Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1860-07-27
An Interesting Letter--Lincoln- Old
Rail-mauling Partner.

From the Chicago Press and Tribune
We find the following interesting letter
+ from John Hanks-Lincoln's early partner in
the rai[splitting business the Decatur
Chronicle. Hanks is an honest old jackson
Democratic farmer, who shared with the next
Z President the privations and hardships of pio-
neer life in Illinois, before the days of rail
roads and canals. His letter is q plain, unvar-
nished statement, that will find u response in
the breasts Of hundreds of old Democratic far
mers of the pioneer times
Editor Of the Decatur Chronicle:
Dear Sir: The following item appeared in
the Columbus Statesman few days ago,
which ! take from the Coles County Ledger
HANKS AGAINST LINCOLN"
We were informed 4 day or two ago by d
delegate to the Baltimore Convention, who
called at Office, that John Hanks, the man
who assisted Abe Lincoln to make those rails
about which the Republicans are making such
a terrible hubbub, has announced himself OPP
posed to the election of Lincoln. Hanks who
has never been Democrat is against the Re
publican nominee because he knows Lincoln to
be humbug, and nothing else. Hurrah for
Hanks! T"
To this article 1 wish briefly to reply If
my choice for President, or how | shall vote
as between the candidates for that office, is
worth considering at all, l claim it as simple
right to be correctly represented. l am but a
farmer, and l regret to say not an educated
one. / have never been candidate for any
Office, nor do / expect ever to be; whilst
! with fn1p 7 box
er been negative man in politics. From my
manhood have been constant voter with the
-! Democratic party in all essential elections l
| have thought that party to be upright and
| straightforward in all the principles it has
/ adopted. So late as 1858 l voted for Douglas
and against my old friend Lincoln. For forty
years | have. louked upon the party with pride
and hailed its success with pleasure but as
Mr.. Douglas made speech at Decatur in '59,
and in my hearing spoke so pleasantly and so
honorabiy of the old Wing party and of Mr..
Clay, its leader, after having for fifteen years.
in discussing general politics, when I loved to
listen to him so well, spoke so complainingly
and so abnsiyely of that party and Of Mr.
! Clay, charging upon it and him many bad and
mean things, until listening at him l learned
| to look upon both as dangerous and full of
evil,-the thought struck me that for the fu-
ture would never judge Of party or its lead
ers by what an opponent might say and this
conclusion mean to follow the balonce of my
life.
How foolish it is to abuse party because
my friend may do so, and then praise the same
party because that friend may change and do
so A; he may b. designing-I would, in ali prob
ability. be a,4lupe Ever since Mr.. Douglas
made that speech in 1855, he has been abusing
the Republicans just like he used to abuse the
old Wings. l am tired Of this kind Of war
fare; ] think it is not right to do so and Mr..
. Douglas further said in that speech that he
was III tie habit Of sometimes changing his
politics. | did not know but that il was
about time for him to btgin to excuse and
! cease to abuse the Republicans, and made mp
my mind to let him go in time. Now, as to
entirely changing my politics. l cannot say l
have done this but for the life Of me | can
see nothing in the Republican party that any
honest Democrat can seriously oppose. 1t is
true, were they such party as MIR Dougl;lS
used to say they were, | could see objccliona-
ble features about ii but then is it wise to
believe everything Mr.. Douglas has said when
he tells us he sometimes changes; and when
we have near us honest men, known to be hon
est for more than thirty years, who deny all
this and propose to tell US the true state of
the case, and to give the true principles Of
that party? [ think not.
Besides this. when We have for years been
opposed, in politics, to man who has again
and again seen his party defeated, and has
himself sometimes failed. and still seen that
man trne to his colors, rearmng and Renter
ingthc field to try to uphold and successfully
plant his colors upon the side of victory, when
all the time he knew he had but to change
once to win, and yet has never changed
think | may say never faltercd, how arc we TO
respect him +? Such a man have known Mr..
Lincoln for thirty years to be. In bOyhood
days we toiled together many are the days
we have lugged the heavy oar on the Ohio,
the Illinois and the Mississippi rivers together;
many are the long cold days we have journey
ed over the wild prairies and through the for
est with gun and axe, and though it is not
pleasant to refer back to it, well do | remem-
ber when set out together in the cold win
ter to cut and maui rails on the Sagamon river,
in Macon Co, thirty years ago. to incose his
fathers little home, and from day to day kept
at work until the whole was finished and the
homestead fenced in, VIC often snapped work
in this way, and yet during the many years we
were connected together as laborers, sometimes
fatboating, sometimes hogdriving, sometimes
rail-making, and too, when it was nearly i'm
possible to get books he a constant read
er l was listener he settled all disputes of
all the young men in the neighborhood, and his
ai,idnJ NV
knew a man so honest under all circumstances,
for his whole life. Thus associated with Mr..
Lincoln, learned to love him, and when in '58
he was candidate for the first time within my
reach, against my feelings, and / may say
against my convictions, my old party ties in
duced me to vote for Mr.. Douglas my Demo
cratic friends all declared Lincoln was an A b.
olitionist heard him make speech in De
catur Just before the election and l could see
nothing bad in it but l was told by the party
he was wrong ] could not see how he could
be but they said so, and / was a Democrat
and went it. My wife used to say to me that
some day Abe would come out and be some
thing thought so too, but | couldsnots ex-
actly see how a man in the lower walks Of
life, dayslaborer, and hopelessly poor, would
ever stand much chance to get up very high in
the world at last, one day at home, we heard
that the Republican State Convention was to
be held at Decatur, and that they were going
for Abe for President.
As soon as found this out, l went into
town aud told friend of A Abes that as great
and honest merit was at last to be rewarded
in the person of my friend Mr.. Lincoln, by the
Republican party, l thought of the hard and
trying struggles of his early days, and recol-
lecting the rails we had made together thirty
years ago, made up my mind to present some
If thnnn tn fhnt CnnNnnfinn rs a Testimonial