
 yarn." 
 
 "These fellows who have put to flight, pursued and captured an 
 army of Johnnies," said the President, "remind me of the fellow who 
 owned a dog which, so he said, just hungered and thirsted to combat 
 
354 JOKES AND ANECDOTES, 
 
 and eat up wolves. It was a difficult matter, so the owner declared, to 
 keep that dog from devoting the entire twenty-four hours of each day to 
 the destruction of his enemies. He just ^hankered' to get at them. 
 
 "One day a party of this dog-owner's friends thought to have some 
 sport. These friends heartily disliked wolves, and were anxious to see 
 the dog eat up a few thousand. So they organized a hunting party and 
 invited the dog-owner and the dog to go with them. They desired to be 
 personally present when the wolf-killing was in progress. 
 
 "It was noticed that the dog-owner was not over-enthusiastic in the 
 matter ; he pleaded a ^business engagement,' but as he was the most noto- 
 rious and torpid of the town loafers, and wouldn't have recognized a 
 ^business engagement' had he met it face to face, his excuse was treated 
 with contempt. Therefore he had to go. 
 
 "The dog, however, was glad enough to go, and so the party started 
 out. Wolves were in plenty, and soon a, pack was discovered, but when 
 the ^wolf-hound' saw the ferocious animals he lost heart, and, putting his 
 tail between his legs, endeavored to slink away. At last — after many 
 trialsi — he was enticed into the small growth of underbrush where the 
 wolves had secreted themselves, and yells of terror betrayed the fact 
 that the battle was on. 
 
 "Away flew the wolves, the dog among them, the hunting party fol- 
 lowing on horseback. The wolves seemed frightened, and the dog was 
 restored to public favor. It really looked as if he had the savage creat- 
 ures on the run, as he was fighting; heroically when last sighted. 
 
 "Wolves and dog soon disappeared, and it was not until the party 
 arrived at a distant farmhouse that news of the combatants was gleaned. 
 
 " ^Have you seen anything of a wolf-dog and a pack of wolves around 
 here?' was the question anxiously put to the male occupant of the house, 
 who stood idly leaning upon the gate. 
 
 " ^Yep,' was the short answer, 
 
 " *How were they going?' 
 
 " Turty fast.' 
 
 "^What was their position when you saw them?' 
 
 " ^Wall, the dog was a leetle ahead.' " 
 
JOKES AND ANECDOTES. 355* 
 
 A JUST REBUKE 
 
 One of the greatest sources of annoyance which Mr. Lincoln had to 
 contend with was a constant influx of callers who urged to end the war. 
 They threatened, condemned and undertook to force the issue. To one 
 less self-poised, to one w^ho had no confldence in his own powers, such 
 criticism and censure would have been, tO' say the least, fatal to his 
 peace of mind; but to Mr. Lincoln, the moral giant, this class of would- 
 be intimidators no more impressed him than would a swarm of vora- 
 
 < 
 
 cious mosquitoes which kept up a constant buzzing in a vain attempt to 
 penetrate the protective wire screen which the President had constructed 
 about his personal habitation. 
 
 The editor of a prominent New York City newspaper called upon Mr. 
 President and ventured to suggest that dilatory action in regard to the 
 winding up of the war might result in preventing a renomination for a 
 second term. 
 
 Mr. Lincoln was silent and seemed to be debating what his answer 
 should be. At last he faced his visitor. Rising and drawing himself up 
 to his full height, he pointed to the door and said : "I shall act as my 
 conscience dictates. I shall consult my God only; not one of his door- 
 keepers." 
 
 THE MYSTERIOUS RAT HOLE 
 
 A claim w^as presented to Mr. Lincoln for collection, and in order to 
 satisfy himself w^hether the debtor was worth the trouble of a lawsuit 
 the Western lawyer made a personal call. After a close scrutiny of the 
 man's worldly goods and chattels he reported to his clieiit the result of 
 his investigations as follows: 'The fellow," said Mr. Lincoln, ''has not 
 a very great array of attachable goods. Eis house contains a wife and 
 five children, worth at least a thousand apiece to any man. His office 
 wiis more modest in its furnishings. There was only a table and two 
 chairs; but a rat hole which I discovered in the corner, seems to me, 
 might bear investigation.'^ 
 
 tmmim — i ■!■ ■—■■■■ 
 
 ♦There are 403 pages in this volume. The forty-eight fuU-page, half-tone illus- 
 trations should be added to the last lolio number (355) indicated, giving a total of 
 403 pages. 
 
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Abraham Lincoln Log Cabin A550Ciation 
 
 OFFICERS. 
 ELEANOR GRIDLEY 
 
 President 
 
 QUEEN G. THOMAS 
 
 jSecretary-Xreasurer 
 
 OFFICE: 108 NORTH DEARBORN STREET 
 RESIDENCE: 58-44 HARPER AVENU£ 
 
 ■ ' " ^L .jtr set 
 
 EXECUTIVE BOARD: 
 
 DR. WM. E. BARTON 
 J. B. OAKLEAF 
 JAMES ROSENTHAL 
 R. G. THOMAS 
 FRANK M. WRIGHT 
 ADA A. GRIDLEY 
 QUEEN E. ESTES 
 
 CHICAGO, lLL.rxJ.S.X: 
 
 x.ovrmbsr 2,1938. 
 
 2ear Mrs. Homer; 
 
 .^'ollov.ring the "box of nip.terial v/hlch leaves 
 Chicago th'. s afternoon,! am senaias you e. anisll _, ^'z -Am ch 
 
 I hope 7/111 Ids acoeptabl e, and ^vill become one of youE personal 
 belongings. 
 
 First it contains rr little pamphlet, '^ - ^ ' ^'^~ln Family, ^vith 
 some description of the Lincoln Log Cabin in whi resided for 
 
 T-o:^"^ than a month n'hlbl e v?riting my story. Upon the occasion des- 
 cribed in "'ritiii^_^ l^iI s book I Wc- s ct iCattoon and spoke at the 
 fair over a loud speaker system for one hour, telling the story of 
 the Lincoln Log Crbin,a replica of v^hi ch noT' stands on its orlgieial 
 site in the Illinois State Park nesr Farmington,Illinoi s. 
 
 The other pamphlet I hope will be acceptable. It that which I 
 ^as most pleased to be able to say about my very intimate and beloved 
 friend,Myra Bradwelfel, feeling it to be a grert honor to unveil her 
 beautiful bust. At that time she was the only wom:n to be honored 
 in the Illinois Hrll of Fame at Springfield. 
 
 The little camera picture of th <= "utlpdge Tavern st N (=w "c'l prn 
 was t'^ken by my grmd daughter on the occasion of :j visit in i, ew bel em 
 three years ago, ^IJou willnotice that your bumble cervant is standing 
 beside the open door. 
 
 I have Inclos' J-^^ the l&rge packpge r copy of Colli er' s, Feb. 
 8' th, 1930, which intalns on the cover ;. most cisgr-ceful rnd out- 
 
Abraham Lincoln Log Cabin Association 
 
 OFFICERS: 
 ELEANOR GRIDLEY 
 
 Presitlent 
 
 QUEEN G. THOMAS 
 
 iSecretary -Treasurer 
 
 OFFICE: 108 NORTH DEARBORN STREET 
 RESIDENCE: 5»44 MARKER lAVEl^UE 
 
 CHICAGO, ILL., U.S.A. 
 
 EXECUTIVE BOARD: 
 
 DR. WM. E. BARTON 
 J. B. OAKLEAF 
 JAMES ROSENTHAL 
 R. G. THOMAS 
 FRANK M. WRIGHT 
 ADA A. GRIDLEY 
 QUEEN E. ESTES 
 
 rageous illustration of ^hi-Bhexn Lincoln. I vrote the publi- 
 shers a scathin^p- criticism, to which they replied by saying 
 ' 'Ve thought it v/ould please the reading pfiiblic. It was our in- 
 tention to illu ctrate Lincoln' s kindness to chiluren. :,e are 
 sorry you are so displeased". To thi s I re|)li ed, "Lincoln loved 
 children, as we all know; but I never knew that he M'as especially 
 fond of piccaninnl es, and to show that he had no UEClx-^ love 
 for the colored race, he gave an apt answer to Stephen ii. Douglas' 
 insulting remark, 'Lincoln i s so fond of the black folks he pro- 
 bably -vouldn't object to having a negro wife'. Lincoln was silent 
 for a moment, fis face flaming red; then he replied,"! have never 
 wanted a negro for a wife, neither hsYe 1 ever wanted a negro 
 for a mistress.' " I have sent you that copy of ColliEr' s but am 
 writing to the publisher for another copy. I am really between 
 the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea. I wanted to keep that magazine 
 for myself, snd yet very much wanted you to have it. If I receive 
 a copy from the publi sher, then I shall be at ease. 
 
 lisve you received e copy of the Mineral Dail^ i^ews in which 
 appears --^n account o.f the dedication of the Nancy Lanks Lincoln 
 Park in '7. Virginia and Dr. Barton's address on tb' t occasion? 
 Dr. Barton was a very good friend of mine and ofte.i cajn e to see m 
 me, Hopiri,^ to hear fEora you soon, 
 
 I am yours very sincerely, 
 
 S^ 
 
 CL^^CX^ 
 
 ^. 
 
 -^^