The Lincoln Story Book: A Judicious Collection of the Best Stories and Anecdotes of the Great President, Many Appearing Here for the First Time in Book Form
History
The Lincoln Story Book: A Judicious Collection of the Best Stories and Anecdotes of the Great President, Many Appearing Here for the First Time in Book Form
Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865 -- Anecdotes
In looking over the illustrated newspapers of the war, one may find
drawn the processions anterior to election of the various political
parties. Gradually the lines, at first only uniform in certain
organizations, became regular as a body. The Republicans at rich
Hartford, having funds for the purpose, formed a corps of three or four
hundred young men. They drilled to march creditably, assumed a kind of
uniform: a cape to shed sparks and oil from the torches, and swinging
lamps carried; and a hat, proof also to fire, water, and missiles!
In March, 1860, Mr. Lincoln paid a visit to the college city to speak
at the old City Hall. He was introduced as one who had "done _yeoman_
service for the young party (the Republican)." The word yeoman was
under stood in the old English sense of the small independent farmers.
Old Tom Lincoln's boy came into this class. He assented to it and even
lowered the level by presenting himself as a hard worker in the
cause--"a dirty shirt" of the body. After the meeting, the marchers
surrounded the speaker's "public carriage" to escort him to the mayor's
house. His introducer was Sill, later lieutenant-governor of the State.
To him the guest observed on the ride:
"Those boys are wide-awake! Suppose (they were seeking a name) we call
them, the Wide-awakes?"
The name was enthusiastically adopted. The wide felt hat, with one flap
turned up, was called the Wide-awake, but the election marchers did not
wear them at all. Lincoln had added a new word to the language.
* * * * *
TRUST TO THE OLD BLUE SOCK.
Several incidents in Lincoln's early career earned him the title of
"honest," confirmed by his uncommon conduct as a lawyer; [Footnote: The
Honest Lawyer. It is said that he was amused by the conjunction, which
he observed, to an adviser who turned him into the legal field, was
rather a novelty. He thought of the story of the countryman who saw a
stranger by the God's acre, staring at a gravestone, without however
any emotion on his face to betray he was a mourner. On the contrary,
the man wore a puzzled smile, which piqued him to inquire the cause.
"Relative of yours?" asked the native.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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