Douglas daily dispatch., 1926-07-27
R. T. Lincoln, Son of
Famous President, Dies
tcontinued rrom rage one1

weeks had not been noticeably poorer,
however, and he took his customary
ride yesterday, but this morning when
servants went to awaken him, they
found him dead.
Mrs. Lincoln, two daughters and
three grandchildren survive him. Mrs
Lincoln and two of his grandchildren,
Mary Lincoln Beckwith and Roberty
Teddy Lincoln Beckwith, were at his
summer home here when he passed
! away.
A simple funeral service will be
held at the summer home here on
"Wednesday. Members of the family
said it would be distinctly private.
The body will be placed in the vault
at Dellwood cemetery, Manchester, and
later will be taken to Springfield Ill,
for interment in the family tomb.
| Fate and circumstance so united
that Robert Todd Lincoln, last of the
Great EmancipatorS immediate fam
lily to bear the name, was present at
the assassination of two American
presidents and within sound of the
shots that mortally wounded third
When young Lincoln was graduated
from Harvard in 1864, his father
granted his request to enter the army
AS captain and member of General
Grants staff, he witnessed the fall Of
Petersburg and the surrender of Cen
eral Lee at Appomattox
Hurrying to washington, the cap
tain arrived there on April IA and
gave his father the first definite news
of the surrender. On the evening of
the same day he was in Ford's theatre
when John Wilkes Booth shot and
fatally wounded the president
Later in life, Lincoln, although adj
verse to holding public office, became
secretary of war in President Gar
fields cabinet He was supposed to
accompany the chief executive on
trip to the New England states, July
2, 1881, but last minute development
prevented. He went to the station to
explain. arriving just as Guiteau shot
Garfield.
Lincoln was among the many promi
nent men invited to the Buffaol ex
position in 1901 and was nearby, Sep
tember 6, when Leon Czolosz, an an
archist. fired twice at President Will
liam Mckinley from close range. one
of the bullets causing the executives
death eight days later.
After this, Lincoln avoided public
association with presidents and once,
when a friend asked if he would at
tend a, presidential function, he re-
piled:
mo, Pm not going and they'd bet
ter not invite me, because there is a
certain fatality about presidential
functions when I am present"
Robert was Abraham Lincoln's first
child, born August l, 1843, in Spring
field Ill. He not only was the eldest
of five children, but he outlived them
all. Before attending Harvard, he
was a student in the University Of
Illinnois> and Phillips Academy, Exeter.
New Hampshire.
Inheriting virtually none of the ply
sical characteristics of his father, Lin
coin also was Widely different in 9TH
er respects. He preferred the practice
of law to politics and the glamor of
public office and finally became head
of the Pullman company after being
it's counsellor for many years.
Besides serving in Garfields cabinet,
however, Lincoln was minister to Great
Britain four years under President
Harrison. Previously, he had been
mentioned for the presidency, but dis
| couraged efforts in his behalf.
| His retiring nature sometimes made
it appear to many that he was tacti-
| turn, but his close friends described
him as a warm hearted, lovable,
charming gentleman" He was de-
| lightful conversationalist, a great re-
! contour and if he knew his companions
i well, he would talk without reserve.
| ST think that in his early days those
who met him talked so much about his
! father and expected him to chat on the
subject that he withdrew into she'll
of reticence, the protecting confines of
wich he later enlarged" one of his
/, friends said
others said Lincoln feared a false i'm
preston might get out that he was
capitalizing the fact that he was the
presidents son.
| On September "a, 1868, he married
Miss Mary Harlan, daughter of James
Harlan, who served as senator from
I Iowa. Three children were born to
them, two girls and boy, Jack Lin
coin, who died while attending school
| in France.
! The murder of his father threw upon
i Lincoln the management OF affairs of
! the family. After the funeral he left
| Washington with his mother and went
to Chicago, as he felt the necessity of.
! entering Immediately upon business
/ career. He had studied law and was
admitted to membership in leading
/ law firm of Chicagot resigning his
army commission.
| Lincoln continued the practice of law
until he was calleo to Washington by
President Garfield in 1881, to be Sec
retary of war. He served in this po-
sition four years under President Gar
field and President Arthur and then
! returned to his profession.
In 1880, Lincoln was elected dele
gate to the republican national conven-
tion of that year, but his place in the
convention hall was filled by Stephen