The Washington herald., 1909-02-07

I
Baker, stephen T. Logan. his law part
ner. and John ]. Hardin II was said
that the four reached an agreement by
which they were 70 have the honor in
turns, but the agreement may have been
assumed from the fact that they did '.ro-
tate" IN the offlce. But I.incolns letters
tell the story. In March, lsfs. he wrote
Speed:
We had a meeting Of the Wings Of the
county here on last Monday TO appoint
delegates to the district convention. and
Baker beat me and got the delegation In
structed TO &c for him The meeting. in
spite Of my attempt to decline 1t. ap-
pointed me one Of the delegates. 50 that
in getting Baker the nomination I shall
be fixed a good deal ike the fellow who
is made groOmsman 10 q man that has
cut him out and is marrying hls own
dear girl.
Tells of His Defeat.
Then he wrote to another friend, over
in Menard County. telling how he had
been defeated: 1T is truly gratifying
10 me to learn that while the people Of
SangsmOn have cast me of. my old
friends OF Menard. who have known me
longest and best. stick TO me. Il would
sstOnish. IL not amuse. the cider citizens
70 learn that I "a strange, friendless, IN
edcsted, penniless boy. working on a fat
boat at ten dollars per month"; have been
put down here as the candidate Of pride.
wealth, and arist0eratic family dlstinc-
ton. Yet 50, chiefly, il was. There vas,
too the strangest combination of church
influence against me. Baker Is a Camp
beilite, and therefore. as I suppose, Nith
few exceptions, got all that church. Ny
wife has some relations IN the Presby-
terian churches and some with the Epis-
copalian Church. and. therefore. whenever
IL would tell, 7 was set down as either
the one OF the other. while il was every
where contended that no Christian ought
10 go for me. because I belonged to no
church. was suspected OF being a deist.
and had talked about fighting a duel
With all these things. Of course, Baker
had nothing 10 DO. nor do l complain OF
them
But as it turned out. neither Baker nor /
Lincoln was nominated. The convention /
az Pekin named Instead Hardin, OF Nor I
gan, who was elected.
A change IN the time OF holding the 4
Congressional elections brought on an 4
other campaign the following year. 1874, /
and then Baker was nominated, Lincoln 4
publicly declaring in his favor. Lincoln 1
himself was on the Whig electoral ticket, /
and campaigned vigorously for the idol /
OF his youth, Henry Clay. The defeat OF /
Clay was bitter disappointment 10 him. Z
as II WRs 10 all good Wings, but Lincoln 4
did not brood long over the disaster: ne !
went 10 work in his quiet, altogether sf-
hcient way. pulling wires for the Con-
gressional nomination in 1876. Hardin
and Baker, both having enjoyed the
honor, the choice seemed TO lie between
Lincoln and Logan, and when the con-
vention met al Petersburg on May ].
1876, Hardin withdrew and Logan pre-
sented Lincoln's name to the convention.
Peter Cartwright Opposed Him.
Linc0ln's opponent on the Democratic
ticket was old Peter Cartwright, the pio-
neer Methodist preacher. who made q
campaign against Lincoln as vigorous as
any of his camp meeting "revivals" had
ever been All the old charges OF "aris-
tocracy" were brought out. a too temper
ate temperance speech was revealed. and
Cartwright, Of course. made much OF the
charge Of deism. But Lincoln was cleo
ted.
When he went 10 Washington in De-
cember. lSs., the Mexican war was on. \
and for the second time in his political
career he had 10 choose between prin-
,iple and expediency Throughout his
whole career he was ever the man 10
,hOOse an expedient II il would possibly
answer; he was just and fair and COM
and he was an intelligent op-
0ortUnist; he would never have got
through the civil war il he had not been.
'ut, though he might compromise with
nen, ne would not compromise with prin-
iple- His constituents were all for the
var. right or wrong; but Lincoln knew
he war 10 be wrong, and said so. and he |
wrote 10 HerndOn justifying his course
Fought In the Open.
Il vas the Spot resolutions that did /
C.. that famous and mastery interpeIia-
ion Of Poiks administration which Polk .
lever answered and never could have f.,
answered; and he delivered a speech in
support Of the resolutions which told ,
against him at home. Though he had !
hought Of denomination, and would have /
liked 10 be returned he chose not to !
'skUlk.' and he would rather vote for
he truth than fer a lie" Thus he was I
lot renominated. and in keeping with ,
ne sgTeement-if there vas an agree ]
in 1875 was named. But :
-incOln's course as 10 the war had been J
atal not only 10 him. but TO the party. / !
nd Logan was defeated
Lincoln tried 20 obtain appointment as :
Of the General Land Of
Ice, and failed. Then he was offered the
'OSttiOn OF governor Of the TERRITORY of ,
oregon, but. fortunately for him. fortll- :
lately for the nation, fortunately for hu- :
nanity, Mrs. Lincoln put her foot down :
nd said No and he went back 20 I :
springfield a disiIlusioned, saddened, and
disappointed man. He had desired place. :
nd power, and distinction, and had :
ought them for himself in the political ;
ED. and they had not come. Twice his !
TincIples had held him back from drift / ?
lg with the popular tide-once at Van :
ala, once al Washington. The exper- ;,
snce at Vandalia had not injured his !
respects. the experience at Washington ;
ad, and, as he thought, ruined them. .
nd he took his old saddiebags and ?
Mounted his horse 10 go out on the cir !.
uit with Judge Davis court. resolved :
D abandon politics and be resigned to the .
bscurity Of a county lawyer in muddy :
Illinois.
One morning in May, In the year 1874
udge 7. Lyle Dickey awoke in his room :
{ tavern where the lawyers in the old :
ighth circuit were staying, and saw, in y
he early morning light, the gaunt fig :
re OF Lincoln sitting up In his bed. The
oble head, with its shock OF disordered
lack hair. was held IN the strong. beau
full hsnds-the hands that had worked q
D hard. the hands that had such heavy ?
)il TO do.
I tel YOU. Dickey." Lincoln exelaim-
., when he saw his roommate was b
wake, this nation cannot exist half n
ave and half free a
II. -.
Then Diekey remembered that they had z
cen arguing about slavery when they !.
ent to bed the night before. Lincoln,
ldeed. had argued with the lawyers in
ont Of the tavern all evening; he talked
nothing else For the news OF the +
ansas-Nebraska bin had just come. and v