Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1890-10-02
THE IMMORTAL LINCOLN.
Uncle Joe Richardson's Recollections
of Him.
Early Traits Which Heralded the
Coming Man.

starting his story at the beginning. as was
proper, when he was a boy living on the
farm at what is now Lincoln City. eighteen
miles from here by rail. But nobody here
| IN those days ever thought there would be
any outcoming to him. There wasn't a
thing about him to make particularly
promising. His father was Il carpenter
and used to see Abe fooling around
with the tools. But generally he was
working with somebody else. He always
liked to make his own money | used to
have brick mold 'Abe's' father made,
one Of the first turned out in Spencer
county. 1t was fastened with wooden
pins and nodded two bricks Abe gave
1t to ME, but some of the boys from Evans
vile came up here one day and took it
away. Lincoln liked to make his own
money so as to be independent. but can t
say that he loved work.
Il remember that he and Dennis Hanks
had job to pull fodder one day They
met before breakfast and got 10 playing
marbles. Lincoln was ahead when break
fast was called and the game was post
poned until after the meal, Hanks remark
ing that ne would get even then. After
breakfast they went at it again and played
until noon, at which hour Hanks reminded
Lincoln that they had not pulled any fod-
der. Lincoln replied that he had rather
play marbles any time than pull fodder.
This anecdote does not show that Mr.. Lin
coin differed in that respect from the aver
age boy of to-day or of that day
Mr. Richardson also remembers when
young Lincoln went about Setting copies
for the boys in those days: or when the BOYS
would go to the house and have him ''set
COPY He Vas not teacher then, but
it appears that he wrote better hand"
than most boys.
How or when he ever learned, said Mr..
Richardson, II don't know, for he was al
ways busy working in the daytime. | re-
member the first copy he ever gave me
he always wrote his own copies-I mean
that he composed them. And they always
had jingle. Here is the one to which |
just referred:
''Good boys who to their books apply
Will be great men by and by.
Half on one page half on another. 1t
wasn't much poetry, but it had jingle |
that Lincoln and pulled fodder
one entire day and got 25 cents apiece for
the work"
THE LINCOLN-GRIGSBY FEUD.
1t is not at all likely that the following
story will cause any unpleasant feelings be-
tween any OF the Lincoln and Grigsbys now
living. The feud died out long ago.
One of the Grigsby boys married
Lincoln's only sister; the other Grigsby
married some one else. The match which
made him brother in-law did not suit
Abraham Lincoln. There was bad family
blood at the start, and the tamily relation
row is one that no diplomacy ever settles
You may think you have for given the fell
low who married your sister and abused
her. but you never do. You go cunning
for him in your sleep.
In the good old days when a couple
married it was the proper thing t. have
at the no ne of the bridegroom or his peo-
pie what was called all Unfair That's |
a dear old word! The best blood of this
country used it. The rock bound, way
back, royal-striped, full-blown. yard-wide |
aristocracy of this county INDUCED in
the Unfair. 1t was the feast after the
wedding when all tends were made up be-
tween those attending-when the family
met the other half way and spat on the
slate-thats not elegant but it seems to
ft-and rubbed out. The Unfair was
glorious event. The way they do it to- day
is to Issue card, 'at-home," and put in
a date. But there isn't any cherry
bounce, or "apple toddy,' or "bride's
cake at ar ''at-home." There ism any
music of the fiddle, no fly ing feet, no rush
of blood, no hectic cheeks, no pleasure
wearied limbs, no sleeping until noon in
the ''at-home.'
People who were not invited to the in
tair' in the g. o. d. understood most en-
phatically that the newly made couple did
not desire to keep up their acquaintance
n invitations to the Unfair meant latch
string any more. The Llncolns we're not
invited to the Grigsby infairs.
Young Lincoln had the same streak of
human nature in his composition that runs
in the average man. AS people say in
this advanced and electric age, if they are
disposed to be slangy, Lincoln got hot
under the collar" He came from Ken
tncky, and all Kentuckians resent slight
as quickly as dog does tin can when it
is attached to his tail.
Mr.. Lincoln wrote following this Unfair,
what he called the ''ChronicIes 1t was
in the style of the Old Testament, Book of
Chronicles, and showed up the Grigsby
tribe in way that would have made them
the laughing stock Of the country. Having
INDUCED in this revenge Lincoln took the
manuscript and put it where he knew
young Grigsby, the one who had married
his sister, would get it.
A man in Rockford who has read them
repeated the following. which he says was
appended to the chronicles and are COM
posed by Lincoln:
Charlie and Reuben are married,
Mother well pleased with the match:
The egg it was laid, and Reub afraid
That the egg was so soft 'twouldn't hatch.
VICTORY FOR THE HOUSE OF LINCOLN.
The Insult of the chronicles Infatuated