The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1860-08-11
Letter from Abe's Cousin.

! Lincoln it is said, split rails with one
John Hanks, his cousin. John las written
letter on the subject, and now Charles
| Hanks, Johns brother and Abe's cousin,
knocks daylight through Lincoln ancient
biography. Here is his letter:
EDlToRor THE MAGSEr-Dear sir; IN the
last week issue Of the Chronicle | noticed
a letter signed John Hanks, which is so
extraordinary i'll many of its features that
] feel called upon to give it a brief notice
John Hanks is my younger brother, and
Abe Lincoln Is my cousin | have known
both John and Abe from tiicr earliest
childhood. Since brother John has COM
mitted himself to the Decatur politician
who is using him as Il tool To speculate in
certain old rails (that know colI-iu Abe
never made }, have great fears that bro
ther John, like cousin Abe, has fallen into
bad hrnds, and that man by nature made
for good man. but who always needed
protecting councillors, may be by his bad
associations entirely ru;eud | have known
the entire history of both brother John
and cousin Abe, and all that stuff in the
letter published in the Chronicle is stuff
miserable stuff, and although poor brother
Johns name j. signed to it, | know that
he even yet does not know what is in it +;
much less did he ever write it. Il is the
work of men unscrupulous i'll the means
that they may use in sulling honest People.
In Johns letter ! find "A long and pa
thetic ailusion to cousin Abe's early and
hard life. That may be poctical, but there
is little Of it true. In Abes young days
he simply IA wild harum scaru,n boy.
and jumping and wrestling were his only
accomplishments His laziness was the
cause Of many notifications to me; for
as | was an older boy than either Abe or
john ! often had To do Abe's work AZ
uncles when tie family were all sick with
the acue from cat.n. waterne Ions and
Abe would be roilIck!ug around the coun-
try neglecting them. In those early days
all saw hard times Yet Il young man
who was energetic and industrious could
drcs, himself fcomfortabiy. and have plenty
of plain, good food to cat have often
felt ashamed Of cousin Abe in seeing him
a full grown man, gadding around the
country barefoot, with his toes outrage
ou,lv sI,raddlei out by the mud. and in
steal of his reading his books. a. brother
John. through tie Decatur politician. 50
ppetical,y tells Us. he would be rowdying z
around with pack OF Wild young mon. !
wei! remember when he went cOurtinr one
Of Major Waruick's daughters. in this
county. his boots were so Iniserabiy bad
that his feet were frosted, and he had to
lay up at Major Waruick's for two weeks.
and have the old lady nurse and doctor
his feet
( am fully persuaded that brother John
is taking the strange course that he Is now
pursuing, for the purpose OF making little
money out OF rail speculation, aud if |
could for one moment think that the De
catur sharpers, in whose hands he has
placed himself, would not cheat him out
Of every cent Of the money, | would not
spoil the speculation by telling the facts.
The facts in regard TO those rails are
these. The little farm that John and Abe
made the rails to fence contained ten acres
About ten year, after th!> little farm was
fenced. the entire fence was burned up. tc
NV certain knowlece, for | hauled the
rails to fence it the second time; Lewis II
! Ward. who now resides in this county, wit
messed tile fire that burned the rails. and
he is willing to make affidavit of this fact
| lived within two miles and a half ot
this Lincoln farm, from the Mipisai ppisaisi II Ma
s~mriy times, 'otir farmers were subject tc
being visited by devastating fires, and
know that the fence around the Lincoln
farm was consumed at least three times
5 And | know that after the Lincoln family
had left the farm, that the fence was
again burned. and that Shelf Whitley and
Daniel Mcdaniel, made the rail. and re
fenced it
think. aud am almost certain, that
tie rails that are ROW being worsilippcd
all over the North as Lincoln rails. were
made oy poor Bill Slrick land, who is now
poor blind. helpless and in the Macon
county poor house. And if these philan
thropic Republicans would allow NE tc
make them one suggestion, II would be tC
( help poor Bill Strickland. who really die
make the rails. and who = honest a
Abe or any body else that ever Ilauled &
rail, instead OF -lending their money owe,
his rails.
As to cousin Abe being the Homes
Abe politician, that is new title for hiin
When he first came TO Illinois, ! know
that he was strong Democrat ! Away:
thought that he turned Wh;g af,erward
because he had settled in Whi- district
And when | hear him in lSj6, in til,
court house at Decatur, make a speech. il
which he asserted that he would cOutinu.
to "agitate the subject of negro slavery sI
i long as was heard the crack of the la I!
upon the yellow girls back, | did not fee
like he was either very honest or very
patriotic for suppose that he said that
Tor the purpose of catching Abolition
votes.
know that cousin Abe cared nothing
about cutting the throat Ot the old Whi4
party the very moment that he supposed
he could make anything by building up 6
new party. AID never supposed that ht
cared one cent as TO what the principle:
Of the new party should be, only so it wa
fixed that he could get Office.
Now. as to cousin Abe's running flatboats
that amounts 10 lust this: Some youEs
fellows had cut raft to run down from
.Iimtown, and Abe, for the fun OF the thing
went along instead of staying al home anC
attending 10 his work, that was needing
him very much That is the extent of lii
hatboating.
If cousin Abe can honestly get gooC
office. ] want to see him do so: but thest
abominable lies that are being I, ld on hin
hy politicians who pretend 10 be his friends
| rcpel as family insult.
In my own homely way, | have told tn,
above rs it occurred, for the benefit Of III!
honest neighbors and acGuaintances, ane
| wish you to publish it just as ii is.
may trouble yoI again. CHARLES HANKS.
A correspondent of the New ork He'
0M writes thus encoIlraGinSlE Oh the pros
poets in Rhode Island
"Rhode Island is by no means the Ger
tain State for Lincoln which those who
figure up Presidential maiorties count her
She has become politically whimsical o
late and at the approaching election viii
probably sustain her sobriquet of sauc,
little Rhoda, by acting pretty much ~
she has a mind to, and, instead of elidors
ing the rail platform, plant herself upoi
that of popular sovereignty From a care