Good speaking and good listening, however, did not always go together. Maria Horsford, the wife of New York Whig congressman Jerediah Horsford, in writing home to her children, described the high intensity and noise of the House chamber. "The confusion and noise of the House of Representatives is wearying. ... I never saw a district school dismissed at noon so rude and noisy ... more like a hundred swarms of bees." The noise was continually punctuated by cries of "Speaker"-"Speaker"-"Speaker" in voices rising "higher and higher."
On the second day of the session, President Polk delivered his third annual message to Congress, the vast majority of it dealing with the war with Mexico. Calling the United States "the aggrieved nation," Polk claimed, "History presents no parallel of so many glorious victories achieved by any nation within so short a period." Indeed, by the time Lincoln heard Polks message, the fighting was all but over. General Zachary Taylor had won victories at Palo Alto, Resaca de la Palma, and Monterrey, and fought off a Mexican attack at Buena Vista in February 1847. General Winfield Scott had led an expedition of ten thousand U.S. soldiers to capture Veracruz and then led an a.s.sault on the capital, Mexico City, securing the surrender of the Mexican defenders on September 14, 1847.
Polk came to Congress seeking ratification of his plan to demand that Mexico pay the United States an indemnity in a cession "of a portion of her territory." The president appealed to the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 and the cession of Florida of 1819 as precedents. He rejected the attacks of critics who said that the United States should take the high moral ground of accepting no territory. Polk replied, "The doctrine of no territory is the doctrine of no indemnity ... and if sanctioned would be a public acknowledgment that our country was wrong and that the war declared by Congress with extraordinary unanimity was unjust and should be abandoned-an admission unfounded in fact and degrading to the national character."
Freshmen congressmen sometimes struggled to find their speaking voices in the new terrain of the nation"s capital. But Lincoln, only one week after he took his seat in the Thirtieth Congress, wrote a third time to Herndon, declaring, "As you are all so anxious for me to distinguish myself, I have concluded to do so, before long."
Two weeks after Polk"s annual message, on December 22, 1847, Lincoln rose to introduce a series of eight resolutions asking the president to inform the House about specific actions of the United States. Lincoln"s speech began by using direct quotes from President Polk"s message to Congress of May 11, 1846, and his annual message to Congress in December 1846 and 1847. Lincoln"s purpose was to challenge the president"s veracity. The burden of the first-term congressman"s remarks was contained in his preface to the resolutions: "This House desires to obtain a full knowledge of all the facts which to establish whether the particular spot of soil on which the blood of our citizens citizens was so shed, was, or was not, was so shed, was, or was not, our own soil, our own soil, at that time." Lincoln was directly challenging the president"s a.s.sertion that the Mexicans fired the first shot in the war. He used the word "spot" again in the first resolution, as well as in the second and in the third, driving home his point that the spot was not on our soil but actually on the soil of Mexico, thus making the United States the initial aggressor. Lincoln"s resolutions were not remarkable, offering a summary of objections that had been heard by other Whigs in the hallways of Washington and in newspapers throughout the country. But because of Lincoln"s use of the innocuous word "spot," the challenges would become known as the "spotty" resolutions. He was only getting started. at that time." Lincoln was directly challenging the president"s a.s.sertion that the Mexicans fired the first shot in the war. He used the word "spot" again in the first resolution, as well as in the second and in the third, driving home his point that the spot was not on our soil but actually on the soil of Mexico, thus making the United States the initial aggressor. Lincoln"s resolutions were not remarkable, offering a summary of objections that had been heard by other Whigs in the hallways of Washington and in newspapers throughout the country. But because of Lincoln"s use of the innocuous word "spot," the challenges would become known as the "spotty" resolutions. He was only getting started.
THE WHIGS" ATTACKS on "Mr. Polk"s War" resumed in the new year. On January 3, 1848, in the course of a debate on a resolution offering thanks to General Taylor, Congressman George Ashmun of Ma.s.sachusetts proposed an amendment stating that the war with Mexico had been "unnecessarily and unconst.i.tutionally begun by the President of the United States." The amendment received the votes of eighty-five Whigs, including Lincoln. on "Mr. Polk"s War" resumed in the new year. On January 3, 1848, in the course of a debate on a resolution offering thanks to General Taylor, Congressman George Ashmun of Ma.s.sachusetts proposed an amendment stating that the war with Mexico had been "unnecessarily and unconst.i.tutionally begun by the President of the United States." The amendment received the votes of eighty-five Whigs, including Lincoln.
Nine days later, Lincoln rose again, this time to speak to the broader implications of the war. In a thoroughly prepared speech, Lincoln articulated the difference between supporting the troops and supporting the president and his policies. He stated that back in May 1846, he believed that whatever concerns there might be about the const.i.tutionality or necessity of the war, "as citizens and patriots," persons should "remain silent on that point, at least until the war had ended." He said he continued to hold this view until he took his seat in Congress and heard President Polk "argue every silent vote given for supplies, into an endors.e.m.e.nt of the justice and wisdom of his conduct."
Lincoln challenged President Polk"s a.s.sertion that Mexican troops fired the first shot in the war with Mexico. Lincoln demanded to know whether the particular "spot of soil" where the blood was shed was in the United States.
Lincoln told the House that he had examined all of the president"s messages to see if Polk"s a.s.sertions about precedents measured up to the truth. "Now I propose to show, that the whole of this,-issue and evidence-is, from the beginning to end, the sheerest deception." After a.n.a.lyzing six propositions of the president"s evidence, Lincoln offered his own precedent. "Let him answer with facts, with facts, and not with arguments. Let him remember he sits where Washington sat, and so remembering, let him answer as Washington would answer." In the heat of a present-day controversy, Lincoln found it useful to appeal to the founding fathers. and not with arguments. Let him remember he sits where Washington sat, and so remembering, let him answer as Washington would answer." In the heat of a present-day controversy, Lincoln found it useful to appeal to the founding fathers.
In escalating rhetoric, Lincoln went on to question both Polk"s motives and conscience. "I more than suspect already, that he is deeply conscious of being in the wrong-that he feels the blood of this war, like the blood of Abel, is crying to Heaven against him." Lincoln concluded with a final pummel. President Polk "is a bewildered, confounded, and miserably perplexed man," he said. Lincoln"s strong words against the sitting president spread quickly beyond the nation"s capital.
BACK IN ILLINOIS, Lincoln"s forceful a.s.sault on President Polk took Lincoln"s friends and foes by surprise. Yes, many Whigs were against the war, but after Lincoln"s speech many people in his district came to believe his words bordered on treason. Illinoisans, proud of the effort of the American troops, resented what they said was Lincoln"s failure to support them.
From so long a distance, Lincoln"s votes were misrepresented by his local opponents and misunderstood by many of his friends. Lincoln went on to vote yes on all bills to fund the troops and their supplies. On January 12, 1848, he gave a speech meant to show that one could support the troops and not the president, a distinction difficult to communicate in a time of patriotic fever.
The Democratic Illinois State Register Illinois State Register in Springfield tore into Lincoln. "Thank heaven, Illinois has eight representatives who will stand by the honor of the nation." Recalling the military heroism of Illinois soldiers, the in Springfield tore into Lincoln. "Thank heaven, Illinois has eight representatives who will stand by the honor of the nation." Recalling the military heroism of Illinois soldiers, the Register Register said of Lincoln, "He will have a fearful account to settle with them, should he lend his aid in an effort to neutralize their efforts and blast their fame." The said of Lincoln, "He will have a fearful account to settle with them, should he lend his aid in an effort to neutralize their efforts and blast their fame." The Register Register printed what they hoped would be Lincoln"s political epitaph: "Died of Spotted Fever." printed what they hoped would be Lincoln"s political epitaph: "Died of Spotted Fever."
Even Billy Herndon expressed concern about his law partner"s vote for the Ashmun Amendment, firing off a letter on January 19, 1848. Lincoln replied immediately, "If you misunderstand, I fear other friends will also." Lincoln told Herndon, "I will stake my life, that if you had been in my place, you would have voted just as I did." He asked Hern-don, "Would you have voted what you felt you knew to be a lie?"
What really upset Lincoln was the way Polk and the Democrats shrewdly tried to conflate support for the war and voting to send supplies for the troops. "I have always intended, and still intend, to vote supplies," Lincoln told Herndon. The Democrats, he said, "are untiring in their effort to make the impression that all who vote supplies ... of necessity, approve the President"s conduct in the beginning of it." The Whig position, as Lincoln explained, "from the beginning, made and kept the distinction between the two."
Herndon wrote a second letter and Lincoln replied again. It was obvious now that the partners did not agree on whether any president becomes the "sole judge" in initiating war. Lincoln defended the "provision of the Const.i.tution giving war-making power to Congress." He told Herndon, "Allow the President to invade a neighboring nation, whenever judge" in initiating war. Lincoln defended the "provision of the Const.i.tution giving war-making power to Congress." He told Herndon, "Allow the President to invade a neighboring nation, whenever he he shall deem it necessary to repel an invasion, and you allow him to do so, shall deem it necessary to repel an invasion, and you allow him to do so, whenever he may choose to say whenever he may choose to say he deems it necessary for such purpose-and you allow him to make war at pleasure." he deems it necessary for such purpose-and you allow him to make war at pleasure."
IN MARCH 1848, Lincoln"s curiosity about his ancestors in America became jogged by correspondence from a long-lost relative named Solomon Lincoln. In replying to a letter of inquiry from Solomon Lincoln, Lincoln wrote, "We have a vague tradition, that my greatgrand father, John Lincoln, went from Pennsylvania to Virginia; and that he was a quaker. Further back than that, I have never heard anything." His curiosity aroused, Lincoln decided to ask James McDowell, the former governor of Virginia and now a colleague in the House, "whether he knew persons of our name there." McDowell replied he did know of a David Lincoln. Lincoln wrote a second letter to Solomon Lincoln three weeks later telling him of this new discovery.
Lincoln, "much gratified," received a letter from David Lincoln on March 30, 1848. He quickly replied, "There is no longer any doubt that your uncle Abraham, and my grandfather was the same man." Lincoln peppered David Lincoln with questions. "Was he or not, a Quaker? About what time time did he emigrate from Berks count, Pa. to Virginia? Do you know any thing of your family (or rather I may now say, did he emigrate from Berks count, Pa. to Virginia? Do you know any thing of your family (or rather I may now say, our our family) farther back than your grandfather?" Far from being uninterested in his family background, Lincoln wanted to find out more. Ironically, Solomon Lincoln wrote to Abraham Lincoln from Hingham, Ma.s.sachusetts, where Lincoln"s ancestors first settled in America-a fact that Abraham Lincoln would never know. family) farther back than your grandfather?" Far from being uninterested in his family background, Lincoln wanted to find out more. Ironically, Solomon Lincoln wrote to Abraham Lincoln from Hingham, Ma.s.sachusetts, where Lincoln"s ancestors first settled in America-a fact that Abraham Lincoln would never know.
IN THE SPRING OF 1848, Mary Lincoln and their boys left Washington and returned to Lexington. She had grown weary of her confinement in Ann Sprigg"s boardinghouse, where much of the time she found herself alone with her two small children. Lincoln attended sessions of Congress during the day and often spent his evenings in Whig caucuses.
The correspondence between Abraham and Mary from the spring of 1848-some of the few letters between them that have survived-reveals how their affection grew stronger in absence. Lincoln wrote on April 16, 1848, "In this troublesome world, we are never quite satisfied. When you were here, I thought you hindered me in attending to business but now, having nothing but business-no vanity-it has grown exceedingly tasteless to me." Lincoln admitted, "I hate to stay in the old room by myself." He wanted to include a greeting from others, but remembered that not everyone at Ann Sprigg"s thought kindly of her, so he wrote, "All the house-or rather all with whom you were on decided good terms-send their love to you. The others say nothing." He also asked Mary, in the future, "Suppose you do not prefix the "Hon" to the address on your letters to me any more."
Mary wrote in May telling Abraham that she wanted to return to Washington to be with him. He replied, playfully, "Will you be a good girl good girl in all things, if I consent?" This was undoubtedly another reference to her behavior with other guests at the boardinghouse. "Then come along, and that as in all things, if I consent?" This was undoubtedly another reference to her behavior with other guests at the boardinghouse. "Then come along, and that as soon soon as possible. Having got the idea in my head, I shall be impatient till I see you." as possible. Having got the idea in my head, I shall be impatient till I see you."
The correspondence between Abraham and Mary, in the sixth year of their marriage, brings to light both the depth of their love and the difficulties in their relationship. Lincoln, as was often his way, gently teased Mary about her strained relations with some of the boarders, but his comments also hint at tensions between them. Mary, pretty and perky, could also be difficult and demanding.
WITH MARY AND the two boys gone, Lincoln had more time to continue his self-education. He attended sessions of the U.S. Supreme Court, hearing Daniel Webster argue a case before the highest court in the land. He certainly got a glimpse of Roger B. Taney of Maryland, who in 1836 had been appointed by President Andrew Jackson to replace the legendary John Marshall as chief justice of the United States. the two boys gone, Lincoln had more time to continue his self-education. He attended sessions of the U.S. Supreme Court, hearing Daniel Webster argue a case before the highest court in the land. He certainly got a glimpse of Roger B. Taney of Maryland, who in 1836 had been appointed by President Andrew Jackson to replace the legendary John Marshall as chief justice of the United States.
Lincoln frequently walked across the street from the boardinghouse to the Library of Congress. The Library began in 1800 when the capital moved from Philadelphia to Washington. During the War of 1812, when the British burned the Capitol, they used books from the Library of Congress to kindle the inferno. The Library began to rebuild itself when former president Thomas Jefferson offered his private library to Congress. After partisan wrangling, Jefferson"s offer was accepted and Congress purchased his library of 6,487 volumes for $23,950. The books were transported by wagons from Monticello to Washington. The fledgling Library continued in its temporary quarters until August 1824, the last year of James Monroe"s presidency, when it moved into its new home in the center of the west front of the Capitol.
Twenty-three years later, Abraham Lincoln became one of the Library of Congress"s most active borrowers. Where the new congressman spent his free time became "a puzzle, and a subject of amus.e.m.e.nt" to his fellow representatives. They observed, "He did not drink, or use tobacco, or bet, or swear." What Lincoln was doing was "mousing among the books" at the Library. Lincoln often selected books to take to his room at the boardinghouse, wrapping them in a bandana, placing a stick in the knot, and transporting them over his shoulder. To his fellow congressmen, whatever else they thought of Lincoln, many were convinced: "He is a bookworm!"
THERE WAS A presidential election in 1848, and in June Lincoln attended the Whig convention in the Chinese Museum Hall in Philadelphia. The contest pitted Henry Clay against General Zachary Taylor. Intellectually, Lincoln leaned toward Clay and his ideas, but he supported Taylor for a strictly pragmatic reason: The Whigs needed to win. The Whigs took a page from the Democrats, who had nominated General Andrew Jackson in 1828 and 1832, and nominated their own military hero, General Zachary Taylor, as their presidential candidate in 1848. presidential election in 1848, and in June Lincoln attended the Whig convention in the Chinese Museum Hall in Philadelphia. The contest pitted Henry Clay against General Zachary Taylor. Intellectually, Lincoln leaned toward Clay and his ideas, but he supported Taylor for a strictly pragmatic reason: The Whigs needed to win. The Whigs took a page from the Democrats, who had nominated General Andrew Jackson in 1828 and 1832, and nominated their own military hero, General Zachary Taylor, as their presidential candidate in 1848.
Taylor, a down-home fellow known as "Old Rough and Ready," had served in the military for forty years. He was best known for leading his troops to an unlikely victory at the desperate battle of Buena Vista in the Mexican War. He did not write or speak well and was woefully ignorant of foreign affairs. The Whigs hoped that Taylor, a strong nationalist, could appeal to their Northern const.i.tuents because of his experience in the military. At the same time, they hoped he would also draw in Southerners because he was from Louisiana and owned a plantation with one hundred slaves in Mississippi.
Lincoln made the pragmatic decision to back General Zachary Taylor, a hero of the Mexican War, over Henry Clay in the 1848 presidential election.
Taylor"s nomination allowed Lincoln and other young Whigs in the House to continue to attack the Democrats for beginning an unjust war, but at the same time extol one of the generals responsible for winning it. Taylor"s political record was nonexistent, but he offered the hope of electability. "I am in favor of Gen: Taylor as the whig candidate for the Presidency because I am satisfied we can elect him, that he would give us a whig administration, and that we can not elect any other whig." The other Whig, unnamed, was Henry Clay. Lincoln said as much in a letter to a friend in Illinois: "Our only chance is with Taylor. I go for him, not because I think he would make a better president than Clay, but because I think he would make a better one than Polk, or Ca.s.s, or Buchanan." In 1848, Lincoln"s political pragmatism triumphed over his idealism.
The Democrats nominated Lewis Ca.s.s of Michigan. Ca.s.s had fought in the War of 1812, had been secretary of war in the Jackson administration, and was serving as U.S. senator from Michigan. On the slavery issue, Ca.s.s favored what he called "popular sovereignty," letting the residents of each of the new territories decide whether they wanted slavery or not.
A third antislavery party, the Free Soil Party, emerged in 184748 as a protest to both Ca.s.s, who they feared would allow "squatter sovereignty" in the territories, and to Taylor, a slave owner. The Free Soil Party nominated former president Martin Van Buren as their candidate in 1848. This loose coalition of former Liberty Party men, plus antislavery Whigs and Democrats, campaigned on the slogan "Free soil, free speech, free labor, free men."
As the long, hot summer term of Congress wound down, presidential politicking warmed up. Presidential campaigning in the early nineteenth century was largely the work of surrogates. Most Americans thought it unseemly for candidates to speak on their own behalf. Before the Thirtieth Congress adjourned, the candidates" supporters took to the floor to give their best political orations. On July 27, 1848, Lincoln found himself speaking eighth behind three Democrats and four Whigs in the House before a packed gallery. After hours and hours of speeches, how could Lincoln stand out?
He decided to turn the Ca.s.s criticism of Taylor against their man. The Democratic speakers that day had complained that they did not know either the principles or policies of General Taylor. Lincoln answered by giving an exposition of Whig principles-tariff, currency, and internal improvements. But Democrats contended that the Whigs had deserted all of their principles and taken refuge under General Taylor"s military armor. Lincoln could smell an opening.
What about the military coattail of General Jackson? "Like a horde of hungry ticks you have stuck to the tail of the Hermitage lion to the end of his life." Part of Ca.s.s"s reputation was his military exploits in the War of 1812. As Lincoln zeroed in on Ca.s.s, he exclaimed, "You democrats are now engaged in dovetailing onto the great Michigander ... tying him to a military tail."
Lincoln now raised suspicions about Ca.s.s"s war record by presenting a self-deprecating recital of his own military record. "By the way, Mr. Speaker, did you know that I am a military hero?" Lincoln captivated his listeners by declaring, "Yes, sir; in the days of the Black Hawk war, I fought, bled, and came away." By now it was clear that he was mocking Ca.s.s"s military career. "Speaking of Gen: Ca.s.s" career, reminds me of my own." Lincoln spoke satirically with a set of derisive comparisons about battles, weapons, and enemies, all meant to say that Ca.s.s saw no more action than Lincoln did. Finally, in sardonic humor, Lincoln told his colleagues, now convulsed in laughter, "If he saw any live, fighting Indians, it was more than I did; but I had a good many b.l.o.o.d.y struggles with musquetoes."
Reporting on Lincoln"s speech, the Baltimore American Baltimore American described his power to mesmerize an audience. Lincoln "was so good natured, and his style so peculiar, that he kept the House in a continuous roar of merriment." Lincoln"s mannerisms caught the eye of the reporter as it did that of his fellow congressmen. "He would commence a point in his speech far up one of the aisles, and keep on talking, gesticulating, and walking until he would find himself, at the end of a paragraph, down in the center of the area in front of the speaker"s desk. He would then go back and take another described his power to mesmerize an audience. Lincoln "was so good natured, and his style so peculiar, that he kept the House in a continuous roar of merriment." Lincoln"s mannerisms caught the eye of the reporter as it did that of his fellow congressmen. "He would commence a point in his speech far up one of the aisles, and keep on talking, gesticulating, and walking until he would find himself, at the end of a paragraph, down in the center of the area in front of the speaker"s desk. He would then go back and take another bead, bead, and work down again." Lincoln, perhaps feeling more at home, offered an old-fashioned Illinois stump speech in the well of the House of Representatives. and work down again." Lincoln, perhaps feeling more at home, offered an old-fashioned Illinois stump speech in the well of the House of Representatives.
MARY, BOB, AND EDDIE returned to Washington at the end of July, finding husband and father busily engaged in the last two weeks of the first session of Congress. After an all-night meeting on August 13, 1848, Congress adjourned for the summer. Lincoln decided to spend the recess working for Taylor"s election. returned to Washington at the end of July, finding husband and father busily engaged in the last two weeks of the first session of Congress. After an all-night meeting on August 13, 1848, Congress adjourned for the summer. Lincoln decided to spend the recess working for Taylor"s election.
In early September, with a basic stump speech in hand, Lincoln left Washington with his family for a campaign tour in Ma.s.sachusetts. The Bay State had been a Whig stronghold, led by such giants as Daniel Webster and Rufus Choate, but lately Whig unity and dominance was fracturing. Many members, outraged about the lack of progress on the issue of slavery, were joining the emerging Free Soil Party just as the 1848 presidential campaign got into full swing. By the middle of the 1840s, two groups of New England Whigs had fallen into dispute. "Conscience Whigs" saw the battle over slavery as a moral struggle; "Cotton Whigs," while admitting the evils of slavery, nevertheless did not want to completely alienate the South, whose cotton was needed in New England"s textile mills. As Lincoln prepared to speak in Ma.s.sachusetts, he knew many Ma.s.sachusetts Whigs were deeply upset that the Whig presidential candidate, General Taylor, owned slaves in Louisiana.
Lincoln arrived in Worcester on Tuesday, September 12, 1848, the eve of the Whig state convention. Andrew Bullock, a local Whig politician, was planning a public rally for the evening but all of the speakers had declined his invitation to speak. Hearing that the Illinois congressman was in Worcester, he found Lincoln at the Worcester House and asked him to address the rally. That evening at 7 p.m., Lincoln, dressed in a long linen duster, arrived at the city hall to find more than one thousand people crammed inside. The chairman of the meeting introduced Lincoln as a "Free Soil Whig," which he did not deny.
Dusting off the speech he gave in the Congress in July, Lincoln spoke for two hours. He had two main goals in mind. First, he wanted to a.s.sure the audience that Taylor did embody Whig values. Second, Lincoln drove home the point that Van Buren, the Free Soil candidate, could not win the election; a vote for Van Buren would end up being a vote for the Democratic candidate Ca.s.s. Lincoln had vowed never to forget the lesson of the presidential campaign of 1844, that moral purity can be self-defeating if it opens the door to political defeat. The Springfield Springfield (Ma.s.sachusetts) (Ma.s.sachusetts) Republican Republican reported that the audience "frequently interrupted" Lincoln "by loud cheering." The reported that the audience "frequently interrupted" Lincoln "by loud cheering." The Boston Daily Advertiser Boston Daily Advertiser was impressed with his initial speech. "Mr. Lincoln has a very tall and thin figure, with an intellectual face, showing a searching mind, and a cool judgment." The Whig newspaper called Lincoln"s oration a "truly masterly and convincing speech." was impressed with his initial speech. "Mr. Lincoln has a very tall and thin figure, with an intellectual face, showing a searching mind, and a cool judgment." The Whig newspaper called Lincoln"s oration a "truly masterly and convincing speech."
Three days later, Lincoln arrived by train in Boston. The different districts in this city of 130,000 were connected not by horsecars but by a number of stagecoach lines. Used to rude hostelries in central Illinois, Lincoln and his family enjoyed their stay at the stylish Tremont House.
In succeeding days, Lincoln traveled by train to speak in Lowell, Dorchester, Chelsea, Dedham, Cambridge, and Taunton. On Thursday evening, September 21, 1848, Lincoln addressed the Union Hall in Taunton, a city humming with industrialization. A Taunton Whig newspaper, the Old Colony Republican, Old Colony Republican, captured the dynamism of Lincoln as a public speaker and described the way Lincoln "advanced upon his hearers." captured the dynamism of Lincoln as a public speaker and described the way Lincoln "advanced upon his hearers."
It was an altogether new show for us-a western stump speaker. ... Leaning himself up against the wall, as he commenced, and talking in the plainest manner, and in the most indifferent tone, yet gradually fixing his footing, and getting command of his limbs, loosening his tongue, and firing up his thoughts, until he had got possession of himself and of his audience.
The content of Lincoln"s speech struck the reporter as even more distinctive. "Argument and anecdote, wit and wisdom, hymns and prophecies, platforms and syllogisms, came flying before the audience like wild game before the fierce hunter of the prairie." The reporter concluded, "There has been no gathering of any party in a region where the responses of the audience were so frequent and so vigorous."
The climax of his speaking tour was a giant Whig open-air rally in the evening in Boston. The main speaker for the evening was not Lincoln, but William H. Seward. A former governor of New York, the slender Seward had been elected to the Senate in 1848 and spoke in Boston as an established leader in the antislavery movement. Seward gave a formal address, arguing that a third Free Soil Party, however well intentioned in their ideas, could only draw away votes from the Whigs and help elect Democrats who would do nothing to stop the spread of slavery.
Seward gave such a lengthy speech that by the time Lincoln was introduced, it was already 9:30. But Lincoln was not about to cut short his remarks. He spoke for a full hour, the Boston Courier Boston Courier reporting that Lincoln spoke "in a most forcible and convincing speech, which drew down thunders of applause." The next evening Lincoln and Seward, who would go on to become Lincoln"s secretary of state, shared a room in Worcester. Seward recalled, "We spent the greater part of the night talking about anti-slavery positions and principles." Lincoln told Seward, "I have been thinking about what you said in your speech. I reckon you are right. We have got to deal with this slavery question, and got to give much more attention to it hereafter than we have been doing." reporting that Lincoln spoke "in a most forcible and convincing speech, which drew down thunders of applause." The next evening Lincoln and Seward, who would go on to become Lincoln"s secretary of state, shared a room in Worcester. Seward recalled, "We spent the greater part of the night talking about anti-slavery positions and principles." Lincoln told Seward, "I have been thinking about what you said in your speech. I reckon you are right. We have got to deal with this slavery question, and got to give much more attention to it hereafter than we have been doing."
WITH HIS SPEAKING obligations in New England completed, Lincoln and his family finally started for home. He stopped in Albany, New York, to meet Millard Fillmore, the Whig vice presidential candidate, and Thurlow Weed, founder of the obligations in New England completed, Lincoln and his family finally started for home. He stopped in Albany, New York, to meet Millard Fillmore, the Whig vice presidential candidate, and Thurlow Weed, founder of the Albany Evening Journal Albany Evening Journal and a close friend of Seward"s. In Buffalo, the Lincolns took a boat trip to see Niagara Falls. Lincoln was "overwhelmed in the contemplation of the vast power the sun is constantly exerting in quiet, noiseless operation of lifting water and a close friend of Seward"s. In Buffalo, the Lincolns took a boat trip to see Niagara Falls. Lincoln was "overwhelmed in the contemplation of the vast power the sun is constantly exerting in quiet, noiseless operation of lifting water up up to be rained to be rained down down again." He wrote some notes about this experience, thinking of turning it into an essay. "It calls up the indefinite past. When Columbus first sought this continent-when Christ suffered on the cross-when Moses led Israel through the Red Sea-nay, even when Adam first came from the hand of his Maker-then as now, Niagara was roaring here." again." He wrote some notes about this experience, thinking of turning it into an essay. "It calls up the indefinite past. When Columbus first sought this continent-when Christ suffered on the cross-when Moses led Israel through the Red Sea-nay, even when Adam first came from the hand of his Maker-then as now, Niagara was roaring here."
The Lincolns traveled on the steamer Globe Globe from Buffalo to Chicago, covering the 1,047 miles in the astounding time of sixty hours. During the voyage, the ship became stranded on a sandbar. The captain called for the hands to collect loose planks and empty casks and barrels and try to force them under the boat to help lift it off the sandbar. Lincoln observed this operation closely, perhaps remembering similar problems in navigating the Sangamon and the Mississippi. from Buffalo to Chicago, covering the 1,047 miles in the astounding time of sixty hours. During the voyage, the ship became stranded on a sandbar. The captain called for the hands to collect loose planks and empty casks and barrels and try to force them under the boat to help lift it off the sandbar. Lincoln observed this operation closely, perhaps remembering similar problems in navigating the Sangamon and the Mississippi.
On October 10, 1848, the Lincolns finally arrived home in Springfield. Lincoln quickly learned that many of his const.i.tuents held him in disfavor. While campaigning for Taylor in the Seventh District, Lincoln found himself criticized for opposing President Polk on the war with Mexico. The Illinois State Register Illinois State Register wrote, "Lincoln has made nothing by coming to this part of the country to make speeches. He had better have stayed away." Nevertheless, on Election Day, November 7, Lincoln joined the cheering in his hometown when Taylor won the presidency, carrying the Seventh District by nearly fifteen hundred votes. wrote, "Lincoln has made nothing by coming to this part of the country to make speeches. He had better have stayed away." Nevertheless, on Election Day, November 7, Lincoln joined the cheering in his hometown when Taylor won the presidency, carrying the Seventh District by nearly fifteen hundred votes.
IN LATE NOVEMBER Lincoln left Springfield to return to Washington for the final, short, session of the Thirtieth Congress, reporting "present" on Sat.u.r.day, December 7, 1848. Lincoln left Springfield to return to Washington for the final, short, session of the Thirtieth Congress, reporting "present" on Sat.u.r.day, December 7, 1848.
The rump session would be dominated by rancorous debates on slavery, both about the territories and in the nation"s capital. Lincoln had been largely silent during the debates over slavery in the first session, but he returned to Washington determined to offer a compromise measure. Twelve years earlier, in the Illinois legislature, Lincoln had advocated the abolition of slavery in the nation"s capital, but only with the approval of Washington"s citizens. He now wrote a proposal in the same spirit. Lincoln showed it to Joshua Giddings on January 8, 1849, who encouraged him to go forward even though the abolitionist Ohio congressman disapproved of the feature of compensation for the owners of slaves.
Lincoln stood on January 10 to announce his intention to present a bill in his final session in the House. Lincoln aimed for conciliation in a bitterly divided Congress. On the one hand his bill would allow officers of slaveholding states to bring their slaves to the nation"s capital while on government business. Lincoln"s bill also allowed for the arrest of fugitive slaves who might escape into the District. But Lincoln was clear in his first and main point: "No person within the District shall ever be held in slavery within it."
The next evening, at Mrs. Spriggs"s boarding house, the Whig boarders remained after dinner to discuss Lincoln"s bill. Giddings wrote in his diary of Lincoln"s proposal: "I believed it as good a bill as we could get at this time."
In March 1849, Lincoln applied for a patent in Washington for his invention to help lift boats over sandbars or shoals.
On January 12, Lincoln intended to introduce his bill but ultimately did not. In a matter of days he discovered that support for his compromise measure had dried up and his bill never made it into the hopper, the wooden box near the Speaker"s desk in which all new bills were deposited before being printed for consideration by committees. In speaking of what Lincoln hoped would be the results of compensated emanc.i.p.ation, he crafted language ("such slaves shall be forever free") that he would revisit at a future time.
ON FEBRUARY 12, 1849, Congressman Abraham Lincoln turned forty. Three weeks later, the Thirtieth Congress worked all night to conclude its business, finally adjourning at 7 a.m. on Sunday, March 4. On Monday, March 5, a gray cloudy day, Lincoln attended the inauguration of President Zachary Taylor.
Two days later, Lincoln argued his first and only case before the U.S. Supreme Court. While in Congress he had watched cases argued, but now he had the delight of standing before the nine black-robed justices. On March 7, 1849, Lincoln argued Lewis for use of Longworth v. Lewis, Lewis for use of Longworth v. Lewis, referred to the high court from the U.S. Circuit Court in Illinois, which involved a disputed meaning of a statute of limitations. On March 13, 1849, Chief Justice Roger Taney ruled against Lincoln"s plea. referred to the high court from the U.S. Circuit Court in Illinois, which involved a disputed meaning of a statute of limitations. On March 13, 1849, Chief Justice Roger Taney ruled against Lincoln"s plea.
Three days later, Lincoln applied for a patent, the only president ever to do so. Lincoln had long had an engineer"s curiosity about mechanical appliances. When staying with a farmer while traveling on the circuit, he delighted in getting down on the ground and inspecting from every angle a new farm implement. The impetus for this patent grew from his experience on his trip home the previous October, when his boat became stuck on a sandbar. Once back in Springfield, Lincoln built a scale model of his invention with help from Walter Davis, a mechanic with an office near Lincoln"s law office. In his application for a patent, Lincoln stated he had "invented a new and improved manner of combining adjustable buoyant air chambers with a steam boat or other vessel for the purpose of enabling their draught of water to be readily lessened to enable them to pa.s.s over bars, or through shallow water, without discharging their cargoes."
Lincoln was pleased with his new patent, but ship owners did not flock to use it. Herndon, always a bit skeptical about his partner"s idealistic schemes, reported that "the threatened revolution in steamboat architecture and navigation never came to pa.s.s."
Lincoln remained in Washington working tirelessly on political patronage and taking part in speaking engagements in cities near Washington. He advocated a number of claims for fellow Illinois citizens with the new administration. As the only Whig congressman from Illinois, he viewed these patronage opportunities as ways to strengthen the Whig Party. Lincoln wrote many letters recommending everyone from Edward Baker for a place in the cabinet to many friends in Illinois for local offices. Despite his efforts, Lincoln bemoaned, "Not one man recommended by me has yet been appointed to any thing, little or big, except a few who had no opposition."
The leading patronage office in Illinois was the commissioner of the General Land Office, land being the key commodity in the West. The position offered a salary of three thousand dollars per year. Initially, Lincoln lobbied for Cyrus Edwards, brother of Ninian Edwards. But Lincoln"s friend Edward Baker, now a member of Congress from Galena, had his own candidate, Don Morrison. Neither the candidates nor the sponsors could agree to compromise. Some of Lincoln"s friends suggested that he himself become the compromise candidate, but he declined. "I must not only be chaste but above suspicion."
Finally, on March 20, 1849, Lincoln started the arduous trip home to Illinois. A chastened Lincoln arrived in Springfield on Sat.u.r.day evening, March 31. His return was not greeted with the well wishes of the press and public with which he had left for Washington only sixteen months earlier. The Whigs, adhering to the rotation system, had run Lincoln"s former law partner Stephen Logan for Congress, but he had suffered a narrow defeat in his effort to become the fourth consecutive Whig to represent the Seventh Congressional District. Lincoln received plenty of blame for the defeat. Democrats murmured that Lincoln had provided "aid and comfort to the enemy." Wiser pundits recognized that Logan"s crusty manner and lack of speaking ability did not measure up to that of Lincoln and the previous Whig candidates.
The deadlock for the Land Office position threatened to be broken when another candidate suddenly entered the contest. Justin b.u.t.ter-field, a prominent Chicago attorney and ardent supporter of Clay, had contested the presidential campaign of Zachary Taylor to the end, and had not worked to build up the Whig Party in Illinois. Lincoln wondered aloud why he should now receive this patronage plum. "He is my personal friend, and is qualified to do the duties of the office but of the one hundred Illinoisians, equally well qualified, I do not know of one with less claims to it."
Learning that b.u.t.terfield was Secretary of the Interior Thomas Ewing"s probable choice, and upset by the c.u.mulative evidence that Taylor supporters were not receiving their deserved patronage positions, Lincoln decided to pursue the position for himself. He quickly orchestrated a letter-writing campaign by his friends to Secretary Ewing, even asking Mary to write letters to supporters on his behalf. He also tried to go around Ewing and appeal directly to President Taylor. But unknown to Lincoln, several Whigs in Springfield had written to Secretary Ewing criticizing Lincoln for his speech in Congress against the Mexican War, "which inflicted a deep and mischievous wound upon the Whole Whig party of the state."
On June 10, 1849, Lincoln rushed back to Washington to lobby for the job, believing that letters sent to Ewing had somehow been withheld from President Taylor. He arrived on June 19 only to learn two days later that Taylor had followed Secretary Ewing"s recommendation and appointed b.u.t.terfield. Lincoln was devastated.
When Lincoln returned to Springfield he wrote Ewing, "I opposed the appointment of Mr. B because I believed it would be a matter of discouragement to our active, working friends here, and I opposed it for no other reason." He told the secretary of the interior, "I never did, in any true sense, want the job for myself."
In August 1849, Lincoln was offered a second-place prize: secretary of the Oregon Territory. He quickly wrote to Secretary of State John M. Clayton to decline the office. In September, Secretary Ewing offered him the governorship of Oregon. He took some time to consider this offer, which Mary argued against. Lincoln recognized the future power of the states forming in the Far West, but he also knew that Oregon was at that moment in the hands of Democrats, and thus he saw little future there for a Whig politician. He believed the office would mean political exile. He declined the position.
LINCOLN HAD CAMPAIGNED for the Illinois legislature by vowing to be a legislator who would faithfully advocate the beliefs and opinions of the people he represented; he was now criticized for taking a position on the Mexican War that was unrepresentative of the beliefs of the people of his district. Secretary of State Clayton and Secretary of the Interior Ewing had offered him positions he did not want and refused to give him the one position he would have accepted. Herndon would say later that when Lincoln returned to Springfield, he "determined to eschew politics from that time forward and devote himself entirely to the law." for the Illinois legislature by vowing to be a legislator who would faithfully advocate the beliefs and opinions of the people he represented; he was now criticized for taking a position on the Mexican War that was unrepresentative of the beliefs of the people of his district. Secretary of State Clayton and Secretary of the Interior Ewing had offered him positions he did not want and refused to give him the one position he would have accepted. Herndon would say later that when Lincoln returned to Springfield, he "determined to eschew politics from that time forward and devote himself entirely to the law."
CHAPTER 10.
As a Peacemaker the Lawyer Has a Superior Opportunity 184952 PERSUADE YOUR NEIGHBORS TO COMPROMISE WHENEVER YOU CAN.
ABRAHAM LINCOLNNotes for a Law Lecture ca. July 1, 1850 -BRAHAM LINCOLN RETURNED TO ILLINOIS IN THE SPRING OF 1849, his single term in Congress ended by his principled but unpopular stand against the Mexican War. His only career option was to resume practicing law. Ever since 1832, when he made his first unsuccessful run for the state legislature, Lincoln had been campaigning for political office. With time now to devote to his law firm, Lincoln hoped to increase its reputation and boost his income to better support Mary and their two boys. Grant Goodrich invited him to Chicago for what might have become a lucrative law partnership, but Lincoln replied, "If [I] went to Chicago then [I] would have to sit down and Study hard-That would kill [me]." Lincoln preferred the kind of law he could practice in the federal and superior courts in Springfield, as well as the small rural communities of central Illinois"s Eighth Judicial Circuit. Years later, Lincoln would recall, "From 1849 to 1854, both inclusive, [I] practiced law more a.s.siduously than ever before." 1849, his single term in Congress ended by his principled but unpopular stand against the Mexican War. His only career option was to resume practicing law. Ever since 1832, when he made his first unsuccessful run for the state legislature, Lincoln had been campaigning for political office. With time now to devote to his law firm, Lincoln hoped to increase its reputation and boost his income to better support Mary and their two boys. Grant Goodrich invited him to Chicago for what might have become a lucrative law partnership, but Lincoln replied, "If [I] went to Chicago then [I] would have to sit down and Study hard-That would kill [me]." Lincoln preferred the kind of law he could practice in the federal and superior courts in Springfield, as well as the small rural communities of central Illinois"s Eighth Judicial Circuit. Years later, Lincoln would recall, "From 1849 to 1854, both inclusive, [I] practiced law more a.s.siduously than ever before."
William Herndon had kept the firm busy during Lincoln"s time in Washington. From 1847 to 1849, Herndon used a fee book in which there was a heading: "These cases attended to since Lincoln went to Congress." Herndon offered to share with his senior partner the fees collected for these cases, but Lincoln refused, saying that he had no right to any of these monies.
After his failed political career, Lincoln often pondered the question of the purpose and meaning of his life. In 1850, Lincoln told Herndon, "How hard, oh how hard it is to die and leave one"s country no better than if one had never lived." Herndon noticed the marked effect the downturn in his political fortunes had upon Lincoln in these years. "It went below the skin and made a changed man of him."
As Lincoln returned to the practice of law, he determined to continue his self-education. He looked forward to traveling alone for hours, or even a whole day, on the open prairies, well-worn editions of Shakespeare and the Bible as his traveling companions. He found mental refreshment in the poetry of Lord Byron and Robert Burns, whose rhyming stanzas he always read aloud. At the end of each carnival-like day in court, Lincoln always found time for solitude and reflection.
As Lincoln traveled the vast physical territory of the circuit, he ventured into new intellectual territory. He bought a copy of Euclid"s Elements Elements and set himself the task of memorizing the Greek mathematician"s six geometrical theorems. He would often study by candlelight late at night while his fellow lawyers slept. and set himself the task of memorizing the Greek mathematician"s six geometrical theorems. He would often study by candlelight late at night while his fellow lawyers slept.
Lincoln"s reading offered him the opportunity to go deeper into his own spirit and broader into the land of imagination. From 1849 to 1854, Lincoln would cultivate a profound interior life.
FOR MUCH OF 1849, Lincoln walked the nearly seven blocks from his home to his office in Springfield every day, sometimes arriving as early as 7 a.m. For a Whig committed to order, Lincoln kept his law office mostly in disorder. The floor was never clean. John H. Littlefield, who studied law with Lincoln during this time, discovered while attempting to clean the office that a variety of discarded fruit seeds had sprouted in the dirt and dust. Attorney Henry C. Whitney described the windows in Lincoln"s office as "innocent of water and the scrubman since creation"s dawn or the settlement of Springfield."
When Lincoln arrived at his office, he immediately stretched out on the worn leather couch, the central piece of furniture in the room. It was too small for his large frame, so he would put one foot on a chair and the other on a table nearby. Once positioned, Lincoln began to read the newspapers-always out loud, no matter who was present. Lincoln"s reading aloud annoyed Herndon. Once, when Herndon asked his senior partner why he read aloud, Lincoln answered, "When I read aloud two senses catch the idea: first, I see what I read; second, I hear it, and therefore I can remember it better."
Both Lincoln and Herndon read newspapers insatiably. After returning from Washington, Lincoln subscribed to the New York Tribune, New York Tribune, Horace Greeley"s influential national newspaper; Washington"s Horace Greeley"s influential national newspaper; Washington"s National Intelligencer, National Intelligencer, the great Whig newspaper; and the the great Whig newspaper; and the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, founded in 1847, which advocated a Whig and Free Soil opinion on slavery. Herndon encouraged Lincoln to subscribe to several leading antislavery papers as well, including the founded in 1847, which advocated a Whig and Free Soil opinion on slavery. Herndon encouraged Lincoln to subscribe to several leading antislavery papers as well, including the Anti-Slavery Standard, Anti-Slavery Standard, the official weekly newspaper of the American Anti-Slavery Society; and the the official weekly newspaper of the American Anti-Slavery Society; and the National Era, National Era, a weekly abolitionist paper published out of Washington. a weekly abolitionist paper published out of Washington.
Sometimes, when Herndon pressed his antislavery views upon Lincoln, the senior partner would counter that it was important to hear the Southern side as well. As Lincoln struggled with the issue of slavery, he wanted to consider all points of view. Out of these exchanges, Lincoln decided to subscribe to several Southern newspapers. The Richmond Enquirer Richmond Enquirer set the standard in Southern journalism and had become a leading voice in the surge toward secession. The set the standard in Southern journalism and had become a leading voice in the surge toward secession. The Charleston Mercury Charleston Mercury espoused a fierce pro-slavery position and regularly let loose journalistic attacks on the North, especially abolitionists. These divergent newspapers became instruments for Lincoln"s thinking and brooding about slavery. "Let us have both sides at the table," Lincoln told Herndon. "Each is ent.i.tled to its day in court." espoused a fierce pro-slavery position and regularly let loose journalistic attacks on the North, especially abolitionists. These divergent newspapers became instruments for Lincoln"s thinking and brooding about slavery. "Let us have both sides at the table," Lincoln told Herndon. "Each is ent.i.tled to its day in court."
Lincoln delegated some of his legal research to Herndon, but the senior partner always wrote out his own pleadings. He had written many when he worked as a junior partner with John Todd Stuart, but nearly all of the pleadings for the Logan and Lincoln firm had come from Stephen Logan"s hand. Now Lincoln returned to the laborious practice of writing these long legal doc.u.ments in his elegant penmanship.
The law had changed a great deal in the twelve years since Lincoln began practicing with Stuart in the spring of 1837. Formality in the courtroom began to replace the informality that had reigned during the 1830s and "40s. Legal precedent had become ascendant over argument. Spontaneous oratory, for the most part, had been replaced by careful preparation and presentation. Instead of the clear meaning of the law applying to all cases, now the complex meaning of the law applied to specific cases.
A POPULAR SAYING in Lincoln"s day was that the Bible, Shakespeare, and Blackstone "s in Lincoln"s day was that the Bible, Shakespeare, and Blackstone "s Commentaries Commentaries made up the foundation of any well-stocked legal library. The best lawyers in the first half of the nineteenth century were typically well versed in both literature and law. After the Civil War, the trajectory of law would point to professional training and specialization. From this perspective, some observers describe preCivil War lawyers as wanting in their preparation, but from another point of view we can see that they approached law from the established traditions of Western literature and religion. One can find frequent descriptions of lawyers" eloquence in the preCivil War courtroom, where literary and rhetorical expression had a high value. As for Lincoln, his growing eloquence sprang not from a knowledge of legal precedent, but from his familiarity with the cla.s.sic resources of the Bible, works of history and biography, and literature, especially Shakespeare. made up the foundation of any well-stocked legal library. The best lawyers in the first half of the nineteenth century were typically well versed in both literature and law. After the Civil War, the trajectory of law would point to professional training and specialization. From this perspective, some observers describe preCivil War lawyers as wanting in their preparation, but from another point of view we can see that they approached law from the established traditions of Western literature and religion. One can find frequent descriptions of lawyers" eloquence in the preCivil War courtroom, where literary and rhetorical expression had a high value. As for Lincoln, his growing eloquence sprang not from a knowledge of legal precedent, but from his familiarity with the cla.s.sic resources of the Bible, works of history and biography, and literature, especially Shakespeare.
Lincoln used Blackstone"s Commentaries as a foundation of self-education in the law.
Some lawyers who practiced with Lincoln reported his knowledge of the law was lacking. But one needs to qualify this observation by understanding both the observer and the context. Stephen Logan, Lincoln"s second partner, remembered, "Lincoln"s knowledge of law was very small when I took him in," but, of course, this recollection came from a man who wanted to be remembered for helping tutor the young Lincoln. Judge David Davis, who would become one of Lincoln"s best friends out on the circuit in the 1850s, offered a more balanced a.s.sessment. Lincoln may not have been a meticulous student of the law but, when pressed by necessity, he used the available sources of legal information. Davis said, "Sometimes Lincoln studied things, if he could not get the rubbish of a case removed." In many ways Lincoln approached the practice of law in a way typical of the busy lawyers who traveled the large judicial circuits in frontier states.
When Lincoln did need to brush up on the law, he would walk across the street to use the resources of the Illinois Supreme Court Library housed in the statehouse. He also relied on published digests containing summaries of important cases. The United States Digest United States Digest covered cases from both state and federal courts; the covered cases from both state and federal courts; the Illinois Digest Illinois Digest was also a fast and reliable tool for researching cases. was also a fast and reliable tool for researching cases.
TWICE A YEAR, in the spring and fall, Lincoln traveled more than five hundred miles for a cycle of the Eighth Judicial Circuit. The circuit, which expanded and contracted during this time, stretched across an area of nearly fifteen thousand square miles, larger than the state of Connecticut. Lincoln"s schedule was the exception to that of other lawyers of his day: Most practiced law in only a few counties surrounding their hometown and office.
Lincoln enjoyed the itinerant lifestyle of a circuit lawyer. When he rejoined the circuit in the fall of 1849 for the first time after leaving Congress, he switched from traveling by horseback to a buggy pulled by his horse "Old Buck," who had seen better days. Instead of saddlebags, he now carried his legal papers, a few books, and an extra shirt in a carpetbag. On September 17, 1849, he bought a large cotton umbrella for seventy-five cents as protection from the Illinois weather. He had his name sewed inside with white thread and tied the umbrella together with twine to keep it from flying open.
Lincoln had grown up in the forests of Indiana, but he became enthralled by the endless prairies of Illinois. The prairies were a striking mixture of blue stem, Indian, and Canadian white rye gra.s.ses. By summer"s end, they were a foot higher than Lincoln"s head. As the Indian summer of late September gave way to October"s cooler nights, the prairies turned from green to tawny and vermilion. Black-eyed Susans, goldenrod, and sawtooth sunflowers came into final bloom, thriving not simply from the fall rains, but also from the rich subsoil beneath the prairies. In the woodlands, the foliage of red and white oaks blazed orange and dark purple in the last days of October and early November. The prairies were wondrously silent, with only the voice of an owl or a fox to break Lincoln"s solitude.
For all of their beauty, however, the prairies could be treacherous. The weather was always changing. By October, Lincoln had to be prepared for thunderstorms, winds, and sleeting snow, which could turn the roads into rivers of mud. Fire, generated by just a spark in the autumn"s tall gra.s.s, could roar across the prairies with tremendous speed, overtaking travelers and destroying farms. Blizzards could suddenly blow out of the north and produce drifts that could kill man and beast.
Nonetheless, after spending sixteen months in the nation"s capital, Lincoln seemed to relish traveling the byways of the Eighth Judicial Circuit. The circuit was growing in population and offered new legal opportunities as well as friendships. He set to work reestablishing old relationships and making new ones that would become key to regaining his prominence as a lawyer, as well as to his future reentry into politics.
Lincoln was especially eager to see Judge David Davis again. Lincoln had first met lawyer Davis in 1835. While Lincoln served in Congress, the legislature had elected Davis judge of the Eighth Circuit. Born on his grandfather"s plantation in Sa.s.safras Neck on the eastern sh.o.r.e of Maryland in 1815, Davis had graduated from Kenyon College, in the interior of Ohio, in 1832. One of his cla.s.smates was Edwin M. Stanton, a young man from Steubenville, Ohio, who suffered from asthma.
After graduation, Davis worked in the law office of Henry W. Bishop in Lenox, in western Ma.s.sachusetts. In 1835 he decided to travel west to practice law. After first settling in Pekin, Illinois, he moved twenty-five miles east to Bloomington, a town of 450 residents built north of a large grove of trees known as Blooming Grove.
Judge David Davis would become one of Lincolns closest legal and political friends.
Lincoln differed from Davis in many ways. Judge Davis, a congenial aristocrat, dressed immaculately. By the time Lincoln began traveling with Davis on the Eighth Circuit, the judge, five feet eleven inches tall, weighed nearly three hundred pounds; Lincoln"s six-foot-four-inch frame carried less than two hundred pounds. Davis"s huge size made it impossible for him to share a bed with Lincoln in hotels. He was so large he had to ride about the circuit in a buggy drawn by not one but two gray mares.
Despite these superficial differences, Davis formed a highly favorable opinion of Lincoln. In a letter Davis said, "Lincoln is the best Stump Speaker in the State." During the 1850s the lives and careers of Abraham Lincoln and Judge David Davis would intertwine repeatedly as they traveled from court to court in the small towns of central Illinois.
IN THE FALL OF 1849, Lincoln met Leonard Swett, a new lawyer on the circuit. Originally from Maine and a veteran of the Mexican War, Swett began practicing law in 1849 in Clinton, Illinois, a small town not far from Bloomington. A tall, erect man with a bright, intelligent face, he started traveling the Eighth Judicial Circuit just as Lincoln returned to it.