Show th ai 17 coil A two two A I 1 I 1 R 7 IVI T I 1 N ma 2 1 vt 11 W MEN MY M rit r it 7 4 01 M N N gp V A by ELMO SCOTT WATSON HURB Is many a paradox in american history but none Is more curious than this in the years yeara of 1861 to 1805 when the N north rth was arrayed against the south a southerner was the commander in chief of the northern forces for abraham lincoln was a a native of a southern tate state kentucky more than that tits his wife was a southerner and that fact undoubtedly not only profoundly influenced his career are but it shaped american history as well there la Is an it if in american history too and one of the most interesting Is this if abraham lincoln had not married mary todd of lexington ky it is possible that ho he aou would id never have been president of the united states and thereby be called upon to lead the armed strength of the nation against ills his own people when the republican party in 1800 was considering possible candidates for the presidential nomination their choice upon lincoln depended partly upon the fact that lie was a conservative in regard to the idonat dominant question of slavery this conservatism ism brought to him the powerful support of the border states delegates who believed that he possessed a sympathetic understanding of their problem lem and could deal it bitter better than any other candidate before the convention vent ven tion lon he had this sympathetic understanding because tits his marriage to mary todd gave him an opportunity to see both sides of the question it was in lexington in the heart of the largest slavo elave holding section of kentucky that lincoln saw at close range the more favorable patriarchal elements of the institution ills father in law owned slaves cared for them well and made a resolution which lie he r okays kept never to sell a slave and thus risk bringing suffering to a human being who had a claim through faithful service to his affection in the home of the todds dodds and of their friends he saw caw negro slaves well fed well housed and kindly treated the institution of slavery at its best but there in the chivalrous and romantic blue grass region lincoln also saw slavery abts at its worst some of the masters there abused their slaves only a short distance from where tary mary todd was born stood a notorious slave prison and in cheapside the market square of lexington scarcely a day passed without seeing the public sale of black men and women more than that in the town of lexington there was a miniature reproduction of the tempest which was rocking the nation the slavery dispute it was on the borderland and in it were pro slavery and antislavery anti antt slavery factions both strong the leader of the most radical pro slavery men was robert wickliffe father of two of mary todds dodds girlhood chums and the husband of her fathers cousin leaders among the antislavery anti slavery men were robert J breckenridge and cassius cassaus M clay both personal and political friends of lits his father in law so when lincoln made madenis his famous house divid ed against itself speech lie he could have pointed to the homes of dozens of families in or hr near lexington ky as concrete examples of its ills symbol it Is such facts as these that william IL townsend a citizen of lexington has brought out in an important study of lincoln the book lincoln and ills cifes home town published recently by the bobbs bobb 9 merrill company in the preface mr town townsend bend says the name damo of abraham lincoln Is forever associated with slavery in the united states biographers have traced the gradual development of Lincol ns vl views aws on the subject his first public utterance in the illinois legislature down to ao the emancipation proclamation twenty five live years later 4 f A A 4 e t R X i ft i y vi h vu sya tk v w 1 mary todd lincoln from a photograph taken during the early part of Lincol ns administration 2 lincoln in 1848 from an old daguerreotype the earliest known portrait of lincoln 3 mary ann todd A portrait made about the time of her marriage to lincoln I 1 the sources however from which tits his convictions on the great issue largely sprung have not been hitherto re healed it Is the purpose of tills this book to show Lincol ns personal contacts with slavery which gave him a firsthand knowledge of the pecullar peculiar institution ution that he could have acquired in no other way lincoln and mary alary todd were married in 1812 1842 and soon afterwards lincoln was elected to congress tits his first appearance upon the national stage a position brought jilin hlin into more direct contact with the all im question was so soon to be shaking the nation to its depths ot of the importance to Lincol ns political future of his marriage sir townsend writes so it happened that the little wife who went to live with lincoln at the modest globe tavern in washington through tier her girlhood experiences per perien lences ces in lexington was peculiarly fitted to share in the great task which would make the man she married immortal she had been taught every phase of the great question which finally came to he be nearest his heart by the very man whom tier her husband regarded with the most admiration henry clay it may lave have been that rutledge or portly complacent mary or youthful lighthearted light hearted sarah rickard would have endowed the tp it sycamore of the sangamon Sang ninon with a richer measure of marital bliss but never did a young wife bring to a husband interested in statecraft and anxious for per fermont such wealth of firsthand first hand information on a grave moral and political subject such fruits of intimate association with great public men iuen of her day as did mry mary todd to abraham lincoln one of these great public men was john C breckenridge a childhood friend of mary ilary todd lincoln in lex ington later a united states senator vice president when buchanan was president and the candidate of the pro slavery democrats in the fateful campaign of 1860 one of the most dramatic incidents in mr air townsends townsa Town sends da book Is the story of how it fell to the lot of 0 this friend of mary todds dodds girlhood to declare the election of tier her husband to the presidency lie he tells tell S the story as follows on february 13 osgi the two houses bouses of congress met in joint session to count the electoral votes for president of the united states for days rumors had flown thick and fast that att vice 11 president resIdent it breckenridge reel enridge would refuse to announce the election of lincoln and thus give the signal for the seizure elzure fc of 0 washington by the overwhelming ing number of southern sympathizers within its gates general scott had directed that no person should be admired to the capitol ImIl ding except senators representatives representative es gor government rement employees and those who ilio had bad tickets signed by the speaker of the house or the presiding ing officer of the senate armed guards were stationed station od at evely entrance to enforce this order shortly after noon the senators tiled filed into the house cha chamber tuber and took their seats in a semicircle arranged for them in front of the speakers desk the presiding dink oell was conducted to tits his chair nid tellers took their places nt at the clerks table vice president breck enridge then arose and in a calm farin voice announced that the alio two houses were assembled to count the electoral yo votes t es for president and vice president of the united states it Is my duty he said to open the certificates of election in the presence of the houses and I 1 now proceed to the performance of that duty no one knew the lie gravity of the occasion better than the chairman I 1 N I 1 none one realized more than he that fully three fourths of those who sat aut beneath the vaulted dome were armed to the teeth und that the slightest spark might oft off a shocking conflagration but those who expected john 0 breckenridge to stultify his high office by a conspiracy to overt overthrow liroW the government did not know the roan man firmly believing the triumph of the republican party to be a menace to the south lie he would shortly return tits ills commission as senator to tits his constituents in kentucky forsaking fame and fortune under the stars stara and bars bais but today lie he was presiding officer of the federal senate and jupiter never ruled a council of 0 olympus with a firmer hand A southern member arose but the chairman anticipated him except questions of order no motions can be entertained lie declared the senator stated that he wished to raise a point of order Is the count of the electoral vote to pro coed under menace he shouted sli shall members be required to perform a constitutional duty before e the Jani zaries of general scott are withdrawn from the hall iohd the point of order Is not sustained ruled breckenridge icalla as lie he directed the count to proceed slowly one after another the long sealed envelopes containing the votes of the various states were opened maine for lincoln was followed iya by a slight ripple of applause south carolina for breckenridge was lost in an outburst of liand hand clapping quickly and sternly suppressed by th the presiding of lIcer alien in a breathless silence and with profound attention on the part of all present john C breckenridge arose from ills hla seat standing erect elect the most fled bed and imposing person la in that presence abraham lincoln he announced with a distinctness that carried his mellow voice to the most distant corner ot of the gallery having received a majority of bf the whole number of electoral votes Is duly elected president of the united states for the four years bearg beginning lanthe on the fourth of march 1801 11 ilow how the civil war touched person nily ally this southern family the LIncol ns who occupied the northern white NI tite house during those four eventful years Is shown in another incident told fold by mr air townsend mary iary todd it had a d a half sister named E i nille and she marri married d ben hardin helm a acx ington boy who was graduated fro from west point shortly before the opening of the civil war and cast tits hla fortunes with the confederacy the aftermath Is told in these words of judge david davis da vis 1 I never saw mr lincoln more moved than when he heard of the death of tits his young brother in law bp Bs hardin helm only thirty two yeara year old at chickamauga I 1 called to see him about four oclo cli on the 2 id d 0 of r september I 1 found him in the great bertt pst est arl grief f dails 1 said lie 11 1 ret feet at a david of old did when he was told of the ileath death of absalom saw how grief stricken lie he was so I 1 closed ilic door and left him alone Q by Ives tatu newspaper Nw iper v |