The Hawaiian gazette., 1899-05-30
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Gen. Washington. Scholars call il clio
quent and equal to the great speecheD
which adorn the most momentous o.
casions in Anglo-Saxon history.
The incidents Of its delivery becom,
more interesting as time passes. Tn,
opinions OF the men who sat on tn,
Gettysburg platform when the speech
was delivered are now the evidences
Of the short vision of man, and the
failure of Lincoln's able contempora.
rios TO mark the value of his thought
on that occasion. The rising genera
lion should understand how fallible
human judgments are dealing with
current events.
Col. Lamon, the Marshal of the Dis
trict Of Columbia, and Lincoln's aide
and attendant says of the occasion and
the speech:
| Mr.. Everett's address was worthy
Of the solemn occasion and of his great
fame as an orator. He was tumultu-
ously applauded. While the President
| delivered his few hundred words the
multitude observed perfect silence.
One might have been able to hear the
proverbial pin drop.
| "As for me, recognized the brief
address. Lincoln having read the first
draft to me a few days. previous. This
took place at my house in Washing
ton, whittier the President had come
to spend The evening. On removing
his hat on that occasion folded sheet
If foolscap paper dropped out.
| 81 will read that to you, Hill he
had said. 1T is a memorandum Of my
forthcoming address. But, let me tell
you 1t is not at all satisfactory to me.
You know. am driven to death now
adays: still, the public will expect a
supreme effort, nevertheless. an
afraid, though. It will be disappointed
| this time.
| What the Gettysburg audience
| thought OF the speech do not pretend
to know. At any rate, the people in
| dulged in no demonstrations: but We
| on the PLATFORM | am ashamed to say
felt much depressed on account of it.
Mr.. Everett. answering to "A Whispered
question from Secretary Seward, blunt
ly said: i am disappointed. It was
not what expected from Mr.. Lincoln
And what is your opinion, Mr..
Seward? added Everett. Mr.. Seward
replied: He has made botch Of it,
and am very sorry. That speech was
not worthy of Lincoln
THE Secretary of State then asked
my judgment. could only regretfully
indorse the criticisms already passed
for | felt, with the rest of LincOln's
friends, that his speech was not up to
| the mark"
when it was reported that the ad-
dress was received with cheers and
sobs. Col. Lamon said:
Il am the only Lincoln biographer
who was on that platform at Gettys-
burg. The others got their material
were many, who. during Lincolns life
time, had run to their wits end to
blackguard the President. After his
death they fell in with the general
| throng and lauded him to the sky.
They positively invented so-called
facts and incidents calculated to glo.
rify Lincoln, and the apotheosis Of the
Gettysburg speech was only one of
these maneuvers.
Il repeat, there were only perfuncto-
ry demonstrations of applause at the
conclusion Of Lincoln's remarks. More
over, the President himself felt that he
had made a failure. Lamon,' he said,
shortly after it was finished, that
speech won't scour. It's a fiat failure,
and the people are disappointed.
Wont scour' was Lincolns favOrite
expression for lack of merit.
Later on, at Washington, the Pres
ident returned to the subject Hill
he said, I tell you that speech fell on
the audience like a wet blanket. Il
distresses me to think of 1t. ought
to have prepared it with greater care
Similar remarks heard from his lips
time and again in after years"
The newspapers of the day were worry
severe in their criticisms of the speech,
according to Col. Lamon:
IF single word of praise was
printed about the Gettysburg speech In
1868 | don't remember II. Most Of the
papers jumped on the President for
using the phrase, the government Of
the people, by the people. and for thu
people calling him plagiarist. This
charge hurt Lincoln deeply. When h.
spoke those words he never suspected
that they would be regarded as urigi-
nal. The thought, YOU know, is as old
as the republican idea Of government,
and this particular phrase had been
a household word with Lincoln for
years previous to Gettysburg"
Are our own judgments about the
events of our times Of the men who in
measure guide them, any better than
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