Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1907-02-15
LlNcoLN's FAMOUS PHRASE.
Maybe Original But He Did Not Say
Il First.

In his world-famous Gettysburg
speech" Lincoln declared that the
men whose monument they were ded-
icating, had died in order that gov
ernment of the people, by the people
and for the people should not perish
from the earth"
Like lightning the phrase electri-
fed the nation, and from that day to
this 1t has remained the most celebra-
ted speech of modern times.
But fame always has to pay big
price for itself, and repeatedly since
Lincoln's brief but immortal address
was delivered 1t has been intimated
that the martyred president was
plagairist, having taken from another
the most striking phrase In his speech
without making any acknowledgment
Of the fact.
To these intimations have come
the counter claims that Lincoln's cell
ebrated phrase was strictly original
with himself, and that to Lincoln
alone belongs the honor and glory of
having coined 1t.
About the fact that the phrase In
dispute was I'm existence long before
Lincoln spoke 1t at Gettysburg there
Is no room for doubt.
Five centuries and half before
the day of the martyred president
there lived in old England one Of the
stanchest democrats that the race has
ever produced. The name of that old
Democrat was John Wickliffe, the
celebrated theologian.
Now, in the preface to Wickliffe's s
translation of the Scripture--1324-
may be found these words: This Bi-
BILE is for the government Of the peo-
pie by the people and for the people.
which is identical. word for word,
with the famous expression from
Lincoln.
In the year 1880, at a public meet
ing held at Often, Switzerland, q
speaker named Schinz, in the course
of his address, used this language:
"All the governments of Switzerland
must acknowledge that they are sim
ply from the people, by the people
and for the people"
In an address before the Anti-Slav-
cry Society Of New England, Theo-
dore Parker, the celebrated Unitarian
divine on May 20, 1850, used these
words: Democracy Is a government
of all the people, by all the people,
and of course, for all the people"
To go a great deal further back
than we have yet gone, we find a
Greek demagogue, Of the age Of Per-
icles, Cleon by name. saying, about
the year 420 B. c.: Men of Athens, l
am in favor of the democracy that
shall be democratic, that shall give
US the rule which shall be of the peo-
pie, by the people and for the peo-
ple."
The similarity between all these
phrases is perfect, and 1t goes with
out saying that Mr.. Lincoln could not,
have originated the famous express
sion as found in his Gettysburg ora
ton.
1t does not by any means follow,
however, that Lincoln was con-
scious plagiarist. Mr.. Lincoln had an
inquiring mind, and knew a great
many things, but no man can know
everything; and it Is more than likely
that he had never heard Of the phrase
until his own mind had conceived It,.
But even If 1t was proven that Lin
coin had appropriated the phrase, as
charged. the fact would initiate in no
serious way against his fame.
The greatest Of the Germans. the
immortal Goethe, declared one day to
an intimate friend that If everything
in his works that he had got from
others should be stricken out he
would not have a dozen pages left.
The greatest of the great in the
fields of literature, philosophy and ell
oquence. have pillaged right and left.
and that. too, without stopping to
make any acknowledgment Of the
things appropriated.