McCook weekly tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 188?-1886, 1884-12-18
LINCOLN ON LIQUOR.
A Speech at Temperance Meeting Thirty
Years Ago

Speech at "a Temperance Meeting Thirty
Years Ago.
Mr.. Luke G.. Grimes, formerly City
Librarian and an active politician, has
for thirty years taken deep interest,
at intervals, in temperance move
Perry Lodge, order of Good Templars,
and Great Commander of the Knights
of the Cross in the State of New York.
During the Washingtonian temperance
excitement about 1858 or 1854 he
was present at a meeting where the
late President Lincoln made speech,
and the story of the interesting event,
as told by him, is as follows: "One
Sunday afternoon in 1858 or 1854, l
am not certain of the year." began
Mr.. Grimes, 81 attended a meeting
in the large hall on the top floor of
the building on the southeast corner
Broome street and the Bowery, given
under the auspices of Neptune Divis-
| ion, Washington Sons of Temperance.
The same apartment is used to-day
for the meeting of Franklin Lodge of
Good Templars. The meeting on the
occasion of which speak was presided
over by Daniel Walford, who is still
alive and engaged in the good work,
being member of Hope Lodge, Good
Templars. After an opening address
by the presiding officer, the audience
was called upon for fve-minute
speeches. Many were made, but the
material giving signs of being exhaust
ed Mr.. NVolford resorted to direct
personal appeal, and addressing per-
son who was modestly seated in re-
mote corner of the room, said: per
haps our friend in the corner will
make few remarks" The audience
instinctively, of course, gazed in the
direction indicated by the speaker,
very tall man slowly arise from seat.
A half-suppressed litter ran through
the assemblage at the appearance of
the individual. He was clad in home
spun garments of grayish color,
which added to the quaintness of his
aspect. So leisurely did he rise from
his chair that it seemed as though he
must be about feet high. His COM
plexion was sallow, his cheeks sunken,
and his hair and beard were black
the latter slightly grizzled. But the
most remarkable feature was his eyes;
they were deep sunken in the sockets,
jet black, and they glowed like Goals
of fire, and impressed me with the
fact that their possessor was no ordi-
nary man. Well, at last he had risen
to his full height, and was. seen to be
of much more than average stature,
but slightly stopped. After deliber-
ate survey of the audience for a
minute or two, he began to speak,
and tell you it was not long before
the litter l spoke of gave place to MUIR
murs of applause and admiration, and
he wasn't restricted to the five-minute
rule either. l can only give mere
outline of the address. He dwelt of
course upon the evil effects of liquor
drinking, and illustrated his speech
with many amusing anecdotes, but
one feature 1 recall very distinctly,
and that was tribute paid to his
mother, in which he said that what
ever success he had attained, and
whatever force he had brought to
bear to resist temptation he felt was
due to the principle of self-reliance
thSulSdeOu Wy hio "o1ICl, Guul SuO
always taught him that he was re-
sponsible for his acts, and could do
either right or wrong as he should
choose. He said furthermore: "In
the Far West, whence come, rum has
not yet made the ravages that mark
its dread path in the crowded cities
of the East, and l trust there shall
never be found wanting earnest men
to warn the pioneer that his labor will
be useless unless he excludes from his
presence the dread destroyer, rumr'
These were the words of the speaker
as near as can recollect, but l recall
distinctly the concluding sentence
of the speech, which was as follows:
Il am from the Far West on my way
to Washington, and my name is
Abraham Lincoln" None of his
hearers had ever heard the name be-
fore, but all realized that the owner
was an able man. When the meeting
broke up Mr.. Lincoln passed out
with the crowd, and l never saw him
again till 1 was introduced to him
at the Astor House in 1861, when, as
he said, perhaps prophetically, he
was on his way to Washington to the
Presidency and to his death.-Mea0
York Telegram.