The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1895-04-12
SKETCHES OF LINCOLN.
The Hanks Girls at a Camp
Meeting.
THOMAS LINCOLN AS A FARMER

THOMAS LINCOLN AS A FARMER.
Abraham's First School Days Dennis
Hanks Remembrance of the Olden Days.
The Lincoln Family Cabin-An Uninvit-
ing Frontier Structure.
From "The Life of Lincoln by William b.
Herndon and Jesse W. Weik. Copyright 1888,
by Jesse W. Weik. Copyright. 1892, by d. APP
pleton g. Co.
AS family the Hankses were pecul-
lar to the civilization of early Ken
lucky. Illiterate and superstitious, they
correspond to that nomadic class still to
be met with throughout the south and
known as poor whites. They are hap
PLY and wildly depicted in the descrip-
ton of a camp meeting held at Eliza
BEETHOVEN, KY, in 1906, which was fur
nished me in August, 1865, by an eye
witness.
'The Hanks girls, }" narrates the latter,
"were great at camp meetings. | re-
member one in 1906. l will give you a
scene and if you will then read the
books written ON the subject you may
find some apology for the superstitions
that were said to be in Abe Lincoln
character. 1t was at a camp meeting, as
before said, when a general shout was
about to commence. Preparations were
being made. A young lady invited me
to stand on bench by her side where
we could see all over the altar To the
right strong, athletic young man,
about % years old, was being put in
trim for the occasion, which was done
by divesting him of all apparel except
shirt and pants. On the left a young
lady was being put in trim IN much the
same manner, so that her clothes would
not be in the way and SO that when her
combs flew out her hair would go into
graceful braids. She, too, was Young, not
more than 20 perhaps The performance
commenced about the same time by the
young man on the right and the young
lady on the left. Slowly and gracefully
they worked their way toward the CEN
ter, singing shouting, hugging and
kissing, generally their own sex, until
at last nearer and nearer they came.
The center of the altar was reached, and
the two closed, with their arms around
each other, the man singing and shout
ing at the top of his voice:
81 have Jesus in my arms,
Sweet as honey, strong as bacon ham.
"Just at this moment the young lady
holding to my arm whispered: 'They
are to be married next week. Her name
is Hanks. There were very few who did
not believe this true religion, inspired by
the Holy Spirit, and the man who could
not believe it did well to keep it to him
self. The Hankses were the finest sing
ers and shouters in our country"
Here my informant stops, and on &C.
count of his death several years ago
failed to learn whether the young lady
shouter who had figured in the forego-
ing scene was the presidents mother or
not The fact that Nancy Hanks did
marry that year gives color to the belief
that it was she. AS to the probability
of the young man being Thomas Lincoln
it is difficult to say. Such a perform
ance as the one described must have re-
quired a little more emotion and en-
thusiasm than the tardy and inert car
penter was in the habit of manifesting.
The Boy at School.
Sarah, the sister of Abraham Lincoln,
though in some respects like her broth
er, lacked his stature. She was thick
set, had dark brown hair, deep gray
eyes and an even disposition. She was
married to Aaron Grigsby, in Spencer
county, Ind, in the month of August,
1926, and died Jan. 20, 1928. Her
brother accompanied her to school while
they lived in Kentucky, but as he was
only z, and as she had not yet finished
her ninth year when their father remov
ed with them to Indiana, it is to be pre-
sumed that neither made much progress
in the matter of school education. Still
it is authoritatively stated that they at
tended two schools during this short
period. One of these was kept by Zach
ariah Riney, the other by Caleb Hazel.
1t is difficult at this late day to
learn much of the boy Abraham S
life during those seven years of res
Ssxu