New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-07-07
HERNDON'S LINCOLN.
A NEW BIOGRAPHY.

HERNnON'S ~
I,fc. The history and personal reeollections of
abraham Lincoln William NH, + p msFpsSs and and
1ess wsm IN meth three Volumes. Emo DID Xxx
s3s. Belford. Clarke a Co.
This life Of Lincoln by his old law partner and
friend is avowedly published for the purpose oil
bringing to light many facts which previous
biorrapbers have suppressed or merely glanced at.
Mr.. Herndon in his preface says: With view
to throwing light on some attributes OF Linco'ns
character heretofore obscure, and thus contrib
utinc TO the great fund of history which goes down
to posterity, these volumes are given to the
world. lie takes the ground that it is alike just
70 Lincoln's memory and the proper legacy OIL
mankind that the whole truth concerning him
should be known" lie defends himself by anucl-
nation thus Some persons will doubtless OBJ
iect 10 the narration Of certain facts which appear
here for the first time, and which they contend
should have been consigned TO the tomb. Their
pretence is that no good can come from such
CHASTITY exposures. To such over-sensitlve souls,
IL any such exist my answer is that these facts
are indispensable to full knowledge OF Mr. LIN
coin in all the walks Of life. In order properly 10
comprehend him and the stirring, bloody times IN
which he lived, and in which he played such an
important part we must have all the facts-we
must be prepared TO take him as he was'
In the third volume of the biography an anecdote
of Lincoln is given. Invited to read lie Oh
Edmund Burke, he took up the book, hpped
into it here and there, but soon threw IL down
with the exclamation, No, I've read enough
of it It's like all the others. Biographies as
generally written are not only misleading out
false The author of this life OF Burke makes a
wonderful hero out Of his subject. He magazines
his perfections-if he had any-and suppresses ms
%la
Lincoln expresses concerning biographers the opn-
ion that in most instances they commemorate
a lie and cheat posterity out Of the truth HIS
tory" he concluded " is not history unless 1t IS
the truth Upon which Mr.. Herndon observes,
This emphatic avowaI of sentiment from Mr.
Lincoln not only fixes his estimate of ordinary
biography but is my vindcation in advance II
assailed for telling the truth" 1t is not clear
that what Mr. Lincoln said on this occasion can
be employed in justification Of the present blogra-
ply To say that history is not history unless
it is the truth is merely to state an obvious trulsm
il is not TO declare that biographer should
suppress nothing 1t is true that at the present
day scruples as 10 publishing the most intimate
details of the lives Of great men seem TO have
vanished almost completely, and the most striking
characteristic of the claim that the world is
entitled to know literally everything about ITS
distinguished men and women is the disappear
ance of every vestige Of consideration Tor the
feelings of the surviving relatives OF the exposed
and dissected dead. Formerly 1t was an unwritten
law in letters that memoirs and biographies H.
volving illusions of an unpleasant character 10
still living persons should remain unpuonshed
until at least generation had passed away. Some
times much longer periods of silence were CD
served. To-day, however the appetite of the
onAco Ne lg
it cannot endure postponements in this kind MIR.
uarndon onnears to think that since Mrs. Lincoln
is dead there is no longer any necessity for silence
and he speaks with bluntness and a fulness
on some points which, apart altogether from the
question of fact cannot but cause acute pam 10
the martyred President descendants.
Not that Mr.. Herpdon's revelations are such as
70 diminish Lincon's reputation. Far from IL.
II has been the main object OF the blographer 10
Law bare the causes of that deep melancholy wmcn
was so marked trait in the Presidents character
and which contrasted so strangely with the passion
and gift for storytelling which perhaps more IMAM
ANYTHING else opened the way for him to political
distinction by creating widespread personal pop
uIarity In fulfilling this intention MIR. Herndon
has deepened the shadows family Indicated IN
the earlier biographies, and has boldly stated
some circumstances which, while they have long
been familiar to such as knew Lincoln at all In
timately, have hitherto been discreetly veiied'
He appears 10 think that some events IN Lincoln
life tended to enhance and extend his native ten.
dency to depression. The first of these events
was his unhappy courtship of Anna Rutledge a
beautiful girl to whom he became en-
gagged under strange and romantic cir
cumstances and who died of consump.
ton. This bereavement fell upon the young
man with crushing weight, and it seems that for a
time fears were entertained for his reason. But
this biography shows concusively that Abraham
Lincoln never was or could have been a domestic
man, or man capable of making happy home
for a woman. lie was utterly ignorant of FEM
mime character bashful as a monk of the Thebaid,
and to the last restless and i'll at ease in the
company of women. He felt his educational de-
fects there more than elsewhere, and he was de-
prived of the resources which enabled him to hold
his own in mems society. In comparatively
short time he seems 10 have recovered from the
shock of Anna Rutledges death, and when he met
his future wife, Mary Todd, he had become cap
able of a behavior which, though he was innocent
of such purpose, created the belief that he was
counting the young lady Mr. Herndon says Lin
coin did not love her, but finding that his at
titude had been msconstrued by her, he con-
suited his friend Joshua Speed as to the course
TO be taken. Speed told him he must go tc
the girl and frankly tell her he did not love he1
enough to marry her. The task proved too much
for poor Lincoln. After a severe struggle with
himself, he called upon Miss Todd, intending tc
tell the humilating and painful truth, but the
sight Of her emotion at once overcame his pur
pose, and he left her an engaged man.
Then follows mysterious episode. The mar
riage day was fixed, the preparations were
made the guests assembled, but no bride
groom appeared. At the last moment Lin
coins courage had failed him. and he had fed.
Again the black melancholy fell upon him, and for
three weeks his mental instability was such that
his friends dared not leave any weapon within
his reach. Curiously enough, no absolute breach
Nth his intended annears TO have occurred Mr.