The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1899-02-10
Present-Day Thoughts.
BY yMO.'
IwrIIren for The Cltizen.I

a luS ons t. hiuln hboks aud IN papers,
and thu increasing tendency to regard
h hir;hhaN as holiday make him IA
very real man t. w.; aud his eXaInp e
ev' u .realt RIM It's influence than dur.
ing hi NE, for each yrui carries us fur
thrr and further away from the heat
and the frerzN Of the great war aud
W. ut unt only better perspective
view of Lincoln. tut also of the coudi-
tons that made him great.
t. me one Of the most interesting
considerations IN connection with his
public lie is that thuuoh hp slgntd,
"a, "a war measure the Emanc paIon,
yet he never allan louei IN lis per-
so a con ict'un- the ielirf that the
South had rlahts hv inheritance, aud
by pe ~ legal purchase, in the r liv-
ing properly. Ibis i demonstrated be-
yun! all cavil 10y his attempt To- get
Delaware To pass gradual enancipa-
tiuu act, The OWNERS To be pald 500 "a
bead Tor every slave, man, woman or
Guild, hr ousing to them. The Meas
urc tailed, OF course. ire use f., liugs
wrrr luu heated Oh eI''n i e Ia permit
lh" calm iu .utcul tlat l.iurplt hm-
sell pu--,>-rd. Ihc fact that he dared
sprn 81 ~tcp With, the hul-ne ais wee
Ie,dy Z" ueurunce him, Is but It'll.
known or liltie und lStpod. > ia er-
r-t'-d WI, h Va tue elan thAt with his
own hani H. >kelchrd "ut H.. details
ut Two methods 10y WnrCn the eni
desired could he 81 tai ed. These
prl' rle-s proofs at hi~ furue,> ana Of
his go ia ~ are teiorc m- on my disk
II 0r g.. Furthermore, | h We il
from the lips ot man -ull living. "A
man who VAS on. of hi- most thu t. d
advisers and cunfida l., the Hon. Geo.
p. FI-rrr that h lure the war ended
NJ. Lincoln had already c mm-ucrd
t. tara over IA Ii ) m nj plan for Is
suius huuds To tn. extent ut 300, 0DU.-
600 IL Il nrnn- # srltItg the ruined
South on it, fee arain. Dta h cut
thi- uHguauimuuS pan ~nnrt, there
tutr il j. almost Idlt To theOriLr reg ard.
Irg Results, il it hal been put into f.
ct. | j. >eii-rvidrnt, hoWtv, r, that
the humtlituon OF tie reconstruction
p roi, when the bru, her Triumphant
aha-ed the brother defeated, wouli
have been avoided, and with it
much oi the rank Ing sentiment
that burnt deep in sumo If the S'u H.
- hearts unlll February last. Then,
thank Goi. one great pa,sl'n was SUI
rerSrd'd hy auothri-the desire t. STE
III American arms sue e-,iul whether
welded 10y Nullh ar 10y o,utu.
Another aspect OF Ii 5 life is one HAT
is valu ,hle ~ he extreme, Just at thu,
time ot brwild rm~ut, " hen even wise
men are asking themselves What The
United States Ms nation should do
VIII II cnnlr nted by new conditions.
Though Llncnln was trained as law
yer AMI T. ereiO c III r apt than u>u i
10 tie guid q aud intlu, ned by pee
dents, Yet none can say that he failed
IN udjustrhlliiy. He saw ,lea ~ what
The fathers never could have fOfSrtn
and because lhry THERETO e had never
expressed themse ve1 regarding the
new problems, he fit at liberty TO act
on the judgment of the living rather
than 81 the dead. In short he male
pr cedent~ for himself, and did what
every true American ought To do and
can do, the "brst" under all circunl-
stances. When the great disruption
confronted Lincoln he faced Il cuudi-
ton AMI troll pathway that no
siguer of the Declaration of Indepen-
dence knew about.
Becaust. OF the lack Of knowledge on
the part OF the lorriathtrs, he uid not
tatuuusly deny the existence of the
path; but with Il calnnrsS almost SUI
pernatural and devotion most eX-
haustlng 10 himself he used the light
aud judgment uf his own day to meet
the problems and burdens Of his own
day. | do not for II moment belitIle
the value of past history and records.
In the ordinary affairs of nat onal lif,.
the past IS sun ~ inva uab e, hut
when extraordinary con iilious con.
front us, the past j. valutless except in
the one lesson that great problems
must be met by gr ~ men. and decided
Ia "a great-mlnded, diSpassiomlte, un.
selfish way. Lrnc0ln's example in
lllls ulTtCNlOu Is tUcDui aging.
Since Lincoln's time it is reputed
true that 10 human slavery has eXi-ted
within the borders Of these United
s. otes. 1t Is true, presume, from
legal STANDPOINT, but we young men
NUT never drlp, whIle living, into the
ti~titd condition at gloritied saints;
I la..r - .. ,lN 4.
wrong tn be righted, too much reIra-
gres>inn to cnmuat. So white the col
ored people have now To look after
themselves instead of being looked af.
t-r, not ali If Their problems nor all of
ours have been solved. See how in.
dustrial conditions have changed since
L'ncOn's time; vast factories have alb
sOrhed small shops; vast floods Of men
have made connect on for ,hnr too Sc
we're almost t. be borne. Vast num-
bers of men who would work cannot:
vast numbers who could work do not
care ;u, and thus yield to the tyranny
of petty bosses. HoTdes of immature
youths of both sexes are forced out into
the competition of life hef0re they are
ahle successfully to stand the strain.
Their wages are pittances in many
cases, aud their pc little pay envel-
opes are often robbed by employers
who dock the pay of an hour or more
for five minute hardness Compared
with the strain of modern lie in our
crowded factory towns, the lot of
great majority of slaves was sun
shiny idyl-no care for the morrow,
no bills to pay, no doctors to fee. The
patriotism Of Lincoln must be ours, a
patriotism that is not content with
echoing the past, but that strives each
day TO make the lot of our fellows hap.