The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1897-03-24
LTNE0LNS CHARAGTER


ofOur G,rsatpst President,
m an grafton Oh tho IAfe ana ohur-
.c,,r Of Abraham Lincoln, delivered In
Chicago last week, Bishop Fowler OF
,ss n. 4. church used these stirring
and eloquent words In concluslon:p
~ as OrRlyE0 Mr.. Lincoln. The be-
,Inr,InF OF his greatness lle9 in tho way
egI Almighty mixed tho mud oe which
~ ,vns made. He was not n1dO out OF
"! NV S,Ioi mud. to begin with, Then SEQ
NOW he handled himself Tho nrst sle-
Tent OF HIS character wua his moral
SanSe, The next element OF his chRrac-
ar was his reason, He was not an In
tIltive mah-onC that IN religious mat
ters has q private wire which he runs
tip to the summit OF his egotiam. and
that mikes Il 90 long that he thinks he
y taikinG with God, but he Aln't. Mr..
lincoln was not that kind. He was q
rSSSonInE man. He felt and proved his
"Ternise, This made him slow, but It
made him what Mi. Cough called ''aw-
nj eot." You remember We sent two
srholaClV men from old Bryan hall to
AR with Mr. Lincoln about slavery.
lincoln sat down with them, put one
IcR over the other, hooked the too
Around tho enlf Of the permanent leg,
crossed his arms In hts lap, dipped his
head 10 one side, and said. "WGllf'
THAT meant. Gentlemen, you arc
turned on.') They said; 'God has
sent us, down to tell you to emancl-
ralc tho slaveS." Mr.. Lincoln said:
thought was running this thing; and,
n God had anything 20 say about 4
ned speak to me, wouldn't he. instead
Of going on to that wicked city 90 talk
10 SOU Chaps about III" This meant
that he stood on his own feet
The next element OF his character Wag
his common SenSe-th0 most uncommon
thing found among men
Power a. = SPeHksF.
Lincoln was great as a speaker. He
was the greatest stump RDeaker the
world ever saw. but in his great ora
ions this Ghility did not appear. His
Cooper Institute speech has but one
companion pieca in the English Ian.
CllaEO, and chat IS Daniel WSbSter'g
greatest speech in reply to Halne OF
south Carolina. An old Judge in this
Al a little needing where the Republic
can partP was organized in the centrDI
pat OF this state. As no talked a little
obout the power OF the party soon
found myE0k standing on my chair.
tears running down my cheeks. gaying,
SYea, sir, We'n DO it. felt embaFraSs-
ID when I came to myself, but, looking
about saw all the old politicians,
and Judges and lawyers standing up
IN thelr chairs going through the same
gymnastics. will never hear such
6peakinR again"
HIS Gettysburg speech IL the only
piece OF English selected from this side
Of che Atlantic to De studied by her pu-
pIlA Lincoln was great a. q speaker.
he was great in his state papers See
inaugural addresses, his proclamation
Of emancipation!
he was great in his political Sagaclty.
His treatment OF Douglas and OF the
slavery question IS above comparison.
He was great as military command
He was great In that he went to
washington to be the President He
could stand alone against everybody
and against Congress, provided no felt
be was standing with God.
He was the great commoner. educat-
ed in the school OF adversely. the cabin
and in the wilderness. His callouSed
palm never slipped from the poor mans
white house nl he had been In the cabin.
He was the most magnanimous man
the sun ever shown upon. illustrated by
his treatment OF Chase and Mcclellan.
As = Christian.
He was the best specimen of Christ
ian man / have ever encountered In
public life. He hsd a side open to the
infinite. He often said: IT am driven
TO my knees. because l have no place
II came to he an open secret in the
White house when they saw him reach
ing ont for his Bible and starting for
his private room that somewhere In the
wide armies OF the republic q BATHS was
on, and they would hear him praying
nightly for the men about to die Tor
the republic.
y0s a guest at the white house. He
reported over his own name, II could
no, sleep, got IN out OF my bed: II
was o'clock IN the morning; went
along the hall heard a strange moan
in3, / saw a. door open; looking In.
saw Mr.. Lincoln lyinS on his face on
the floor, praying nightly TO God for
the republic, After that moment new
er doubted the outcome
Ie had the biggest heart that ever
beat among men.
Brothers, the great President Is gone,
and his cabinet Is gone. and the great
commanders have marched over and
pitched their tents on Fame's eternal
camping ground. and we who survive
must shortly follow. In this presence,
the presence OF our mighty dead, we
can afford to tell the truth. do no
harm TO any man when ! say that.
measured by what he did. He came TO
the government by minority Votr
without an army. without navy, with
out munitions; he concillated his rivals,
compacted his friends. awed his enc
niles, put his hand on Wall street.
stamped on the earth and 100000 OF
armed men sprung up for his defense!
He spoke TO the sea and the mightiest
navy the world has ever seen crowned
every wave: lie breathed into the air
and money and munitions Ta!aed upon
the people; a philanthroptst, lie gave
liberty 20 one race and freedom to an
other: morAlIst, he stopped from the
summit OF human power TO the foot OF
the cross and became Christian, with
malice toward none, and charity for
all; measured By what he did. he towers
from his glrth up above every otheF
man for six thousand years.
STARTLING STATISTICS.