Abraham Lincoln Centennial 1809 February 12 1909 FOR Boys and Girls Lilian C. Berqold Class _ C ^£7- Book $tf<% Copyright^? - COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. The National Lincoln Monument The National Lincoln Monument at Springfield stands on an eminence in ( )ak Ridge Cemetery, overlooking a forest of evergreens. Upon the four pedestals around its central obelisk stand the four bronze groups, represent- ing the four arms of the service — infantry, cavalry, artillery, and navy. Passing around the whole obelisk and pedestal is a band or chain of shields, each representing a state, the name of which is carved upon it. At the south side of the obelisk is a square pedestal, 7 feet high, supporting the statue of Lincoln, the pedestal being ornamented with the coat-of-arms of the United States. This coat-of-arms, in the position it occupies on the monument, is intended to typify the constitution of the United States. Mr. Lincoln's statue on the pedestal above it marks the whole an illustration of his position at the outbreak of the rebellion. He took his stand on the constitution as his authority for using the four arms of the war power of the government, the infantry, cavalry, artillery, and navy, to hold together the states which arc represented still lower on the monument by a cordon of tablets linking them together in a perpetual bond of union. — By courtesy of E. S. Johnson, Springfield, Illinois. ARRAHAM LINCOLN ABRAHAM LINCOLN CENTENNIAL A COLLECTION OF AUTHENTIC STORIES, WITH POEMS, SONGS, AND PROGRAMS, FOR THE BOYS, GIRLS, AND TEACHERS OF ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS. By LILIAN C ?ERGOLD PH.B. UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO EDUCATIONAL PUBLISHING COMPANY BOSTON New York Chicago San Francisco ( of CONGRESS Two Gocies Received JAN 2 1909 Copyritnt t'ntry CLASS *- XXc, No. /d Copyright, 1908 BY EDUCATIONAL PUBLISHING COMPANY Zo £!!>£ flDotber PURPOSE One of the greatest features of the Lincoln Centennial should be to bring to the children of this country those elements of his character, influence, and greatness which they can appreciate. The author has endeavored to bring together in usable form such material as would further this purpose. Many selections from which parts have been taken are easily available and may be well used in full. Several of the stories and illustrations have not been hitherto published. CONTENTS PAGE I Stories Told about Lincoln 5 II Stories Told by Lincoln 25 III Maxims and Sayings of Lincoln 30 IV Materials for Readings from Lincoln's Speeches and Letters 32 V Poems: By Lincoln 38 Favorites of Lincoln 39 On Lin oln 41 VI Tributes to Lincoln by Our Great Men Suitable for Readings 44 VII Toast to the Flag .47 Two Pledge Salutes to the Flag 48 VIII Songs: Favorites of Lincoln 49 Lincoln Campaign Songs 49 Popular National War Songs 52 IX Programs 56 ILLUSTRATIONS St. Gaudens' Lincoln Statue in Chicago Cover Design The National Lincoln Monument at Springfield Frontispiece Portrait of Abraham Lincoln Facing Title Page A Rail Old Western Gentleman 17 The Lincoln House in i860 24 Detail Groups of National Lincoln Monument Facing Page 46 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author wishes to express her appreciation to Mr. Frederick G. Bonser of the Department of Education for the helpful suggestions and encouragement he has offered; to Major E. S. Johnson, Cus- todian of the National Lincoln Monument, for kindly loaning the plates of the Monument statuary; and to Mr. J. McCan Davis, for the use of the Lincoln house and cartoon plates. She also wishes to thank Mr. O. H. Oldroyd, The Century Com- pany, The Outlook, McClure, Phillips & Company, the Macmillan Company, and the S. Brainard's Sons Company, for their courtesy in permitting the use of copyrighted material. Lilian C. Bergold State Normal School, Macomb, Illinois. ABRAHAM LINCOLN I. STORIES TOLD ABOUT LINCOLN 1-4* Lincoln's Paper Scrap-Books Lincoln kept two scrap-books, one for funny sayings or fine passages from poems or history, the other for arithme- tic sums. On a page of this scrap-book, under a table of weights, he wrote: Abraham Lincoln his hand and pen he will be great but God knows when. 3-5 A "Copy" Written by Lincoln As Lincoln was considered the best penman in his neighborhood, he was asked while on a visit to write some "copies." One of them was: Good boys who to their books apply Will all be great men by and by. * Figures before titles of stories indicate grades for which they are appropriate. 5 4-8 How Lincoln Paid for Weems' Life of Washington Lincoln read whatever books he could manage to bor- row. One of these was Weems' "Life of Washington," which he laid away carefully every night on a "shelf" or clapboard resting on wooden pins. One stormy night, however, the book was thoroughly soaked. Lincoln was allowed to keep the book after he had pulled fodder three days. 1-8 Lincoln Saves a Man from Freezing One night as Lincoln and some other men were return- ing from a "raising," he noticed a stray horse, saddled and bridled, in the woods, and near by it a man benumbed with cold. "Let's leave him," said the men. "No, he'll freeze to death," said Lincoln. With the help of the others he lifted the man on the horse and when they reached a house, Lincoln cared for him the rest of the night. 4-8 Rescue of a Pig Lincoln was one day riding past a ditch in which he saw a pig trying in vain to free itself from the mud. He wanted to help the pig, but as he had on a new suit of clothes, he decided to ride by. The thought of the poor pig troubled him so much, however, that he turned back after he had ridden two miles and dragged the pig out. 4-8 Lincoln's First Dollar Abraham Lincoln earned his first dollar when about eighteen years of age, by taking two men and their trunks by flat-boat out to a steamer in the Mississippi River, for which they gave him a silver half dollar each. Mr. Lin- coln afterward said: "I could scarcely believe my eyes as I picked up the money. It was a most important incident in my eyes. I could scarcely believe that I, a poor boy, had earned a dollar in less than a day — that by honest work I had earned a dollar. I was a more hopeful and confident being from that time." — By permission of O. H. Oldroyd. 1-8 "Abe's Log" at Sangamon Town Sangamon Town, where Lincoln built the flat-boat, was then one of the flourishing settlements on the river of that name. It took some four weeks to build the raft, and in that period Lincoln succeeded in captivating the entire village by his story-telling. It was the custom in Sangamon for the " men-folks " to gather, when resting, in a lane near the mill. They had rolled out a long peeled log, on which they lounged. Lincoln had not been long in Sangamon before he joined this circle. So irresistibly droll were his "yarns" that "whenever he'd end up in his unexpected way the boys on the log would whoop and roll off." The result of the rolling off was to polish the log like a mirror. The men, recognizing Lincoln's part in this polishing, christened their seat "Abe's Log." — By permission of McChire, Phillips & Co. 8 5-8 Lincoln Saves Three Men in a Sangamon River Tree Before Lincoln left Sangamon he was the hero of a thrilling adventure. The men were making a dug-out, to be used as a small boat with the flat. After the dug-out was ready to launch they prepared to "let her go," when two men jumped in as the boat struck water, each one anx- ious to be the first to get a ride. As they shot out from the shore they found they were unable to make any headway against the strong current. At last they began to pull for the wreck of an old flat-boat. Just as they reached it, one made a grab and clung to the old timber, but capsized the canoe, and threw the other into the stream. Lincoln yelled to him to swim for an old tree. Being a good swimmer, he succeeded in catching a branch, and pulled himself up out of the water. Finally the second man climbed up beside the first. Now there were two men in the tree and the boat was gone. By this time many people had come to the bank. Lincoln procured a rope, and tied it to a log. After all hands had helped roll the log into the water, a daring young fellow took his seat on the log, and it was pushed out into the current, with the expectation that it would be carried down stream against the tree where the two men were. The log went straight to the tree; but its rider, im- patient to help his friends, made a frantic grab at a branch, raised himself off the log, which was swept from under him, and soon joined the other two victims upon their forlorn perch. Lincoln had the log pulled up the stream, and, securing another piece of rope, called to the men in the tree to catch it if they could, when he should reach the tree. When he dashed into the tree, he threw the rope over the stump of a broken limb, and held the log there until the three now nearly frozen men had seated themselves astride. He then gave orders to the people on the shore to hold fast to the end of the rope which was tied to the log, and leav- ing his rope in the tree he turned the log adrift. The force of the current, acting against the taut rope, swung the log around against the bank, and all "on board" were saved. — By permission of McClure, Phillips 6° Co. 3-8 How Lincoln Saved a Flat-boat While floating down the Sangamon River, the flat- boat stuck on a milldam near New Salem. The villagers watched from the shore while one tall fellow worked out a plan of relief. He unloaded the cargo into a neighboring boat, thus tilting the craft. Then by boring a hole in the end extending over the dam, the water was let out. After plugging the hole he shoved off and reloaded. 5-6 The Great Wrestling Match At New Salem, Lincoln soon became popular for his great strength. A friend boasted of him to the rude but good-hearted "Clary Grove Boys," who immediately pitted their champion, Armstrong, against him. When neither gained the advantage, Armstrong resorted to foul play. Indignant at this, Lincoln caught him by the throat and 10 holding him at arm's length, shook him like a boy. Armstrong, convinced of Lincoln's manhood, declared he should be "one of the boys." Captain Lincoln Forgets the Proper Word of Command Lincoln, while captain of a company in the Black Hawk War, was one day crossing a field with a front of twenty men, when he came to a narrow gate. Lincoln could not remember the proper word of command for ordering his men to form single file, so he shouted: "Halt! This com- pany is dismissed for two minutes. It will reassemble on the other side of the fence. Break ranks!" The maneuver was successful. Lincoln's Habit of Carrying Letters in His Hat As business in Lincoln's store at New Salem was slack, he also became postmaster and kept the letters in the crown of his hat while delivering them. Years later he failed to answer a letter promptly because he had put it in his old hat and lost sight of it the next day, when he bought a new one. How Lincoln Kept His Post-office Collections After Lincoln had left New Salem and gone to Spring- field, the traveling post-office agent called to collect the money of the United States still in his possession. A friend offered to loan Lincoln the money to settle up his post-office II account, but he replied, "Thank you very much, but I have all the money in my trunk which belongs to the government." The identical silver, quarters and twelve-and-a-half cent pieces, were safely put away in an old sock in his trunk. 1-8 Lincoln, His Two Wailing Boys, and Three Walnuts A neighbor of Mr. Lincoln in Springfield tells the fol- lowing story. He was called to the door one day by hearing a great noise of children crying, and there was Mr. Lincoln striding by with two of his boys, both of whom were wail- ing aloud. "Why, Mr. Lincoln, what's the matter with the boys?" he asked. " Just what's the matter with the whole world," Lin- coln replied; "I've got three walnuts and each wants two." — By permission of McClure, Phillips & Co. 1-4 How Tad was Named Mr. Lincoln while living in Springfield had purchased a new horse which he named "Tom." Soon after, while out for a drive, he found that every time he spoke to the horse his son "Thomas" would reply, so he said: "This will never do, but I cannot change the horse's name, so I shall change the boy's." Accordingly Thomas Lincoln became "Tad." — Told the author by Airs. Edwards, a niece oj Mrs. Lincoln. 12 i-4 Lincoln and the Young Birds Lincoln, Speed, and others were riding toward Spring- field, and had stopped to water their horses. Hardin at the rear came up alone. "Where is Lincoln?" they asked. "Oh," he said, "he caught two young birds which had been blown out of their nest, and is hunting the nest to put them back." 2-6 Lincoln Carries a Little Girl's Trunk to the Station Lincoln was always doing some kind deed for children. A little girl was going to take her first trip alone on the rail- road. When train time came near, the hackman had not gotten her trunk. Fearing she would miss her train she stood by the gate crying as if her heart would break. Just then Mr. Lincoln came by. He asked what the trouble was, then about the size of the trunk, and pushed through the gate to where it stood. " Come quick," he said, and shoulder- ing the trunk, hurried out of the yard and down the street. They reached the station in time. i-8 How Tad Interrupted a Game of Chess One day Mr. Lincoln was playing chess with Judge Treat, when Tad came to bring his father home to supper. As Mr. Lincoln made no show of starting, Tad tried to shake the board, but was kept away by his father's long arm. Soon Mr. Lincoln was watching the game so carefully, *3 that he failed to notice Tad. Before long, the table sud- denly bucked, and chess-board and pieces went to the floor. The Judge was vexed, but Mr. Lincoln only said as he took his hat, "Considering the position of your pieces at the time of the upheaval, you need not complain, Judge." 5-8 Judge Logan's Shirt Lincoln once took an amusing advantage of Judge Logan's lack of sense of humor. "Gentlemen," he began, "you must be careful and not permit yourselves to be overborne by the eloquence of the counsel for defense. But shrewd and careful though Judge Logan be, still he is sometimes wrong. Since the trial began I have discovered that, with all his caution, he hasn't knowledge enough to put his shirt on right." Logan turned crimson with embarrassment and the jurors burst into a roar of laughter as they discovered that the discomfited advocate was wearing the garment in ques- tion with the plaited bosom behind, and for the rest of that trial Logan was not effective against his former partner. — From "Lincoln the Lawyer." By permission of The Century Company. 5-8 Lincoln Refuses to Defend a Guilty Client On one occasion, when it developed that his client had indulged in fraudulent practices, Lincoln walked out of the court-room and refused to continue the case. The judge 14 sent a messenger directing him to return. "Tell the judge that my hands are dirty and I've gone away to wash them," was his disgusted reply. — By permission of The Century Company. 5-8 Lincoln Discourages Sharp Practices "Yes," Mr. Herndon reports Lincoln as advising a client, "we can doubtless gain your case for you; we can set a whole neighborhood at loggerheads; we can distress a widowed mother and her six fatherless children, and thereby get for you six hundred dollars to which you seem to have a legal claim, but which rightfully belongs, it ap- pears to me, as much to the woman and her children as it does to you. You must remember, however, that some things legally right are not morally right. We shall not take your case, but we will give you a little advice for which we will charge you nothing. You seem to be a sprightly, energetic man. We would advise you to try your hand at making six hundred dollars in some other way." — By permission of The Century Company. 5-8 Lincoln's Honesty Even in a community where plain straightforward dealing was assumed as a matter of course, Lincoln won an enviable reputation for integrity and honor. Honesty was not merely the best policy; the people were expected to be upright and just with one another. But when a clerk in i5 a country store walked miles to deliver a few ounces of tea innocently withheld from a customer by an error in the scales, and when he made a long, hard trip in order to re- turn a few cents accidentally overpaid him, he was talked about, and the fact is that "Honest Abe" was a tribute, not a nick-name. — By permission of The Century Company. 4-8 Lincoln's Honesty in Regard to Fees A gentleman at Quincy, Illinois, had leased a house owned by a lady of Springfield. He employed Lincoln to execute the lease for him. Lincoln sent the lease to him at Quincy, but made no mention of his pay. Thereupon the gentleman sent Lincoln twenty-five dollars, thinking that to be about the right amount. In a few clays to his sur- prise he received a letter from Lincoln, acknowledging the receipt of his check and returning a ten-dollar bill, with the words: "You must think I am a high-priced man. Fifteen dollars is enough for the job." Lincoln's Suit Against the Illinois Central Railroad The Illinois Central Railroad declined to pay Lincoln's bill of two thousand dollars for services rendered in the action brought against McLean County, and he promptly withdrew his account and sued his ungrateful client for six thousand. On the trial of the action all the leaders of the i6 Illinois Bar testified that Lincoln's amended bill was reason- able, and the jury promptly brought in a verdict of five thousand dollars and costs. — By permission of Tlie Century Company. 5-8 Lincoln Has a "Dogerotype" Taken at Macomb, Illinois, in 1858 In 1858 Lincoln had been announced to make a speech on the "Square" at Macomb, Illinois. When he finally appeared Mr. William Bross of Chicago asked: "What made you late, Mr. Lincoln?" "Oh," he answered, "I've been having my dogerotype taken in the wagon on the next street." — Told by Mr. C. V. Chandler, owner of a photograph taken from this "dogerotype," to the author. 7-8 How Oglesby, John Hanks and Two Fence Rails Killed Seward's Boom As the time for the State Convention of i860, at Decatur, was drawing near, "Dick" Oglesby, afterwards Governor of Illinois, foresaw that Lincoln's possibility as a presidential candidate would be endangered if the delegation from Illinois were divided. He therefore planned to do something that would "kill the Seward Boom," and make the State dele- gation solid for Lincoln. He was one day talking with John Hanks, a Democrat, and cousin of Lincoln, about "Abe," when John began to tell about some rails he and Lincoln had split near Decatur, to put up a fence. Oglesby 17 immediately asked if Hanks supposed he could find any of the rails. Hanks replied that when he had last been there, ten years before, there were plenty of them left. So Oglesby and Hanks drove to the old clearing the next day, and as soon as Hanks whittled the old rails with his knife, he knew " A RAIL OLD WESTERN GENTLEMAN." A caricature of the campaign of i860. From the Oldroyd collection, Washing- ton, D. C. — By permission. From " How Abraham Lincoln Became President," by J. McCan Davis. they were the very same black walnut and honey locust rails. The men then took two of the rails, tied them under the buggy and hid the rails in Oglesby's barn until the day of the convention. He in the meantime planned that i8 Hanks should bring them into the convention with these words on a banner fastened across the top of the rails: ABRAHAM LINCOLN The Rail Candidate for President in i860. Two rails from a lot of three thousand made in 1830 by John Hanks and Abe Lincoln, whose father was the first pioneer of Macon County. When the convention was well under way, Oglesby announced that an old Democrat wanted to make a con- tribution to the convention. Then Hanks came in with the rails and spoke familiarly to Lincoln as he passed him. There was a cry of "Speech! Speech!" and when Lincoln finally showed himself, the crowd was so dense that they passed him hand over hand over the solid mass of people to the platform. It was a strange sight to see this long man being handed over the people's heads. The next day Hanks got a wagon load of rails and sold them for a dollar a piece. From that time on the supply seemed endless. The two fence rails killed the Seward Boom. 7-8 Homes of Lincoln and Louis the Fourteenth A Frenchman who saw the replica of the Springfield home of Lincoln at the Lewis and Clark Exposition said: "I have seen the bed chamber of Louis the Fourteenth, and I cannot but think of the great contrast between the simplicity of your grand man and the grandeur of our sim- ple man." — Alfred Bayliss. 19 6-8 Latitude and Longitude of Lincoln's Socks Lincoln was noted for his kind heart and good humoi. Shortly before leaving for Washington, Lincoln was enter- taining an important delegation from Massachusetts, when an old lady, her tanned face peering out from her sun bonnet, arrived. Her errand was to present Lincoln with a pair of very long socks. Holding them up by the toes he exclaimed, "Well, gentlemen, I think she has my lati- tude and longitude about right." 3-6 A Little Girl Induces Lincoln to Wear a Beard On his way to Washington as President, Lincoln stopped at Westfield, Massachusetts, to speak for a few minutes. In his talk he referred humorously to a letter received from a little W 7 estfield girl, advising him to wear a beard to im- prove his looks. Stroking his chin he said, "I intend to follow her advice," and from then on he wore a beard. He added that if she were present he would like to meet her. 6-8 Douglas Holds Lincoln's Hat When Lincoln was about to deliver his first inaugural address on the east portico of the Capitol, he vainly looked for a spot where he might place his high silk hat. Stephen A. Douglas, his political antagonist, was seated just behind him. He stepped forward quickly, and took the hat which Mr. Lincoln held helplessly in his hand. "If I can't be President," he whispered smilingly to a cousin of Mrs. Lin- coln, "I at least can hold his hat." 20 A Pass to Richmond A Northern gentleman requested a pass to Richmond. "A pass to Richmond!" exclaimed the President, "Why, my dear sir, if I should give you one it would do you no good. You may think it very strange, but there are a lot of fellows who are prejudiced against every man who totes a pass from me. I have given McClellan and more than two hundred thousand others passes to Richmond, and not one of them has yet gotten there!" — By permission of O. H. Oldroyd. 5-8 Betsy Ann — the Washerwoman One day an ex-governor gained the President's ear. Presently he began: "Mr. President, I want to speak to you about the case of Betsy Ann Dougherty. She was my washerwoman for a long time, but now her husband has joined the rebel army. I wish you would give her a pro- tection paper." Mr. Lincoln saw how ridiculous the re- quest was, but concealed his amusement and asked: "Was Betsy Ann a good washerwoman?" "Yes, sir. Very good indeed. Couldn't you write something to the officers?" Mr. Lincoln, after asking more questions of a like nature, wrote the following on a calling card: "Let Betsy Ann Dougherty alone, as long as she behaves herself. A. Lincoln." "No," he replied, "officers have no time now to read letters. Tell her to put a string in this card and hang it 21 around her neck. When they see this they will let her alone." Such ludicrous scenes gave him relief from his overwhelming cares. 3-8 Some Little Girls at the White House One afternoon three poorly clad little girls had followed the crowd into the White House to a reception. Lincoln noticing them passing, called out, "Little girls, are you going to pass me without shaking hands?" Then bending down he greeted them warmly. 5-8 Lincoln and the Russian Ambassador At a levee at the White House, the Russian Ambassa- dor stood talking to the President, when the President asked him this question: "Would you have taken me for an American if you had met me anywhere else than in this country?" "No," said the distinguished Muscovite, who, like Old Abe, was a bit of a wag, "I should have taken you for a Pole." "So I am," exclaimed the President, straightening himself up to his full height, "and a Liberty Pole at that." — By permission of O. H. Oldroyd. 3-6 How Tad Signalled to His Father Lincoln was listening to an account of one of Grant's battles, when a gentle knocking resounded on the door to which Lincoln paid no heed. Then the door knob was 22 rattled and a childish voice called, "Unfasten the door." Lincoln drew the bolt, and Little Tad, then ten years old, bounced in, and jumped upon his father's lap. The little fellow was in the habit, if he awoke in the night, of creeping into his father's bed; but on this occasion, not finding him, had come over to the office, which was on the same floor. Lincoln, with Tad on his knee, began to teach him to make a certain signal by tapping on the desk with Tad's fist doubled up in his own big, bony hand. Telegraphy had been introduced but a short time before. There were seven quick raps, followed by two slower ones, thus — — , and over and over again these dots and dashes were sounded on the desk un- til Tad made the signal correctly without his father's help. Tad had been taught to make this signal on the office door, whenever he wanted to come in, and had forgotten to make it, so his father paid no attention to the disturb- ance till he heard the voice. — By permission oj The Century Company. 7-8 Attending to the Details of the Army "Now, my man, go away, go away," General Fry overheard Lincoln say one day to a soldier who was plead- ing for the President's interference in his behalf. "I can- not meddle in your case. I could as easily bail out the Potomac with a teaspoon as attend to all the details of the army." 23 4-8 Lincoln on His Ancestry Concerning his ancestry Lincoln said, "I don't know who my grandfather was, and am much more concerned to know what his grandson will be." Blondin Crossing the Niagara River Lincoln and the country expected McClellan to cross the Potomac on the 22d of February. When he failed to do this complaints kept coming in to the President. Finally he said to some gentlemen in answer to their complaints, " Gentlemen, suppose you had put all the property you were worth into the hands of Blondin, the wire walker, to carry across the Niagara. Would you shake the cable or keep shouting directions at him? No, you would hold your breath as well as your tongue until he was safely over. It is Ihus with the government. Keep silent, and we'll get you safely across."