The Coolidge examiner., 1935-02-08

.N\I work before adJournlng That day
NCCg~css one OF its members was twenty six
90 years old but u is doubtful II he
paid much attention 20 the ami
versary. Nor Is q likely tha, his felow-legis.
lators n indeed they knew about Il. took the
trouble to congratulate him and wish him many
happy returns OF the day" For he was just an
obscure member of the lower house from Sanga-
mon county
lie had been an honest but unsuccessful store.
keeper In the little hamle, of New Salem and a
captain of volunteers In the Black Hawk war.
But he bad won no particular distinction in that
unlmportant conflict nor had his brief military
career helped him much politically. An unsuc.
cessful candidate for the legislature 10 the au-
tumn Of lSf2 be had spill, rails and done various
other odd Jobs 90 make living while studying
Law by himself Chosen postmaster OF New Sa.
lem he had BEEN successful In his second attemp;
20 win a seat In the general assembly. but dur.
ing the session coming 10 n close be had
done nothing 20 single him out among bis fel
lows a conner
They knew him as n droll fellow who could set
a group OF into a gale OF laughter with one OF
his funny stories. told IN bis hlsh-pitched. sing
song. nasal voice. Yes. Abe Lincoln was good
company but there was no reason 20 believe
that he would ever become famous 80 the fact
that February Il was bis birthday didn't mean
ir the little twc-story brick building In Van
dalla-the capital of the sovereign state OF Tii.
nois II they could have looked into the future
and S~cn how that date observed In every
part Of the United States. how their eyes would
have bured wIth surprise Can't you hear them
sxclalmlnE: In honor Of Abe IIncolng Why
faint possible. no-howi"1
80 the celebration" OF Lncoln's birthday
hundred years ago was no celebration at ALL for
man himself. considered II of any Importance
But Il Is worthy of remembrance for the reason
that his biographer Albert ]. BeverIdge has
pointed ont In this paragraph from his Abraham
Lincoln. iSl9iS tHouEhton Minlln company ::
Finally. by the dim light OF candles. the gen.
eral assembly finished It's work and. sometime
before midnight February H. 1875 adjourned
sine die. Ills first legislative experience thus
ended. Lincoln went back 10 New salem and
again took up his surveying and handling OF the
scanty mail The sum of his sojourn In Van.
dala had been the making OF friends. lessons
In legislative procedure and manipulation and
the acquiring OF basic procedure and constitu-
tional principles lie had heard great questions
discussed by able and Informed men. lie had
met cultivated women. too. and. In short had
visited = new world Small wonder that. when
he reached New Salem. he plunged Into study
with such abandon that his health suffered and
his friends thought him mentally affected. Hence
forth the los-cabln hamlet on the Sangamon
held little or nothing that was attractive to the
aspiring young Lincoln
So perhaps IL Is not too much 10 say that the
greatness that was 10 be Abraham Lncoln's
dates from that February day. a hundred years
ago. when be turned his back on the scene Of
his first appearance on the stage OF public af-
fairs. Neither the scene nor his appearance upon
IL were especially impressive. Beveridge has
given Us an excellent description Of both lie
writes:
-Upoa the west blun OF the Kaskaskla river.
sixty teet above high water stood In 1854. per
haps a hundred buildings All but two were OF
wood. some % them frame structures. but most
Of them log cabins A little frame Presbyterian
church house. without a steeple nestled on a
side street. while still smaller building served
for all other religious denominations as well as
for school purposes and public gatherings.
Five six Of the bigger houses were taverns
or boarding places, two OF them would accomuo-
date thirty or forty persons though they were
not entirely finished
About eight hundred people. including chill
dren. lived in the town. and the adjacent country
was scantily settled; but marriages were fire.
Quent. For the most part the surrounding land
was heavily timbered. but TO the north and west
rolling prairies stretched into the horizon The
river bottoms were covered thickly with great
trees, vines and all manner OF rank vegetation:
and from this valley came at the seasonable
time clouds OF mosquitoes.
The streets of the village were eighty feet
In width. deep with mud or dust according 10
the weather. There were no sidewalks Two main
roads ran through the place. one the National
road. scarcely opened as yet In this section
from Washington seven hundred and eighty-one
miles distant - St Louis eighty-two miles to
the southwest Mails from Philadelphia and
other eastern cities were between two and three
weeks on the way.