The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-04-14

And. like a.; who had been admitted
TO the friendship of this great Ameri-
can, his affection for him was of the
warmest character.
Judge Strevell was a young lawyer
in Pontiac when Lincoln. following the
court circuit, came there to try cases.
was some years before he was men
tiCne1 for the presidency, but the
greatn IS OF the man was beginning to
manifest itself: he was a leader among
leaders. In letter to his son of recent
date, Judge StreveI tells how he hap
peped TO measure Mr.. Lincoln. Here
IS the story in mis- own words:
THE young men of Pontiac, Ills, in
the winter before MI Lincoln was
nominated for president, had under
taken TO maintain lecture course,
which was more in vogue then than
now. Among the lecturers secured was
MIR Lincoln. I introduced him to
very large audience, and before intro
ducing him L asked him what subject
j should announce for his lecture, and
he replied. The Wheel and Axle That
lecture. though one of the most inter
esting I ever heard before or since. was
never found in his papers; it was a
written lecture. burt no trace of it was
ever obtained after his death.
He was entertained at our house
during the night. and after the lecture
there~Tvas a general reception, a large
number of citizens OF the town calling
Cpon him during the evening. After
the reception had closed and all of our
family except. MT. Lincoln and myself
had retired. he and I sat UP until about
j O'Clock in conversation, a great deal
of which conversation 7 could repeat
here. but # isl not necessary to do so
] do not know. nor have been able
20 remember at all. what Incident it
was that brought up the subject Of
his height. He said that he was s feet
4 snches.
Il told him THAI it scarcely seemed
taller than myself; / was just six feet.
gut. at all events, he said: You can
take my height if You wish and 1 did
50. he standing with his back to the
door casing and / taking his measure
with great caution. I think with a
twO-fOOt rule. ] remember very dis
tinctly when L was placing the rule
on top of his heSd to get as near a
perfect level as 1 could, noticing how
heavy and coarse his black hair was.
HE had 2 heavy head OK hair and it
was very coarse and BLACK. The meas
urs was taken in his stocking feet: ne
had some time previous to that pulled
or his boots. and he proved to be Just
the height you viii find on the door
casing. which 7 think is exactly s feet
4. II you should be at all interested
in any portion Of the conversation I
had with him that evening L can give
you a sample OF It.
The time Of which I am speaking
was in the trOublOus days Of slavery
and anti-slavery. and one portion o.
the country was i'm sentiment entirely
arrayed against the other. the north
against the south. and the heated con-
dition OF the public mind soon eventu-
ated in the clash Of arms. Our con-
versation was largely upon this sub
ject. / said to him, L believe you viii
be nominated for president at the APP
preaching convention in Chicago
II did not then know what his
brother-in-law, Mr.. Smith, afterwards
told me was true. that he did not like
to have anyone say to him that he
would be nominated; I suppose it was
upon the ground that there was a great
deal Of that talk which he himself re-
garded as flippant ind much of it said.
perhaps. with a mere idea 20 please
him This he did not like. In answer
he asked me, with rather a stern
cOuntenance. WY / said thar.
T soon gave him proof that I did not
say it without what I regarded as a
good reason for doing SO-he and Doug
las had had their joint debate two years
before. ! said 20 him: Douglas will be
Nominated at BaltimOTe. and the peo-
pie viii never be satisfied until you and
he have had this contest out on a
broader field than the one in which
you were engaged in your joint debate.
This was a conviction Of mine, and
7 think it Immediately addressed itself
70 him as a conviction. Well, he said,
what you say OF Mr.. Douglas being