Morning journal and courier., 1881-06-25
Abraham Lincoln i'm Congress-
 From the Washington Star.


 In December, 19+7 Abraham Lincoln took his seat in Congress as representative from the State of Illinois. It was not long before he became a great favorite with the members and officers of the House, for his genial man. ners, pleasant voice and ready wit gave him a magnetic influence on all who came within his social sphere. He possessed but few per sonaI attractions, his figure being tall and un
 gainly; but these deficiencies were amply compensated for by his many shining quail ties of mind and heart. He was fluent and ready speaker, and his speeches were re-
 markable for their directness and precision, although lacking in rhetorical grace and finish.
 He possessed a rich and inexhaustible fund of wit and humor, to which he gave expres- sion in anecdotes and quaint observations,
 which it was pleasant to listen to. Whenever he obtained the floor to speak, the House gave him it's undivided attention, and never failed to greet his sallies of wit and quick repartees
 with laughter and applause. One of the most remarkable of his speeches during his first and only term in Congress was delivered in July, 1S4S, in reply to one made few days before by MT. Iverson, of Georgia. The sub
 ject of Mir Lincoln's speech was Military Coat tails" In the speech of MT. Iverson, that gentleman accused the Whig party of having deserted all their principles and taken shelter under the military coat tail of General Zachary Taylor, the candidate of the party for the Presidency. In the course of his re- marks Mir. Lincoln proceeded to show that the Democratic party were amenable to slml- lar charge, having for twenty-five years re- lied upon the military reputation of General Jackson for success he having been made President out of it for eight years, while enough of it remained to make Presidents of several comparatively small men who sue ceeded him. and still relying upon it for the party at that time their campaign papers everywhere declared that Cass and Butler were of the s'true hickory stripe" Toward the close of his speech, MT. Lincoln poureda torrent of ridicule upon the military reputa- ton of General Cass, and then alluded to his own exploits as a soldier in the Black Hawk war, s'where," he continued, sI fought, bled, and came away. If General Cass saw any live fighting Indians at the battle of the Thames, where he served as aide-de-camp to General Harrison, it was more than did but I had 8 good many bloody struggles with the mosquitoes, and although I never tainted from the loss of blood, can truly say was often very hungry. MT. Speaker" added Mir Lincoln, Eff I should ever conclude to doH whatever our Democratic friends may suppose there is of black eockade federalism about me, and thereupon they shall take me up as their candidate for the Presidency, protest they shall not make fun of us as they have of General Cass by attempting to write me into . military hero"
 The notes of Mr. Lincoln's speech on this occasion were written on sheets of foolscap paper, and lay on the desk before him. It was not many minutes after he had begun to speak before he abandoned his manuscript, and walked slowly down the narrow isle lead ing to the area in front of the clerks desk and Speakers chair. He carried his left arm behind him, and with it slightly lifted the skirts of black swallow-tail coat worn near ly threadbare, which hung loosely from his shoulders, while his right arm was extended, and his long, bony forefnger pointed toward his auditors on the opposite side of the hall. As he walked he spoke with great earnestness until he had crossed the area and stood face to face with the Democratic representatives,
 when he would quickly turn, and hurrying back to his desk, look at his desk, look at his
 manuscript for a moment and then resume his walk. When the Speakers hammer fell he returned to his seat amid peals of laugh ter and applause, which continued for sever- al minutes before order was restored and the regular business of the House resumed. Mir. Lincoln's seat in the old hall of representa- tives was on the outer row, and near the west ern entrance. The marble statue erected to his memory stands within six feet of the spot formerly occupied by his chair and desk,