The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1878-10-03
NEW ANECDOTES OF LINCOLN.

Mr.. Lincoln, and adds several new aneC-
dOtes to the large stock already in the
hands Of the public. Mr.. Brooks knew
Lincoln in 1886, and followed him
through the political campaign of that
wear. He went to Washington in 1862.
and. renewed the old acquaintance. Up
to the day Of the Presidents death Mr..
Brooks had the privilege of his intimate
acquaintance, and, he talks as the lnti-
mate friend Of the most mOmentOuS pc
riOd in the Presidents life
Speaking Of the care which Mr.. LIN
coin bestowed upon his messages and
letters, Mr.. Brooks says the same care
was given TO his speeches. lie seemed
afraid of being betrayed into using un-
dignified expressions when called out
without due preparation. In the follow
ing anecdote Ar. Lincoln states his own
case and makes it clear:
Once, being notified that he was to be
serenaded, Just after some notable MILF
tary or political event, he asked me to
come to dinner, so as TO be on hand and
see the fun afterward," as he said. He
excused himself as soon as we had dlned,
and, while the bands were playing, the
crowds cheering, and the rockets burst
ing outside the house, he made his reap
pearance in the parlOr with roll Of
manuscript in his hand. Perhaps MOTTO
ing a look of surprise on my face he said:
Il know what you are thinking about.
You think it mighty queer that an old
stump-speaker like myself should not be
able to address q crowd like this outside
without a written speech But you must
remember I am, IN q certain way, talking
to the country, and 1 have to be very
careful. Now, the last time 1 made an
Of-hand speech, in answer to serenade,
I used the phrase, as applied to the reb-
els, turned tail and ran Some very
nice Boston folks, l am grieved to hear,
were very much outraged by that phrase,
which they thought improper, so re-
| solved to make no more ImprOmptu
Deeches if I could help it." Subsequent
! ". I learned that it was Senator Sumner
| who had given voice to the complaint Of
| the mice Boston folks" and with consid-
cradle emphasis. -.
But the story as TO the speech itself
and of how Little Tad waved the wrong
flag is as good as the turned tail and
ran" business. We have, wlththe glimpse
ofthe crowd outside, this little peep be-
hind the scenes:
Hearing the speech from the inside Of
| the White House was like seeing a play
| from behind the scenes. The immense
concourse in front of the house was iIu-
minated by fireworks. The AIR was rent
with the noise of cheering music, and
lexpIOding rockets and bombs. Just as
/ we went up stairs, an unusual yell, min.
gled with laughter and cheers, caused
| the President to pause and ask what thai
might be. Little Tad, then about eleven
years old, deIroUs with excitement, had
! seized a captured rebel flag which had
| been given him, and leaning as far out
of the window as possible, was waving
! It with might and main, to the wonder
and delight Of the crowd beneath. AT
that moment cid Edward, the faithful
! doOr-keepez, in great CONSERVATION, selz-
ed the lad by the amplcr portion Of his
/ small trousers and plucked him from the
| window sill. Howling with anger he
! fed to his father, who had scarcely com
! posed his laughing features when he adj
/ vanced to the large, open window OyeI
| the main entrance. When Lincoln be-
4 gan to read his speech, he held candle
/ in his left hand and his manuscript in
/ his right hand, but, speedily becoming
/ embarrassed with the difficulty Of man
aging the candle and the speech, he made
a cOmical motion with his left foot anC
/ elbow. which I construed to mean that
| should hold his candle for him, which
did. As he read, he dropped his slips
of manuscript on the floor, and Tad, sc1T
rying about, gathered them up as they
/ drifted away, like big butterflies, from
the Presidents hand. After the speech
was over, and the crowds were cheering
tremendously. the President. who con
! tinued to stand at the window, said, ad
dressing his candle-bearer: mat wa
pretty fair speech, I think, but yoI
threw seme light on It,"
4Iany persons have spoken Of Mr.. Lin
coins shrewdness and cunning, OF III
honesty and kindness of heart, and hav
illustrated these traits Of character b
D anecdotes but no one has illustrated L
better way than Mr.. Brooks the ele
ment of simplicity in the mans charaC
| ter which so many Of his friends haV
lsaid was almost childlike:
Unless very much preOccupled, ne ueN
er heard any reference to anything tina
he did not understand without aslln
further information. "WEat do you SUI
pose makes that tree grow in that way
he would ask, and lie was not satiste
until he had found out. Or he Woul
b take one of his boys toys to pieces, IN
out how 1t was made, and put 1t togetht
r. again. "Tad, as his youngest boy Wa
called. on more than one occasion ha
cause to bewail, loudly, his fathers c1
riositv. One day we were looking at
, photograph Of the President, taken IN
sitting position, with the legs crosse
ffra H+nn IN II
foot OF Jne leg which was crossed aOo'
: Che other, and he said, Now, can u
S. derstand why that foot should be
enormous. It's big foot, anyway, II
it is near the focus Of the nstrumeI
But why is the outline Gift so lndlsUn
and blurred? ! am conf e. t L dId n
- move it." studied 1t for moment, al
told him that probably the thropDn
Of the large arteries inside OF the Del
of the knee caused an almost lmperce
tible motion. The President, very mu
u interested in the discovery, as he call
1t. Immediately took the position OF I
figure in the picture, and, narrow
P, watching his foot, exclaimed, That's
that's it! Now, that's very curious, IS
d, itP" Similarly, when somebody tc
en- him ofthe somewhat fantastic Cerlvau
af word, he said, 'NOw, that Is We
queer, and I shall never say CapriciC
again without thinking Of the skippi
;, Of goat"
,er Lincoln particularly liked joke at I
h expense Of the dignity of some high ci
or military official. One day, not 10
- before his second Inauguration, he ask
me if 7 had heard about Stanton's me
ing a picket on Broad river, South Ca
Ice lima, and then told this story: Gene
i've Foster. then at Port Royal, escorted
he Secretary mp The river, taking a quart
ret. maste-'s tug. Reaching the outer Iii
'aI on the river, a picket roared from
bank, What have you got on board Il
- tugT The severe and digniied ansy
was, The Secretary Of War and Maj
General Foster Instantly the pici
.ef roared back, We've got DIajOr-GeneT
enough up here-why don't you br
= US up some hard-tack ?" The stC
tiClled Lincoln nightly, and he tolC
8 1.IZtil it was replaced by a new oLc-
sp- A wcll-known surgeon was perform
MS difficult operation at one Of the Lone
Of HOSPITALS the other day, when the uni
III" 49, 49, --z4.,r,4 er-JTorlvv IfrJ A ftg