Bedford inquirer. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1857-1884, 1864-09-09


seen you before, sir?7 I think not, replied
you must mistake me for some other person E
No don't; saw you at the Town Hall, last
evening. " Is it possible Mr.. Lincoln, that you
could observe individuals so closely in such
crowd?" ,'0h, yes" he replied, laughing, /
THAT is my way don't forget faces We're
you not there?" II was slr, sir and was web |
paid for going, adding somewhat in the vein Of
pleasantly he had started Iconsider il one OF the
most extraordinary speeches ever heard.
As we entered the cars, he beckoned me to take |
a seat with him, and said, in most agreeably
frank way, Were you sincere in what you said
about nny speech just now n i meant every
word Of it, Mr. Lincoln Why, an old dyed-in-
the-wool Democrat who sat near me, aLplauded
you repeadedly and, when rallied upon his con-
yerson to sound principles, answered, / don't be-
heye word he says, but / cant help clapplng
him, h. Is 80 pct That call the triumih Of
oratosy,
~ hen you convince man against has w,lii
Thougil he IS Of the same opinion still
Indeed, Sir, learned more OF the art OF pub
lie speaking last evening than cae-ld from
whole coarse Of lectures Oil Rhetoric
.tAh thai reminds me said he, 'oi most
/ extraordinary Circumstance whiehoeourred inNew
| Haver the other lay. They told pe that the
professor of rhetoric in Yale College very learn
ed man, ism he? Yes, sir, and fine critic,
too. well, / suppose>o %. he ought to be at
any rate-thes t5ld me that he came to hear me
| aud took notes Of my speech, and gave lecture
on it to his class the next day; and, not satisfied
with that, he followed me up to Meriden the next
evening, and heard me again forthe same purpose
Now, if this is so, it is to my mind very extraor-
dinary. have been sufficiently astonished at my
| success in the West 1t has been most unexpeet-
ed. But had no thought Of any marked sue
cess in the East and least OF all that should draw
out such Communications from literary and learned
men. Now, he continued II should Ike very
much to know what 1t was in my speech which
You thought SO remarkable, and what you sup
pose interestedmy friend, tie professor, so much
The clearness Of the statements, Mr. Lincoln
the unanswerable style of your reasoning. and
espe9iallv your illustrations, which were romance
and pathos and fun and logic all welded together
That story about the snakes, for example, whlef
set the hands and feet of you Democratic hear
ers in such vigorous motion, v at once queer
and comical and tragic and 4 gumentatiye.
broke through all the barriers of man PREV
Gus opinions and prejudices, at a crash, and blew
ND the very citadel of his false theories, before h
could know what had hurt him
"Can YOU remember any other Illustrations.
said he, 'of this peculiarly Of my style # gay
him others of the same sort, occupying some ha
bour in the critiqua when he said, Il am mue
obliged to YOU for this have been wishing TO
Ionr time to find some one who would make thi
ANALYSIS for me. 1t throws hight on shR)e'
which has been dark to me. / can uHdefstan
very readily. how such power as you have ascrli
ed to me win account for the effect which seen
itobe produced by nay speeches. hope you hay
not been too fateering in your estimate. Certain
" have had wonderful success, for man
nv limited education.
THAT suggests, Mr. Lincoln an inquiry whic
has several times been upon my lips during th
conversation. want very much to know no
Won cot this unusual power of putting things
It must have been a matter Of education. No mi
has it By nature alone. What has your edaeatif
been?"
sfWen, as to education, the newspapers are co
rect--I never went to school more than SIX mont
in my life. But as You say, this must be pr
dpct Of culture in some form, | have been Putai
fbe aae~tion voa ask me, to myself wlnle Y
I,aga t.aea taking ] can say this, hat aino
n,v earliest reeoieetions | gemenbeT how when
mere child. / used to gel irfiiated when anybo
talked TO me in a way / could not understand.
don't think / ever got angry q anything c'se
nv life But that always disturbed nay temps
and has ever since. / ean remember gong
nv little bedroom, after hearing the neighb'
talk Of an evening with n{ father and spendl
no small part Of the night walking ap and doy
and trying to make out what was the exact me-
ing of some of their, to me, dark sayings co
not Sleep though | often tried t when got
sueh hunt after an idea until had caught
s and when I thought had got it, was not sa
fed until had repeated it over and over unt
had put it in language plain enough, asl thoue
for any boy knew to comprehend Ihls Wa
kind of passion with me, aud has stuck by me-
mneyer easy now, when lam handling thou
t;Il have bounded il north and bounded It so
and bounded it east and bounded 1t west !
haps that accounts for the characteristic you
serve in my speeches. though | never put the
things together before. .
sMr. Lincoln, | thank you for this Ii IS
nest most splendid educational fact ever happe
: of uDon This is genius with all It's impulslve,
shor spring, dominating power over the mind o.
his possessor, developed by education into talent
c. its uniformity its permauence, and its discipl
man strenth, always ready, always available never
n it ricious-the highest possession OF the human
! to telect. But let me ask, did you not have
It / education? How did you prepare for your
lass ,s ssoh, yes read law, as the phrase is
1;ea, Is. became lawyer 5 clerk in Springfield,
ame ans copied tedious documents and picked up VIII
: i could Of law in the intervals Of other work
New your question reminds me u : Wv e1'es'
here had, which am pounu III nohes.s
= "a Tn fba cnurse of nv law-reaulng ltoIstdAtiy