, 1870-04-10
~ 1MHco1Es HE11e1pH.


SFnNdH1xlu, II, Feb. - 1870. :
Nj: AaBo1 Soma Tina eineo pto1uited
ou that would send 1ettel In relation 10 | {
IL. Lincoln q religion do 20 nov- Before
ateslnS ca shat question, oae OK swo ptelitain- !
NTH tha ch.is.isn void n il. pz;n- {
aPlee, As vel a. IN its theology. In tho ar1t
llzca Ir. Lncoln'e mind Wa puruly logical
,as.; secondly, Nj. 4uooln WE purely ptac-
ics1 NAL uo had 10 fancJ or imA8inasipn,
opposed 10 IN idealist, AZ gsnAtA .nh, it ia
Ezue thai ; purely logical mind haa not Eouch
hope, Il i. ever hAs faith in uss naseen and tn
erso.e7t. Mr.. Lincoln had nn& much hope md
no faith in thihss that Ge outside of the do
main OF Demonstration he wxa 10 constituted
auleas his seusc. or logic could reach it. l haye
often Iead 70 him law point, decision, oE !
fanciel he could not understand
it ill be took the book out of M hAada, and
read the thing for himself. He was terribly,
saspses1, ae a e9ola ,'s 'seareel{ m
10 fix It IN his mind.
became acquainted with 3fr. Lincoln In
1884, and I thinf know him well to the day Of i
bis death Hla mind, when boy IN Kentucky, /
slowed certain gloom, an nnaocaA nature,
psenli.l e al"srasisdness, bola nd ,asd tlaIsng
manifested tho same qualities or attributes -
in Kentucky it also Intensified, developed II |
self along those lines, h Indiana Hs rama
to llinois u lasseand, after somo little Eosans.
sssled in Nsv salam, nov tn NeuArd County,
and State Of Illinois. This sillaga lies about
twenty nilea northveat Of thia aty. It VA
hero that Mr. Lincoln became acquainted with
= class Of men the world never sAw the Ike
Of batora or kinee. They ~e1e 1Arga men
Largo in body md laFge In mind; haEl to whip.
,nd never TO b Cooled They were bold,
mon Or their own mInds-balie.ed what wa
deuuust1ahls-wcze t1nn Of graat ooro1nou
scnse With these men III. Lincoln xaat thrown;
dth them he LIVED, md nth them he moved,
I'D .lno.s .hsd h's being: Ihey xsse
vera good men, and their scara wero protests
sgainst theo1ogy-loud protests against the
fouies Of Christianity they hid never heard
Of Ibeism and the newer and better religious
thoughts Of this age. Hence, being natural
tered their thoughts freely. They declared
that Jesus vss IN 1lcgitlmate child know
these men well .2nd have felt for tha1n-hnyo
done my Little beat When OCCASION offered, to
educate them up TO higher thoughts Theae
could be in one, nor ono IN throe Gods they
could not believe that the Father ruined ono Of
his own lorely Children This Has monstrpua
10 them. They were on al occxsons, whom
opportunity offered, debating the VARIOUS quea-
Tons Of ChristianitJ among themselves; they
%AA&AAAA0A OAA
! their own Boo}s md though their Arguments
| were rude and 1uugh, no man could o1erthspw
| their hcmely logic. They riddlod Ill UEinea,
and att nnfre4uently nAas thsrn atsptics-
| iisbelievers Is bad as themselvea- They we're
manly set Of peopfs.
It was hefc, and among these people, that
| Mr.. Lincoln WIZ thrown About ths year 1854,
10 ch1noed to come across Talnoys - Ruins,
and BONO Of Paine's theological works. He At
I AAt3 - S.xA
them into his own being. yolney and Paine
became part OF Nj. Lneoln trum 1884 70 the
| end of hiA Efe. In 1856. he wrote out \ Bmall
work On Intldelity" md intended to have it
published. The book waB An attack upon tho
whole grounds of Chtissianity, and especially
the E,Ih, the true And only begostan Son Of
God, as Tie Chri5Gal Tot1d contends Mr, Lin
coin wzA It that tine II New Salem, Keeping
store for 3Ir. Samuel Hill, . merchant and
Postmaster q ut plAee;,i e., L1a ;S.Ia and H
sfeptio Al that limo. Lincoln, one d.y .ft.l
the book wsa finished, road il 10 Nj. HM-hia
good friend. HiIl tried to persuade him not %
make il publc-uot to publish it. Hill at thas
time eav in Mr. Lincoln : rising 1nan, and
st1oy i-said it. should ba .puhaishsd. Hul
swose it should nevar sec ths Light Of day. HI
I bad m eJe to Linoo1n's popularity-his present
md future succasa; and believing that, il the
book rete published, it would hIi Lincoln for
ever, he snssched il from 1incoln's handl
into IN ola-fashioned template stove, heated
n hot u = furnace; and 40 Lineoins booi
went up to the clouds in smoke. 1t Il cun
fessed By III who heard parts Of i
that it was At onco Ahia and eloquent
saS asSe o. nd from opoas' &a nesa ess
e1pzcssed to me and to othets in my presence
il was able, strong, plain, and faif. His Argu
meat was grounded on the informal mistakes
Of the Old md Now Tessaments, and On 1ea
Eon, aud On the expexiencea and obse1!ationi
of men. The criHcia1ua from internal defect,
Eere aharp, strong and manly.
. Ar- Lincoln mpy led 10 thia city in 1857, mi
here bo became acquainted with VARIOUS uel
Of his own way Of thinlng. At that time
they called themselves free hinkers o. JIc
distinctly, for I was with them, heard them, ant
was one Of them Nj. Lincoln here found osae
works, Humo, GIbbon, and others, and dran1
ttcn Ia he made no secres Of big views, N
eonce.l1nent of big religion. lis he boldly Asowe*
candidate far our Legislature, ha Wis accuse<
Of being N inadcl, and Of having said tia
Jesn1 Christ waa an Legitimate cAiod b
never denied hia opinion, nor ainched frou
J his religious visEs hs waa true man, All
} 'feDgioa v.s low inaeed. In bis mmcpts .
gloom he would doubt, II ho did urt sohntinia
) deny, God. He usde me once ersBe tie nam
OF God from speech which I Was about +
make in 1854, md he did tlls in tho city o
: Warrington 10 ono Of his friends. cannn
in Washington it viii be known sometime
} have the evidence and intend to keep it,
! Nj. Lincoln ran for Congress- against th
Rev. Peter Cartwright, in the year 1547 q
1913. In that contest ha Vas accused OF bein
an inade1, il not sn atheist; ho nover denic
I fhA rh hAf0N-uc31IH rnf-.& Shn}tIf frat ~ I
tho fra. nlaoc becsuse he knew it could IN
would bo prn~ra Oh him: an1 in the Rocon
plAce no WIS too true to his own convictions
70 his OWL sonl, to deny it. From what Ano1
and verify believe, I can say: Firat, that b
. did no1 believe in special creation, his ide
8 being that al creation VA N evolution unde
law; secondly, ho did not believe tbAs til
. Mble ~ss special revelation from God. .
the Christian world contends; thirdly, be i
Q not believe in Miracles, - understood BY th
Christian world; foutthly, he believed ii IN
;. varsI inspiration and miracles under law
dfthly. be did not beliere that Jesus VAS th
y Christ, the Son Of God, ~ tbs Christian uorl
both matter aud mind, wgre governed By law
universal, absolute, and etesnA1 Al hi
Q speeches and remarks in Washington col
Q clusiyely prove this Lsw w4s to Lincoln e.
ez.thing--and special intcrfcrenees, thAn
t md deluAions. I know wteleof / speak.
1 1GtA ~ 1VA0 4AS@AN4C III MI NU4
|, loaned lin Emerson sometimes and otht
] writers, and ho would soInetimea read An
eo1netimes wonll not as anppoee-nar. know
d When NE. Lincoln left this city for Washing
] ton, know he had undergone no ch1nge
. his religious opinions or views. He held mau
h Of the EhEstiau ideas in 1bhorIence, an
+ among them Waa this one, namely, tn
d God would forgive the sinner for 4 violatio
n Of bis laws. Lincoln maintained that &C
Q eould no. forgive: that puniahment has to 10
it low the sin that Christianity was wrong
teaching fosEisSness that It tended to NAL
9 man ein IN the hope that God would e1cut
d and 70 forth. Lincoln coptended thss Il
y minister should teach that God his affixed pul
Il ishmcnt to ain, and that no. repentance coul
i bribe him to remit it. In one eense of Il
u word, NJ. Lincoln WAS Cnivcraaiist, and
i another sensa he VAS Unitarian; but he VI
:, Tbeist, - We now understand that word t
:, WAS So fully. freely, unequivoca1ls, bo1dls, AZ
g openly, when asked for his views. Mr.. Ii
ID coin MAS supposed. by many pcreons IN th
r city, to be Al atheist, and some still believe
, hold . letter Of III. Lincoln In my hAnd ~
d dressed 70 his stcp-arother John b. Johnso
" and dated the 18th day OF January, 1851. f
Is bad heard from johnson that his fathe
:, Thomas Lincoln was sick, and that M hop
Ic Of his recovery were entertained. Mr.. ii
l. II sincesely hopn that father may yet r
% cover his health buk A& ali events tell him 10 +
,e member TO call upon and confde in our gze
1. snd good and merciful Maker, who viii q
's turn AWAY from bin in Any extremity. T
y netea the fAl OF ! spar1uw, md numbers Il
70 lairA Of our heads and He will not forget u
is dying man who puts Lis trust in Him Say
Il him that, II NC could meet now. it il Doubt
~ whether it would not be more painful til
te pleasant; but that II it be his hot to 50 no
j. he will eoQn have 3QTouH meeting with maj
Is loved ones gone before, md vhers tbe rest
v Us, through the help Of God, hope ere long
JON them A. LHcoa-S."
N 50 it eeems that Nj. Lincoln believed IN &