The Hillsdale standard. [volume] (Hillsdale, Mich.) 1851-1909, 1860-07-24
AN INTERESTING LETTER.
Lineoin's Old Raii.Maullng Partner.
From the Chicaao Trihur

! Chr0Alcle. Hanks Is an honest OLD jackson
Democratic farmer who shared with the next
President tho privatious and hardships of pio.
neer life in Illinois. before the days of railroads
and consls His letter is pain, unyarnished
statement, that will find response in the
breasts of hundreds Of old Democratic farm
ers of the pioneer times:
Editor of the Decature Chronicle,
DEAR SIR.-Ihe following item appeared In the
Columbus Statesman, few days ago. which ! take
from the Coles Co., Ledger:-"HANkS AGAINST
LINCOLN" "Ne were informed day or two ago
by delegate TO the Baltimore Convention, who
called At our office that John ilanFs, the man who
assisted Abe Lincoln TO make those rails about
which the Republicans making such a terrible
hubbub has announced himself opposed To the elee-
tlOn OF Lincoln. Hanks who has ever been Demo
crat is against the Republican nominee because he
knows Lincoln To be humbug, and nothing else.-
liurrah for lianks!"
To this article | desire briefly to reply. II
my choice for President, or how | shall vote
as between the candidates for thai office, is
worth considering at all, claim it as a SIM
pie right to be correctly represented. am
but farmer, and regret to say not an ednca-
ed one. have never been a candidate for
any office, nor do | expect ever to be; whilst
can with all truth(ulness say this, yet have
never been negative man in politics. From
my boyhood | have been a constant voter
with the Democratic party in all essential
elections; have thought that party TO be
upright and straightforward in all tho princi-
pies it has really adopted. So late as 1858
voted for Mr.. Douglas and against my old
friend Lincoln. For forty years have look
ed upon the party with pride and hailed its
success with pleasure; but as Mr.. Douglas
made speech in Decatur in 1858, and in
my hearing spoke so pleasantly and SO honor
ably of the old Wing party and of Mr.. Clay,
its leader, after having for fifteen Years, in
discussing general politics, when used to love
to listen 10 him so well, spoke SO complain
ingly and abusively of that party and of Mr..
Clay, charging upon it and him many bad
and mean things, until listening to him l
learned to look upon both as dangerous and
full of evil-the thought struck me that for
the future | would never Judge Of a party or
its leaders by what an opponent might say,
and this conclusion | mean TO follow the bal
ance of my life. How foolish it is to abuse a
party because my friend may do So and then
praise the same party because that friend may
do so; he may be designing-I would in all
probability be dupe.
Ever since Mr.. Douglas made that speech
in 1858, he has been abusing tho Republicans
Just like he used TO abuse the old Wings. l
am tired Of this kind Of warfare, | think it is
not right to do so, and as Mr.. Douglas further
said in that speech that he was in the habit
Of sometimes changing his politics, do not
know but it was about time for him to begin
to excuse and cease to abuse the Republicans,
and made up my mind to let him 90 in time.
Now, as to entirely changing my politics,
cannot say have done this--but for the life
of me can see nothing in the Republican
party that an honest Democrat can seriously
oppose. 1t is true, were they such party
as Mr.. Douglas used TO say they were, |
could see Objectionable features about it, but
then is it wise to believe every hing Mr. Doug.
las has said, when he tells us he sometimes
changes, and when we have near us honest
men known TO be purely honest for mere than
thirty years, who deny all this and propose to
tell us the true state Of the case, and to give
us the true principles Of that party2 | think
not Beside this, We have for years been op
posed, in politics, to man who has again
and again secn his party defeated, and has
himself sometimes failed, and still seen that
man true to his colorS, re arming and re-en-
teriug the field to try to uphold and success
fully plant his colors on the side Of victory
when all the time we knew he had bnt 10
change once 10 win, and yet has never chang
ed, tn nix / may say never faltered, how are
we 10 respect him! Such man | have
known Mr. Lincoln for thirty years to be. In
bovhood DAYS together many arc the days we
have lugged the hoavey oar on the Ohio, the
Illinois and Mississippi river together; many
ale the long cold days We have oulneyed
over the Wild prairies and through the forest
with gun and axe, and though it is not pleas
ant to refer back to it, well do | remember
when we set out together in the cold winter
to cut and maui rails on the Sangamon river,
in Macon county, thirty years ago, to enclose
his fathers little home, and from day to day
kept at work until the whole was finished and
the homestead fenced in; we often swappod
work in this way, and yet during the many
wears we were connected together as laborers,
sometimes flat-boating, sometimes hog drv-
/ ING, sometimes rail making, and too, when it
was nearly impossible to get books, he was a
constant reader; was listener; he settled
all disputes of all the young men in the
neighhorhood, and his decisions were always
abided by. | never knew man so honest
under ali circumstances, for his whole life.
Thus associated with Mr.. Lincoln, learned
TO love him, and when in 1858 he was can.
ddate for tho first time within ny reach,
against nv feelings, and l may say against
my convictions, my old party ties induced me
to vote for Mr.. Douglas; my Democratic
friends all declared Lincoln was an abolition
ist; heard him make speech in Decature
Just before election, and l could see nothing
bad in il; but l was told by the party he was
wrong; could not see how he could be, but
they said so, and | was Democrat aud went
it. NV wife used to say TO me that some day
Abe would come out and be something; 1
thought so too but | could not exactly sec
how a man in lower walks of life, day la.
borer, and hopclessly poor, would ever stand
much chance to get up high in the world al
last. one day at home, we heard that the he.
! ubIican State Convention was to be held al
Decature, and that they were going for Abe
for President. As soon as found this out,
went into town and told a friend OF Abo''
that great and honest merit was at last tc
be awarded in the person Of my friend Mr
Lincoln, by the Republican party, though
of the hard and trying struggles ot his ear }