Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1921-02-06
When Lincoln Lost
His Inaugural Speech

during the four months "h'ch II"
l. tervened between the election OF
Ah-ab.m Lincoln and his Inaugural
ton, besides other and many u"''e'
he devoted himself to writing MS
inaugural address. This first inaugural
speech, now become Classic was
written in a quiet room on the seco"'
floor of the building occupied py MS
hrotber.;n-law. as store, and near
tho statehouse, in which Lincoln was
Installed in the governors roofii'
shortly after his election.
II u-as This address which gave Lii
coin what he described as the ihosl
egonizins half hour he ever speii
With the care and secrecy Wh,ch ~.
surrounds the preparation anu =. 90
ing of an inaugural address, .hiS
nous document was written ana piacen
in tho hands of one of the editorS oi
newspaper, the Illinois State Jouiual'
The editor with single coniposi.o,'
locked himself in the composing Ioo d
TIE sneech was set up. proof TAKEN anu
read and a dozen copies prlnteo, ar ,;'
hitch the type was Immediately us
t-:huted This was all done almost un
der the eyes of the correspondents Win
whom Lincoln daily talked. ia
Mr.. Seward and other advisers nag
suggested that owing to the ieyeflsn
Site of the country it would De Wen
for the President ELECT to arrive ~
Washington some days aneao Vi .ne
inauguration. This could De ar
ranged, as he had receives ,t ,ha al the
principal cities through when ne
would have to pass and ADDRESS lhe
legislatures and other pubic poulssi
lincoln. decided to leave SprinGneid
BY SPECIAL train on FEBRUARY II. a.
children, his two private secretaries
and about a dozen personal frienos:
The inaugural address. which hao
been so carefully guarded, WAS
placed by Lincoln himself IN a sHali,
old Fashioned oilcIoth carpet bag and
;ntrusfed to his son Robert to carry,
without. however, explaining its con-
On the journey young Lincoln: VINO
was having his first real taste OF OF
public life. enjoyed every in rr,vsd
at Indianapolis. ne was so bent on
seeing the sights that he hurried
to the hotel ahead OF his distinguish
ed father, gave the carpet bag to the
hotel clerk n, with vi eni H,ne himself ali"
Lincoln had hardly settled in his
room when he remembered the pre-
cious message. but the bag containing
il was nowhere to be seen. 1t Is said
that his anguish Wa 90 hS
n;ctured to himself the theatricaifty
Of the situation. as word after word
of his inaugural address would be
flashed over the wires ana appear
in flaming headlines in the morning
papers. He knew the country to be
waiting with ill-concealed impotence
for some official utterance from him
upon a situation already tense to the
point of breaking.
He hurried down to the hotel of.
fee to inquire about the bag. and
seeing a pile of luggage behind the
counter, cleared the latter with a single
spring and began to search like mad
Carpet bag after carpet bag was torn
open until there. quite at the bottor-.
lay the little black oilcloth one Coz
tanning the speech.
1t was for the English critics TO
discover for America the wonderful
strength. purity and choice of Linz
coins English as exhibited in the
first and second inaugural addresses !,
and the Gettysburg address. all of
which have now been translated into
many languages.