Western news and the Libby times. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1920-1933, 1933-02-02

dent during q cTllleal peIl0u Ill Ills
nations history and his worldwide renown as =
great humanitarian portray him as the bearded
man of mature years and benign countenance
the Great Emancipation the Man OF Sorrows,
the martyr
In recent years. however, there has been a
tendency to perpetuate In bronze and stone GER
tain incidents In his earlier life which will men,
orIalize those formative years when the charac-
ter of the future American immortal was be-
Ing shaped and nodded So we have the rail- ;
Splitter statue In Garfield park In Chicago, the
"Black Hawk War Captain statue In Dixon, ILL.,.
the candidate" statue In Cincinnati. Ohio, and
the young Statesman" statue In Louisville ky.
The newest of these youthful Lincoln sta
tues lis the one which was erected last year on
the plaza of the Lincoln National Life Insurance
company at Fort Wayne, Ind. and which por-
trays Lincoln, the Hoosier Youth II Is the
work or the famous sculptor Paul Manship.
The main facts of Lincoln's earlier years are
well known to most Americans. thanks to the
palnstnklng labor of such bographers as Rev.
William Z. Barton, Senator Albert ]. Beverage
and Carl Sandburg and others who seem TO
have brought to light every single fact which
was significant In making Lincoln the man that
he became But 1t Ii doubtful II anything more
interesting has ever been written about that Pc
Rod of Lincoin's fife than the report of an
Overlooked interview with Dennis f. Hanks,
cousin and close companion of Lincoln, which
was set down by Robert Mcintyre, an attorney
OF Mattoon, H., In May. 1892. copy OF which
has recently come into the hands Of the author
of this article. The interview in part follows:
found him hale and erect, ready to recount
for the benefit of a younger generation, the In
cdents which marked the youth of the martyred
President. His name Is Dennis It. Hanks and
he is cousin to Lincoln. Uncle Dennis. as he
IL, {, 1Iaw
din county, 1900 Ills face Is sun-bronzed and
plowed with burrows OF time; resolute mouth
with firm grip Of the jaw; broad forehead above
pair Of unwearable eyes. The eyes seem out
of place, In the weary. faded face; they glow
and flash like two diamond sparks, set In ridges
OF dull gold. The face Is serious one, but
the play OF light In the eyes. unquenchable by
time, betrays the nature full of sunshine and
elate life. A sdewse glance at the profile shows
a face strikingy Lncon-like, prominent cheek
bones. temples, nose and chin; but best of all
that twinkng drollery In the eye that flashed
In the White House during the dark days of
the Civil war. To my query he replied cheerily:
Certainly, certainly, sir, I'll talk to you about
Abe kin talk. too. beln' as am the only vln'
man that knows all about him."
"How old was Mr. Lincoln when you first
met him?'
all the way, over two miles, TO see Nancy Hanks
boy baby. Twas common then for connexion to
gether In them days to see new babies. Her
name was Nancy Hanks before she married
Thomas Lincoln. | held the wee one mnnlt
was ten years old. and Il tickled me to hold the
PUPPY red. little Lincoln"
\ 4When did you move to IndianaT
When Abe was about nine. Mr. Lincoln moved
dist, and built camp of brush In Spencer coun-
LAT ha fba hod
cabin up and he gave US the shanty. On this
spot Abe grew to manhood"
slow far apart were your cabns?'
about fifteen rods. Abe killed turkey the
day we got there an couldn't get thro tellin'
about It, The name was pronounced Lnkhorn