The evening times., 1899-09-19
LINCoLN's DARKEST DAY.
A Period When Despair Almost
Tempted Him TO Suicide.

lcmpteu HIM tO Su1cEue.
tFrom the Philadelphia Times)
One story in particular Secretary Stanton
told that, ] can remember, startled US, and
its details are still vivid in my memory.
Mr.. Stanton had been relating to us many
incidents of the funny side of Mr.. Lincoln's
character, when suddenly he stopped, and,
after remaining silent for probably min
ute, looking in vacant way at some man.
uscript lying on the desk before him, he
turned in his chair and said: Gentlemen,
there is nothing that gives me so much
pain as the opinion that seems prevalent,
judging from the newspapers, that Mr..
Lincoln was an habitual joker; that it
was an impossibility for him to be serious,
no matter how grave the occasion might
be. Nothing is further from the truth.
His heart was big and good. his nature
warm and sunny; hence he naturally
looked at the bright side of events: but
no man of my acquaintance was more
serious than he when the surroundings of
the case warranted that he should be.
will give you point in instance.
Mr.. Lincoln, during the war, was very
sensitive Of the criticisms on his Admin
istration by the newspaper press, believ-
ing it to be, as he asserted, the true voice
OF the people The failures of Mcdowell,
Mcclellan, Burnside and Pope with the
made thereon by the newspapers almost
crazed him. Time and again he would free
himself from the Executive Mansion and
seek my little Office, the only place in Wash
ington, he often said, where he could be
absolutely free from interruption. When
he became closeted with me on these visits
Mr.. Lincoln would unbosom himself and
talk of his cares and woes.
Several times he insisted that he ought
TO av,1
opportunity to secure some one better fit
ted to accomplish the great task expected
of the President Or if he did not resign.
he thought he ought to impress upon Con-
gress the propriety of giving the abso-
lutte control Of the army to some purely
military man. 1t was during one of these
moods that he conceived the idea of plac-
ing Hooker in command of the Army of
the Potomac and of vesting him with such
power, that, in his opinion, he could not
fail of success. He had great idea of
Hooker's ability as soldier, and in addi-
tion he believed him to be an honest man
and a sincere patriot. He wanted him to
fight what he intended should be, and what
ne felt would be, the closing battle of the
war. Accordingly, when Hooker got un-
der way and the news came that at Chan
cellorsville he would make his fight, Mr..
Lincoln was in the greatest state of men
tai excitement. From the time that Hook
ers army began it's march until the smoke
of battle had cleared from the fatal field
OF Charlottesville he scarcely knew what
it was to sleep.
ut will be remembered that the fight
lasted three days. During the first two
days 1t looked as If Hooker was about to
accomplish what SO many generals before
him had failed to do: but early on the
third day, the usual half hour despatches
began to make matters look dark and om-
inous Of defeat. That whole day Mr.. Lin
coin was miserable. He ate nothing, and
would see no one but9 me. AS it grew
dark the dispatches 1ceased coming at all,
Mr.. Lincoln would walk from the White
House to my department and anxiousIy
enquire for news from. Hooker With the
going down of the sdn a cold and drench-
ing rain set In, which lasted through the
night. At about O'Clock Mr. Lincoln
ceased his visits to my department and
gave orders a. the Exeeutive Mansion that
be would see DO one before morning. An
hour afterward a descatch of indefinite
character was received from Hooker, and
j hurried with it togMfs Lincoln's anart-