The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1909-02-16

l their red baldricks. and carrying the l United States flag draped in crape, l owing to the death of MT. Wells who
 was a charter member of that body. 1 Jerome Mays orchestra of seven pieces
 assisted the choir in furnishing the l music. and at the conclusion of the | sermon the audience united in singing
 America. The text of the sermon was: ! T have exalted one chosen out of the ] people," The preacher said that in | this day we have swung so far from l a belief in God, in the affairs of men, 1 that we have almost become atheists But God has always had hand in | the affairs of this nation. He has used
 men as his instruments to bring about great and unforeseen results. When Washington went into the war of the Revolution he had no thought of the
 separation of this country from Eng land: and when Lincoln found himself the President of the United States, with great war on his hands, he did not expect to be the emancipation of race. His one great object was to pre- serve the Union. God interfered in our affairs and raised up Abraham Lin
 coln. He was almost unknown to the
 people. certainly to the country at
 large. The people of the circuit which
 he rode knew him. and after the de-
 bate with Douglas he was known by
 reputation to many more. Many men
 in Springfield did not know him even
 at the time of his nomination. The
 story is told of an Englishman who
 kept butcher shop. One day man
 came in and said he wished he could
 see the man who had been nominated
 for the President of the United States.
 You just saw him. was the reply.
 'He has just gone out" What. that
 man who bought ten cents worth of
 meatv' Yes" was the answer. "and
 he is going to take it to his room and
 cook it.'' Such was the humble posi-
 tion occupied by the man who was to
 be exalted. Mr. Bullock traced Lin
 coIn's wonderful life from the dreary
 cabin where he was born and which is
 so soon to be enshrined i'll marble palace. to the moment of his assas-
 sination at Ford's theatre. He spoke of the death of his mother. and how Lincoln once said that all the goodness
 he possessed he owed to his angel
 mother. And one of the first letters
 Lincoln ever wrote was to a clergyman
 whom he asked to come when he could
 and preach a funeral sermon for his
 mother. A year went by before. this
 wish could be fulfilled. and then the
 sermon was delivered out of doors un
 der tree. and we may we'll believe
 there was unsealed a fountain of grief
 in the poor boys heart. Christianity,
 said the preacher. does not need the name of a great man to glorify or ad
 Nd1lCS IL. DuI Wn61i d llid1l DSCOIHeS d
 Christian he is glorified. If we can prove that Lincoln accepted religion and believed in God. even if he did not publicly unite with some church, then we show that he was a Christian man. Of the many biographies written of Lincoln only two intimate that he was an unbeliever. One of these was by William Herndon. his partner, and he rather insnuates that Lincoln was a | free thinker than making a positive | statement to that effect.
 Sometime ago. in paper called the | Truth Seeker. the organ of a certain | sect of people, there was a story to the | effect that Lincoln entertained agnostic | opinions. but later had accepted some | of the doctrines of Christianity. This i paper averred that. Lincoln denied the divinity of Christ and held that Robert | Burns and Thomas Paine were as much inspired as the Apostles. This
 was confuted by MT. Bullock, who read many statements and extracts from Lincoln's known life and ad- dresses, which show conclusively that he did believe in an over ruling Provi- dence and that he often prayed to God fer help. and himself said that just before the battle of Gettysburg he had thrown all the responsibility on God. and that great burden had been taken from his shoulders. It is likely true that when young man he met at Salem. Ills, a band Of free thinkers ana heard their addresses and read some of their books. but he had the to break away from them, and mark out a course of conduct for himself. Disbelief did not hold him. I think rather highly of the young man. said Mr. Bullock. who comes up out of the dark valley of doubt into the pure sunshine of truth. While living in Springfield every Sunday Lincoln went to the Presbyterian church. and he did the same while in Washington. at- tending the New York Avenue Pres byterian church of which Dr. Gurley was the pastor. His pew in that church is as sacred to-day as the pew in St. Johns in Alexandria. where worshiped. When Lin coln left Springfield. on that memor- able journey to Washington. he asked his neighbors to pray for him. Refer ance was made to the letter he wrote to his dying father in 1857. and MT. Bullock said men do not laugh at divine things; they do not trifle with !, father when he is dying. This man believed in God: in the power of pray