Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1881-11-28
mrs. ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
The Story OF Her Being Sick and in
Distress Conlrmed-further Con.
.g~ressional Aid Needed and Do.
aired.

Inc btory Oh ucr Doin6 caeA anu u"
distress Connrmed-Further Con.
.gressional Aid Needed and Do.
sired.
CHICAGO, November ga Tribune
New York special says: Mrs. Abraham
Lincoln at present resides ct No. 80
West Twsnty.siIih street. In this city.
where she Is undergoing q course Of
electrical treatment. Her physical con-
dition. while not prscarious. Is such Is
10 demand constant care. for she Is
troubled with Q spinal difficulty that rem.
ders II impossible for her to walk, and
which will unquestionably keep her on
her back the remainder Of her days.
Mentally Mrs. Lincoln Is active and
clear. She talks with rapidity, and il
pleased to meet her friends who may
call to visit her. spent two hours with
her Yesterday afternoon. The eenvsr-
sa,ion turned mainly upon the subject
now uppermost In her mind. and which
has during the past week received and
excited q great amount Of criticism.
which IL the possible increase OF her
pension by Congress. Mrs. Lincoln
saws she has felt much grieved to hear
that the people Of Illinois should give
expression 10 any such statements %
have found their way into the press con-
corning her, and she knows full well the
particular source from which these re-
ports have smanated and the personal
feelings which have prompted them.
This government, she says. owes II to
her to see that she 10 provided for In
such o manner that her wants may DO
fully met. and there Ia no rsassn why
she should not receive the same con
alteration at tho hands OF the nation
that may be contemplated for another
not on her v account 30 much as an
act Of justice to the memory Of q man to
whom this nation owes o great debt Of
gratitude, Abraham Lincoln. So far %
her present financial condition IL con.
cerned, Mrs. Lincoln says most posi-.
lively she has not enough from the gov.
eminent to maintain her. She is under
expenses, medical and otherwise, which
are large, no matter how simply she may
live; and as for being o charity subject
on the hands Of her relatives, she will
never consent to that. Some had criti.
cised her SON Robert because he did not
take care Of her. She did not desire to
have him do 80. for be had his own
brood to look after and bad his hands
full. His kind heart had urged this
many times. and his wife had done the
same; but she had insisted that 1t was
her duty to live upon her own resources.
"Tbere has been Q story floating
about. said Mrs. Lincoln, land II ID
now freshly repeated In the western pa
pers that she had received $4,000 from
Congress and that the interest upon this
sum added to her $4,000 pension ought
to DO enough to maintain her hand.
somely. There never was o greater
f~alsshood. Congress never gave her
S75, 900, but Immediately after her hus-
bands death that body did vote her the
amount OF the Presidents salary, for
a year, S25, 900. less $4,000. which E. B.
washburne succeeded in having cut of
the sum originally intended, and this left
her $40, 900. She went to Chicago and
purchased q house on West Washington
street, paying thsraior SIS. 900. and In
addition laid out Q considerable amount
for furniture, so that she had very little
left after this transaction from the orig
inal amount Of the appropriation. She
finally found 1t would cost more than
she could afford to keep mp the house.
SO she told her o Robert II he would
pay her $500 o year for seven years.
he might have the property. He agreed
to this and paid that sum annually.
The property much Of the time did not
pay more than halt that revenue, 90 be
was obliged 10 make the payments oui
Of his v pocket. She also gave to
Robert the house In Spain. which was
very old and worth but little. She was
prompted In both dealings by q desire
that her son should have something OF
what the country had given her in con-
sideration for his fathers services.
Not until July 10, 1870, more than five
years after President Lincoln's death,
did Congress see ft TO grant her q PEN
sion. The original design was 10 secure
her $4,000. but IL was cut down to
$4,000. which Charles Sumner In o letter
informing her had been voted, advising
her not to accept II, as II was far below
what ought to have been given her. But
sho felt that $4,000 was wen better than
none. and her necessities compelled her
to decline to act upon his urgent advice.
She had always endeavored TO live
frugally, and when in France she lived
like peasant, in small apartments,
and had not spent her time making fire.
quent visits to Italy In winter on account
Of her health. Often OF late she had
been obliged to borrow money on hel
pension claim in order to meet her e.
penses. It matters not, she says, what
Jacob Bum has OF hers; that is Q small
amount, and concerns nobody. She had
not enough money to live on, and she
felt it wal the duty Of Congress to in.