The Boys' Life of Abraham Lincoln : Chapter 4 - Congressman Lincoln

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Chapter four of the Boy's Life of Abraham Lincoln by
Helen Nicolay. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain
recording by Tom Weiss Tom's audiobooks dot Com. Chapter four.
Congressman Lincoln hopeful and cheerful as he ordinarily seemed, there

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was in mister Lincoln's disposition a strain of deep melancholy.
This was not peculiar to him alone, for the pioneers
of the race were somber rather than gay. Their lives
had passed for generations under the most trying physical conditions,
near malaria infested streams and where they breathed. The poison
of decaying vegetation, insufficient shelter storms, the cold of winter,

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savvage enemies, and the cruel labor that killed off all
but the heartiest of them, had at the same time
killed the happy, go lucky gaiety of an easier form
of light. They were thoughtful, watchful, wary, capable indeed of
wild merriment. But it has been said that although a
pioneer might laugh, he could not easily be made to smile.

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Lincoln's mind was unusually sound and sane and normal. He
had a cheerful wholesome, sunny nature. Yet he had inherited
the strongest traits of the pioneers, and there was in him,
moreover much of the poet, with the poet's great capacity
for joy and pain. It is not strange that as
he developed into manhood, especially when his deeper nature began

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to feel the stirrings of ambition and of love, these
seasons of depression and gloom came upon him with overwhelming force.
During his childhood he had known few women save his
mother and that kind, god fearing woman, his stepmother, who
did so much to make his childhood hopeful and happy.
No man ever honored women more truly than did Abraham Lincoln.

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While all the qualities that caused men to like him,
his strength, his ambition, his kindliness, served equally to make
him a favorite with them. In the years of his
young manhood, three women greatly occupied his thoughts. The first
was a slender, fair haired Anne Rutledge, whom he very
likely saw for the first time as she stood with

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the group of mocking people on the river bank near
her father's mill the day Lincoln's flatboat stuck in the
dam at New Salem. It was her death two years
before he went to live at Springfield. That brought on
the first attack of melancholy of which we know, causing
him such deep grief that for a time his friends
feared his sorrow might drive him insane. Another friend was

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Mary Owens, a Kentucky girl very different from the gentle,
blue eyed Anne Rutledge, but worthy in every way of
a man's affections. She had visited her sister in New
Salem several years before, and Lincoln remembered her as a tall, handsome,
well educated young woman who could be serious as well
as gay, and who was considered wealthy. In the autumn

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of eighteen thirty six, his sister, missus Abel, then about
to start on a visit to Kentucky, jokingly offered to
bring Mary back if Lincoln would promise to marry her.
He also, and just agreed to do so, much to
his astonishment. He learned a few months later that she
had actually returned with missus Abel, and his sensitive conscience

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made him feel that the jest had turned into real
earnest and that he was in duty bound to keep
his promise if she wished him to do so. They
had both changed since they last met, neither proved quite
pleasing to the other. Yet an odd sort of courtship
was kept up until some time after Lincoln went to
live in Springfield. Miss Owens put an end to the

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affair by refusing him courteously but firmly. Meantime, he lived
through much unhappiness and uncertainty of spirit, and made up
his mind never again to think of marrying, a resolution
which he kept until another Kentucky girl drove it from
his thoughts. Springfield had by this time become very likely
in enterprising. There was a deal of flourishing around in carriages.

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As Lincoln wrote, miss Owens, and business, and politics, and
society all played an active part in the life of
the little town. The meetings of the legislature brought to
the new capital a group of young men of unusual
talent and ability. There was friendly rivalry between them, and
party disputes ran high, but social good humor prevailed, and

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the presence of these brilliant young people later to become
famous as presidential candidates, cabinet ministers, senators, congressmen, orators, and
battle heroes lent to the social gatherings of Springfield, a
zest rarely found in larger places into the midst of
this gaiety came Mary Todd of Kentucky, twenty one years old, handsome, accomplished,

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and witty, a dashing and fascinating figure in dress and conversation.
She was the sister of missus Ninian W. Edwards, whose
husband was a prominent Whig member of the legislature, one
of the long Nye, as these men were known. Thereat
at height was said to be fifty five feet, and
they easily made up an influence what they lacked in numbers.

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Lincoln was the tallest of them all in body and
in mind, and although as poor as a church mouse,
was quite as welcome anywhere as the men who wore
ruffled shirts and could carry gold watches. Miss Todd soon
singled out and held the admiration of such of the
Springfield bow as pleased her somewhat wilful fancy, and Lincoln,
being much at the Edward's house, found himself almost before

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he knew it, entangled in a new love affair. In
the course of a twelvemonth he was engaged to marry her,
but something nobody knows what or how happened to break
the engagement and to plunge him again into a very
sea of wretchedness, nor is it necessary that we should
know about it. Further than that a great trouble came
upon him, which he bore nobly. After his kind, few

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men have had his stern sense of duty, his tenderness
of heart, his conscience so easy toward others, so merciless
toward himself. The trouble preyed upon his mind until he
could think of nothing else. He became unable to attend
to business or to take any part in the life
around him, Fearing for his reason as well as for
his health, that discontinued. His good friend Joshua F. Speed

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carried him off, whether he wished or know, or a
visit to his own home in Kentucky. Here they stayed
for some time, and Lincoln grew much better, returning to
Springfield about Midsummer, almost his old self, though far from happy.
An affair that helped to bring the lovers together again
is so out of keeping with the rest of his
life that it would deserve mention for that reason, if

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for no other. This is nothing less than Lincoln's first
and only duel. It happened that Jane Shields afterward a
general in two wars, and a senator from two states,
was at that time Auditor of the State of Illinois,
with his office at Springfield. He was a Democrat and
an Irishman by birth, with an irishman's quick temper and

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readiness to take offense. He had given orders about collecting
certain taxes, which displeased the Whigs, and shortly after Lincoln
came back from Kentucky, a series of humorous letters ridiculing
the auditor and his order appeared in the Springfield Paper,
to the great amusement of the townspeople and the fury
of Shields. These letters were dated from the lost townships

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and were supposed to be written by a farmer's widow,
signing herself Aunt Rebecca. The real writers were Miss Todd
and a clever friend, who undertook them more for the
purpose of poking fun at Shields than for party effect.
In framing the political part of their attack, they had
found it necessary to consult Lincoln, and he obligingly set
them a pattern by writing the first letter himself. Shields

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sent to the editor of the paper to find out
the name of the real Rebecca. The editor, as in
duty bound, consulted Lincoln and was told to give Lincoln's name,
but not to mention the ladies. Shields then sent Lincoln
an angry challenge, and Lincoln, who considered the whole affair
ridiculous and would willingly have explained his part in it

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if Shields had made a gentlemanly inquiry, chose a weapons
broad swords of the largest size, and named as conditions
of the duel, that a plank ten feet long be
firmly fixed on the edge in the ground as a
line over which neither combatant was to pass his foot
upon forefeit of his life. Next, lines were to be
drawn upon the ground on each side of the plank,

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parallel with it, at the distance of the whole length
of the sword, and three feet additional, the passing of
his own line by either man was to be deemed
a surrender of the fight. It is easy to see
from these conditions that Lincoln refused to consider the matter
seriously and determined to treat it as absurdily as it deserved.
He and Shields and the respective seconds, with the broad swords,

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hurried away to an island in the Mississippi Rigs opposite Alton,
But long before the plank was set up or swords
were drawn. Mutual friends took the matter out of the
hands of the Seconds and declared a settlement of the difficulty.
The affair created much talk and merriment in Springfield, but
Lincoln found in it more than comedy. By means of it,

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he and Miss Todd were again brought together in friendly interviews,
and on November fourth, they were married at the house
of missus Edwards. Four children were born of this marriage,
Robert Todd Lincoln August one, eighteen forty three, Edward Baker
Lincoln March tenth, eighteen forty six, William Wallace Lincoln December

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twenty one, eighteen fifty and Thomas Lincoln April fourth, eighteen
fifty three. Edward died while a baby William in the
White House February twenty, eighteen sixty two. Thomas and Chicago
July fifteenth, eighteen seventy one, and the mother, Mary Lincoln
in Springfieldly sixteenth, eighteen eighty two. Robert Lincoln was graduated

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from Harvard during the Civil War, serving afterward on the
staff of General Grant. He has since been Secretary of
War and Minister to England, and has held many other
important positions of trust. His wedding over Lincoln took up
against the practical routine of daily life. He and his
bride were so poor that they could not make the
visit to Kentucky that both would have so much have enjoyed.

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They could not even set up a little home of
their own. We are not keeping house, he wrote to
a friend. But boarding at the Globe Tavern, where he
added the room and board, only cost them four dollars
a week. His national debt of the old New Salem
days was not yet all paid off, and patiently and
resolutely he went on practicing the economy he had learned

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in the hard school of experience. Lincoln's law partnership with
John T. Stewart had lasted four years. Then Stuart was
elected to Congress, and another one was forward with Judge
Stephen T. Logan. It was a well timed and important change.
Stuart had always cared more for politics than for law.

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With Logan, law was the main object, and under his
guidance and encouragement, Lincoln entered upon the study and practical
work of his profession in a more serious spirit than
ever before. His interest in politics continued, however, and in
truth his practice at that time was so small as
to leave Apple time for both. Stuart had been twice

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elected to Congress, and very naturally Lincoln, who served his
party quite as faithfully and was fully as well known,
hoped for a similar honor. He had profited greatly by
the comradeship and friendly rivalry of the talented young men
of Springfield, but their talent made the prize he wished
the harder to gain. Twice he was disappointed, the nomination

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going to other men, But in May eighteen forty six
he was nominated, and in August the same year elected
to the thirtieth Congress. He had the distinction of being
the only Whig member from his state, the other Illinois
congressman at that time all being Democrats. But he proved
no exception to the general rule that a man rarely

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comes into notice during his first term in the National
House of Representatives. A new member has much to learn,
even when, like Lincoln, long service in the state legislature
has taught him how the business of making laws is
carried on. He must find out what has been done
and is likely to be done on a multitude of
subjects new to him, must make the acquaintances of his

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fellow members must visit the departments of government almost daily
to look after the interests of people from his state
and congressional district. Legally, he is elected for a term
of two years. Practically a session of five or six
months during the first year and of three months during
the second further reduces opportunities more than one half. Lincoln

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did not attempt to shine forth in debate, either by
a stinging retort or burst of inspired eloquence. He went
about his task quietly and earnestly, performing his share of
duty with industry and a hearty admiration for the ability
of better known members. I just take my pen, he
wrote enthusiastically to a friend after listening to a speech

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which pleased him much, to say that mister Stevens of
Georgia is a little, slim, pale faced, consumptive man with
a voice like Logan's, has just concluded the very best
speech of an hour's length I ever heard. My old, withered,
dry eyes are full of tears. Yet during the first
session of his term, Lincoln made three long speeches, carefully

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prepared and written out beforehand. He was neither elated nor
dismayed at the result. As to speech making, he wrote,
William H. Herndon, who would now become his law partner,
I find speaking here and elsewhere about the same thing.
I was about as badly scared in no word as
I am when I speak in court. The next year

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he made no set speeches, but, in addition to the
usual work of a congressman, occupied himself with a bill
that had for its object the purchase and freeing of
all slaves in the District of Columbia. Slavery was not
only lawful at the national capital at the time, there was,
to quote mister Lincoln's own graphic words, in view from

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the windows of the Capitol, a sort of negro livery stable,
where droves of negroes were collected, temporarily kept, and finally
taken to southern markets, precisely like droves of horses. To
Lincoln and to other people who disapproved of slavery, the
idea of human beings held in bondage under the very
shadow of the dome of the Capitol seemed indeed a

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bitter mockery. As has already been stated, he did not
then believe Congress had the right to interfere with slavery
in the states that chose to have it, but in
the District of Columbia, the power of Congress was creme
and the matter was entirely different. His bill provided that
the federal government should pay full value to the slave

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owners of the district for all slaves in their possession,
and should at once free the older ones. The younger
ones were to be apprenticed for a term of years
in order to make them self supporting, after which they
also were to receive their freedom. The bill was very
carefully thought out and had the approval of residents of
the district who held the most varied views upon slavery.

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But good as it was, the measure was never allowed
to come to a vote, and Lincoln went back to
Springfield at the end of his term, feeling doubtless that
his efforts in behalf of the slaves had been all
in vain. While in Washington he lived very simply and quietly,
taking little part in the social life of the city,
though cordially liked by all who made his acquaintance. An

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innate of the modest boarding house where he had rooms
has told of the cheery atmosphere he seemed to bring
with him into the common dining room, where political arguments
were apt to run high. He never appeared anxious to
insist upon his own views, and when others less considerate
forced matters until the talk threatened to become too furious,
he would interrupt with an antidote or a story that

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cleared the air and ended the discussion in a general laugh. Sometimes,
for exercise, he would go into a bowling alley close by,
entering into the game with great zest and accepting defeat
and victory with equal good nature. By the time he
had finished, a little circle would be gathered around him,
enjoying his enjoyment and laughing at his quaint expressions and

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sallies of whip. His gift for jest and storytelling has
become traditional. Indeed, almost every good story that has been
invented within a hundred years has been laid at his door.
As a matter of fact, though he was fond of
telling them, and told them well, he told comparatively few
of the number that have been credited to him. He

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had a wonderful memory and a fine power of making
his hearers see the scene he wished to do pick.
But the final charm of his stories lay in their
aptness and in the kindly humor that left no sting
behind it. During his term in Congress, the presidential campaign
of eighteen forty eight came on. Lincoln took an active
part in the nomination and election of General Zachary Taylor,

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Old rough and Ready, as he was called, making speeches
in Maryland and Massachusetts, as well as his own home
district of Illinois. Two letters that he wrote during this
campaign has special interest for young readers, for they showed
the sympathetic encouragement he gave to young men anxious to
make a place and a name for themselves in American politics. Now,

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as to the young men, he wrote, you must not
wait to be brought forward by the older men. For instance,
do you suppose that I should ever have got into
notice if I had waited to be hunted up and
pushed forward by older men. You, young men, get together
and form out rough Ready Club, and have regular meetings
and speeches. Let everyone play the part he can play best.

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Some speak, some sing, and all holler. Your meetings will
be of evenings the older men and the women will
go to hear you, so that it will not only
contribute to the election of Old Zach, but will be
an interesting pastime. In improving to the intellectual faculties of
all engaged. In another letter, answering a young friend who

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complained to being neglected, he said, nothing could afford me
more satisfaction than to learn that you and others of
my young friends at home are doing battle in the contest,
and taking a stand far above any I have ever
been able to reach. I cannot conceive that other old
men feel differently. Of course I cannot demonstrate what I say.

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But I was young once, and I am sure I
was never ungenerously thrust back. I hardly know what to say.
The way for a young man to rise is to
improve himself. Way he can never suspecting that anybody which
is to hinder him. Allow me to assure you that
suspicion and jealousy never did help any man in any situation.

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There may sometimes be ungenerous attempts to keep a young
man down, and they will succeed too, if he allows
his mind to be diverted from its true channel to
brood over the attempted injury. Cast about and see if
this feeling has not injured every person you have ever
known to fall into it. He was about forty years

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old when he wrote this letter. By some people that
is not considered a very great age, but he doubtless
felt himself immensely older, as he was infinitely wiser than
his petulant young correspondent. General Taylor was triumphantly elected, and
it then became Lincoln's duty, as Whig member of the
Congress from Illinois to recommend certain persons to fill government

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offices in that state. He did this after he returned
to spring Field for his term in Congress, ended on
March fourth, eighteen forty nine, the day that General Taylor
became president. The letters that he sent to Washington went forwarding.
The papers and applications of people who wished appointment were
both characteristic and amusing, for, in his desire not to

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mislead or to do injustice to any man, they were
very apt to say more in favor of the men
he did not wish to see appointed, than in recommendation
of his own particular candidates. This absolute and impartial fairness
to friend and foe alife was one of his strongest traits,
governing every action of his life. If it had not

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been for this, he might possibly have enjoyed another term
in Congress, for there had been talk of reelecting him
in spite of his confession to speed that being elected
to Congress, though I am very grateful to our friends
for having done it, has not placed me as much
as I expected. This must have been flattering. But there
were many able young men in Sae Springfield who covet

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at the honor, and they had entered into an agreement
among themselves that each would be content with a single term. Lincoln,
of course, remained faithful to this promise. His strict keeping
of promises caused him also to lose an appointment from
President Taylor as Commissioner of the General Land Office, which
might easily have been his, but for which he had

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agreed to recommend some other Illinois man. A few weeks later,
the President offered to make him governor of the new
Territory of Oregon. This attracted him much more than the
other office had done, but he declined because his wife
was unwilling to live in a place so far away.
His career in Congress, while adding little to his fame

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at the time, proved a great advantage to him in
after life, for it gave him a close knowledge of
the workings of the federal government and brought him into
contact with political leaders from all parts of the union.
End of Chapter four recording by Tom Weiss, Tom's audiobook
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