Evening star., 1901-09-23
THE kIND-HEARTED LlNSOLN.
Two Stories That Capt. Greene Iells
of the Great President.
From Success

From Success. --.s---. ---
1t has been my good fortune to find not
any new humorous stories, but lew Illus
trative of the marvellous kindness OF heart
of Mr.. Lincoln, and l am indebted for tnem
to Captain Gilbert J. Greene, veteran OF
the civil war. He says: Il was tramplhs
the state of Illinois, from south to north,
when | came upon the farmhouse or JACOB
Strauss, who owned forty thousand acres
OF land in the center of the state fih'hhg
that / was going to pass through Spring
field the next day. Mr.. Strauss told me that
he would keep me over! night If | would
carry some papers to lawyer in the capl-
tai He said the-lawyer's name was Abe
Lincoln. "a very smart man.. l started
next morning at sunrise. The road TO
Sprin gfield was straight, and the country
so level that could see the sun rejected
from the state house dome, thlrty-nVe niles
away There was snow on the ground, and
the weather was biting coid. reached a
little, urinportant office at nightfall ana
saw the legend, :A.zLiacoln, attorney on
plain strip of black tin on the door. L
knocked and voice replied. Come IN En-
tering / found Lincoln sitting on an old
fashioned. splint-bottomed chair, before
great wood fire, with his feet against the
mantel, higher than his head, and reading
a copy of the Louisville Journal. l handed
him the papers. Taking them, he said: j
didn't think the old codger would send
l had no money. he took So bill out of his
-rccket and gave it to me, saying he would
charge 1T up to his client. as 1t was worth
$40 to bring the papers IN such weather.
Then, taking up the newspaper he had laid
down, ne wrote on the white margin, MIR.
Wilson, take care of this boy until tomor-
row, or longer if the weather Is bad. and
send the bill to me. A. Lincoln. Tearing
this off and handing 1t to me. he pointed
through the window to hotel across the
square and told me to go there and remain
until / was able to resume my journey AS
l was leaving the hotel, the next morning.
to continue my journey, man brought a
note from Mr.. Lincoln. which read as fol-
lows:
".Mr Wallace, Peoria: Dear sir-This
boy wants to reach the Rock River coun-
try somewhere near Beloit. II he needs
any assistance. and you can help him in
any way, RI will be appreciated. and l will
be responsible. Yours. A. Lincoln
when | arrived at my destination l
wrote letter of thanks to the homely,
kindly lawyer who had befriended ME, and
q personal correspondence was begun with
him, which ended only with his death. He
got place for me in printing office at
Springfield. where /. though only boy
was permitted to enjoy his intimate COM
panionsh1p.
Zone beautiful. moonlit night we were
walking on country road. and noticed
just ahead of us, six little pigs with their
noses close together Lincoln said: Those
little things are lost; let's help them to find
their mother We stirred them up, and
with grrInt sniff and snort, they ran down
the road. At length they found hole in
the fence, and the mother in the field. Just
beyond. Lincoln said: i never see q pig
that | do not think of my first pet When
a boy, six years old. | went over to a
neghboring farm. litter Of striped pig
gies had just been born. and 1 was so in
terested that they could not get me away
from them. The man filled me with SUI
preme delight by saying: You may have
one of those pigs If you can get him home"
81 will attend to that" =" l said. had on a
tow shirt, reaching to my ankles = one
which my mother had woven-and fastened
at the neck by a wooden button my father
had made i made a fold in the garment,
and in 1t. as a sack, carried my pig home
i got an old bee-gum-a hollow log-put
cornshucks. stalks and leaves into it for a
bed and tucked, him away for the night.
He squealed for his mother nearly all
night. In the morning l carried feed. meal
and bran. bread. milk-everything / could
think of-but he would not touch any of
them. He did not seem to have time
ergy for anything but to squeal.
AT length my mother said to me: ABE,
take that pig back home; 1t will die il you
keep it here What my mother said was
always the truth and the law to me. and,
though 1t almost broke my heart. l took
the pig back His mother was glad to
see him. and he so glad to see her, After
she had given him his dinner he looked so
pretty that4I, could not stand Ii. and /
begged the man to let me take him back.
1 put him In the tow sack, as l had done
before. and took him to our house Mother
protested and I cried; she broke down and
reiented. and said l. might try him one
day more He wonloOaot eat a thing I
brought him, and mother sent me back
with him again. i carried him back and
forth to hts meals for two weeks, when we
taught him to eat. and he was mine for
good That pig was my companion. And
] played with him, and taught him tricks:
= swerused to play shide-and-seek: / can see