River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1878-03-14
Renaissance of Lincoln.

We copy from advance sheets ofScrtb-
ner's Monthly the following passages from
personal "reminiscences If Lincoln by
Noah Brooks:
Lincoln particularly liked joke atthe
expense of the dignity of some high civil
or military official, One day, not long
before his second Inauguration, he asked
me if / had heard about Stanton's meet
ing picket on Broad river, South Caro-
lima, and then told this story: Gen. Eos
ter, then at Port Royal, escorted the sec
rotary up the river, taking quarter
masters tug. Reaching the outer lines
on the river, picket roared from the
bank, who have YOU got on board that
tug9' The severe and dignifed answer
was, The secretary of war and Major
General Foster Instantly the picket
roard back, We've got major generals
enough up here---why don't you bring us
up some hard-tack9 The story tickled
Lincoln nightly and he told it until it
was replaced by new one.
Anything that savored of the wit an d
humor of the soldiers was especially well
com to Lincoln. His fondness forgood sto-
ries is awell accepted tradition. but any
incident that showed that the boys were
mirthful and jolly in all their privations
seemed to commend itself to him He
used to say that the grim grotesqucness
and extravaganza of American humor
were its most striking characteristics.
There was story of a soldier IN the ar
my of the Potomac, carried to the rear of
battle with both legs shot off, who, seeing
ma u7Opnar bouopip % n ho,,t oclyad IGou
old lady, are them pies sewed or peggedH
And there was another one of soldier
at the battle of Characteristic, whose
regiment, waiting to be called into the
fight, was taking coffee. The hero o
the story put to his lips a crockery mug
which he had carried with infinite care
through several campaigns. A stray
bullet, just missing the coffee drinkers
head, dashed the mug into fragments and
left only its handle in his fingers. Turn
ing his head in that direction, the soldier
angrily growled, Johnny, you can't do
that again 7 Lincoln, relating these two
stories together said, TT seems as If
neither death 1or danger could quench
the grim humor OF the American soldier
"As rule Lincoln wrote his most i'm
portant letters with his own hand. Some
of these, perhaps the most OF them, were
read over to confidential friends, and
were corrected or modified before being
One by one all the comforts of this
life are taken away from the toiling mil
lions. 1t used to be a great consolation
to us in our poverty that none of our Itch
neighbors could ever get to heaven. Now,
alas we are assured there is no place else
for them to 60 to. 0, woful timesl o,
wretched, harsh, and inconsiderate world!
ent. He kept copies Of a II letters of mo-
ment, and even some of these copies he
had made himself with painstaking care
In his Office il the public wing of the
White House was little cabinet, the III.
terror divided into pigeon-holes. The
pigeon holes were lettered in alphabet
cal order, but few were devoted TO in
dividuals. Horace Greedy, remember,
had pigeon-hole by himself; so did
each Of the several generals who wrote
often to him. One compartment, labeled
'W.&W.,' excited my curiosity, but / nc
yer inquired what it meant, and, one
night being sent to the cabinet for let
ter which the President wanted, he said,
Il see you looking at my'W. & W. Can
you guess what that stands for? Ofcourse
it was useless to guess. well, said he,
with roguish twinkle of the eye, that's
Weed and Wood-Thurlow and Fernan-
dy' Then he added with an indescriba-
bic chuckle, That's pair of emf
"A remarkable and highly characters
tic letter of Lincoln's was one which he
wrote to General Hooker just after the
later had taken command of the army OF
the Potomac. 1t was quite long, occupy
ing nearly four pages flarge letter paper
and written entirely in the presidents
own hand. In this letter the good Lin
coin advised Hooker in the most kindly,
even affectionate manner, not in respect
to military affairs, but as to his personal
conduct. abiding particularly to certain
traits of character which, the president
gently intimatea, became faults when
made too prominent. 1t was just such
letter of loving counsel as father might
write to a soma letter to be forever
priced by its recipient. Some weeks af
ter this was written / accompanied the
President to the army of the Potomac,
then lying at Falmouth We were enter
tanned at Hooker's headquarters. One
night, Hooker and being alone in his
hut, the general standing with his back
to the fireplace, alert, handsome, full of
courage and confidence, said laughingi6:
B., the President says you know
about that letter he wrote me. on
taking command; Then he added,
with that charming assurance which be-
came him so we'll: after I have been to
Richmond | am going to have that let
ter printed it's good letter; it is a
pity that it never was printed