The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1909-02-12

busy In politics. He was creating the
Republican party Of Iilinois even be-
fore the name had been chosen. He
was going out from Springfield TO ut
tie gatherings ut schoolhouses and
country stores, talking about the new
party and outlining what principles
IL should build upon He was scrtb-
bling tentative platforms. The old
WING leaders of the State capttaland
at the county seats were wondering
what was going to happen. and walt
ing for some kind uf revelation OF
public drift. Lincoln paying ittt,e
heed TO the leaders, was making semi
timent with the people, organizing
from the neighborhood and the school
district upward. He was constructing
the Republican, party Of Illinois. The
man who so handy with the manual
tools that he could turn out cabinet
work was putting together mentally,
the framework OF a political prgnni-
zation which at the end of the decade
was to sweep the country. And he
was doing 1t quietly and with so lit
tie surface indication that the politi-
clans did not appreciate what was go
ing on; they thought ABE Lincoln"
had gone out OF politics and was CIV
ing his whole attention to law bus
mess. They never did realize, as did
Haworth and the other young I'M
knowns to whom Lincoln had glen the
commission of local organizers, the
constructive work done by him dong
before the Bloomington convention
was called to from the State organiza-
ton.
REALIZED POLITICAL VALUE.
Mr.. Lincoln, Mr.. Haworth thinks
had no part in the rail incident. He
was in the Republican, movement be-
cause of the principles it represented
But Lincoln was too good a politi-
clan TO discourage the use of the rails
when he saw how his rail-spiitting
record appealed to the every day hu-
man interest.
Mr. LINCOLN said Mr. Haworth,
obtained one of these rails OF his own
splitting and had made for me the
cane and gavel l have. The two
were sent to me at Danville by ex-
press. The next time | met Mr.. lin
coin l thanked him for the remem-
berance. He said he had sent me
the cane thinking ] would have use
for it when became old. You know,
he added. the wicked generally do live
to become old Referring to the gavel
Mr.. Lincoln said to me: 4 want you
to arrange to go into the campaign
for me- / said Mr.. Lincoln, | always
thought you a man of Judgment He
replied. Take these relics and go
before the people explaining how you
got them Well, the result was / ar
ranged matters so as to leave the
farm and went through the counties i
my part of the Stae holding meetings
at the schoolhouses. A man went
ahead Of me making appointments
drove from schoolhouse to schoolhous
holding three or four meetings a day,
showing the gavel and cane and telling
the story about them. In thirty days,
by the account kept, | attended over
100 of these meetings. In the same
time, according TO a record made there
were at these meetings over 1000
changes of Democrats to become Re-
publicans. That was the way we
swept Illinois for lincoln"
After that campaign his neighbors
in Vermillion called MIR. Haworth the
father of the Republican party" When
he moved away in 1870 to settle in
Kansas, a farewell meeting was held
and Mr.. Haworth was given the ID
tie of THE grandfather of the Repub-
lican party" of Veqlmllion.
81 suppose that now / am entitled
to be called one of the great-grand-
fathers of the Republican party" said
Mr.. Hawonth, with a twinkle OF the
atra