The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-02-09


80 intensely interesting. have just
.~o-s several good stories about the
~. .iIl- hat that Lincoln always wore.
-rbis important piece Of head apparel serV-
The great Kentuckian in as good stead
~ the Magic Cap did Siegfried' tdlng
g., through wonderful tasks" In all
,.,sitions that he filled, whether as SOL
lisr storekeeper, surveyor, solicitor or
-.,tesman. the silk tile was always IN
5is,ansable. Gen. Grants cigar came IN
Cor good deal of attention by writers
a,5 reviewers, but the hat of Honest
,bs" was a veritable treasure house. 1t
rived in turn for carrying surveyor
notes. letters, dispatches, newspaper
-,,,nings. lawyers briefs and state pa
rgrs of all sorts. 1t even figured in
tusrious foot ball game on the night
- bis election to the presidency, and the
s.sne would have done credit to the best
,,emorfes Of Manhattan field.
Rnt before passing to an account of the
mart played by the noble title in the
-,artvr Presidents career, it may be well
10 give a description of 1t.
Tho hat that Lincoln was accustomed
,o wear seemed to be a foot high, with
brtm almost as big as a southern SOM
brero. Indeed, Lincoln's headgear was
something like his old kltcneh stoHeI
isrge generous, and built for hospital
irv In this Joint of stoNe-plpe, as one
writer has described it, were tucked away
an his persona. and professional papers
while it's broad brim MADE II anKe ser
,inashle for rain or shine. Perhaps the
ricturesqueness of the plug hau Some
hing 10 do with naming the mob that
threatened his journey TO the nauohal
capital the "Plug-U glies. ,. =.
Nr Crane. the comedian, introduces IN
his play of Brother John, klnd OF
derby as the distinctive Yankee mead
slouch-hat to typify the western style;
but neither is as picturesque as the Lin
In his debates with Douglas the hat
fairly doomed into space. The Smallness
Of the stature of the latter is Wen known,
and when Lincoln stood beside MN WIN
ed was that of boy and giant stand
ing together. And curiously enough,
when Lincoln came to be inaugurated az
Washington, Douglas held the hlgh hat
in his own hand, that no careless person
might put his foot in it. -,.. 49,. -,
The reader can readily imagine tne ap-
pearance of Lincoln when arrayed in his
favorite plug, if a few well known facts
are borne in mind. The President had a
gaunt and grotesque frame, and stood
Six feet four inches in his stocking rect.
His strength equalled his length, Tor he
could lift a cask full of beer and drink
out of the bung hole. 1t was SUCH Her
hero he was in the eyes of the Clary
Grove boys.
The Hon. Robert r. Hit, chairman of
the committee on foreign affairs of the
House of Representatives, was the OFF,
cial stenographer in the famous debates
already mentioned, and from him / gain
ed the following Information regarding
his famous tile:
yes, l remember that Mr.. Lincoln's
hat was very large. He was a man Of
was to wear high and full crown silk
hats The one he wore toward the last
of his life, which is preserved in the mu-
scum here, looks enormous as compared
with the hats seen nowadays. When he
was making speeches in the campaign OF
'5S. he often had papers-newspaper clip
pings chefy-which were caught just be-
hind the lining of the hat and easily taken
out / recOllect his taking from his hat,
as we, were in the cars, clipping from
the Charleston Mercury, then one from
the Charleston Courier, which he after
wards used in speaking"
The hat referred to is preserved in the
Oldroyd museum at Washington; it Is
that which Mr. Lincoln wore on the night
of his assassination. 1t stands under a
big glass case, and suggests that worn
by eX-President Harrison's grandfather.
tried it on recently, and found it very
heavy and cumbersome. 1t fitted me
loosely, and was good "a in size. In
addition to the heavy black band around
it, there was another tiny band with a
dainty buckle. This hat is in a remarka-
bic state of preservation, and the maker 5
been manufactured by J. Y. Davis of
Washington, D. c., showing that Mr.. Lin
coin believed in patronizing home indus
tries.
Mr.. Lincoln's hat played a very i'm
portant part in his career, when he was
postmaster at New Salem. 1t was before
the days of the railway mail service an
steam or street cars. There was no ''spe-
cal delivery carriers at that time. But
Lincoln was equal to the demands of the
situation, and become a peripatetic post
A letters
celved each day. he would put them in
nus hat and stroll through the town His
TAN, gaunt form could easily be describ-
ca from all quarters, and everybody was
more or less concerned in the contents
Vi me nat Upon being questioned as to
y wnaL the mail had brought, Lincoln
over the lot of letters. In this way he
Hot only became acquainted with his
HelShbors, but his unique and utilitaran
Hdt became almost an object of reverence.
IL was, however on the night of his
tlecuon to the presidency that the noble
we served to bring about a football game
prominence of the parties engaged, has
never been surpassed. The news had just
T9ne TO the cd homestead in Illinois that
Lncoln was elected Here is the story
ds told by an eyewitness:
- rev OF us ladies went over and helped
rs riLs. Lincoln prepare a little supper for
re igIQs VINO mad been invited in to hear the
-, o.uIils. Every half hour or so we would
p b around coffee and cakes About l
Tciock in the morning enough had been
tt9.65rned to warrant the belief that the
rail- Splitter" had been elected. / think
y was when we heard the news from New
5 5oTk. The men rushed on Mr. Lincoln
gu Snook his hands, while the women
%I'valqIaIly Rugged him, and, I might as
o "eI admit it, l kissed him. Then some
r Une went into the hall and took from the
iach mat old silk hat which he wore as
"s as joint of stove-pipe and about
I 1S shapely to my mind, and it was thrown
o. ~ 70 lhe ceiling. AS it came down some
me IN save 1t kick; then the women Joined
The n me run, and we played football with
Ia "a nat until it was an unacceptable
1WII YVES. We We're simply beyond control.
ndt ridiculous scene it would have
,,.6,u 10 one looking in without knowing
"nat prompted it!
was the more so, so far as 1 was
S,5nrGelhed, because l had been a Seward
se Stlaa' .Whle the convention was in
ca3,aooI II mad been arranged to fire a
i.,ton IN case Lincoln received the NOM
D1titI2ii' My nearest neighbor was a Mrs.
fritDoiS with whom I had had several
bessrm9g spats during the campaign. 1
fnan me cannon shot, and the next mo-
So: saw Mrs. Dubois running across the
b~ she had been making a shirt for.
H. nus nus o9nd-who was about the size Of
eairI dle Judge David Davis, so you may
me- some idea of the size of the gar
H. tshe was waving. She rushed into
e mouse and Haunted ii in nv face If