Evening star., 1936-06-28
Capital Sidelights
BY WILL P. KENNEDY.

One of the most-quoted men in Amer
lean history has been misquoted on one
of the subjects on which he has been
most quoted-Abraham Lincoln. This
has just been emphasized to his COL
leagues in the House by Representative
John J. Cochran of Missouri-With the
support of the Library of Congress.
The quotation in question, attributed
to Lincoln, is sort of prophecy that if
the growth of monopolies continued in
the United States it would be most de-
structive to the country-"I see, in the
future, a crisis approaching" etc. Ex-
tensive research by the Library of Con-
gress fails to disclose that Lincoln ever
uttered these words The Library quotes
Mis- Helen Nicolay. daughter of John G.
Nicolay, one of Lincoln secretaries, in
her book, Personal Traits of Abraham
Lincoln"-that among spurious quota
tions the one her father was called
upon to deny most frequently was this
one. 1t made its first appearance in
the presidential campaign of 1888. Nico-
lay. although convinced by internal evi-
dence of it's falsity, made every effort
to trace it to its source. but could find
no responsible. respectable clue
The entire quotation is:
"Yes: We can all congratulate our
selves that this cruel war is drawing to
a close. It has cost vast amount Of
treasure and blood. The best blood of
the flower of American youth has been
freely offered upon our country's altar
that the Nation might live. 1t has been
a trying hour for the Republic, but see
in the near future crisis arising which
unnerves me and causes me to tremble
for the safety Of my country. AS re-
suit Of the war corporations have been
enthroned, and an era Of corruption in
high places will follow, and the money
power Of the country will endeavor to
prolong its reign by working upon the
prejudiceS of the people until all wealth
is aggregated in few hands and the
Republic is destroyed I feel at this
time more anxiety for the safety of my
country than ever before, even in the
midst of the war. God grant that my
fears may prove groundlesS"
Miss Nicolay's conclusion. quoted by
the Library of Congress, is:
THE truth is that Lincoln was no
prophet of distant day. His heart and
mind were busy with the problems of
his own time. The legacy he left his
countrymen was not the warning of a
seer, but an example of obligation to
face their own dark shadows with the
sanity and courageous independence he
showed in looking upon those that con-
fronted him"
South Carolina is proud of its The
Citadel
1t is proud of Cadet James E. Thorp,
jr, and his fellow cadets-R. NJ Walden,
E. D. McCrackin, r. N. Hobbs, L. w.
Smith and G. C. Jones.
This is the testimony of Representa-
tive John j. McSwain, chairman of the
House Military Affairs Committee, who
developed himself from a farm hand to
odptaincy in the World War. and VINO
is today an outstanding advocate of the
Reserve Officers Training Corps
The Citadel is the military college of
South Carolina. Gen. Charles P. sum
neral presides. who has given to the
world an example of "a gentleman whom
all young men would do well to imi-
tate and to emulate his example of up
right, honorable living. His career as
soldier, and especially as a field COM
mander of division, and then of an
Army corps in the thick of the worst
fighting during the World War, is
source of pride to all Americans" Last
year, to stimulate thinking along the
lines of sound and sane national de-
fense, Representative McSwain offered
prize to students of The Citadel for
the best essay on THE Place of the
r. O. T. c. in Proper Program of Ma
tional Defense" Cadet Thorpe won the
contest and the others named above
were honorably mentioned.
Regarding the r. o. T. c., Chairman
McSwain says: I'm my humble judg-
ment 1t is the most economical. the most
sane and the most practical way Of
keeping sufficient number of our cit
izens adequately trained to be leaders
in national emergency. These young
men are not jingoists; they are not pro-
fessional militarists; they are not agi-
tating to bring on war. But they are
prepared, If any sort Of emergency should
arise needing armed forces, to lead the
raw, unframed civilians in order to pro-
tect and defend our Nation against in
vasion and to defend our constitutional
government against the forcible and
violent assaults of any lawless group
that may arise within our own popula-
ton. These are contingencies that his
tory warns lie IN he nrenared tn meet !"