Putnam patriot., 1909-02-19
closed forever


7
Washington and Lincoln. They were
alike in essentials-they were alike In
| the great qualities which rendered each
able TO render service TO his nation
and to all mankind such as no other
| man of his generation could or did
| render. There have been other men as
| great and other meB as good. but in
| all the history of mankind there are
| no other two great men as good as
these. no other two good men as great.
Widely though the problems Of today
| differ from the problems set for sou
ton to Washington when he founded
this nation. to Lincoln when be saved
Ii and freed the slave. vet the qualities
they showed in meeting these prob
lens are exactly the same rs those we
should show in doing onr work today
lincoln saw info the future with the
prophetic in1a gination usually vouch
safed only 10 the poet and the seer
He had I'm him all the lift toward
greatness Of the visionary. without
any of the vfsionary's fanaticism or
egotism. without any Of the vision
ary's narrow jealousy of the practical
man and inability To strive In prac
teal fashion for the rea lizafien Of an
ideal. No more practical man ever liv
ed than this homely hackwoods ideal
ist. but be had nothing In common with
those practical men whose conseiences
are warped until they fail to distin-
guish between good and evil. fail to
understand that strength. ability.
shrewdness. whether in the world of
business or of politics, only serve to
make their pessessor a more nexious
more evil member of the communi-
ty. II they are not guided and con-
trolled by fine and high moral sense
lincoin's Qualities Needed Now.
We of this day must try to solve
many social and Industrial problems
requiring to an especial degree the
combination of indomitable resolution
with cool headed sanity. We can profit
by the way In which Lincoln used both
these traits as he stroxe for reform
We can learn much of value from the
very attacks which following that
course brought upon his head. attacks
alike by the extremists of revolution
and by the extremists of reaction. He
never wavered in devotion to his prin-
ciples in his love for the Union and in
his adherence of slavery Timid and
lukewarm people were always denounc-
ing him because he was too extreme;
but. as matter of fact. he never went
to extremes.
Yet perhaps the most wonderful
thing of all and. from the standpoint
Of the America of today and OF the
future. the most vitality important was
the extraordinary way In which Lin
coin could fight valiantly against
what he deemed wrong and yet pre-
serve undiminished his love and re-
spect for the brother from whom he
differed In the hour of triumph
that would have turned any weaker
mans head. in the heat of a struggle
which spurred many a good man to
dreadful vindictiveness he said truth
fully that so long as he had been In
his office he had never willingly plant
ed a thorn in any mans bosom and
besought his supporters to study the
incidents of the trial through which
they were passing as philosophy from
which To learn wisdom and not as
wrongs to be avenged. ending with
the solemn exhortatiop that. as the
strife was over. all should reunite in
a common effort to save their common
country
"Mishtisst of Americans"
He lived in days that were great
and terrible. when brother fought
against brother for what each sincere
ly deemed to be the right. in con-
test so grim the strong men who alone
can carry il through are rarely able to
do justice To the deep convictions OF
those with whom they grapple III NOR
tai strife AT such times men see
through glass darkly To only the
rarest and Hottest spirits is vouch-
safed that clear vision which gradually
comes to all. even to the lesser. as the
struggle fades into distance and
wounds are forgotten and peace creeps
back to the hearts that were hurt. But
to Lincoln was given this supreme VI
sion He did not hate the man from
whom be differed Weakness was as
foreign as WlcheuHeSS 10 HIS slTOnS,
gentle nature But his courage was of
n quality so high that 1t needed no
bolstering of dark passion. He saw
clearly that the same high qualities,
the same courage and willingness for
self sacrifice and devotion TO the right
rs 1t was given them to see the right.
belonged both to the men of the north
and TO the men of the south. As the
years roll by and as all of us. wher-
ever we dwell. grow to feel an equal
bride in the valor and self devotion.
alike of the men who wore the blue
and the men who wore the gray. so
this whole nation will grow to feel a
peculiar sense of pride in the mightiest
Of the mighty men who mastered the
mighty DAYS. the lover of his country
and of all mankind. the man whose
blood was shed for the union of his
people and for the. freedom of race,
Abraham Lincoln.
Separated.
"Some men are fond of work, and