The Sauk Centre herald., 1909-03-18

coin as new growt,: o. this Ec.
soil, the first American"
Whether or not he was the first, he
was at least the most conspicuous.
And how fully he was a type Of the
national life. even embodying some of
our faults! He came from the common
people, as do we; was eloquent, as We
try to be; told stories, which has be-
come a national habit; even played the
great American game of ball. The one
place that he did not include our vices
is that he did not indulge In that other
great American game Of poker. Doug
las says he drank, but Douglas is not
the best authority: Others deny the
statement. If Lincoln drank at all II
was but mildly and the habit was
abandoned in his mature years. Mel
ther did he use tobacco. In these mat
ters 1t may be objected that he was
not the American type, but at least he
was our ideal type, expressing us at
our best, If not at our worst, and, let
us hope, he was the type of our future
man. Tobacco, whisky and poker are
not absolutely essential to great man.
hood, while the Lincolnian qualities
are. Perhaps we shall slough of some
ephemeral faults, but the great, dura-
BILE, elemental traits that he had as q
model for all Of US must remain.
This genius of Americanism, which
is giving new spirit to other lands.
he came not only to typify, but to pre-
serve. Paine, Franklin, Jefferson,
Washington and the rest had given 1t
statement and initial form in the be-
ginning. Lincoln, with Garrison,
Grant, Seward, Stanton and their CO.
workers, came to give it restatement
and to save and enlarge its form. =
Lincoln saw what we must all see II
we comprehend Americanism at all,
that our nation has brought new po-
litical gospel which is to reyolutionize
all nations and ultimately make a re-
public Of the world. AS consequence
Of this new political gospel 1t likewise
brought q new industrial and social
gospel. It Is no idle boast to say that
it has become worth while living since
America has appeared on the stage.
America is not alone responsible for
this, any more than Lincoln was re-
sponsible for all the happenings Of his
era. She is only the type and most
conspicuous fact Of this new age, just
as he was the type and most conspicu-
Gus individual In our civil war crisis
and just as he is rapidly becoming the
type and most conspicuous entity of
our nation itself.
Lincoln specifically stated that his
mission, or. rather. his purpose, was
neither to preserve nor destroy slavery.
but to save the Union. The Union was
and is the body polite incarnating the
national soul. 1t is the vessel holding
the precious ointment, the temple con-
tanning the holy Of holies, the form ex-
pressing and perpetuating liberty.
1t was not merely the loss of a few
states that Lincoln faced and pre-
vented. 1t was the breaking up II
this body, the escape or destruction of
this American genius, the change of
our national life. To the one who saw
what blessings American liberty, de.
mocracy and cOnstructiveness would
mean to the future of the entire race
this would seem the greatest work that
man could perform. America was and
is the key to the worlds new civiliza-
ton, the prophet of political equals
all round the earth, the forerunner of
man-free, intelligent, energetic, con-
f1dent, redeemed and awakened man
man, the racial man, climbing the lad
der toward the type Of Lincoln.
1t did not happen by accident that
the men who directed our Revolution
constituted the greatest group seen on
this planet since the departure of those
surrounding the Nazarene. Such q
great inception means q greater mis-
sion. To measure that mission and its
influence on all men will require cen
turies.
On this new stem of Americanism,
this new plant of democracy growing
in fresh soil, men of the stamp Of
Lincoln were the natural and inevita-
bic fruit. He is perhaps the most COM
plete example, but he is by no means
peculiar nor alone. As said in the be-
SiuhAASs hC 10 ~ pC. hOuoduuS dp-
proach him; none perhaps reaches him
in all things. Studied from every
standpoint, he is about the most salts
flying human sample produced not only
by America. but by modern times-the
most satisfying when measured by the
/, intellect, by the heart or by the soul.
This Is not mere fulsome eulogy. 1t Is
the inevitable conclusion that is forced
on any student who goes deeply into
the nature Of Abraham Lincoln.
Happy is the land that has such
man for its humanized symbol!
y That the people felt Mr.. Lincoln's
universal Americanism was shown BY
the overwhelming grief Of all sections
at his death.
OF the assassination itself and Of the
scenes succeeding 1t 1t is unnecessary
to speak here. All this has become a
part Of the folklore Of the race. At
this length Of time, however, three
things stand out prominently-the sor-
row Of the private soldiers, Of the ne
groes and Of the plain people In
Washington, along the line traversed
BY the funeral train in it's journey to
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