Lincoln believed in the Bible. I am not sure that he accepted the whole content of the positive arguments set forth so cogently by his pastor, Dr. Smith. When he called this argument "unanswerable," it need not imply that his every doubt was satisfied, his every misgiving reassured. It is entirely possible that there lingered in his mind some vestiges of what he had read in writers opposed to the doctrine of the inspiration of the Scriptures as it was then taught; indeed, that doctrine in the form in which it was currently stated was not one by which a modern man's orthodoxy ought to be tested. But he read the Bible, honored it, quoted it freely, and it became so much a part of him as visibly and permanently to give shape to his literary style and to his habits of thought. When Mrs. Speed presented him an Oxford Bible in 1841, he declared his intention to read it regularly, believing it to be "the best cure for the blues"; and he kept and loved and constantly used his mother's Bible. How he would have defined his theory of its transmission and of the relation of its divine and human elements we do not know, and we need not be too curious to inquire. It is more than possible that Mr. Lincoln never made this definition in his own mind. His attitude toward the Bible was a thoroughly practical one. We do not know that he ever heard Coleridge's pragmatic affirmation, but we have every reason to believe that he would have accepted it, namely, that he valued the Bible because "it finds me as no other book." Concerning his opinion of Jesus Christ our material for constructive hypothesis is exceedingly scanty.[69] Herndon says he does not believe the name of Jesus can be found in any of Lincoln's authentic writings. I have found it in his writings but I must confess that I have not found it frequently in any which I count to be certainly genuine.[70] There are, however, a number of references to Jesus Christ in his writings and published addresses, and they are both positive and reverent. On July 4, 1864, the colored people of Baltimore presented him a beautiful copy of the Bible of the usual pulpit size, bound in violet-colored velvet. The corners were bands of solid gold and there was a thick plate of gold upon the cover, bearing this inscription: "To Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, the friend of universal freedom. From the loyal colored people of Baltimore, as a token of respect and gratitude. Baltimore, July 4, 1864." In accepting this gift, which was presented in person by a committee of five, the President said: "In regard to this great book, I have only to say it is the best gift which God has ever given man. All the good from the Saviour of the world is communicated to us through this book."--CARPENTER: _Six Months in the White House_, p. 199; also NICOLAY and HAY: _Works of Lincoln_, twelve volume edition, X, 217-18.