Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1865-04-28
Abraham Lincoln.

wall Of bitter grief will long be echo,
back from State after State, and natio
after nation, till the whole world sha
have acknowledged the reverence due I
great Christian ruler. To. day (Wedne'
day. commenced the funeral procession
which will move from the capital, throug
the chief cities of the North and Yves
and close the long and mournful marc
by committing the mangled body to res
in the heart of Illinois. All along III
way will be the most impressive signs @
sadness-the minute guns, tolling bell:
mournful music, cities and towns drape,
in the habiliments of woe, millions o
faces wet with tears, and everywher,
will loyal hearts sympathize in the grea
grief, and the whole nation sincerel,
mourn.
But why does the Nation mourn? /.
It for the loss of President ? We have
one still. The wheels of Government
move on undisturbed i n their stately
round; no shock Of death iostles the
machinery Of the nation; the assassin's
blow is lighter thao the dust upon the
wheel, Is it the death of good man, a
roughly gentle, generous honest, loving
man, whose boundless charity covered all
the sins of traitors and deadly enemies.
and longed to conquer them in the bonds
of (raternal Union and love? Alas! how
many good men has Death relentlessly
stricken down by the murderer's hand,
the shock of battle, or fell disease, and
how many have fallen by the deliberate,
devilish torture Of starvation
and neg lect in rebel prisons, and not
tear been shed but at the home desolated
BY the family bereaved, or the sympa-
helic friend.
We do mourn Abraham Lincoln as
'ur President; we do mourn him as the
good man ruthlessly slain but we mourn
i'm also because the affections of our
hearts and all our hopes for our country
nave been bound up in him as, to our
light, the chosen one of the Lord to lead
he nation from the house Of bondage TO
he promised land OF Freedom, Right
business and R'st. He will longest
i've in the annals OF the world as the
resident of Emancipation the hottest
ears will fall from the eyes of the most
umble and the most despised; tn e
eaviest grief will weigh upon the soul
the slave.
The humble birth of Mr.. Lincoln his
lck Of almost all training save thai
hich was self imposed and self directed,
I time snatched from labors necessary
, earn his daily bread his mastery,
evertheless, over the ablest men and /
ne gravest questions, in defiance Of all |
and all the rules of the schools.
and at last his election-this new man
instead of some welded to old
plnonS-at an early age, Che was the
oungest President but two.) seemed
cry clearly to indicate that Providence
ad raised him up for a special work, and
his conclusion was confirmed to all re-
gious men, who observed that in his
rst speech when leaving home as Presi.
ent elect, in his first message, he recog
lied God as the ruler of the nations ADD
ne disposer of events. How impressive
ow are the concluding passages of his
rst message:
CAS- private citizen, the Executive
Iuld not have consented that these in
buttons shall perish much less could Z
=, in betrayal of so vast and so sacred
pst as these free people had confided to
i'm. lie felt that be had no right to :
rink, not even TO count the chances of
is own life, in what might follow. In ,
Ill view of his great responsibility, he
as, SO far, done what be has deemed his {
lty. You will now, according to your
Nn judgment, perform yours. &
nd having thus chosen our course, Nth. {
1t guile and 'oim pure purpose, let as I
'"e'0 our trust an God, and 60 foyward !
iMo@ fear and 'cih manly hearts," t
Here, within this nutshell, we have :
lie character Of Mr.. Lincoln as Presi. c
mt; patriotic, self sacrificing, guilelrss,
are, fearless, hopeful, always trusting il
God. We can add but one more v
ature, and that is only bis guilel4ssness r
'aciically exemplified we mean his too C
Dad charity for wrong doors. Guile h
SIS and thoroughly honest himself, he h
emed 10 think that nobody could do fl
rong' unless it be through some great
mptation or delusion dragging really j
od man into bad courses. So he par Of