By this time his ability had attracted the notice of friends, and at the age of twenty-five he was elected to the Illinois Legislature, in which he served for four terms. Meanwhile he had studied law as opportunity presented, and was sent to Congress in 1846. He opposed the war with Mexico, but, among such giants as Webster, Clay, Calhoun, Benton, and others, he could not make any distinctive mark; but his powerful common sense, his clear logic, his unassailable integrity, his statesmanship and grasp of public questions, and his quaint humor, often approaching the keenest wit, carried him rapidly to the front and made him the leader of the newly formed Republican party. In 1858 he stumped Illinois for United States senator against Stephen A. Douglas, his valued friend. His speeches attracted national attention as masterpieces of eloquence, wit, and forceful presentation of the great issues which were then agitating the country. He was defeated by Douglas, but the remarkable manner in which he acquitted himself made him the successful candidate of the Republican party in the autumn of 1860. [Illustration: FROM LOG-CABIN TO THE WHITE HOUSE.] Lincoln was tall and ungainly, his height being six feet four inches. His countenance was rugged and homely, his strength as great as that of Washington, while his wit has become proverbial. His integrity, which his bitterest opponent never questioned, won for him the name of "Honest Abe." He was one of the most kind-hearted of men, and his rule of life was "malice toward none and charity for all". He grew with the demands of the tremendous responsibilities placed upon him, and the reputation he won as patriot, statesman, and leader has been surpassed by no previous President and becomes greater with the passing years. MAJOR ANDERSON AND FORT SUMTER.