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2B 


A  LECTURE 


BY 


ROBERT  G.  INGERSOLL. 

chains    from    the  bodies  of   men— nothing 
r  than  to  destroy  the  phantoms  of  the  soul 


NEW  YORK. 
C.  P.  FARRELL,  PUBLISHER, 

1895. 


PROSE-POEMS 

—  AND  — 

SELECTIONS, 

BY 

ROBERT  ft    TNGERSOLL. 
_^^_.  VA«      A_      ---        ---  » 


Third  Edition,   Revised  and  Enlarged. 

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ADDRESS    C.    F\    KARRELL,    PUBLISHER, 
4OO  Fifth  Avenue,  New  Vprk  City. 


Abraham   Lincoln. 

By  permission  of  the  Century  Co. 


A  LECTURE 


BY 


ROBERT  G.  INGERSOLL 


Nothing  is  grander  than  to  break  chains   from   the  bodies  of  men— nothing 
nobler  than  to  destroy  the  phantoms  of  the  soul. 


NEW  YORK. 
C.  P.  FARRELL,  PUBLISHER, 

1895, 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1894, 

BY  ROBERT  G.  INGERSOLL, 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress  at  Washington,  D.  C. 


. 
THE.  ECK.LER  PREJ-J. 

33    TULTON  v5r. 

NEW  YORK. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN. 


i. 


the  1 2th  of  February,  1809,  two  babes  were 
born  —  one  in  the  woods  of  Kentucky,  amid 
the  hardships  and  poverty  of  pioneers  ;  one  in  Eng- 
land, surrounded  by  wealth  and  culture.  One  was 
educated  in  the  University  of  Nature,  the  other  at 
Cambridge. 

One  associated  his  name  with  the  enfranchisement 
of  labor,  with  the  emancipation  of  millions,  with  the 
salvation  of  the  Republic.  He  is  known  to  us  as 
Abraham  Lincoln. 

The  other  broke  the  chains  of  superstition  and 
filled  the  world  with  intellectual  light,  and  he  is 
known  as  Charles  Darwin. 

Nothing  is  grander  than  to  break  chains  from  the 


4  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

bodies  of  men  —  nothing  nobler  than  to  destroy  the 
phantoms  of  the  soul. 

Because  of  these  two  men  the  Nineteenth  Century 
is  illustrious. 

A  few  men  and  women  make  a  nation  glorious  — 
Shakespeare  made  England  immortal,  Voltaire  civil- 
ized and  humanized  France,  Goethe,  Schiller  and 
Humboldt  lifted  Germany  into  the  light.  Angelo, 
Raphael,  Galileo  and  Bruno  crowned  with  fadeless 
laurel  the  Italian  brow,  and  now  the  most  precious 
treasure  of  the  Great  Republic  is  the  memory  of 
Abraham  Lincoln. 

Every  generation  has  its  heroes,  its  iconoclasts,  its 
pioneers,  its  ideals.  The  people  always  have  been 
and  still  are  divided,  at  least  into  classes — the  many, 
who  with  their  backs  to  the  sunrise  worship  the 
past,  and  the  few,  who  keep  their  faces  towards  the 
dawn  —  the  many,  who  are  satisfied  with  the  world 
as  it  is  ;  the  few,  who  labor  and  suffer  for  the  future, 
for  those  to  be,  and  who  seek  to  rescue  the  op- 
pressed, to  destroy  the  cruel  distinctions  of  caste, 
and  to  civilize  mankind. 

Yet  it  sometimes  happens  that  the  liberator  of  one 
age  becomes  the  oppressor  of  the  next.  His  repu- 
tation becomes  so  great  —  he  is  so  revered  and  wor- 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  5 

shipped — that  his  followers,  in  his  name,  attack  the 
hero  who  endeavors  to  take  another  step  in  advance. 

The  heroes  of  the  Revolution,  forgetting  the  jus- 
tice for  which  they  fought,  put  chains  upon  the  limbs 
of  others,  and  in  their  names  the  lovers  of  liberty 
were  denounced  as  ingrates  and  traitors. 

During  the  Revolution  our  fathers  to  justify  their 
rebellion  dug  down  to  the  bed-rock  of  human  rights 
and  planted  their  standard  there.  They  declared 
that  all  men  were  entitled  to  liberty  and  that  govern- 
ment derived  its  power  from  the  consent  of  the 
governed.  But  when  victory  came,  the  great  prin- 
ciples were  forgotten  and  chains  were  put  upon  the 
limbs  of  men.  Both  of  the  great  political  parties 
were  controlled  by  greed  and  selfishness.  Both 
were  the  defenders  and  protectors  of  slavery.  For 
nearly  three-quarters  of  a  century  these  parties  had 
control  of  the  Republic.  The  principal  object  of 
both  parties  was  the  protection  of  the  infamous  in- 
stitution. Both  were  eager  to  secure  the  Southern 
vote  and  both  sacrificed  principle  and  honor  upon 
the  altar  of  success. 

At  last  the  Whig  party  died  and  the  Republican 
was  born.  This  party  was  opposed  to  the  further 
extension  of  slavery.  The  Democratic  party  of  the 


6  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

South  wished  to  make  the  "  divine  institution " 
national  —  while  the  Democrats  of  the  North  wanted 
the  question  decided  by  each  territory  for  itself. 

Each  of  these  parties  had  conservatives  and  ex- 
tremists. The  extremists  of  the  Democratic  party 
were  in  the  rear  and  wished  to  go  back  ;  the  ex- 
tremists of  the  Republican  party  were  in  the  front, 
and  wished  to  go  forward.  The  extreme  Democrat 
was  willing  to  destroy  the  Union  for  the  sake  of 
slavery,  and  the  extreme  Republican  was  willing  to 
destroy  the  Union  for  the  sake  of  liberty. 

Neither  party  could  succeed  without  the  votes  of 
its  extremists. 

This  was  the  condition  in  i858-6o. 

When  Lincoln  was  a  child  his  parents  removed 
from  Kentucky  to  Indiana.  A  few  trees  were  felled 
—  a  log  hut  open  to  the  south,  no  floor,  no  window, 
was  built — a  little  land  plowed  and  here  the  Lincolns 
lived.  Here  the  patient,  thoughtful,  silent,  loving 
mother  died  —  died  in  the  wide  forest  as  a  leaf  dies, 
leaving  nothing  to  her  son  but  the  memory  of  her 
love. 

In  a  few  years  the  family  moved  to  Illinois.  Lin- 
coln then  almost  grown,  clad  in  skins,  with  no  woven 
stitch  upon  his  body — walking  and  driving  the 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  7 

cattle.  Another  farm  was  opened  —  a  few  acres 
subdued  and  enough  raised  to  keep  the  wolf  from 
the  door.  Lincoln  quit  the  farm  —  went  down  the 
Ohio  and  Mississippi  as  a  hand  on  a  flat-boat  — 
afterwards  clerked  in  a  country  store  —  then  in  part- 
nership with  another  bought  the  store  —  failed. 
Nothing  left  but  a  few  debts  —  learned  the  art  of 
surveying  —  made  about  half  a  living  and  paid  some- 
thing on  the  debts  —  read  law — admitted  to  the  bar 

*_> 

— tried  a  few  small  cases  —  nominated  for  the  legis- 
lature and  made  a  speech. 

This  speech  was  in  favor  of  a  tariff,  not  only  for 
revenue,  but  to  encourage  American  manufacturers 
and  to  protect  American  workingmen.  Lincoln 
knew  then  as  well  as  we  do  now,  that  everything, 
to  the  limits  of  the  possible,  that  Americans  use 
should  be  produced  by  the  energy,  skill  and  in- 
genuity of  Americans.  He  knew  that  the  more 
industries  we  had,  the  greater  variety  of  things  we 
made,  the  greater  would  be  the  development  of  the 
American  brain.  And  he  knew  that  great  men  and 
great  women  are  the  best  things  that  a  nation  can 
produce,  —  the  finest  crop  a  country  can  possibly 
raise. 

He  knew  that  a  nation  that  sells  raw  material  will 


o  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

grow  ignorant  and  poor,  while  the  people  who  man- 
ufacture will  grow  intelligent  and  rich.  To  dig,  to 
chop,  to  plow,  requires  more  muscle  than  mind,  more 
strength  than  thought. 

To  invent,  to  manufacture,  to  take  advantage  of 
the  forces  of  nature  —  this  requires  thought,  talent, 
genius.  This  develops  the  brain  and  gives  wings 
to  the  imagination. 

It  is  better  for  Americans  to  purchase  from  Amer- 
icans, even  if  the  things  purchased  cost  more. 

If  we  purchase  a  ton  of  steel  rails  from  England 
for  twenty  dollars,  then  we  have  the  rails  and  Eng- 
land the  money.  But  if  we  buy  a  ton  of  steel  rails 
from  an  American  for  twenty-five  dollars,  then 
America  has  the  rails  and  the  money  both. 

Judging  from  the  present  universal  depression  and 
the  recent  elections,  Lincoln,  in  his  first  speech, 
stood  on  solid  rock  and  was  absolutely  right.  Lin- 
coln was  educated  in  the  University  of  Nature  — 
educated  by  cloud  and  star  —  by  field  and  winding 
stream  —  by  billowed  plains  and  solemn  forests  —  by 
morning's  birth  and  death  of  clay  —  by  storm  and 
night  —  by  the  ever  eager  Spring  — by  Summer's 
wealth  of  leaf  and  vine  and  flower — the  sad  and 
transient  o-lories  of  the  Autumn  woods  — and  Win- 


ABRAHAM   LINCOLN.  9 

ter,  builder  of  home  and  fireside,  and  whose  storms 
without,  create  the  social  warmth  within. 

He  was  perfectly  acquainted  with  the  political 
questions  of  the  day — heard  them  discussed  at 
taverns  and  country  stores,  at  voting  places  and 
courts  and  on  the  stump.  He  knew  all  the  argu- 
ments for  and  against,  and  no  man  of  his  time  was 
better  equipped  for  intellectual  conflict.  He  knew 
the  average  mind — the  thoughts  of  the  people,  the 
hopes  and  prejudices  of  his  fellow-men.  He  had 
the  power  of  accurate  statement.  He  was  logical, 
candid  and  sincere.  In  addition,  he  had  the  "  touch 
of  nature  that  makes  the  whole  world  kin." 

In  1 858  he  was  a  candidate  for  the  Senate  against 
Stephen  A.  Douglas. 

The  extreme  Democrats  would  not  vote  for  Dou^- 

o 

las,  but  the  extreme  Republicans  did  vote  for  Lin- 
coln. Lincoln  occupied  the  middle  ground,  and  was 
the  compromise  candidate  of  his  own  party.  He 
had  lived  for  many  years  in  the  intellectual  territory 
of  compromise  —  in  a  part  of  our  country  settled  by 
Northern  and  Southern  men  — where  Northern  and 
Southern  ideas  met,  and  the  ideas  of  the  two  sec- 
tions were  brought  together  and  compared. 

The  sympathies  of  Lincoln,  his   ties   of  kindred, 


IO  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

were  with  the  South.  His  convictions,  his  sense  of 
justice,  and  his  ideals,  were  with  the  North.  He 
knew  the  horrors  of  slavery,  and  he  felt  the  un- 
speakable ecstacies  and  glories  of  freedom.  He  had 
the  kindness,  the  gentleness,  of  true  greatness,  and 
he  could  not  have  been  a  master ;  he  had  the  man- 
hood and  independence  of  true  greatness,  and  he 
could  not  have  been  a  slave.  He  was  just,  and  was 
incapable  of  putting  a  burden  upon  others  that  he 
himself  would  not  willingly  bear. 

He  was  merciful  and  profound,  and  it  was  not 
necessary  for  him  to  read  the  history  of  the  world  to 
know  that  liberty  and  slavery  could  not  live  in  the 
same  nation,  or  in  the  same  brain.  Lincoln  was  a 
statesman.  And  there  is  this  difference  between  a 
politician  and  a  statesman.  A  politician  schemes 
and  works  in  every  way  to  make  the  people  do 
something  for  him.  A  statesman  wishes  to  do  some- 
thing for  the  people.  With  him  place  and  power 
are  means  to  an  end,  and  the  end  is  the  good  of  his 
country. 

In  this  campaign  Lincoln  demonstrated  three  things 
— first,  that  he  was  the  intellectual  superior  of  his  op- 
ponent ;  second,  that  he  was  right ;  and  third,  that  a 
majority  of  the  voters  of  Illinois  were  on  his  side. 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  I  I 

II. 

TN  1860  the  Republic  reached  a  crisis.  The  con- 
flict between  liberty  and  slavery  could  no  longer 
be  delayed.  For  three-quarters  of  a  century  the 
forces  had  been  gathering  for  the  battle. 

After  the  Revolution,  principle  was  sacrificed  for 
the  sake  of  gain.  The  Constitution  contradicted  the 
Declaration.  Liberty  as  a  principle  was  held  in  con- 
tempt. Slavery  took  possession  of  the  Government. 
Slavery  made  the  laws,  corrupted  courts,  dominated 
presidents  and  demoralized  the  people. 

I  do  not  hold  the  South  responsible  for  slavery 
any  more  than  I  do  the  North,  The  fact  is,  that 
individuals  and  nations  act  as  they  must.  There  is 
no  chance.  Back  of  every  event — of  every  hope, 
prejudice,  fancy  and  dream — of  every  opinion  and 
belief — of  every  vice  and  virtue  —  of  every  smile 
and  curse,  is  the  efficient  cause.  The  present  mo- 
ment is  the  child,  and  the  necessary  child,  of  all  the 
past. 

Northern  politicians  wanted  office,  and  so  they 
defended  slavery  —  Northern  merchants  wanted  to 
sell  their  goods  to  the  South,  and  so  they  were  the 
enemies  of  freedom.  The  preacher  wished  to  please 


12  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

the  people  who  paid  his  salary,  and  so  he  denounced 
the  slave  for  not  being  satisfied  with  the  position  in 
which  the  good  God  had  placed  him. 

The  respectable,  the  rich,  the  prosperous,  the 
holders  of  and  the  seekers  for  office,  held  liberty  in 
contempt.  They  regarded  the  Constitution  as  far 
more  sacred  than  the  rights  of  men.  —  Candidates 
for  the  presidency  were  applauded  because  they  had 
tried  to  make  slave  States  of  free  territory,  and  the 
highest  Court  solemnly  and  ignorantly  decided  that 
colored  men  and  women  had  no  rights.  Men  who 
insisted  that  freedom  was  better  than  slavery,  and 
that  mothers  should  not  be  robbed  of  their  babes, 
were  hated,  despised  and  mobbed.  Mr.  Douglas 
voiced  the  feelings  of  millions  when  he  declared  that 
he  did  not  care  whether  slavery  was  voted  up  or 
down.  Upon  this  question  the  people,  a  majority 
of  them,  were  almost  savages.  Honor,  manhood, 
conscience,  principle — all  sacrificed  for  the  sake  of 
gain  or  office. 

From  the  heights  of  philosophy  —  standing  above 
the  contending  hosts,  above  the  prejudices,  the 
sentimentalities  of  the  day  —  Lincoln  was  great 
enough  and  brave  enough  and  wise  enough  to  utter 
these  prophetic  words  : 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  13 

"A  house  divided  against  itself  cannot  stand.  I  believe  this 
Government  cannot  permanently  endure  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.  It  will  become  all  the  one  thing  or  the  other.  Either 
the  opponents  of  slavery  will  arrest  the  further  spread  of  it,  and 
place  it  where  the  public  mind  shall  rest  in  the  belief  that  it  is 
in  the  course  of  ultimate  extinction,  or  its  advocates  will  push 
it  further  until  it  becomes  alike  lawful  in  all  the  States,  old  as 
well  as  new,  North  as  well  as  South." 

This  declaration  was  the  standard  around  which 
gathered  the  grandest  political  party  the  world  has 
ever  seen,  and  this  declaration  made  Lincoln  the 
leader  of  that  vast  host. 

In  this,  the  first  great  crisis,  Lincoln  uttered  the 
victorious  truth  that  made  him  the  foremost  man  in 
the  Republic. 

The  Republican  party  nominated  him  for  the 
presidency  and  the  people  decided  at  the  polls  that 
a  house  divided  against  itself  could  not  stand,  and 
that  slavery  had  cursed  soul  and  soil  enough. 

It  is  not  a  common  thing  to  elect  a  really  great 
man  to  fill  the  highest  official  position.  I  do  not  say 
that  the  great  presidents  have  been  chosen  by  acci- 
dent. Probably  it  would  be  better  to  say  that  they 
were  the  favorites  of  a  happy  chance. 

The  average  man  is  afraid  of  genius.     He  feels  as 


14  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

an  awkward  man  feels  in  the  presence  of  a  sleight- 
of-hand  performer.  He  admires  and  suspects. 
Genius  appears  to  carry  too  much  sail  —  to  lack 
prudence,  has  too  much  courage.  The  ballast  of 
dullness  inspires  confidence. 

By  a  happy  chance  Lincoln  was  nominated  and 
elected  in  spite  of  his  fitness — and  the  patient, 
gentle,  just  and  loving  man  was  called  upon  to  bear 
as  great  a  burden  as  man  has  ever  borne. 

III. 

r~PHEN  came  another  crisis  —  the  crisis  of  Seces- 
sion, and  Civil  War. 

Again  Lincoln  spoke  the  deepest  feeling  and  the 
highest  thought  of  the  Nation.  In  his  first  message 
he  said  : 

"The  central  idea  of  secession  is  the  essence  of  anarchy." 
He  also  showed  conclusively  that  the  North  and 
South,  in  spite  of  secession,  must  remain  face  to 
face  —  that  physically  they  could  not  separate  • —  that 
they  must  have  more  or  less  commerce,  and  that 
this  commerce  must  be  carried  on,  either  between 
the  two  sections  as  friends,  or  as  aliens  : 

This  situation  and  its  consequences  he  pointed 
out  to  absolute  perfection  in  these  words  : 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  I  5 

' '  Can  aliens  make  treaties  easier  than  friends  can  make  laws  ? 
Can  treaties  be  more  faithfully  enforced  between  aliens  than 
laws  among  friends  ?  ' ' 

After  having  stated  fully  and  fairly  the  philosophy 
of  the  conflict,  after  having  said  enough  to  satisfy 
any  calm  and  thoughtful  mind,  he  addressed  himself 
to  the  hearts  of  America.  Probably  there  are  few 
finer  passages  in  literature  than  the  close  of  Lin- 
coln's inaugural  address  : 

"  I  am  loth  to  close.  We  are  not  enemies,  but  friends.  We 
must  not  be  enemies.  Though  passion  may  have  strained,  it 
must  not  break,  our  bonds  of  affection.  The  mystic  chords  of 
memory  stretching  from  every  battlefield  and  patriotic  grave  to 
every  loving  heart  and  hearthstone  all  over  this  broad  land, 
will  swell  the  chorus  of  the  Union  when  again  touched,  as 
surely  they  will  be,  by  the  better  angels  of  our  nature. ' ' 

These  noble,  these  touching,  these  pathetic  words, 
were  delivered  in  the  presence  of  rebellion,  in  the 
midst  of  spies  and  conspirators  —  surrounded  by  but 
few  friends,  most  of  whom  were  unknown,  and  some 
of  whom  were  wavering  in  their  fidelity  —  at  a  time 
when  secession  was  arrogant  and  organized,  when 
patriotism  was  silent,  and  when,  to  quote  the  ex- 
pressive words  of  Lincoln  himself,  "  Sinners  were 
calling  the  righteous  to  repentance." 

When  Lincoln  became  President,  he  was  held  in 


1 6  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

contempt  by  the  South  —  underrated  by  the  North 
and  East — not  appreciated  even  by  his  cabinet  — 
and  yet  he  was  not  only  one  of  the  wisest,  but  one 
of  the  shrewdest  of  mankind.  Knowing  that  he  had 
the  right  to  enforce  the  laws  of  the  Union  in  all 
parts  of  the  United  States  and  Territories  —  know- 
ing, as  he  did,  that  the  secessionists  were  in  the 
wrong,  he  also  knew  that  they  had  sympathizers  not 
only  in  the  North  but  in  other  lands. 

Consequently  he  felt  that  it  was  of  the  utmost  im- 
portance that  the  South  should  fire  the  first  shot, 
should  do  some  act  that  would  solidify  the  North 
and  gain  for  us  the  justification  of  the  civilized  world. 

He  proposed  to  give  food  to  the  soldiers  at  Sum- 
ter.  He  asked  the  advice  of  all  his  cabinet  on  this 
question,  and  all,  with  the  exception  of  Montgomery 
Blair,  answered  in  the  negative,  giving  their  reasons 
in  writing.  In  spite  of  this,  Lincoln  took  his  own 
course  —  endeavored  to  send  the  supplies,  and  while 
thus  engaged,  doing  his  simple  duty,  the  South 
commenced  actual  hostilities  and  fired  on  the  fort. 
The  course  pursued  by  Lincoln  was  absolutely  right, 
and  the  act  of  the  South  to  a  great  extent  solidified 
the  North,  and  gained  for  the  Republic  the  justifica- 
tion of  a  great  number  of  people  in  other  lands. 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  I  7 

At  that  time  Lincoln  appreciated  the  scope  and 
consequences  of  the  impending  conflict.  Above  all 
other  thoughts  in  his  mind  was  this  : 

"  This  conflict  will  settle  the  question,  at  least  for 
"  centuries  to  come,  whether  man  is  capable  of 
"  governing  himself,  and  consequently  is  of  greater 
"  importance  to  the  free  than  to  the  enslaved." 

He  knew  what  depended  on  the  issue  and  he  said  : 

"  We  shall  nobly  save,  or  meanly  lose,  the  last, 
"  best  hope  of  earth." 

IV. 

TPHEN  came  a  crisis  in  the  North.  It  became 
clearer  and  clearer  to  Lincoln's  mind,  day  by 
day,  that  the  rebellion  was  slavery,  and  that  it  was 
necessary  to  keep  the  border  States  on  the  side  of 
the  Union.  For  this  purpose  he  proposed  a  scheme 
of  emancipation  and  colonization  —  a  scheme  by 
which  the  owners  of  slaves  should  be  paid  the  full 
value  of  what  they  called  their  "  property." 

He  knew  that  if  the  border  States  agreed  to  grad- 
ual emancipation,  and  received  compensation  for 
their  slaves,  they  would  be  forever  lost  to  the  Con- 
federacy, whether  secession  succeeded  or  not.  It 
was  objected  at  the  time,  by  some,  that  the  scheme 


1 8  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

was  far  too  expensive  ;  but  Lincoln,  wiser  than  his 
advisers  —  far  wiser  than  his  enemies  —  demon- 
strated that  from  an  economical  point  of  view,  his 
course  was  best. 

He  proposed  that  $400  be  paid  for  slaves,  includ- 
ing men,  women  and  children.  This  was  a  large 
price,  and  yet  he  showred  how  much  cheaper  it  was 
to  purchase  than  to  carry  on  the  war. 

At  that  time,  at  the  price  mentioned,  there  were 
about  $75o,ooo  worth  of  slaves  in  Delaware.  The 
cost  of  carrying  on  the  war  was  at  least  two  millions 
of  dollars  a  day,  and  for  one-third  of  one  day's  ex- 
penses, all  the  slaves  in  Delaware  could  be  purchased. 
He  also  showed  that  all  the  slaves  in  Delaware, 
Maryland,  Kentucky  and  Missouri  could  be  bought, 
at  the  same  price,  for  less  than  the  expense  of  carry- 
ing on  the  war  for  eighty-seven  days. 

This  was  the  wisest  thing  that  could  have  been 
proposed,  and  yet  such  was  the  madness  of  the 
South,  such  the  indignation  of  the  North,  that  the 
advice  was  unheeded. 

Again,  in  July,  1862,  he  urged  on  the  Representa- 
tives of  the  border  States  a  scheme  of  gradual  com- 
pensated emancipation  ;  but  the  Representatives 
were  too  deaf  to  hear,  too  blind  to  see. 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  19 

Lincoln  always  hated  slavery,  and  yet  he  felt  the 
obligations  and  duties  of  his  position.  In  his  first 
message  he  assured  the  South  that  the  laws,  includ- 
ing the  most  odious  of  all  —  the  law  for  the  return 

o 

of  fugitive  slaves  —  would  be  enforced.  The  South 
would  not  hear.  Afterwards  he  proposed  to  pur- 
chase the  slaves  of  the  border  States,  but  the  propo- 
sition was  hardly  discussed  —  hardly  heard.  Events 
came  thick  and  fast ;  theories  gave  way  to  facts,  and 
everything  was  left  to  force. 

The  extreme  Democrat  of  the  North  was  fearful 
that  slavery  might  be  destroyed,  that  the  Constitu- 
tion might  be  broken,  and  that  Lincoln,  after  all, 
could  not  be  trusted  ;  and  at  the  same  time  the  radi- 
cal Republican  feared  that  Lincoln  loved  the  Union 
more  than  he  did  liberty. 

The  fact  is,  that  he  tried  to  discharge  the  obliga- 
tions of  his  great  office,  knowing  from  the  first  that 
slavery  must  perish.  The  course  pursued  by  Lin- 
coln was  so  gentle,  so  kind  and  persistent,  so  wise 
and  logical,  that  millions  of  Northern  Democrats 
sprang  to  the  defence,  not  only  of  the  Union,  but  of 
his  administration.  Lincoln  refused  to  be  led  or 
hurried  by  Fremont  or  Hunter,  by  Greeley  or  Sum- 
ner.  From  first  to  last  he  was  the  real  leader,  and 
he  kept  step  with  events. 


2O  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 


V. 


the  22cl  of  July,  1862,  Lincoln  sent  word  to 
the  members  of  his  cabinet  that  he  wished  to 
see  them.  It  so  happened  that  Secretary  Chase  was 
the  first  to  arrive.  He  found  Lincoln  reading  a 
book.  Looking  up  from  the  page,  the  President 
said  :  "  Chase,  did  you  ever  read  this  book  ?"  "What 
book  is  it  ?"  asked  Chase.  "Artemus  Ward,"  re- 
plied Lincoln.  "  Let  me  read  you  this  chapter, 
entitled '  Wax  Wurx  in  Albany!  '  And  so  he  began 
reading  while  the  other  members  of  the  cabinet  one 
by  one  came  in.  At  last  Stanton  told  Mr.  Lincoln 
that  he  was  in  a  great  hurry,  and  if  any  business  was 
to  be  done  he  would  like  to  do  it  at  once.  Where- 
upon Mr.  Lincoln  laid  down  the  open  book  —  opened 
a  drawer,  took  out  a  paper  and  said  :  "  Gentlemen,  I 
have  called  you  together  to  notify  you  what  I  have 
determined  to  do  —  I  want  no  advice.  Nothing  can 
change  my  mind." 

He  then  read  the  Proclamation  of  Emancipation  - 
Chase  thought  there  ought  to   be  something  about 
God  at  the  close,  to  which  Lincoln  replied  :  "  Put  it 
in,   it   won't   hurt  it."     It  was  also  agreed  that  the 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  21 

President  would  wait  for  a  victory  in  the  field  before 
giving  the  Proclamation  to  the  world. 

The  meeting  was  over,  the  members  went  their 
way.  Mr.  Chase  was  the  last  to  go,  and  as  he  went 
through  the  door  looked  back  and  saw  that  Mr.  Lin- 
coln had  taken  up  the  book  and  was  again  engrossed 
in  the  Wax  Wurx  at  Albany. 

This  was  on  the  22d  of  July,  1862.  On  the  22d 
of  August  of  the  same  year  —  after  Lincoln  wrote 
his  celebrated  letter  to  Horace  Greeley,  in  which  he 
stated  that  his  object  was  to  save  the  Union  ;  that  he 
would  save  it  with  slavery  if  he  could ;  that  if  it  was 
necessary  to  destroy  slavery  in  order  to  save  the 
Union,  he  would  ;  in  other  words,  he  would  do  what 
was  necessary  to  save  the  Union. 

This  letter  disheartened,  to  a  great  degree,  thou- 
sands and  millions  of  the  friends  of  freedom.  They 
felt  that  Mr.  Lincoln  had  not  attained  the  moral 
height  upon  which  they  supposed  he  stood.  And 
yet,  when  this  letter  was  written,  the  Emancipation 
Proclamation  was  in  his  hands,  and  had  been  for 
thirty  days,  waiting  only  an  opportunity  to  give  it  to 
the  world. 

Some  two  weeks  after  the  letter  to  Greeley,  Lin- 
coln was  waited  on  by  a  committee  of  clergymen, 


22  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

and  was  by  them  informed  that  it  was  God's  will  that 
he  should  issue  a  Proclamation  of  Emancipation. 
He  replied  to  them,  in  substance,  that  the  day  of 
miracles  had  passed.  He  also  mildly  and  kindly 
suggested  that  if  it  were  God's  will  this  Proclamation 
should  be  issued,  certainly  God  would  have  made 
known  that  will  to  him  —  to  the  person  whose  duty 
it  was  to  issue  it. 

On  the  22d  day  of  September,  1862,  the  most 
glorious  date  in  the  history  of  the  Republic,  the 
Proclamation  of  Emancipation  was  issued. 

Lincoln  had  reached  the  generalization  of  all  argu- 
ment upon  the  question  of  slavery  and  freedom  —  a 
generalization  that  never  has  been,  and  probably 
never  will  be,  excelled  : 

' '  In  giving  freedom  to  the  slave,  we  assure  freedom  to  the 
free." 

This  is  absolutely  true.  Liberty  can  be  retained, 
can  be  enjoyed,  only  by  giving  it  to  others.  The 
spendthrift  saves,  the  miser  is  prodigal.  In  the  realm 
of  Freedom,  waste  is  husbandry.  He  who  puts 
chains  upon  the  body  of  another  shackles  his  own 
soul.  The  moment  the  Proclamation  was  issued, 
the  cause  of  the  Republic  became  sacred.  From 
that  moment  the  North  fought  for  the  human  race. 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  23 

From  that  moment  the  North  stood  under  the  blue 
and  stars,  the  flag  of  Nature  —  sublime  and  free. 

In  1831,  Lincoln  went  down  the  Mississippi  on  a 
flat-boat.  He  received  the  extravagant  salary  of 
ten  dollars  a  month.  When  he  reached  New  Or- 
leans, he  and  some  of  his  companions  went  about 
the  city. 

Among  other  places,  they  visited  a  slave  market, 
where  men  and  women  were  being  sold  at  auction. 
A  young  colored  girl  was  on  the  block.  Lincoln 
heard  the  brutal  words  of  the  auctioneer  —  the  savage 
remarks  of  bidders.  The  scene  filled  his  soul  with 
indignation  and  horror. 

Turning  to  his  companions,  he  said,  "  Boys,  if  I 
ever  get  a  chance  to  hit  slavery,  by  God  I'll  hit  it 
hard ! " 

The  helpless  girl,  unconsciously,  had  planted  in  a 
great  heart  the  seeds  of  the  Proclamation. 

Thirty-one  years  afterwards  the  chance  came,  the 
oath  was  kept,  and  to  four  millions  of  slaves,  of  men, 
women  and  children,  was  restored  liberty,  the  jewel 
of  the  soul. 

In  the  history,  in  the  fiction  of  the  world,  there  is 
nothing  more  intensely  dramatic  than  this. 

Lincoln  held  within  his  brain  the  grandest  truths, 


24  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

and  he  held  them  as  unconsciously,  as  easily,  as 
naturally,  as  a  waveless  pool  holds  within  its  stainless 
breast  a  thousand  stars. 

In  these  two  years  we  had  traveled  from  the  Or- 
dinance of  Secession  to  the  Proclamation  of  Eman- 
cipation. 

VI. 

T  \  TE  were  surrounded  by  enemies.  Many  of  the 
so-called  great  in  Europe  and  England  were 
against  us.  They  hated  the  Republic,  despised  our 
institutions,  and  sought  in  many  ways  to  aid  the 
South. 

Mr.  Gladstone  announced  that  Jefferson  Davis  had 
made  a  nation,  and  that  he  did  not  believe  the  restor- 
ation of  the  American  Union  by  force  attainable. 

From  the  Vatican  came  words  of  encouragement 
for  the  South. 

It  was  declared  that  the  North  was  fighting  for 
empire  and  the  South  for  independence. 

The  Marquis  of  Salisbury  said  :  "  The  people  of 
the  South  are  the  natural  allies  of  England.  The 
North  keeps  an  opposition  shop  in  the  same  depart- 
ment of  trade  as  ourselves." 

Not  a  very  elevated  sentiment  —  but  English. 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  25 

Some  of  their  statesmen  declared  that  the  subju- 
gation of  the  South  by  the  North  would  be  a  calamity 
to  the  world. 

Louis  Napoleon  was  another  enemy,  and  he  en- 
deavored to  establish  a  monarchy  in  Mexico,  to  the 
end  that  the  great  North  might  be  destroyed.  But 
the  patience,  the  uncommon  common  sense,  the 
statesmanship  of  Lincoln  —  in  spite  of  foreign  hate 
and  Northern  division  —  triumphed  over  all.  And 
now  we  forgive  all  foes.  Victory  makes  forgiveness 
easy. 

Lincoln  was,  by  nature,  a  diplomat.  He  knew 
the  art  of  sailing  against  the  wind.  He  had  as 
much  shrewdness  as  is  consistent  with  honesty. 
He  understood,  not  only  the  rights  of  individ- 
uals, but  of  nations.  In  all  his  correspondence 
with  other  governments  he  neither  wrote  nor 
sanctioned  a  line  which  afterwards  was  used  to 
tie  his  hands.  In  the  use  of  perfect  English  he 
easily  rose  above  all  his  advisers  and  all  his 
fellows. 

No  one  claims  that  Lincoln  did  all.  He  could 
have  done  nothing  without  the  generals  in  the  field  ; 
and  the  generals  could  have  done  nothing  without 
their  armies.  The  praise  is  due  to  all  —  to  the 


26  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

private  as  much  as  to  the  officer  ;  to  the  lowest  who 
did  his  duty,  as  much  as  to  the  highest. 

My  heart  goes  out  to  the  brave  private  as  much 
as  to  the  leader  of  the  host. 

But  Lincoln  stood  at  the  centre  and  with  infinite 
patience,  with  consummate  skill,  with  the  genius  of 
goodness,  directed,  cheered,  consoled  and  conquered. 


VII. 


OLAVERY  was  the  cause  of  the  war,  and  slavery 
was  the  perpetual  stumbling-block.  As  the  war 
went  on,  question  after  question  arose  —  questions 
that  could  not  be  answered  by  theories.  Should  we 
hand  back  the  slave  to  his  master,  when  the  master 
was  using  his  slave  to  destroy  the  Union  ?  If  the 
South  was  right,  slaves  were  property,  and  by  the 
laws  of  war  anything  that  might  be  used  to  the  ad- 
vantage of  the  enemy  might  be  confiscated  by  us. 
Events  did  not  wait  for  discussion.  General  Butler 
denominated  the  negro  as  "  a  contraband."  Con- 
gress provided  that  the  property  of  the  rebels  might 
be  confiscated. 

The  extreme  Democrats  of  the   North   regarded 
the  slave  as  more  sacred  than  life.     It  was  no  harm 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  2? 

to  kill  the  master — to  burn  his  house,  to  ravage  his 
fields  —  but  you  must  not  free  his  slave. 

If  in  war,  a  nation  has  the  right  to  take  the  prop- 
erty of  its  citizens  —  of  its  friends  —  certainly  it  has 
the  right  to  take  the  property  of  those  it  has  the 
right  to  kill. 

Lincoln  was  wise  enough  to  know  that  war 
is  governed  by  the  laws  of  war,  and  that  dur- 
ing the  conflict  constitutions  are  silent.  All 
that  he  could  do  he  did  in  the  interests  of 
peace.  He  offered  to  execute  every  law — in- 
cluding the  most  infamous  of  all  —  to  buy  the 
slaves  in  the  border  States  —  to  establish  grad- 
ual, compensated  emancipation ;  but  the  South 
would  not  hear.  Then  he  confiscated  the  prop- 
erty of  rebels  —  treated  the  slaves  as  contraband 
of  war,  used  them  to  put  down  the  rebellion, 
armed  them  and  clothed  them  in  the  uniform 
of  the  Republic  —  was  in  favor  of  making 
them  citizens  and  allowing  them  to  stand  on 
an  equality  with  their  white  brethren  under  the 
flag  of  the  Nation.  During  these  years  Lincoln 
moved  with  events,  and  every  step  he  took  has 
been  justified  by  the  considerate  judgment  of  man- 
kind. 


2&  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

VIII. 

T  INCOLN  not  only  watched  the  war,  but  kept  his 
*-'  hand  on  the  political  pulse.  In  1863  a  tide  set 
in  against  the  administration.  A  Republican  meet- 
ing was  to  be  held  in  Springfield,  Illinois,  and  Lin- 
coln wrote  a  letter  to  be  read  at  this  convention. 
It  was  in  his  happiest  vein.  It  was  a  perfect  defense 
of  his  administration,  including  the  Proclamation  of 
Emancipation.  Among  other  things  he  said  : 

"  But  the  proclamation,  as  law,  either  is  valid  or  it  is  not 
valid.  If  it  is  not  valid  it  needs  no  retraction,  but  if  it  is  valid 
it  cannot  be  retracted,  any  more  than  the  dead  can  be  brought 
to  life." 

To  the  Northern  Democrats  who  said  they  would 
not  fight  for  negroes,  Lincoln  replied  : 

' '  Some  of  them  seem  willing  to  fight  for  you  —  but  no 
matter." 

Of  negro  soldiers  : 

' '  But  negroes,  like  other  people,  act  upon  motives.  Why 
should  they  do  anything  for  us  if  we  will  do  nothing  for  them  ? 
If  they  stake  their  lives  for  us  they  must  be  prompted  by  the 
strongest  motive  —  even  the  promise  of  freedom.  And  the 
promise,  being  made,  must  be  kept." 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  2Q 

There  is  one  line  in  this  letter  that  will  give  it 
immortality  : 

' '  The  Father  of  waters  again  goes  unvexed  to  the  sea. ' ' 

This  line  is  worthy  of  Shakespeare. 
Another  : 

"Among  free  men  there  can  be  no  successful  appeal  from  the 
ballot  to  the  bullet." 

He  draws  a  comparison  between  the  white  men 
against  us  and  the  black  men  for  us  : 

"And  then  there  will  be  some  black  men  who  can  remember 
that  with  silent  tongue  and  clenched  teeth  and  steady  eye  and 
well-poised  bayonet  they  have  helped  mankind  on  to  this  great 
consummation  ;  while  I  fear  there  will  be  some  white  ones  un- 
able to  forget  that  with  malignant  heart  and  deceitful  speech 
they  strove  to  hinder  it. ' ' 

Under  the  influence  of  this  letter,  the  love  of  coun- 
try, of  the  Union,  and  above  all,  the  love  of  liberty, 
took  possession  of  the  heroic  North. 

There  was  the  greatest  moral  exaltation  ever 
known. 

The  spirit  of  liberty  took  possession  of  the  people. 
The  masses  became  sublime. 

To  fight  for  yourself  is  natural  —  to  fight  for  others 
is  grand  —  to  fight  for  your  country  is  noble  —  to 


3O  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

fight  for  the  human  race  —  for  the  liberty  of  hand 
and  brain  —  is  nobler  still. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  defenders  of  slavery  had 
sown  the  seeds  of  their  own  defeat.  They  dug  the 
pit  in  which  they  fell.  Clay  and  Webster  and  thou- 
sands of  others,  had  by  their  eloquence  made  the 
Union  almost  sacred.  The  Union  was  the  very  tree 
of  life,  the  source  and  stream  and  sea  of  liberty  and 
law. 

For  the  sake  of  slavery  millions  stood  by  the 
Union,  for  the  sake  of  liberty  millions  knelt  at  the 
altar  of  the  Union  ;  and  this  love  of  the  Union 
is  what,  at  last,  overwhelmed  the  Confederate 
hosts. 

It  does  not  seem  possible  that  only  a  few 
years  ago  our  Constitution,  our  laws,  our  Courts, 
the  Pulpit  and  the  Press  defended  and  upheld 
the  institution  of  slavery  —  that  it  was  a  crime  to 
feed  the  hungry  —  to  give  water  to  the  lips  of 
thirst  —  shelter  to  a  woman  flying  from  the  whip 
and  chain ! 

The  old  flag  still  flies  —  the  stars  are  there  —  the 
stains  have  gone. 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  31 

IX. 

T  INCOLN  always  saw  the  end.  He  was  unmoved 
*-*  by  the  storms  and  currents  of  the  times.  He 
advanced  too  rapidly  for  the  conservative  politicians, 
too  slowly  for  the  radical  enthusiasts.  He  occupied 
the  line  of  safety,  and  held  by  his  personality  —  by 
the  force  of  his  great  character,  by  his  charming 
candor  —  the  masses  on  his  side. 

The  soldiers  thought  of  him  as  a  father. 

All  who  had  lost  their  sons  in  battle  felt  that  they 
had  his  sympathy  —  felt  that  his  face  was  as  sad  as 
theirs.  They  knew  that  Lincoln  was  actuated  by 
one  motive,  and  that  his  energies  were  bent  to  the 
attainment  of  one  end  —  the  salvation  of  the  Re- 
public. 

They  knew  that  he  was  kind,  sincere  and  merci- 
ful. They  knew  that  in  his  veins  there  was  no  drop 
of  tyrants'  blood.  They  knew  that  he  used  his 
power  to  protect  the  innocent,  to  save  reputation 
and  life  —  that  he  had  the  brain  of  a  philosopher  — 
the  heart  of  a  mother. 

During  all  the  years  of  war,  Lincoln  stood  the 
embodiment  of  mercy,  between  discipline  and  death. 
He  pitied  the  imprisoned  and  condemned.  He  took 


32  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

the  unfortunate  in  his  arms,  and  was  the  friend  even 
of  the  convict.     He   knew  temptation's  strength  — 
the  weakness  of  the  will  —  and  how  in  fury's  sudden 
flame  the  judgment  drops  the  scales,  and  passion  — 
blind  and  deaf —  usurps  the  throne. 

One  day  a  woman,  accompanied  by  a  Senator, 
called  on  the  President.  The  woman  was  the  wife 
of  one  of  Mosby's  men.  Her  husband  had  been 
captured,  tried  and  condemned  to  be  shot.  She 
came  to  ask  for  the  pardon  of  her  husband.  The 
President  heard  her  story  and  then  asked  what  kind 
of  man  her  husband  was.  "  Is  he  intemperate,  does 
he  abuse  the  children  and  beat  you  ?  "  "  No,  no," 
said  the  wife,  "  he  is  a  good  man,  a  good  husband, 
he  loves  me  and  he  loves  the  children,  and  we  can- 
not live  without  him.  The  only  trouble  is  that  he 
is  a  fool  about  politics  —  I  live  in  the  North,  born 
there,  and  if  I  get  him  home,  he  will  do  no  more 
fighting  for  the  South."  "  Well,"  said  Mr.  Lincoln, 
after  examining  the  papers,  "  I  will  pardon  your 
husband  and  turn  him  over  to  you  for  safe  keeping." 
The  poor  woman,  overcome  with  joy,  sobbed  as 
though  her  heart  would  break. 

"  My  dear  woman,"  said  Lincoln,  "  if  I  had  known 
how  badly  it  was  going  to  make  you  feel,  I  never 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  33 

would  have  pardoned  him."  "  You  do  not  under- 
stand me,"  she  cried  between  her  sobs.  "  You  do 
not  understand  me."  "  Yes,  yes,  I  do,"  answered 
the  President,  "  and  if  you  do  not  go  away  at  once  I 
shall  be  crying  with  you." 

On  another  occasion,  a  member  of  Congress,  on 
his  way  to  see  Lincoln,  found  in  one  of  the  ante- 
rooms of  the  White  House  an  old  white-haired  man, 
sobbing  —  his  wrinkled  face  wet  with  tears.  The 
old  man  told  him  that  for  several  days  he  had  tried 
to  see  the  President  —  that  he  wanted  a  pardon  for 
his  son.  The  Congressman  told  the  old  man  to 
come  with  him  and  he  would  introduce  him  to  Mr. 
Lincoln.  On  being  introduced,  the  old  man  said  : 
"  Mr.  Lincoln,  my  wife  sent  me  to  you.  We  had 
three  boys.  They  all  joined  your  army.  One  of 
'em  has  been  killed  —  one's  a  fighting  now,  and  one 
of  'em,  the  youngest,  has  been  tried  for  deserting 
and  he's  going  to  be  shot  day  after  to-morrow.  He 
never  deserted.  He's  wild,  and  he  may  have  drunk 
too  much  and  wandered  off,  but  he  never  deserted, 
Taint  in  the  blood  - —  he's  his  mother's  favorite,  and 
if  he's  shot,  I  know  she'll  die."  The  President, 
turning  to  his  secretary,  said  :  "  Telegraph  General 
Butler  to  suspend  the  execution  in  the  case  of 


34  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

[giving  the  name]  until  further  orders  from  me,  and 
ask  him  to  answer  -  — ." 

The  Congressman  congratulated  the  old  man  on 
his  success  —  but  the  old  man  did  not  respond.  He 
was  not  satisfied.  "  Mr.  President,"  he  began,  <l  I 
can't  take  that  news  home.  It  won't  satisfy  his 
mother.  How  do  I  know  but  what  you'll  give  further 
orders  to-morrow?"  "My  good  man,"  said  Mr. 
Lincoln, "  I  have  to  do  the  best  I  can.  The  generals 
are  complaining  because  I  pardon  so  many.  They 
say  that  my  mercy  destroys  discipline.  Now,  when 
you  get  home  you  tell  his  mother  what  you  said  to 
me  about  my  giving  further  orders,  and  then  you  tell 
her  that  I  said  this  :  '  If  your  son  lives  until  they  get 
further  orders  from  me,  that  when  he  does  die  peo- 
ple will  say  that  old  Methusaleh  was  a  baby  com- 
pared to  him.'  ' 

The  pardoning  power  is  the  only  remnant  of  ab- 
solute sovereignty  that  a  President  has.  Through 
all  the  years,  Lincoln  will  be  known  as  Lincoln  the 
loving,  Lincoln  the  merciful. 


- 


L 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  36 

X. 

INCOLN  had  the  keenest  sense  of  humor,  and 
always  saw  the  laughable  side  even  of  disaster. 
In  his  humor  there  was  logic  and  the  best  of  sense. 
No  matter  how  complicated  the  question,  or  how 
embarrassing  the  situation,  his  humor  furnished  an 
answer,  and  a  door  of  escape. 

Vallandingham  was  a  friend  of  the  South,  and  did 
what  he  could  to  sow  the  seeds  of  failure.  In  his 
opinion  everything,  except  rebellion,  was  unconsti- 
tutional. 

He  was  arrested,  convicted  by  a  court  martial,  and 
sentenced  to  imprisonment. 

There  was  doubt  about  the  legality  of  the  trial, 
and  thousands  in  the  North  denounced  the  whole 
proceeding  as  tyrannical  and  infamous.  At  the  same 
time  millions  demanded  that  Vallandingham  should 
be  punished. 

Lincoln's  humor  came  to  the  rescue.  He  disap- 
proved of  the  findings  of  the  court,  changed  the 
punishment,  and  ordered  that  Mr.  Vallandingham 
should  be  sent  to  his  friends  in  the  South. 

Those  who  regarded  the  act  as  unconstitutional 
almost  forgave  it  for  the  sake  of  its  humor. 


36  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

Horace  Greeley  always  had  the  idea  that  he  was 
greatly  superior  to  Lincoln,  because  he  lived  in  a 
larger  town,  and  for  a  long  time  insisted  that  the 
people  of  the  North  and  the  people  of  the  South 
desired  peace.  He  took  it  upon  himself  to  lecture; 
Lincoln.  Lincoln,  with  that  wonderful  sense  of 
humor,  united  with  shrewdness  and  profound  wisdom, 
told  Greeley  that,  if  the  South  really  wanted  peace, 
he  (Lincoln)  desired  the  same  thing,  and  was  doing 
all  he  could  to  bring  it  about.  Greeley  insisted  that 
a  commissioner  should  be  appointed,  with  authority 
to  negotiate  with  the  representatives  of  the  Con- 
federacy. This  was  Lincoln's  opportunity.  He 
authorized  Greeley  to  act  as  such  commissioner. 
The  great  editor  felt  that  he  was  caught.  For  a 
time  he  hesitated,  but  finally  went,  and  found  that 
the  Southern  commissioners  were  willing  to  take 
into  consideration  any  offers  of  peace  that  Lincoln 
might  make,  consistent  with  the  independence  of  the 
Confederacy. 

The  failure  of  Greeley  was  humiliating,  and  the 
position  in  which  he  was  left,  absurd. 

Again  the  humor  of  Lincoln  had  triumphed. 

Lincoln,  to  satisfy  a  few  fault-finders  in  the  North, 
went  to  Grant's  headquarters  and  met  some  Con- 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  37 

federate  commissioners.  He  urged  that  it  was  hardly 
proper  for  him  to  negotiate  with  the  representatives 
of  rebels  in  arms  —  that  if  the  South  wanted  peace, 
all  they  had  to  do  was  to  stop  fighting.  One  of  the 
commissioners  cited  as  a  precedent  the  fact  that 
Charles  the  First  negotiated  with  rebels  in  arms. 
To  which  Lincoln  replied  that  Charles  the  First  lost 
his  head. 

The  conference  came  to  nothing,  as  Mr.  Lincoln 
expected. 

The  commissioners,  one  of  them  being  Alexander 
H.  Stephens,  who,  when  in  good  health,  weighed 
about  ninety  pounds,  dined  with  the  President  and 
Gen.  Grant.  After  dinner,  as  they  were  leaving, 
Stephens  put  on  an  English  ulster,  the  tails  of  which 
reached  the  ground,  while  the  collar  was  somewhat 
above  the  wearer's  head. 

As  Stephens  went  out,  Lincoln  touched  Grant  and 
said  :  "  Grant,  look  at  Stephens.  Did  you  ever  see 
as  little  a  nubbin  with  as  much  shuck  ?  " 

Lincoln  always  tried  to  do  things  in  the  easiest 
way.  He  did  not  waste  his  strength.  He  was  not 
particular  about  moving  along  straight  lines.  He 
did  not  tunnel  the  mountains.  He  was  willing  to  go 
around,  and  reach  the  end  desired  as  a  river  reaches 
the  sea. 


38  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

XL 


of  the  most  wonderful  things  ever  done  by 
Lincoln  was  the  promotion  of  General  Hooker. 
After  the  battle  of  Fredericksburg,  General  Burnside 
found  great  fault  with  Hooker,  and  wished  to  have 
him  removed  from  the  Army  of  the  Potomac.  Lin- 
coln disapproved  of  Burnside's  order,  and  gave 
Hooker  the  command.  He  then  wrote  Hooker  this 
memorable  letter  : 

'  '  I  have  placed  you  at  the  head  of  the  Army  of  the  Poto- 
mac. Of  course  I  have  done  this  upon  what  appears  to  me  to 
be  sufficient  reasons,  and  yet  I  think  it  best  for  you  to  know 
that  there  are  some  things  in  regard  to  which  I  am  not  quite 
satisfied  with  you.  I  believe  you  to  be  a  brave  and  skillful 
soldier  —  which,  of  course,  I  like.  I  also  believe  you  do  not 
mix  politics  with  your  profession  —  in  which  you  are  right. 
You  have  confidence  —  which  is  a  valuable,  if  not  an  indispen- 
sable, quality.  You  are  ambitious,  which,  within  reasonable 
bounds,  does  good  rather  than  harm  ;  but  I  think  that  during 
General  Burnside's  command  of  the  army  you  have  taken 
counsel  of  your  ambition  to  thwart  him  as  much  as  you  could  — 
in  which  you  did  a  great  wrong  to  the  country  and  to  a  most 
meritorious  and  honorable  brother  officer.  I  have  heard,  in 
such  a  way  as  to  believe  it,  of  your  recently  saying  that  both 
the  army  and  the  Government  needed  a  dictator.  Of  course  it 
was  not  for  this,  but  in  spite  of  it,  that  I  have  given  you  com- 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  39 

mand.  Only  those  generals  who  gain  successes  can  set  up 
dictators.  What  I  now  ask  of  you  is  military  successes,  and  I 
will  risk  the  dictatorship.  The  Government  will  support  you 
to  the  utmost  of  its  ability,  which  is  neither  more  nor  less  than 
it  has  done  and  will  do  for  all  commanders.  I  much  fear  that 
the  spirit  which  you  have  aided  to  infuse  into  the  army,  of 
criticising  their  commander  and  withholding  confidence  in  him, 
will  now  turn  upon  you.  I  shall  assist  you,  so  far  as  I  can,  to 
put  it  down.  Neither  you,  nor  Napoleon,  if  he  were  alive,  can 
get  any  good  out  of  an  army  while  such  a  spirit  prevails  in  it. 
And  now  beware  of  rashness.  Beware  of  rashness,  but  with 
energy  and  sleepless  vigilance  go  forward  and  give  us  victories." 

This  letter  has,  in  my  judgment,  no  parallel.  The 
mistaken  magnanimity  is  almost  equal  to  the 
prophecy  : 

"  I  much  fear  that  the  spirit  which  you  have  aided  to  infuse 
into  the  army,  of  criticising  their  command  and  withholding 
confidence  in  him,  will  now  turn  upon  you." 

Chancellorsville  was  the  fulfillment. 

XII. 

/VAR.   LINCOLN   was    a   statesman.     The   great 
stumbling-block  —  the  great  obstruction  —  in 
Lincoln's  way,  and  in  the  way  of  thousands,  was  the 
old  doctrine  of  States  Rights. 

This  doctrine  was  first  established  to  protect 
slavery.  It  was  clung  to  to  protect  the  inter-State 


4O  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

slave  trade.  It  became  sacred  in  connection  with 
the  Fugitive  Slave  Law,  and  it  was  finally  used  as 
the  corner-stone  of  Secession. 

This  doctrine  was  never  appealed  to  in  defense  of 
the  right — -always  in  support  of  the  wrong.  For 
many  years  politicians  upon  both  sides  of  this  ques- 
tion endeavored  to  express  the  exact  relations  ex- 
isting between  the  Federal  Government  and  the 
States,  and  I  know  of  no  one  who  succeeded,  except 
Lincoln.  In  his  message  of  1861,  delivered  on  July 
the  4th,  the  definition  is  given,  and  it  is  perfect : 

"  Whatever  concerns  the  whole  should  be  confided  to  the 
whole  —  to  the  General  Government.  Whatever  concerns  only 
the  State  should  be  left  exclusively  to  the  State. ' ' 

When  that  definition  is  realized  in  practice,  this 
country  becomes  a  Nation.  Then  we  shall  know 
that  the  first  allegiance  of  the  citizen  is  not  to  his 
State,  but  to  the  Republic,  and  that  the  first  duty  of 
the  Republic  is  to  protect  the  citizen,  not  only  when 
in  other  lands,  but  at  home,  and  that  this  duty  can- 
not be  discharged  by  delegating  it  to  the  States. 

Lincoln  believed  in  the  sovereignty  of  the  people 
—  in  the  supremacy  of  the  Nation  —  in  the  territorial 
integrity  of  the  Republic. 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  41 

XIII. 

A  GREAT  actor  can  be  known  only  when  he  has 
**  assumed  the  principal  character  in  a  great 
drama.  Possibly  the  greatest  actors  have  never  ap- 
peared, and  it  may  be  that  the  greatest  soldiers  have 
lived  the  lives  of  perfect  peace.  Lincoln  assumed 
the  leading  part  in  the  greatest  drama  ever  enacted 
upon  the  stage  of  this  continent. 

His  criticisms  of  military  movements,  his  corre- 
spondence with  his  generals  and  others  on  the  con- 
duct of  the  war,  show  that  he  was  at  all  times  master 
of  the  situation  —  that  he  was  a  natural  strategist, 
that  he  appreciated  the  difficulties  and  advantages 
of  every  kind,  and  that  in  "  the  still  and  mental " 
field  of  war  he  stood  the  peer  of  any  man  beneath 
the  flag. 

Had  McClelland  followed  his  advice,  he  would 
have  taken  Richmond. 

Had  Hooker  acted  in  accordance  with  his  sugges- 
tions, Chancellorsville  would  have  been  a  victory  for 
the  Nation. 

Lincoln's  political  prophecies  were  all  fulfilled. 

We  know  now  that  he  not  only  stood  at  the  top, 
but  that  he  occupied  the  centre,  from  first  to  last, 


42  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

and  that  he  did  this  by  reason  of  his  intelligence, 
his  humor,  his  philosophy,  his  courage  and  his 
patriotism. 

In  passions'  storm  he  stood,  unmoved,  patient,  just 
and  candid.  In  his  brain  there  was  no  cloud,  and  in 
his  heart  no  hate.  He  longed  to  save  the  South  as 
well  as  North,  to  see  the  Nation  one  and  free. 

He  lived  until  the  end  was  known. 

He  lived  until  the  Confederacy  was  dead  —  until 
Lee  surrendered,  until  Davis  fled,  until  the  doors  of 
Libby  Prison  were  opened,  until  the  Republic  was 
supreme. 

He  lived  until  Lincoln  and  Liberty  were  united 
forever. 

He  lived  to  cross  the  desert  —  to  reach  the  palms 
of  victory  —  to  hear  the  murmured  music  of  the  wel- 
come waves. 

He  lived  until  all  loyal  hearts  were  his  —  until  the 
history  of  his  deeds  made  music  in  the  souls  of  men 
-  until  he  knew  that  on  Columbia's  Calendar  of 
worth  and  fame  his  name  stood  first. 

He  lived  until  there  remained  nothing  for  him  to 
do  as  great  as  he  had  done. 

What  he  did  was  worth  living  for,  worth  dying  for. 

He  lived  until  he  stood  in  the  midst   of  universal 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  43 

Joy,  beneath  the  outstretched  wings  of  Peace  —  the 
foremost  man  in  all  the  world. 

And  then  the  horror  came.  Night  fell  on  noon. 
The  Savior  of  the  Republic,  the  breaker  of  chains, 
the  liberator  of  millions,  he  who  had  "  assured  free- 
dom to  the  free,"  was  dead. 

Upon  his  brow  Fame  placed  the  immortal  wreath, 
and  for  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  world  a 
Nation  bowed  and  wept. 

The  memory  of  Lincoln  is  the  strongest,  tenderest 
tie  that  binds  all  hearts  together  now,  and  holds  all 
States  beneath  a  Nation's  flag. 

XIV. 

ABRAHAM  LINCOLN —  strange  mingling  of 
**  mirth  and  tears,  of  the  tragic  and  grotesque, 
of  cap  and  crown,  of  Socrates  and  Democritus,  of 
/Esop  and  Marcus  Aurelius,  of  all  that  is  gentle  and 
just,  humorous  and  honest,  merciful,  wise,  laughable, 
lovable  and  divine,  and  all  consecrated  to  the  use  of 
man  ;  while  through  all,  and  over  all,  were  an  over- 
whelming sense  of  obligation,  of  chivalric  loyalty  to 
truth,  and  upon  all,  the  shadow  of  the  tragic  end. 
Nearly  all  the  great  historic  characters  are  impos- 


44  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

sible  monsters,  disproportioned  by  flattery,  or  by 
calumny  deformed.  We  know  nothing  of  their 
peculiarities,  or  nothing  but  their  peculiarities. 
About  these  oaks  there  clings  none  of  the  earth  of 
humanity. 

Washington  is  now  only  a  steel  engraving.  About 
the  real  man  who  lived  and  loved  and  hated  and 
schemed,  we  know  but  little.  The  glass  through 
which  we  look  at  him  is  of  such  high  magnifying 
power  that  the  features  are  exceedingly  indistinct. 

Hundreds  of  people  are  now  engaged  in  smooth- 
ing out  the  lines  of  Lincoln's  face  —  forcing  all 
features  to  the  common  mould  —  so  that  he  may  be 
known,  not  as  he  really  was,  but,  according  to  their 
poor  standard,  as  he  should  have  been. 

Lincoln  was  not  a  type.  He  stands  alone  —  no 
ancestors,  no  fellows,  and  no  successors. 

He  had  the  advantage  of  living  in  a  new  country, 
of  social  equality,  of  personal  freedom,  of  seeing  in 
the  horizon  of  his  future  the  perpetual  star  of  hope. 
He  preserved  his  individuality  and  his  self-respect. 
He  knew  and  mingled  with  men  of  every  kind  ; 
and,  after  all,  men  are  the  best  books.  He  became 
acquainted  with  the  ambitions  and  hopes  of  the 
heart,  the  means  used  to  accomplish  ends,  the 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  4 

springs  of  action  and  the  seeds  of  thought.  He  was 
familiar  with  nature,  with  actual  things,  with  com- 
mon facts.  He  loved  and  appreciated  the  poem  of 
the  year,  the  drama  of  the  seasons. 

In  a  new  country  a  man  must  possess  at  least 
three  virtues  —  honesty,  courage  and  generosity. 
In  cultivated  society,  cultivation  is  often  more  im- 
portant than  soil.  A  well-executed  counterfeit 
passes  more  readily  than  a  blurred  genuine.  It  is 
necessary  only  to  observe  the  unwritten  laws  of 
society  —  to  be  honest  enough  to  keep  out  of  prison, 
and  generous  enough  to  subscribe  in  public  —  where 
the  subscription  can  be  defended  as  an  investment. 

In  a  new  country,  character  is  essential  ;  in  the 
old,  reputation  is  sufficient.  In  the  new,  they  find 
what  a  man  really  is  ;  in  the  old,  he  generally  passes 
for  what  he  resembles.  People  separated  only  by 
distance  are  much  nearer  together,  than  those  divided 
by  the  walls  of  caste. 

It  is  no  advantage  to  live  in  a  great  city,  where 
poverty  degrades  and  failure  brings  despair.  The 
fields  are  lovelier  than  paved  streets,  and  the  great 
forests  than  walls  of  brick.  Oaks  and  elms  are  more 
poetic  than  steeples  and  chimneys. 

In  the  country  is   the   idea  of  home.     There  you 


46  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

see  the  rising  and  setting  sun  ;  you  become  ac- 
quainted with  the  stars  and  clouds.  The  constella- 
tions are  your  friends.  You  hear  the  rain  on  the 
roof  and  listen  to  the  rhythmic  sighing  of  the  winds. 
You  are  thrilled  by  the  resurrection  called  Spring, 
touched  and  saddened  by  Autumn  —  the  grace  and 
poetry  of  death.  Every  field  is  a  picture,  a  land- 
scape :  every  landscape  a  poem  ;  every  flower  a 
tender  thought,  and  every  forest  a  fairy-land.  In 
the  country  you  preserve  your  identity  —  your  per- 
sonality. There  you  are  an  aggregation  of  atoms  ; 
but  in  the  city  you  are  only  an  atom  of  an  aggrega- 
tion. 

In  the  country  you  keep  your  cheek  close  to  the 
breast  of  Nature.  You  are  calmed  and  ennobled  by 
the  space,  the  amplitude  and  scope  of  earth  and  sky 
-by  the  constancy  of  the  stars. 

Lincoln  never  finished  his  education.  To  the 
night  of  his  death  he  was  a  pupil,  a  learner,  an 
inquirer,  a  seeker  after  knowledge.  You  have  no 
idea  how  many  men  are  spoiled  by  what  is  called 
education.  For  the  most  part,  colleges  are  places 
where  pebbles  are  polished  and  diamonds  are 
dimmed.  If  Shakespeare  had  graduated  at  Oxford, 
he  might  have  been  a  quibbling  attorney,  or  a  hypo- 
critical parson. 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  47 

Lincoln  was  a  great  lawyer.  There  is  nothing 
shrewder  in  this  world  than  intelligent  honesty. 
Perfect  candor  is  sword  and  shield. 

He  understood  the  natue  of  man.  As  a  lawyer 
he  endeavored  to  get  at  the  truth,  at  the  very  heart 
of  a  case.  H"e  was  not  willing  even  to  deceive  him- 
self. No  matter  what  his  interest  said,  what  his 
passion  demanded,  he  was  great  enough  to  find  the 
truth  and  strong  enough  to  pronounce  judgment 
against  his  own  desires. 

Lincoln  was  a  many-sided  man,  acquainted  with 
smiles  and  tears,  complex  in  brain,  single  in  heart, 
direct  as  light  ;  and  his  words,  candid  as  mirrors, 
gave  the  perfect  image  of  his  thought.  He  was 
never  afraid  to  ask  —  never  too  dignified  to  admit 
that  he  did  not  know.  No  man  had  keener  wit,  or 
kinder  humor. 

It  may  be  that  humor  is  the  pilot  of  reason. 
People  without  humor  drift  unconsciously  into  ab- 
surdity. Humor  sees  the  other  side  —  stands  in  the 
mind  like  a  spectator,  a  good-natured  critic,  and 
gives  its  opinion  before  judgment  is  reached.  Humor 
goes  with  good  nature,  and  good  nature  is  the 
climate  of  reason.  In  anger,  reason  abdicates  and 
malice  extinguishes  the  torch.  Such  was  the  humor 


48  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

of  Lincoln  that  he  could  tell  even  unpleasant  truths 
as  charmingly  as  most  men  can  tell  the  things  we 
wish  to  hear. 

He  was  not  solemn.  Solemnity  is  a  mask  worn 
by  ignorance  and  hypocrisy  —  it  is  the  preface,  pro- 
logue, and  index  to  the  cunning  or  the  stupid. 

He  was  natural  in  his  life  and  thought —  master 
of  the  story-teller's  art,  in  illustration  apt,  in  applica- 
tion perfect,  liberal  in  speech,  shocking  Pharisees 
and  prudes,  using  any  word  that  wit  could  disinfect. 

He  was  a  logician.  His  logic  shed  light.  In  its 
presence  the  obscure  became  luminous,  and  the 
most  complex  and  intricate  political  and  metaphysi- 
cal knots  seemed  to  untie  themselves.  Logic  is  the 
necessary  product  of  intelligence  and  sincerity.  It 
cannot  be  learned.  It  is  the  child  of  a  clear  head 
and  a  good  heart. 

Lincoln  was  candid,  and  with  candor  often  de- 
ceived the  deceitful.  He  had  intellect  without  arro- 
gance, genius  without  pride,  and  religion  without 
cant — that  is  to  say,  without  bigotry  and  without 
deceit. 

He  was  an  orator  —  clear,  sincere,  natural.  He 
did  not  pretend.  He  did  not  say  what  he  thought 
others  thought,  but  what  he  thought. 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  49 

If  you  wish  to  be  sublime  you  must  be  natural — 
you  must  keep  close  to  the  grass.  You  must  sit  by 
the  fireside  of  the  heart  :  above  the  clouds  it  is  too 
cold.  You  must  be  simple  in  your  speech  :  too 
much  polish  suggests  insincerity. 

The  great  orator  idealizes  the  real,  transfigures  the 
common,  makes  even  the  inanimate  throb  and  thrill, 
fills  the  gallery  of  the  imagination  with  statues  and 
pictures  perfect  in  form  and  color,  brings  to  light  the 
gold  hoarded  by  memory  the  miser,  shows  the  glit- 
tering coin  to  the  spendthrift  hope,  enriches  the 
brain,  ennobles  the  heart,  and  quickens  the  con- 
science. Between  his  lips  words  bud  and  blossom. 

If  you  wish  to  know  the  difference  between  an 
orator  and  an  elocutionist — between  what  is  felt  and 
what  is  said  —  between  what  the  heart  and  brain  can 
do  together  and  what  the  brain  can  do  alone — read 
Lincoln's  wondrous  speech  at  Gettysburg,  and  then 
the  oration  of  Edward  Everett. 

The  speech  of  Lincoln  will  never  be  forgotten. 
It  will  live  until  languages  are  dead  and  lips  are 
dust.  The  oration  of  Everett  will  never  be  read. 

The  elocutionists  believe  in  the  virtue  of  voice, 
the  sublimity  of  syntax,  the  majesty  of  long  sen- 
tences, and  the  genius  of  gesture. 


50  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

The  orator  loves  the  real,  the  simple,  the  natural. 
He  places  the  thought  above  all.  He  knows  that 
the  greatest  ideas  should  be  expressed  in  the  short- 
est words  —  that  the  greatest  statues  need  the  least 
drapery. 

Lincoln  was  an  immense  personality — firm  but  not 
obstinate.  Obstinacy  is  egotism  —  firmness,  heroism. 
He  influenced  others  without  effort,  unconsciously  ; 
and  they  submitted  to  him  as  men  submit  to  nature 
—  unconsciously.  He  was  severe  with  himself,  and 
for  that  reason  lenient  with  others. 

He  appeared  to  apologize  for  being  kinder  than 
his  fellows. 

He  did  merciful  things  as  stealthily  as  others  com- 
mitted crimes. 

Almost  ashamed  of  tenderness,  he  said  and  did  the 
noblest  words  and  deeds  with  that  charming  con- 
fusion, that  awkwardness,  that  is  the  perfect  grace  of 
modesty. 

As  a  noble  man,  wishing  to  pay  a  small  debt  to  a 
poor  neighbor,  reluctantly  offers  a  hundred-dollar 
bill  and  asks  for  change,  fearing  that  he  may  be  sus- 
pected either  of  making  a  display  of  wealth  or  a  pre- 
tense of  payment,  so  Lincoln  hesitated  to  show  his 
wealth  of  goodness,  even  to  the  best  he  knew. 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  5 1 

A  great  man  stooping,  not  wishing  to  make  his 
fellows  feel  that  they  were  small  or  mean. 

By  his  candor,  by  his  kindness,  by  his  perfect 
freedom  from  restraint,  by  saying  what  he  thought, 
and  saying  it  absolutely  in  his  own  way,  he  made  it 
not  only  possible,  but  popular,  to  be  natural.  He 
was  the  enemy  of  mock  solemnity,  of  the  stupidly 
respectable,  of  the  cold  and  formal. 

He  wore  no  official  robes  either  on  his  body  or  his 
soul.  He  never  pretended  to  be  more  or  less,  or 
other,  or  different,  from  what  he  really  was. 

He  had  the  unconscious  naturalness  of  Nature's 
self. 

He  built  upon  the  rock.  The  foundation  was  se- 
cure and  broad.  The  structure  was  a  pyramid, 
narrowing  as  it  rose.  Through  days  and  nights  of 
sorrow,  through  years  of  grief  and  pain,  with  un- 
swerving purpose,  "  with  malice  towards  none,  with 
charity  for  all,"  with  infinite  patience,  with  unclouded 
vision,  he  hoped  and  toiled.  Stone  after  stone  was 
laid,  until  at  last  the  Proclamation  found  its  place. 
On  that  the  Goddess  stands. 

He  knew  others,  because  perfectly  acquainted 
with  himself.  He  cared  nothing  for  place,  but  every- 
thing for  principle ;  little  for  money,  but  every- 


52  ABRAHAM    LINCOLN. 

thing  for  independence.  Where  no  principle  was 
involved,  easily  swayed  —  willing  to  go  slowly,  if  in 
the  right  direction  —  sometimes  willing  to  stop  ;  but 
he  would  not  go  back,  and  he  would  not  go  wrong. 

He  was  willing  to  wait.  He  knew  that  the  event 
was  not  waiting,  and  that  fate  was  not  the  fool  of 
chance.  He  knew  that  slavery  had  defenders,  but 
no  defense,  and  that  they  who  attack  the  right  must 
wound  themselves. 

He  was  neither  tyrant  nor  slave.  He  neither 
knelt  nor  scorned. 

With  him,  men  were  neither  great  nor  small  — 
they  were  right  or  wrong. 

Through  manners,  clothes,  titles,  rags  and  race  he 
saw  the  real — that  which  is.  Beyond  accident, 
policy,  compromise  and  war  he  saw  the  end. 

He  was  patient  as  Destiny,  whose  undecipherable 
hieroglyphs  were  so  deeply  graven  on  his  sad  and 
tragic  face. 

Nothing  discloses  real  character  like  the  use  of 
power.  It  is  easy  for  the  weak  to  be  gentle.  Most 
people  can  bear  adversity.  But  if  you  wish  to  know 
what  a  man  really  is,  give  him  power.  This  is  the 
supreme  test.  It  is  the  glory  of  Lincoln  that,  having 
almost  absolute  power,  he  never  abused  it,  except 
on  the  side  of  mercy. 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN.  63 

Wealth  could  not  purchase,  power  could  not  awe, 
this  divine,  this  loving  man. 

He  knew  no  fear  except  the  fear  of  doing  wrong. 
Hating  slavery,  pitying  the  master  —  seeking  to 
conquer,  not  persons,  but  prejudices — he  was  the 
embodiment  of  the  self-denial,  the  courage,  the  hope 
and  the  nobility  of  a  Nation. 

He  spoke  not  to  inflame,  not  to  upbraid,  but  to 
convince. 

He  raised  his  hands,  not  to  strike,  but  in  bene- 
diction 

He  longed  to  pardon. 

He  loved  to  see  the  pearls  of  joy  on  the  cheeks  of 
a  wife  whose  husband  he  had  rescued  from  death. 

Lincoln  was  the  grandest  figure  of  the  fiercest 
civil  war.  He  is  the  gentlest  memory  of  our 
world. 


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DELIVERED    BEFORE   THE 

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ARGUMENT 

BY 

ROBERT  G.   INGERSOLL 

IN  THE 

TRIAL  OK  C.    B.   REYNOLD'S 

KOR 

"  ^Blasphemy, " 

N1OR.RISTOWN,     NEW    JERSEY. 


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of  his  greatest  productions.  It  is  in  his  chosen  field  of  intel- 
lectual combat,  and  we  see  him  as  the  splendid  champion  of 
human  liberty  and  the  rights  of  man.  His  love  of  freedom  and 
justice,  hatred  of  tyranny  and  chains,  sympathy  for  the  op- 
pressed, misguided  and  enthralled,  his  courage  and  candor, 
have  in  this  Argument  full  scope  of  expression,  and  he  makes 
grand  use  of  the  opportunity.  Such  a  flood  of  light — of 
eloquence,  legal  learning,  logic,  pathos,  poetry  and  patriotism 
is  not  often  poured  out  in  a  Court  of  Justice. 

The  many  calls  for  this  Argument  in  complete  and  accurate 
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INGERSOLL'S 

Interviews  on  Ta  Image 

These  Interviews  were  called  out  in  answer  to  a  series  of 
theological  discourses  by  Mr.  Talmage.  Three  of  them  were 
originally  given  to  a  reporter  of  the  daily  press,  but  were  after- 
wards revised  and  enlarged  and  three  others  added.  The  three 
newspaper  reports  being  immediately  pirated  by  so-called  enter- 
prising but  unprincipled  publishers,  were  put  upon  the  market  in 
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terviews." It  is  sufficient  to  say  that  in  no  other  shape  than  the 
present  complete  volume  are  these  "  Interviews  "  to  be  had  in 
their  accurate  and  authorized  entirety. 

As  to  the  subject-matter  it  is  essentially  polemical,  although 
not  bitterly  so.  The  foolish  as  well  as  serious  phases  of  theo- 
logical ignorance  and  assumption  are  exposed  to  merited  ridicule, 
and  the  weapons  of  good-natured  wit  and  sarcasm  are  employed 
to  laugh  and  shame  religious  superstition  and  arrogance  out  of 
court.  In  the  "  Talmagian  Catechism  "  especially,  which  sums 
up  the  six  interviews,  are  shafts  of  wit  and  satire  as  keen  and 
polished  as  ever  sped  from  human  brain.  They  go  straight  to  the 
mark,  and  remind  one  of  Voltaire's  pointed  though  not  poisoned 
arrows  aimed  at  the  priestly  pretensions  of  his  day.  In  the 
graver  and  more  serious  statements  and  arguments,  the  facts  and 
figures  are  splendidly  marshalled  and  bear  down  with  resistless 
form  upon  the  theological  foe,  breaking  his  ranks  and  scattering 
his  forces  like  chaff  before  a  gale. 

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The  BiglltS  Of  Man.  Parts  I  and  II.  Being  an  answer  to  Burke's  attack 
upon  the  French  Revolution.  A  work  almost  without  a  peer.  Post  8vo.,  279 
pages.  Paper  30  cts. ;  cloth  50  cts. 

The  Age  Of  Reason.  Being  an  investigation  of  True  and  Fabulous  The- 
ology. A  new  and  unabridged  edition,  from  new  plates  and  new  type.  For 
nearly  one  hundred  years  the  clergy  have  been  vainly  trying  to  answer  this 
book.  186  pages,  post  8vo.  Paper  25  cts. ;  cloth  50  cts. 

Paine's  Religious  and  Theological  Works  Complete,   com- 


Matthew  and  Mark;  An  Essay  on  Dreams;  Private  Thoughts  on  a  Future 
State  ;  A  Letter  to  the  Hon.  Thomas  Erskine;  Religious  Year  of  the  Theo- 
philanthropists ;  Precise  History  of  the  Theophilanthropists;  A  Discourse 
Delivered  to  the  Society  of  Theophilanthropists  at  Paris;  ALettertoCamille 
Jordan ;  Origin  of  Freemasonry ;  The  Names  in  the  Book  of  Genesis ;  Ex- 
tract from  a  Reply  to  the  Bisho'p  of  Llandaff  ;  The  Book  of  Job ;  Sabbath  or 
Sunday  ;  Future  State  ;  Miracles;  An  Answer  to  a  Friend  on  the  Publication 
of  the  Age  of  Reason  ;  Letters  to  Samuel  Adams  and  Andrew  A.  Dean  ;  Re- 
marks on  Robert  Hall's  Sermons-  The  word  Religion;  Cain  and  Abel ;  The 
Tower  of  Babel ;  To  Members  of  the  Society  styling  itself  the  Missionary 
Society ;  Religion  of  Deism ;  The  Sabbath  Day  of  Connecticut ;  Ancient 
History ;  Bishop  Moore ;  John  Mason ;  Books  of  the  New  Testament ;  Deism 
and  the  Writings  of  Thomas  Paine,  etc.  The  work  has  also  a  fine  Portrait  of 
Paine,  as  Deputy  to  the  National  Convention  in  France,  and  portraits  ot 
Samuel  Adams,  Thomas  Erskine,  Camille  Jordan,  Richard  Watson,  and 
other  illustrations.  One  vol.,  post  8vo.,  432  pages,  paper  50  cts.,  cloth  $1.00. 

Paine's  Political  Works  Complete,   in  two  volumes,  post  8vo,  cloth, 

illustrated,  containing  over  500  pages  each.    Price  $i.ou  per  volume. 

Volume  I.  contains:  Common  Sense  and  the  Epistle  to  the  Quakers;  The 
Crisis,  (the  16  Numbers  Complete);  A  Letter  to  the  Abbe  Ra'/nal;  Letter 
from  Paine  to  Washington  ;  Letter  from  Washington  to  Paine  ;  Dissertation 
on  Government,  the  Affairs  of  the  Bank  and  Paper  Money ;  Prospects  on  the 
Rubicon  ;  or,  an  Investigation  into  the  Causes  and  Consequences  of  the  Poli- 
tics to  be  agitated  at  the  next  Meeting  of  Parliament ;  Public  Good,  being  an 
Examination  into  the  claim  of  Virginia  to  the  Western  Territory,  etc. 

Volume  II.  contains:  Rights  of  Man  in  two  Parts,  (Part  I.  being  an  Answer 
to  Burke's  Attack  on  the  French  Revolution  ;  Part  II.  contains  Principle  and 
Practice) ;  Letter  to  Abbe  Sieyes  ;  To  the  Authors  of  the  Republican,-  Letter 
Addressed  to  the  Addressers  on  the  Late  Proclamation ;  Letters  to  Lord 
Onslow;  Dissertation  on  First  Principles  of  Government;  Letters  to  Mr. 
Secretary  Dundas;  Speech  in  the  French  National  Convention;  Reasons 
for  Sparing  the  Life  of  Louis  Capet;  Letter  to  the  People  of  France  ;  On  the 
Propriety  of  Bringing  Louis  XVI.  to  Trial;  Speech  in  the  National  Conven- 
tion on  the*  Question,  "  Shall  or  shall  not  a  Respite  of  the  Sentence  of  Louis 
XVI.  take  place  ?'' ;  To  the  People  of  France  and  the  French  Armies  ;  Decline 
and  Fall  ot  the  English  System  of  Finance  ;  Agrarian  Justice,  etc. 

Life  Of  Thomas  Paine.  By  the  Editor  of  the  National,  with  Preface 
and  Notes  by  Peter  Eckler.  Illustrated  with  views  of  the  Old  Paine  Home- 
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prominent  of  Paine's  friends  in  Europe  and  America.  As  a  man  is  "known 
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THE  DEVIL'S  PULPIT  By  Rev.  Robert  Taylor ;  with  a  Sketch  of  the  Author's  life, 
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Unjust  Steward,  The  Devil,  The  Rich  Man  and  Lazarus,  The  Day  of  Temptation 
'  in  the  Wilderness,  Ahab,  or  the  Lying  Spirit,  the  Fall  of  Man,  Noah,  Abraham, 
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THE  SYNTAGMA.    By  Rev.  Robert  Taylor.    Price,  SI.QO. 


Illustrated  by  48  beautiful  Etchings  by  R.  de  Los  Rios.     12  vols., 
crown  Svo,  cloth  $18.00  ;  half  calf  extra,  or,  half  morocco,  $36.00. 


The  History  of  Don  Quixote  of  la  Mancha. 

Translated  from  the  Spanish  of  Miguel  de  Cervantes  Saavedra  by 
Motteux.  With  copious  notes  (including  the  Spanish  Ballads),  and 
an  Essay  on  the  Life  and  Writings  of  Cervantes,  by  John  G.  Lockhart. 
Preceded  by  a  Short  Notice  of  the  Life  and  Works  of  Peter  Anthony 
Motteux,  by  Henri  Van  Laun.  Illustrated  with  sixteen  original 
etchings  by  R.  de  Los  Rios.  4  vols.,  post  Svo,  1,758  pp.,  $6.00. 

Lazarillo  de  Tormes.     (Life   and  Adventures  of) 

Translated  from  the  Spanish  of  Don  Diego  Hurtado  De  Mendoza, 
by  Thomas  Roscoe.  Also,  the  Life  and  Adventures  of 
Guzman  d'Alfarache;  or,  The  Spanish  Rogue,  by 

Mateo  Aleman.  Translated  from  the  French  edition  of  Le  Sage, 
by  John  Henry  Brady.  Illustrated  with  eight  original  etchings  by 
R.  de  Los  Rios.  2  vols.,  post  Svo,  729  pp.,  $3.00. 

Asmodeus,  or  the  Devil  upon  Two   Sticks. 

Preceded  by  dialogues,  serious  and  comic  between  Two  Chimneys 
of  Madrid.  Translated  from  the  French  of  Alain  Rene  Le  Sage. 
Illustrated  with  four  orginal  etchings  by  R.  de  Los  Rios.  i  vol., 
post  8  vo.,  332  pp.,  $1.50. 

The  Bachelor  Of  Salamanca.  ByLeSage.  Trans- 
lated from  the  French  by  James  Townsend.  Illustrated  with  four 
original  etchings  by  R.  de  Los  Rios.  i  vol.,  post  Svo,  400  pp.,  $1.50. 

Vanillo  Gonzales,  or  the  Merry  Bachelor.    By 

Le  Sage.  Translated  from  the  French.  Illustrated  with  four  original 
etchings  by  R.  de  Los  Rios.  i  vol.,  post  Svo.  455  pp.,  $1.50. 

The  Adventures  of   Gil  Bias  of  Santillane. 

Translated  from  the  French  of  Le  Sage  by  Tobias  Smollett.  With 
biographical  and  critical  notice  of  Le  Sage  by  George  Saintsbury. 
New  edition,  carefully  revised.  Illustrated  with  twelve  original  etch- 
ings by  R.  de  Los  Rios.  3  vols.,  post  Svo.  1,200  pp.,  $4.50. 


NOTICES. 

" This  prettily  printed  ana  prettily  illustrated  collection  of  Spanish  Ro- 
mances deserve  their  welcome  from  all  students  of  seventeenth  century  liter- 
ature "—The  Times. 

"A  handy  and  beautiful  edition  of  the  works  of  the  Spanish  masters  of 
romance We  mav  say  of  this  edition  of  the  immortal  work  of  Cer- 
vantes that  it  is  most  tastefully  and  admirably  executed,  and  that  it  is  em- 
bellished with  a  series  of  striking  etchings  from  the  pen  of  the  Spanish  artist 
De  los  Rios ."— Daily  Telegraph. 

"Handy  in  form,  they  are  well  printed  from  clear  type,  and  are  got  up 
with  much  elegance:  the  etchings  are  full  of  humor  and  force.  The  read- 
ing public  have  reason  to  congratulate  themselves  that  so  neat,  compact,  and 
well  arranged  an  edition  of  romances  that  can  never  die  is  put  -within  their 
reach.  The  publisher  has  spared  no  pains  with  them."— Scotsman. 


Popular  editions  of  the  Spanish  Romances. 
Asmodeus;  or,  the  Devil  upon  Two  Sticks. 

By  A.  R.  Le  Sage.  With  designs  by  Tony  Johannot.  Translated 
from  the  French.  With  fourteen  Illustrations.  Post  8vo,  332  pp., 
paper,  socts.,  cloth  $1.00. 

A  new  illustrated  edition  of  one  of  the  masterpieces  of  the  world  of  fictkin. 

The  Bachelor  Of  Salamanca.  ByLeSage.  Trans- 
lated from  the  French  by  James  Townsend,  with  five  illustration* 
by  R.  de  Los  Rios.  400  pp.,  paper,  50  cts.,  cloth  $1.00. 

Adventures  related  in  an  amusing  manner.  The  writer  exhibits  remark- 
able boldness,  force,  and  originality  while  charming  us  by  his  surprising 
flights  of  imagination  and  his  profound  knowledge  of  Spanish  character. 

Vanillo  Gonzales,  or  the  Merry  Bachelor.    By 

Le  Sage.  Translated  from  the  French.  With  five  illustrations  by 
R.  de  Los  Rios.  455  pages,  paper  50  cts.,  cloth  $1.00. 

Audacious,  witty,  and  entertaining  in  the  highest  degree. 

The  Adventures  of  Gil  Bias  of  Santillane. 

Translated  from  the  French  of  Le  Sage  by  Tobias  Smollett.     With 
biographical  and  critical  notice  of  Le  Sage  by  George  Saintsbury. 
New  edition,  carefully  revised.     With  twelve  illustrations  by  R.  d« 
Los  Rios.     3  vols.,  post  8vo,  1,200  pp.,  cloth  $3.00. 
A  classic  in  the  realm  of  entertaining  literature. 

Napoleon.  Memoirs  of  the  Life,  Exile,  and  Conversations  of  the 
Emperor  Napoleon,  by  the  Count  de  Las  Cases.  With  eight  steel 
portraits,  maps  and  illustrations.  Four  vols.,  post  8vo,  each  400 
pp.,  cloth,  $5.00,  half  calf  extra,  $10.00. 

With  his  Son  the  Count  devoted  himself  at  St.  Helena  to  the  care  of  the  Em- 
peror, and  passed  his  evenings  in  recording  his  remarks. 

Napoleon   in    Exile;  or  A  Voice  from  St.  Helena. 

Opinions  and  Reflections  of  Napoleon  on  the  Most  Important  Events 
in  his  Life  and  Government,  in  his  own  words.  By  Barry  E. 
O'Meara,  his  late  Surgeon.  Portrait  of  Napoleon,  after  Delaroche, 
and  a  view  of  St.  Helena,  both  on  steel.  2  vols.,  post  8vo,  662  pp., 
cloth  $2.50,  in  half  calf  extra,  $5.00. 

Mr.  O'Meara's  work  contains  a  body  of  the  most  interesting  and  valuable 
information -information  the  accuracy  of  which  stands  unimpeached  by  any 
attacks  made  against  its  author.  The  details  in  Las  Cases'  work  and  those  of 
Mr.  O'Meara  mutually  support  each  other. 

Shakespeare  Portrayed  by  Himself.   AReveia^ 

tion  of  the  Poet  in  the  Career  and  Character  of  one  of  his  own  Dra- 
matic  Heroes.  By  Robert  Waters,  i  vol.,  i2mo.,  cloth  extra,  $1.25. 
In  this  able  and  interesting  work  on  Shakespeare,  the  author  shows  con- 
clusively how  our  great  poet  revealed  himself,  his  life,  and  his  character.  It 
is  written  in  good  and  clear  language,  exceedingly  picturesque,  and  is  alto- 
gether the  best  popular  life  of  Shakespeare  that  has  yet  appeared. 

Cobbett's,  (Wm.)  English  Grammar.    Edited bj 

Robert  Waters,     i  vol.,  i2mo.,  cloth  $1.00. 

'•Of  all  the  books  on  English  grammar  that  I  have  met  with,  Cobbett'a 
seems  to  me  the  best,  and,  indeed,  the  only  one  to  be  used  with  advantage  tm 
teaching  English.  His  style  is  a  model  9f  correctness,  of  clearness,  and  ot 
strength.  He  wrote  English  with  unconscious  ease."—  Richard  Grant  Whit*. 

"The  best  English  grammar  extant  for  self  -instruction.  "—Schooi  Boar* 
Chronicle.  "  As  interesting  as  a  story-book."—  Ha?,litt. 

"  The  only  amusing  grammar  in  the  world  "--  Sir  Henry  Lytton  Bulwer. 

"Written  with  vigor,  energy,  and  courage,  joined  to  a  force  of  understand- 
ing, a  degree  oi  logical  po\ver,  and  force  of  expression  which  has  rarely  be«i\ 
equalled."—  Satttrday  Review. 


"  The  greatest  works  of  the  noblest  minds." 

Volney's  Ruins  of  Empires  and  the  Law  of  Nature,    with  il- 

lustrations, Portrait  of  Volney,  and  Map  of  the  Astrological  Heaven  of  the 
Ancients.  Also,  Volney's  Answer  to  Dr.  Priestly,  a  Biographical  Notice  by 
Count  Daru,  and  an  Explanation  of  the  Zodiacal  Signs  and  Constellations  by 
Peter  Eckler.  248  pp.,  cloth  75  cts.  ;  paper  50  cts.  ;  half  calf  $3.00. 

Gibbon's  History  Of  Christianity.  With  Preface,  Life  of  Gibbon, 
and  Notes  by  Pe'.er  Eckler;  also  variorum  Notes  by  Guizot,  Wenck,  Mi'i- 
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ties. Post  8vo,  864  pp.,  cloth  $2.00,  half  "calf  $4.00. 

Meslier's  Superstition  ill  All  Ages.  Jean  Meslier  was  a  Roman  Cath- 
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abjured  religious  dogmas,  and  left  this  work  as  his  last  Will  and  Testament 
to  his  parishioners  and  to  the  world.  339  pp.,  portrait.  Cloth  $i  oo,  paper 
50  cts.  ;  half  calf  $4.  {Sg^The  same  work  in  German,  cloth  $1.00,  paper  50  cts. 

Voltaire's  .Romances.  A  new  Edition,  containing  twenty-two  of  Vol- 
taire's best  and  wittiest  productions,  with  Portrait  and  82  Illustrations. 
Preface  and  notes  by  Peter  Eckler.  Cloth  $1.50,  paper  $1.00,  half  calf  $4.00. 

Biiclmer's  Force  and  Matter,  OR  PRINCIPLES  OF  THE  NATURAL  ORDER 
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Buchuer's  Man  in  the  Past,  Present,  and  Future,   it  describes 

Man  as  "a  being  not  put  upon  the  earth  accidentally  by  an  arbitrary  act, 
but  produced  in  harmony  with  the  earth's  nature,  and  belonging  to  it  as  do 
the  flowers  and  fruits  to  the  tree  which  bears  them."  Cloth  $1.00. 


Visit  to  Ceylon.  With  Portrait,  and  Map  of  India  and  Ceylon. 
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published,  quite  worthy  of  being  placed  by  the  side  of  Darwin's  '  Voyage  of 
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Rousseau's  Social  Contract;  OR  PRINCIPLES  OF  POLITICAL  LAW. 
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Rousseau's  Profession  of  Faith  of  the  Vicar  of  Savoy.    Also, 

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Higgilis'  Horae  SabbaticaB,  Or  an  Attempt  to  Correct  Certain  Supersti- 
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The  Great  IngerSOll  Controversy.  Containing  an  eloquent  Christ- 
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Dickons'  Su>id;iy  Under  Three  Heads.—  AS  it  is;  as  Sabbath  bin 

would  make  i:  ;  and  as  it  might  be  made.    By  Charles  Dickens.    Illustrated 
by  Phiz.    Portrait.    Preface  by  Peter  Eckler.    Cloth  50  cts.,  paper  25  cts. 

Pa  i  ne's  Religious  and  Theological  Works  Complete,    with 

Portraits  of  Paine,  Samuel  Adams,  Thomas  Erskine,  Camille  Jordan,  Richard 
Watson,  etc.    One  vol.,  post  8vo.,  432  pages,  paper  50  cts.,  cloth  $1.00. 

Paine's  Political  Works  Complete,   in  two  volumes,  post  8vo,  doth, 

illustrated,  containing  over  500  pages  each.    Price  $1.00  per  volume. 
Common  Sense.  Paine's  first  and  most  important  political  work.  Paper  isc 
The  Crisis.      Containing  the  full  XVI.  numbers.    Cloth  50  cts.  ;  paper  30  cts. 
Rights  Of  jVIail.    A  work  almost  without  a  peer.  279  pp.  Cloth  soc.  paper  300. 

The  Age  Of  Reason.  For  nearly  one  hundred  years  the  clergy  have  been 
vainly  trying  to  answer  this  book.  186  pages.  Cloth  50  cts.;  paper  25  cts. 

Life  Ot   Paine,  with  :j;any  portraits  and  illustrations.     Cloth  7->c.  paper  soc. 


INGERSOLL'S  LECTURES, 

+  IN  ONE  VOLUME,  t* 


CONTENTS: 


THE   GODS.  HUMBOLDT,          INDIVIDUALITY, 

THOMAS   PAINE,  HERETICS  AND  HERESIES. 

THE  GHOSTS. 

THE   LIBERTY   OF  MAN,  WOMAN  AND  CHILD, 

THE   CENTENNIAL  ORATION,  OR  DECLARATION  OF 
INDEPENDENCE,  July  4,  1876. 

WHAT  I  KNOW  ABOUT  FARMING  IN  ILLINOIS. 

SPEECH  AT  CINCINNATI  IN  1876,  nominating 

James  G.  Elaine  for  the  Presidency. 

THE  PAST  RISES  BEFORE  ME;  OR,  VISION  OF  WAR, 
an  extract  from  a  Speech  made  at  the  Soldiers  and  Sailors 
Reunion  at  Indianapolis,  Indiana,  Sept.  21,  1876. 

A  TRIBUTE  TO   EBON  C.   INGERSOLL. 

SOME   MISTAKES  OF  MOSES. 

WHAT  MUST  WE   DO  TO   BE  SAVED? 

SIX  INTERVIEWS  WITH   ROBERT  G.  INGERSOLL 

ON  SIX  SERMONS  BY  THE  Rev.  T.  DEWITT 

TALMAGE,    D.  D. ;  to  which  is  added  a 

TALMAGIAN  CATECHISM. 

And  FOUR    PREFACES,  which  contain   some  of  Mr.  Ingersoll's 
wittiest  and  brightest  sayings. 

This  volume  contains  a  fine  steel  portrait  of  the  author,  and 
has  had  the  greatest  popularity,  is  beautifully  bound  in  Half 
Morocco,  mottled  edges,  1,300  pages,  good  paper,  large  type, 
small  8vo.  ^ 

Price,  post  paid,  $5.00. 


IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIHIIinil  lltllllllllllHI1Hf[IIIIIIIHIHllllll!!llllllllllllllllllllll!ltll!IIIIHIIIHI1l|i 

New  Books  by  Col.  R.  G.  Ingersoll. 
A    NEW    LECTURE 


Price,  paper,  Twenty-five  cents. 


a*  Sin.  *? 

"SOMETHING     BRAND     NEW!" 

TXGERSOLL'S  startling,  brilliant  and  .  thr'llingly  eloquent  letters,  which  crea- 
1     ated  $uch  a  sensation   when   published  in   the  Aerv  York   World,  to;.. 
with  the  replies  of  famous  clergymen  and  writers,  a  verdict  from  a  jury  o 
inent  men  uf  New  York,  Curious  Facts  About  Suicides,  celebrated  Essays  and 
Opinions  of  noted  men,  and  an  astonishing  and  original  chapter,  Great  Suicides 
of  History  !    Price,  heavy  paper,  with  portrait  of  Col.  Ingersoll,  25  cents. 

Tlie  Amer:  s:  "This  is  something  brand  new  —  curious,  en- 

tertaining,  and  startling      The  letters  are  among  the  finest  products  of  Colonel 
Ingersoli's  genius.     *    *    *    Bound  to  have  a  wide  sale." 

HIS  GREAT:  LECTURE  ON 

SHAKESPEARE 

Paper,  Twenty-five  cents. 


1  Lecture  on  Abraham  Lincoln  1 

Price,  T^wenty-flve  cents,   paper. 

I  THE  GREAT  INGERSOLL  CONTROVERSY.  | 

CONTAINING  THE  FAMOUS  CHRISTMAS  SERMON,  BY 

COL.  R.  G.  INGERSOLL, 

=        The  indignant  protests  thereby  evoked  from  Ministers  of  various  denomina- 

tions, and  Colonel  Ingersoli's  replies  to  the  same. 
A  work  of  tremendous  interest  to  ev&liinkinx  Man  and  Woman. 


Reprinted  in  full  from  the  Correspondence  oThe  Subject  by  Special  Permission 
of  "The  Evening  Telegram."    Price,  paper,  25  cents. 


=       Address   C.  !».   FA.K,REL,L,  <4OO    Fifth  A.ve.,  JV.