Confronted by an irreconcilable contradiction like this, the easiest way is to cut the knot, and this may be done by any one of several methods. We may say that, while Lamon and Herndon were truthful men, their reputation for veracity, good as it was, is less than that of Bateman and Holland, and we prefer to believe the latter pair. Or, we may say that, while Bateman knew Lincoln well, both Herndon and Lamon knew him much better, and were better able to judge what Lincoln would have said. Or, we may say that Bateman was present when Lincoln spoke, and Holland was present when Bateman related the interview, and neither Herndon nor Lamon was present on either occasion, and we will believe the one credible witness who was actually there, and whose positive testimony outweighs any possible volume of negative testimony on the part of men who were not present, and who only imagine what Mr. Lincoln would probably have said. Or, we may say that in the light of the inherent improbability of such an utterance on the part of Mr. Lincoln, as determined by a comparison of this alleged utterance with his authentic statements, we cannot accept it, even though the two men who vouch, the one for its utterance and the other for its transmission, are men of exceptional veracity. Or, we may say that in such a conflict of direct evidence and inherent improbability, and the mutual opposition of honest men who were in a position to know something about the religious views of Mr. Lincoln, it is impossible for us to decide. We will not seek by any of these convenient methods to cut the knot, but endeavor to untie it. We are fortunate in having some collateral evidence after the fact. Herndon had awaited the publication of Holland's book with great eagerness, and he was pleased with it as a whole. But the Bateman incident roused his wrath. To him it made Lincoln a hypocrite, dissembling a Christian faith, which he had no good reason to conceal, beneath a pretense of infidelity, which was not, as Herndon believed, a profession that would have helped him. Herndon promptly walked over to the State House and interviewed Mr. Bateman. "I instantly sought Mr. Bateman," he said, "and found him in his office. I spoke to him politely and kindly, and he spoke to me in the same manner. I said substantially to him that Mr. Holland, in order to make Mr. Lincoln a technical Christian, had made him a hypocrite." What Bateman said to Herndon he was forbidden to publish, but the inference is ineluctable that he repudiated, in part, the interview with Holland, but did it on condition that Herndon should not publish the statement in a way that would raise the issue of veracity between himself and Holland. This was in the autumn of 1865. In the spring of 1866, Herndon again called upon Bateman, but got no farther.