Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1897-02-05
THANKED FOR THEM.
A SOLDIERS sToRv or PRECEDENT
 LINCOLN AND Bofa fN BLUE.

Let tbH e0 4 LINCOLN
 Unless t has hecn destroyed there is in homo n fo1d dH iaa e8uH sy Hia. a sol6ief letter jn sH envelope bearing the aboyo words signed U tho great war president
 . Prank King was 1anartiDe boy, fresh ffom the farm, and character or sbt. nlr E ,9 ksdiF from u.
 N5he.. s..a ',iMy sQaz ea in Eir- ginia, near Washlng $. l 9se2 0f 18G1.2, it was e common praetce with the soldiers. when they got pass, to visit the ai,5 ,o hay package of en- velenas aea eall af Gle capitol, send in for their eenatar or representative and get him te frank them
 One of oHr boys came back to camp in high feather He had two packages of enveiopes--one franked by Senator James k. Doolittie, now Chicago law. yer, the other by the lste Senator T. O. Howe. who succeeded Gaptain James as postmaster general in President Arthur cabinet For 20 years senators and naen- bers have been giving good deal of their time 10 helping 5he soldiers with their pension claims If they have done 1t IS willingly and pleasantly as they used to trunk envelopes for the boys, they must be pretty nearly angels.
 You follows, there. are making big blast over getting couple of sena- tors to frank your envelopes said Frank King. "Jrst you wait till you sec me come hack from Washington with the presidents name on some letter GOV. CTS. '
 Within few days Frank King and Harry Dunn who for years after tho war WAS Chicago business man, went to the city They called at the White House. I6 was easier to see tho president then than i5 is now. At certain hours of the day soldier could reach the chief executive with fully as much ease as a Eenator can in hose later years
 King was tho ringleadef Approach ing the guard he said We want to see Mi Lincoln. Please stand aside and let us paas
 Who are you, aud what is your busi. ness2o
 You tell old Abe we have charge af 8 regiment over on Arlington Heights and want to see him on an important matter He'll let us in.
 Where are your shoulder straps?''
 We ealno over in our everyday clothes. Come, we are in hurry. Lei us go in and sec Mir Lincoln.
 The barley had attracted the attention of the president The door swung open and the good natured chief of the nation smiled upon tho cheeky young fellows and bade them step right in
 What can do for you, my men?H
 Mr Lincoln, ! want you to frank these enselopes, said King.
 Better get your congressman to do that
 "Fd much ratIer have you do it, Mir Lincoln The folks at homo would like to see yenr name on my letters.
 @I'll fix enc of them. Take tho rest to your congressman. Who IS he?'
 II don't know "
 "Whero is your homo9'
 "Lamartine, Fond du Lac county. Wis.
 That is my friend Scott Sloan E dis, trict. You go to Mfr Sloan. He will fix the rest of them.
 The president shook hands with the two priyates, asked them to be brave soldiers and wished them safe return to their western homes.
 Frank couldn't make his tentmates believe that the president had wri5ten; Let this 90. A Lincoln. But the next day he wrote letter to his father The name of Lincoln was personally exam. ined by all of the neighhors.
 In January, 1864, our regiment was in Washington on the way home, having re-enIisted-"v "veteranized, as they called it. In company with two others l went to tbe White House The presi- don't shook hands with us, thanked us for swearing in for three years more and expressed tho hope that we would have 8 nice visit on our veteran furlough.
 MT President, said Jonos-Ed Jones-''y you franked q letter for one of tho boys in our company, Frank King. l wish you would frank one for me.
 Odd as it may seem. you are tho second soldier to make such 8 request, So both are Of the same company? Very well
 On Jones' envelope ho wrote A Lincoln, President, and as he handed it back he asked what had become of that other nan who had asked him to pass q letter
 Ho was killed at Gettysburg.
 shall nrgor forget the lcok of sad ness n the presidents face when the answer was given, and 1t had not disap- poared when we left the room.
 Jones. what did you tell him about King for? Did yce sec how 1t pained himg'
 What did he ask abant him fer? DO you suppose l was geng so lie to a man l would die for;' was doaes' indignant reply. -Chicago Tioss.iEerald
 The Cousts 1legisinr.