Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1962-02-12
Lincoln at So

20 On this day a century ago the in
comparable Abraham Lincoln attained
the age of SO. There Is no record, as
far as we know, Of any party having
been staged at the White House to cele-
brate the occasion. Perhaps festivities
were ruled out because his favorite son.
H-year-old Willie, had just been put
to bed with high fever, and the PreSi-
dent may have been worried bit despite
the doctors assurances that the ailment
was altogether inconsequential Git
proved fatal before the month was out).
Anyhow, whether or not he took
birthday Che himself had little more
than three years to live), the relatively
young Mr.. Lincoln probably rejoiced in,
the encouraging news from the battle
fronts. Our Evening Star of that date,
for example, headlined General Burn
sides victory at Roanoke Island as "The
Greatest Union Achievement of the
War;" And the President, we may as
sumo, perused The Star that day and
felt good accordingly, especially since
young Willie's condition had been found
ito be no cause for alarm. Still, the ter
;rible war kept going on, grinding out
the lives of Americas finest young men,
North and South.
~ AS he brooded over all this, Mr..
Lincoln may well have recalled his First
Inaugural Address in which he alluded
almost whimsically to "the better angels
of our nature" and urged all Americans
to realize that Nothing valuable can
be lost by taking time. If there is an
object to hurry any Of you in hot haste
TO step which you would never take
deliberately, that object will be frus-
itrated by taking time; but no good OBJ
,ject can be frustrated by it . there
isStill no single good reason for precipi-
tate action. Intelligence, patriotism,
Christianity, and firm reliance on Him
who has never yet forsaken this IA
voured land, are still competent to ad-
just in the best way all our present
difficulty" And there is much other
good counsel that the Great Emanci-
pator, who never willingly planted a
thorn in any mans BOSOM" has handed
down to us in memorable language. BY
way Of example:
The dogmas of the quiet past are made
quate to the stormy present The occasion is
piled high with difficulty, and we must rise
with the occasion. AS our case is new, so we
must think anew and act anew. We must
disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save
our country.
Fellow-cltizens, iDe can not escape history.
We will be remembered in spite of our
selves. :. The fiery trial through which we
pass will light us down IN honor or dishonor
to the latest generation. We shall nobly
save or meanly lose the last best hope Of
earth. i. The way is plain peaceful gen.
erouS, just-a way which if followed the world
will forever applaud and God must forever
bless.
These are not unfamiliar words.
They have long since been craven in
the minds of all Americans, and for
eigners alike, who have studied Abraham
Lincoln and been enriched by the heri-
tage he has left to free men everywhere
from here to the Congo and beyond,
including the Soviet Union. Although
the quotations apply specifically to our
enormously tragic Civil War, they have
now acquired meaning as wide as the
world. Certainly there could be no bet
ter advice to any people, including espe-
cially the people Of the United States, in
terms of the cold war.