The Vinita daily chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1902-1913, 1905-02-13
.LINGOLN'S
BIRTHDAY.
Some Great Changes Since His
BOyhOOd Days.

Yesterday was the ninety-sixth an
niversary of the birth of Abraham
Lincoln. The passing years have not
dimmed the fame of Lincoln, although
there has been a great many changes
otherwise. A great many ideas prevail
about Lincoln which cause some peo-
pie to believe that II he were alive to-
day he would not be considered so
great as he was fifty years ago. But
these are mistaken IDEAS People for
get that at the time Of Lincoln's birth
children enjoyed very few Of the CON-
forts enjoyed by those Of the present
day. They say he was uncouth be-
cause he was not superficial; that he
was not tactful because he was 50 di-
rect; that he was more unique than
brilliant; that he was more fortunate
than deserving. But these criticisms
are Of the higher critics, only.
1t will be admitted that in his youth
Lincoln may have been little giddy,
but il should also be remembered that
at that time there were no w. c. T..
Us. to seize him by the seat Of the
trousers and pull him away from the
primrose path Of youthful folly. His
food was cooked in a Dutch oven and
his father lit his pipe with flint. He
wrote his loye-letters with a goose
quill pen and fastened his galluses
with thorn.
In his youth Lincoln knew nothing
Of golf suits, Of bicycles, or Of eating
pie with a fork. He had never heard
OF paper-mache teeth or the Austria
lian ballot When he was ushered in
TO the world the housewives leached
their own lye aud kept the flies away
from the table with peach sprout.
In those days there we're no fly screens,
no cook stoves, no carpet sweepers.
no yeast cakes no baking powder, no
chautauquas,i no spring mattresses,
no union suits, no rubber shoes, no
cucumber spoons, no sewing machines,
no clothes wringers, no clothes pins.
Think Of IL! Lincoln's mother,
hundred years ago, never enjoyed the
luxury Of hanging out clothes on wash
day with two-by-four sycamore
clothes pin between her lips
A century ago there were no tele-
grapn, no railroads, no steam ships, no
telephones, no typewriters, no STEM
winding watches, no barbed-wire fences
no dehorned cattle, no statehood bills,
no Speaker Joe Cannon, no prohibit
uIon Since that time the shirt waist
has been discovered, the yerri-formed
has been hunted to its lair,
the microbe has been bred up to It's
present proud condition and standard,
and is registered.
Threshing machines have been in
vented since Lincoln's boyhood days,
and the throw-board has been invented. /
Perhaps some do not know what a /
il:
Did you ever take the "down-roH,
On a cold December morn,
When the frost was on the pumpkin,
And the slobber on the corn?"
If you have you can realize what
wonderful invention the throw
board is. IL has abolished the down
row in cIrn gathering time and revo-
the morals OF the farmer
BOY.
These things we're not in use in
Llncoln's time and they are only men,
5ioned TO show that he accomplished
/ stupenduous work with what there
vas TO do with in those days No,
We cannot compare Lincoln with this
lay and age. His work belongs to the
,ast, but il still lives in the present
nd its full fruitage belongs to the
emotest future. He will always be
evered for the life he lived; for the
ind OF man he was.