Show nH J LL COL She I 1 he tory Story of ot Lincoln's life lire I is isso Isso so beautiful that It I la is like a mas mas- masterpIece masterpiece masterpiece of ot some Borne wonderful tom com compose poi coni-poi pose 11 i It bears repeating and re- re repealing re repealing pealing and the llie more we e hear it II ItOe tile t more we e lose loie la e It and appreciate appreciate appreciate ate It It But so much has haa been sail saId of o Lincoln's life and birth birth- birthplace place birth place ploce that 1 shall base my esa essay lu In commemoration ot of Lincoln Lini s e birthday on his ch as depleted depicted In his hits works or Ol Ul Bl 1 ORIS Dy Cy their works sconce ie ye e shall know kno them This maxim malm can bo be truly applied to Lincoln because there Is not an address addres speech or letter Itter that docs does not show his po powerful erful characteristics Through ough reading his speeches and lettel letters s we may get an Intimate picture ot of LI COL A AS Pc Lincoln had llad a great deal ot of practice In the art ot of speech long before boore his debates against made him known n to The tho nation endless talks In countr country stores endless endle's jest jests In frontier t twenty enty bars ears or of o pleading ILl ht the circuit courts twenty file beara ears of o can constant slant political discussion dis- dis discussion dis discussion IUs debates and letters or of law bats slow show an interest in the tho meaning of o words llis clear to Juries show sho Ills hla passion for tor putting ideas Into language plain enough for any boy to understand Throughout his de do as a master ot of his mother molher tongue It seem seema that he was pre occupied pre not with Ith words for their 0 own nuke sake but solely I with JIll words as the garb garbot of ideas ill Ills Ill's MAY L Furthermore Lincoln's mental characteristics how chow enow that his JIls style Is the Ih result of o I a a desire to tell lell the h truth uth as honestly and vh Idly as ho he can He lie was as Hollest Abe not a II man who ho told all ho he knew by any means but bet et n fair man essentially minded fair Ho looked Into the tho nature of things he lie could read human na- na turn turn na-turn dispassionately lieas lie He was as not fooled by hy phrases phrase As a a debater ho he made no attempt to mislead his audience As president when ho found round frank conversation Im- Im Im Impossible possible impossible hi hf hI told a humorous story of ot more moro or less leas remote emote i bearing upon the subject ct In hand bly tho the stories were ere proof ot of othis limitations his understanding of ot the limita of ot language He lie knew when a II picture or a a parable would brit best serve ills bis purpose sSI s MD bi SI LSE su J or OP I Lincoln s a gift of o humor added much to the tho and homely homel naturalness of ot his style His mind had tho the impartiality the freedom from the prejudice the flexibility of sympathy which belongs to the tho humorIst alone Ills HIS III U LETTERS Lincoln's letters show still sUlI an- an an other another aide sido of his strange and fascinating individuality They are arc compressed and forceful full of humor and homely pathos and shrewd knowledge of ot character r I think that his letters are among the most extraordinary ever written writ Brit ten Even his telegrams that lie be cent ent home homo In iii tho the most mot day days or of o politics and 1 warfare show the affection touching quality of hi his of-I of af- af af I fiction anxiety and In matters In concerning his Ia lire life ant his els d dear ar lad I I TAs 1 R ARTIST AnTI T As great greut national tie and problems pressed closer Lincoln grew more eyed clear and certain of or his course And hits his st style lo Ie changed as the man chang chang- ed changed ills His earlier st at lo to was direct forceful and manly but not mark mark- edly markedly t b better r thin than th n that o 0 of many or of his contemporaries A As he grew as aJ a master mater ot of men I iii his hla faculty ot of expression rose until at burg burg and anti in hi his hla second inaugural address he reach reached d the he highee tone lone So transparent Is the lan lan- lan guage of ot the Gelt Gettysburg address addres that we e may read through It Lincoln's wise Ise and gentle and unselfish ten heart HI His urr ten ten- his homely homel honesty and humor and Ms Lila tragic martyrdom martyrdom just as ho he had led the nation through th war 1 ar to peace enshrine hIm in the innermost heart henrt ot of ofel cry American One closes a volume of ot Lla- Lla Lin Lincoln coin coln s addresses and letters with something of or the f feeling that Walt Valt Whitman has uttered with 1111 regard rel to Lincoln SPOt a poi traits None or of o the ni lists or es has as caught the deep though sub sub- subtle sub subtle tle and Indirect expression of this man s face race There Thero is something else there LOUISE rICHARDSON |