Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1880-06-05
A Rcminiscence of Lincoln.

In recent letter from Chicago to the Cincin-
natl Enquirer George Alfred Townsend gives
the following interesting Renaissance of Mr..
Lincoln:
AS an interesting coincidence met last even
Ing George Harding, OF Philadelphia, who was
engaged with Edward NJ Stanton aud Abra-
ham Lincoln In trying the celebrated McCOr-
mick reaper case In Cincinnati about 1856.
With the money gained in this case it is said
Mr.. Lincoln was able to spare the time to de
bate with Douglas, and thereby acquire the
prominence which made him President. Mr.
Harding Is In the prime OF his life. In response
to some questions, Mr.. Harding said: stanton
ana had been employed In the suit OF McCor-
mick VS.. Mowry for infringement OF patent In
the reaper. We found it was necessary to have
a lawyer In the state Of Illinois. The only
lawyer we knew OF out here was Mr.. Arnold,
and we wrote to retain him, but found that
Mccormick had got rim already. Then we
sent to Washburne-the same who Is now a
candidate for President-and asked him If he
knew OF any lawyer proper for US to employ in
Illinois. He said there was a man named
Lincoln well spoken of In practice, VINO lived in
the middle OF the state We could not find,
however, the first name of this Lincoln. We
inquired In various directions and nobody
copy OF the Legal Directory, published In New
York. We found simply "A. Lincoln and
wrote to that man and retained him. The re-
tanning fee was $780,
Ibid you win the caSe?"
YES, We won 1t in the courts below and
above. Besides his contingentS, Mr.. Lincoln
got something little more respectable-I
think $1,000"
81 have heard. Mr. Harding, that you and
stanton were not much impressed with Lincoln
at that time"
"No, we did not give him any chance at all.
often look back to that first meeting with
sadness. yet pleasure. Stanton and I, being
Eastern men, and not much familiar With
lawyers on the frontier took our inventory Of
Lincoln too hastily. He was a r-looking
man, with queer talk, and we just put him
down for nobody. Stanton rode right over
him, and did not allow him to appear in the
case to make speech; yet all the while there
lay in that queer mans heart a desire to be
loved and respected and when he became
President OF the United States, greatly to nay
surprise, found myself nominated for Judge
OF the Court OF Appeals in the Patent ONCE
Thinking how we had bully-ragged that poor
old man, called On him, and he shook me by
the hand and said: There was one man had
made up my mind to appoint II l ever got
elected. do not know whether you voted for
me or not, he said. with QutZZical smile, but
l hope you did. Anyhow he added, 4 wanted
to nominate you to something / had to decline
the Office; but whenever / think of the small
amount OF charity we showed poor Lincoln,
and the immense amount of good feeling he
had for us Notwithstanding, feel that nobody
can measure the greatness Of his simple heart.
stanton, too, came to me and said in a whisper:
Harding, We rather mistOOk that old fellow.
didn't we?' He forgave Stanton too, and put
1t all down to the MISUNDERSTANDING of lOcalf-
ties; and so Stanton became associated with
bis fame"