The great West. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1889-18??, 1892-01-29
LINcoLN,s PROPHECY.
Made In 1861 and Repeated and EN-
phasixed In 1885.

phas1xed In 1865.
The following letter from ex-Sen-
ator Ingalls, of Kansas was recently
sent to the Washington Cd. CO. Star:
To the Star: In recent issue of
the New Nation I find this alleged
quotation from President Lincoln: Il
see in the near future" said Abraham
Lincoln in 1865. "a crisis approach
ing that unnerves me and causes me
to tremble for. the safety of my coun-
try. AS result of the war corpora
tions have been enthroned and an era
OF corruption in high places will follow
and the money power of the country
will endeavor to prolong its reign by
working upon the prejudices of the
people until all wealth is aggregated
in few hands and the republic is de-
stroyed. feel at this moment more
anxiety for the safety of my country
than ever before even during the
midst of the war;"
The same extract has been floating
through the journals of anarchy and
socialism for several years. and has
been favorite paragraph with
pessimistic orators in their appeals to
the passion of the poor.
1t does not appear in any of the
published messages speeches or letters
of Lincoln The internal evidence is
against its authenticity. The words
| the style, the construction are like
nothing in his composition. Mr..
Nicoray, his former secretary, has
never seen nor heard such expressions
in the writings or utteranccs of Presi-
dent Lincoln.
Evidently it is a malignant clumsy
forgery. Yours. JOHN J. INGALLS,.
We would remind the honorable
gentleman from Kansas. says the
New Nation, that upon the third OF
| December. 1861. President Lincoln
sent to Congress one of his historic
messages. Its closing paragraph.
even read at this day. carries the i'm.
press of a great concern for the rights
of man. He declared that mon
archy itself is sometimes limited at as
a possible refuge from the power of
the people. In my present position l
would scarcely be justified were to
omit raising a warning voice against
this approach of returning despot-
ISM" Mr.. Lincoln's thought was ev-
identity running on the relation OF
political power to property, ques-
ton raised by the issue of slavery
and the capital which labor produces.
There is one point together with
its connections continued Mr.. Lin
coin. Ito which / ask brief atten-
ton. 1t is the effort to place capital
on an equal footing with if not
above, labor in the structure of gov
eminent.
Labor is prior to and independent
of capital. Capital is only the fruit
of labor and could never have existed
if labor had not first existed. Labor
is superior to capital and deserves
much the higher consideration.
No men living are more worthy to
be trusted than those who toll up from
poverty-none less inclined to take or
touch aught which they have not hon
estly earned. Let them beware of sur
rendering a political power which they
already possess. and which, if SUR
rendered, will surely be used to close
the door of advancement against such
as they, and to fix new disabilities and
burdens upon them, till all of liberty
shall be lost"
So far as the immediate issues were
concerned, it was not necessary to GO
into the philosophy of capital at thai
time. but the great stateman was look
ing at the fundamentals. and he point
ed to danger beside which negro
slavery was an incident the despotism
of capital over labor and then he
warned the laborer to hold fast to his
political privileges lest all of liberty
shall be lost"
Abraham Lincoln was a prophet,
and in a few years, even before the
war closed. the door of advancement
was closed to the average laborer. A
friend of Mr.. Lincoln. resident Of
Illinois, wrote to the president in 1863
for fuller statement OF his views and
an explanation of the closing passage.
of his message of December, 1861
which we have quoted above. 1t wa.
in answer to this appeal that he wrote
the letter quoted in The New Nation.
which Mr.. Ingalls, declares "a malig
nant clumsy forgery" We are no
an expert on letter writing, but GER
tainly the prophecy Of 81 and thu
anxiety of '65 have marked family
likeness. The prophecy he made; i
was fast proving true in 1865; and i
was natural that he should say SO.
The process of cornering the bust
ness of the country, we'll under way il
1865, has since reached a point where
even counting house clerk can cal
culate the period of the elimination
of this conspiracy against labor ant
the liberties of a great people, If il
1860 80 per cent of the people Of the
United States owned SO per cent o
property, how long will it take TO
one man to own one-half and the res
Of the people one-half? Or how long
will it take for 5, 900 to own 90 pel
cent Of the country's wealth?
Inhuman Policy.
The following extract from tn