Rocky Ford enterprise., 1912-02-09


"LincoIn's Substitute" From a Pho
tograph Taken a Few Years Before
His Death.
ally: "It does not appear from the
official records of the department
that President Lincoln ever furnished
substitute" Another informed me
that Abraham Lincoln was not liable
to draft" fact of which l was al
ready well aware. Had not such been
the case the employment of a substi-
tute would have lost all significance.
But personal search through the
official records of the Civil war
brought to light reference to "Abra-
ham Lincoln. principal. and John Sta
pies, recruit. both of the District of
Columbia" And on another page ap-
peared an entry to the effect that Lin
coin wished a representative recruit.
and same was assigned as private to
Company H of the Second regiment.
d. C. infantry. With these entries as
a base of operations 1t became pos
sible to trace the substitute, and the
discovery was made that John s. Sta
pies was buried in Stroudsburg, Pa.
Further details were furnished by Mr..
John W. Burnett of Massachusetts,.
comrade of Staples. in the following
letter:
81 well recall the military career of
J. 8. Staples Of my regiment. The
awful losses of the Union army, east
and west, were weighing heavily on
dear Lincoln. and he. with others in
STABILITY of having personal repre-
sentatives in the field for those not
eligible for service at all. According
to my recollection. in the fall or late
summer of 1864 Mr.. Lincoln had
committee of citizens of the District
of Columbia search for as perfect a
specimen of physical manhood as
could be found to become his repre-
sentative recruit. This committee. or
some of them, met my dear comrade
(Staples) on the streets of George
town, and seeing his superbly COM
pact form, and being at once satisfied
that he was the man worthy to be
Lincoln's representative in the army,
they made a proposition to him. and
the loyal boy-for he was but boy
at once signified his desire to fill the
honorable position. He was soon aft
erward introduced to President Lin
coin, and the latter gladly chose him
as his representative.
Although the communication re-
ceived from Mr.. Burnett was as con-
vincing as one could wish, yet 1t was
clear that without governmental sane
tion there still would remain doubling
Thomases who would dispute the
claim made in behalf of the dead sol
dier. Therefore, the facts in the case
were laid before the federal authori-
ties, and / received from the office of
the commissioner of pension at Wash
ington an official statement confirming
the entire tradition concerning Lin
coin and his substitute. This docu-
ment reads as follows:
Department of the Interior,
Bureau of Pensions
Washington, May IL, 1910.
John Summerfield Staples, residing
at Stroudsburg. Pa, filed an applica-
tion for pension in 1882. stating that
in the Civil war he had served in Com
pany C, One Hundred and Seventy
sixth Pennsylvania militia, and after
wards in Company H, Second District
of Columbia infantry. and that in his
second enlistment he was a substitute
for President Lincoln.
THE records show that said soldier
enlisted November 2, 1862, in Com
pany C, One Hundred and Seventy
sixth Pennsylvania drafted militia,
that he was honorably discharged
Nav D. 1863 and that he afterward
enlisted April 3. 1864, in Company ii,
Second District of Columbia volun-
teers. from which he was honorably
discharged at Alexandria, Va, Sep
tember IL, 1865, and the record also
show that in this last service he was
enrolled as a representative recruit
for Abraham Lincoln, who was not
liable to draft.
'It is shown by the papers on file
in this case that during the war Presi-
dent Lincoln decided that he would
place in the army substitute to the
credit of the District of Columbia, and
that he communicated his desire to do
so to the provost marshal of the dis
trict. with a request that he select the
person who should be placed in the
service. and that the provost marshal
then sent for Noble ID. Larner then a
prominent citizen of this city, and
stated to him the presidents. wishes,
and Mr.. Larner afterward succeeded
in getting the substitute in the person