Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1909-02-18
Continued from First page.
and was a product of the peculiar con
ditions of American life.

and was product of the peculiar con-
ditions of American life.
Into this wilderness of the West
ern continent strong and courageous
men entered, an army of home makers.
They battled with forest and savage.
and titled the virgin soil. This con-
quest of nature developed new type
of life and character. Washington
stands upon the border line of Eng
lish and American history. Lincoln
looms up from the very heart of Amer
lean life, true and characteristic son
of the new Republic.
He passed his youthful period in
a hard struggle with natures forces.
Less than six months of his life in
cluded his schooling. He had a splen-
did physique, as strong as iron. Lin
coin could lift thousand pounds.
And yet he was never a bully. That
strength he always used in behalf of
the weak and helpless. His associa-
lions were far from ideal. But Lin
coin never was addicted to drink, and
for years was a total abstainer. His
great, healthy nature overlooked with
good humor, and he carried good
cheer with him everywhere. He had
a thirst for knowledge, and would
walk twenty miles for a good book.
He was so honest that when he made
some slight mistake when a store
keeper, in his own favor, he always
made haste to overtake his customer,
and correct the error. After his SER
vice as postmaster, the inspector, sew
eral years later, carried his account
to Lincoln and showed that balance
of several dollars was on the side of
the government Lincoln brought out
the exact sum tied up in handker-
chief, and handing it to the official,
said: Il never use for myself the mon
ey that belongs to another.
He was always magnanimous and
never carried hatred against a single
man.
Although defeated twice for seat
in the U. S. Senate, and although he
admitted that he would rather repre-
sent his State for six years in the
Senate than be President, he was not
embittered by his defeat.
When President, he called into his
cabinet the greatest men of his party.
Some of these men felt that Lincoln
held the position which they ought to
have, received.
VIM. H. Seward was the leading
candidate for the Presidency in 1860.
Lincoln offers him the portfolio of
the Secretary of State. Chase, of
Ohio, the Secretary of the Treasury,
insulted the President and said to his
people, a montebank filled the place
of the chief executive. Later, upon
!, ic, r,Io in hn nah
cause of some supposed grievance,
Lincoln was great enough to name
him for a Justice of the Supreme
Court of the U. S., when vacancy oc-
Cured. Within month after his in
auguration, Seward wrote a private
note offering to perform all the duties
of the Presidency, and leave the orna-
ments of its name and station to Lin
coin. The Auburn statesman received
in reply letter which ignored the in
suit, but said in effect: Il will run the
administration, and you run your de-
partment, except when / think you
had better run it, in some other. way.
A vein Of humor ran through his ma
ture which these dignified statesmen
could not understand. His quaint
stories and illustrations they thought
beneath thedignity of one in his Off
cial position. They did not realize
the awful burdens resting upon his
heart / think he was the saddest man
in history. Were it not for the fact
that the sunlight of humor broke
across the clouds that hung upon him
he would have been buried beneath
the weight of the cares of those years.
A messenger summoned the cabinet
to the White House. The first to en-
ter was the stately, dignified, always
proper Secretary of the Treasury, Sal
mon p Chase. The President looked
up from the book he was reading, and
said: Mr.. Chase, was just reading a
most interesting work, which en-
joyed more than anything | have met
with in long time" Then he began
reading to him from Artemus Wards
WAX figgers' The astonished and
irritated Secretary of the Treasury
listened as the other members of the
ed, Mr. President, we did not come
here to hear this idiotic nonsense.
For what are we summoned?" Mr..
Lincoln opened drawer in his desk,
and pulled out paper said: Gentle
men, I summoned you to submit this
paper; not to ask your advice as to
whether Ishould issue it or not, be-
cause intend to issue it no matter
what your advice may be, but to ask
suggestions as to it's FORM" and he
read to them his Emancipation Proc
Iamation which was to set four million
human beings free; the document
which was to relieve the Constitution
of the curse of slavery; the document
which was to make the Declaration of
Independence, for the first time in
our history, the vital force in the
principles and policies of our govern
ment A few suggestions were made,
a few hesitating protests against the
determination of the President for
publication, an earnest request for
delay until victory should come, and
then that most memorable of cabinet
meetings in the history of the U. S.
adjourned, and as they filed out, the