Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1892-10-20
Lincoln inspired Of God"

In his paper, the Louisville Courier
Jouraat, Mr.. Watterson styled Washing
ton 1.-The Just among men and Lincoln
1.-The inspired OF God" Replying to
criticism upon this Characterization of the
two men, Mr.. Wattersou says
From Caesar to Bismarck and Gladstone,
the world has had its soldiers and Its states
men, who rose to eminenCe and power,
step by step, through a series of geomet-
rical progression, as 1t were, each promo
ton following in regular order, the whole
obedent to well-established and well-un
derstood laws of cause and effect. These
were not what we call "men of destiny
They were men of the time. They were
men whose career had a beginning. mid
die and an end, rounding off q life with a
history, full, il may be, Of interesting and
exciting events, but comprehensive and
comprehensive, simple, clear, complete.
The inspired men are fewer. Whence
their emanation, where and how they got
their power and by what rule they lived,
moved and had their being, we cannot see.
There is no explication to their lives.
They rose from shadow and they went in
mist We see them, feel them; but we
know them not. They arrived, Gods
word upon their lips. they did their office,
away, Gods holy light between the world
and them, leaving behind a memory half
mortal and half myth. From first to last
they were distinctly the creations of some
special Providence, battling the wit Of man
to fathom, defeating the Vaccinations Of
the world, the flesh and the devil until
their work was done, and passing from
the scene as mysteriously as they had
come upon it, Luther, to wit; Shakespeare /;
Burns; even Bonaparte, the arch-angel of
war, havoc and ruin; not to go back into
the dark ages for examples of the hand of
God stretched ont to raise up, to protect,
and to cast down.
Tried by this standard, and observed in
a historic spirit, where shall we find an H.
lustratiOn more Impressive than in Abra-
ham Lincoln. whose life, career and death
might be chanted BY Greek chorus as at
once the prelude and the epilogue of the
most imperial theme of modern times?
Born as lowly as the Son Of God, in q
hovel; of what real parentage we know
| not; reared in penury, squalor, with no
CLEAN of light, nor fair surrounding; a
young manhood vexed by weird dreams
and visions, bordering at times on mad
ness; without grace, natural or acquired
singularly awkward, ungainly, even among
the uncouth about him; grotesque in his
aspects and ways; it was reserved for
this strange being, late In life, withou,
name or fame. or preparation. to be
snatched from obscurity, raised to supreme
| command at supreme moment, and en-
trusted with the destiny of nation.
The great leaders of his party were
made to stand aside the most experienced
and accomplished public men Of the day
| men like Seward and Chase and Sumner
statesmen famous and trained, were sent
to the rear, whilst this unknown and fan
tastic figure was brought by unseen hands
to the front and given the reins of power
1t is entirely immaterial whether we be
! lieve in what he said or did, whether w
are for him or against him; that, during
four years, carrying with them such 1
pressure Of responsibility as the world hat
never witnessed before, he filed the meas
ure Of the vast space allotted him in th'
actions of.mankind and In the eyes Of tn
world, is to say that he was inspired O
God, for. nowhere else, could he have &C