Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-04-26
SPIRIT OF OLD ABE.
Analysis Of the Speech Put In His
Mouth by Mrs. Richmond.
IT DOESN'T READ LIKE LINCOLN.
None Of the Martyr Presidents Story and
Simile in the Efusion.
WHAT his GHOST hight HAVE TOLD
WRITTEN FOR THE p1srAroa.1


ism recently published is discourse from
Abraham Lincoln relating his experiences
in the spirit land. This speech was given
by Mrs. Cora Richmond, who claims to
have been possessed by the spirit of "good
old Abe" who came from beyond the stars
somewhere, and furnished the brains and
the inspiration.
Those who have been looking forward to
this revelation will be wofully disap-
pointed for much dryer or more tedious
five columns of yerblage, it would be hard
to find outside Of the long drawn-out doc
trinal sermons Of the old-time preachers
who were paid, as Mrs. Richmond is, to set
forth all the mysteries and miseries Of
the unknowable What is truly. WON
derful is that anybody can believe
that putting off the mortal form could
make such an amazing change in
the powers of the great war President.
When he made speeches here on earth he
was eloquent by sheer force of truth and
plain speaking. He rarely failed to point
a moral and adorn a tale by little story-a
touch of pathos, or quaint humor, but he
seems to have grown strangely dull and
pompously solemn in bis utterances as an
angel. Some of the sentences are as many
as % lines long, and they have to be read a
half dozen times or more before the point
when point there isis discovered.
Requires Culture to Comprehend.
To reach what he is driving at it is neces-
sary to be familiar with the profoundest
conventional cant of Spiritualism, and must
have embraced heresy of the wildsst type
and be prepared to accept as solid truth a
contradiction of the most orthodox articles
of belief. If he had talked as he did ON
earth with what gladness and deep interest
would his countrymen listen to remarksl If
be had given token that since putting on
immortality he had lost none Of his power
of impressing an audience, if he had
marked the paragraphs that were especially
intended to be forceful and convincing with
a preceding typographical fst-or index fin
ger-as he usually cid, if he had sat down
upon some of the fanatics of to-day, as he
did upon some of the rabid Abolitionlsts of
his time, if it could have been
shown by Mrs. Richmond that 1t was
really the bona fde spirit Of "Father
Abraham" held in such patriotic remem-
brance, that possessed her, and was speaking
for the benefit OF the nation he so much
loved, the speech would have been published
throughout the country, and filled the round
world for that matter with transcendent in
terest.
If Mrs. Richmond is familiar with the his
tory of 'good old Abe" when in his boy
hood he was rescued from ignorance and
degradation by his sanity stepmother, Sally
Bush-when he practiced law obscurely in
IlEnois-when in the full glare of public
life he achieved fame and obtained q place
in his country's story second only
to that of Washington, she could
hardly have represented him as
prosily tiresome in his speech on
the government of the world beyond, as was
Senator Blair on the educational bill when
he meandered along at such length Of bore
dom as to empty the Senate chamber every
day for weeks, and made it cause of won
der that the very chairs and desks did not
cry out against such infiction.
One of Old Abe's Earmarks.
Mrs. Richmond might not thought 1t was
nice to introduce any of "Old Abe's" good
stories into. speech on SO grave subject,
but it would have been q real relief from the
deep solemnity and spiritual stuffing if he
had answered the conundrum, with which,
as Ben: Perley Poore relates. he used some
times to staye off persistent ofice-seekers and
to which no reply has ever been given SO far
as we know: "What is the difference be-
tween an Amsterdam Dutchman and any
other dam Dutchman?" Some such illus
tration of "Old Abe's" characteristic style
would have enlivened the discourse. made
it more true to nature and supported the
testimony OF Dryien-and spiritualists
themselves-when he says:
We spirits have just such natures
We had for all the world, when human crea.
lures.
Lincoln passed the barriers between this
earth and the world invisible on the 14th of
April, 1865, and returned in spirit ON the
18th of February last in Chicago. Whether
he ever was down before we do not know,
though, Judging by what the spiritualists
tell us, he spends the main portion of his
time in England. In his Chicago address
he announces that when he SO suddenly
found himself transported "beyond the
beautiful river" he had three distinct causes
of regret.
The Martyrs Three Regrets.
The first was because, in the fulfillment
of the duties assigned him, he had not been
more perfect or brought more perfect powers
to the solution of such gigantic problems.
This is sad. 1t seems to give little color
ing to Wendell Phillips estimate OF the
President that "he was small man-that as
a pint pot he was full. but as quart meas
ure he was not so full" But the world
knows of no man that could better have
filled the place of Lincoln in the great
Civil War.
The second regret was the serrow of the
family, friends and the nation. The third
was that the human form, that had become
useless by its occupant no longer existing in
it, should have been made the subject OF
such ostentatious display, such long con-
tinued exhibition, while the living spirit,
grieved by apparent neglect. waited recog-
milton by the fires of the nations altar. |
MANY spirits" he adds, ''feel this keenly. |
That the physical image receives such adu-
lation, while the spirit, flooded with its new
indeed subject unworthy of considera-
tion."
What the lamented Lincoln really meant |
by this reproach is not very plain to see.
In doing honor to his remains the country
was certainly living up 10 its light, and as
to his spirit not receiving thought, it was
set down that no man was more |
entitled to the glory and happiness of
heaven than he.
No Chance to Practice Law.
It will strike the denizrns of earth as
strange that according to his statement, |
given through Mrs. Richmond, Mr.. Lincoln
finds his. occupation as a lawyer gone in the |
"world over there" There is no formal1ty |
of law in the new state. Mock courts and |
legislatures are held by those still tethered |
on the border land by some earthly weak
ness or ambition, but they are only such as
school boys or amateurs play at here below.
This will be news for the lawyers.
He also said that spirits are naturally at
tracted to their homes. The Northern
spirits went to the North, and the Southern
spirits to the South. but there was no war