Lincoln in 1848 By ELMO SCOTT WATSON N FEBRUARY 12, 1835, the Illinois legislature, in session in the little town of Vandalia, was in the last- minute rush of finishing up its work before adjourning. That day one of its members was twenty-six years old, but it is doubtful if he pald much attention to the anni- versary. Nor is it likely that his fellow-legis- lators, if indeed they knew about it, took the trouble to congratulate hing and wish him “many happy returns of the day.® For he was just an obscure member of the lower house from Sanga- mon county, He had been an honest but unsuccessful store- keeper In the little hamlet of New Salem and a captain of volunteers In the Black Hawk war. jut he had won no particular distinction in that unimportant conflict, nor had his brief military career helped him much politically. An unsue- cessful candidate for the legislature in the au- tumn of 1832, he had split rails and done various other odd jobs to make a living while studying law by himself. Chosen postmaster of New Sa- lem, he had been successful in his second attempt to win a seat in the general assembly, but dur- ing the session now coming to a close he had done nothing to single him out among. his fel. lows as a “comer.” They knew him as a droll fellow who could set a group off into a gale of laughter with one of his funny stories, told in his high-pitched, sing- song, nasal voice, Yes, Abe Lincoln was “good company” but there was no reason to believe that he would ever become famous So the fact that February 12 was his birthday didn't mean a thing to the men who sat beside him in a room ir the little two-story brick bullding In Van- dalin—the capital of the sovereign state of Illi- nois. If they could have looked into the future and seen how that date was observed In every part of the United States, how their eyes would have bulged with surprise! Can't you hear them exclaiming: “In honor of Abe Lincoln? Why, "tain’t possible, no-how I"? So the “celebration” of Lincoln's birthday a hundred years ago was no celebration at all, for the very good reason that no one, not even the man himself, considered it of any Importance. jut it is worthy of remembrance for the reason that his blographer, Albert J. Beveridge, has pointed out in this paragraph from his “Abraham Lincoln, 1800-1858" (Houghton Mifflin company) : “Finally, by the dim light of candles, the gen. eral assembly finished its work and, sometime before midnight, February 13, 1835, adjourned sine die. His first legislative experience thus ended, Lincoln went back to New Salem and again took up his surveying and handling of the scanty mall. The sum of his sojourn In Van- dalla had been the making of friends, lessons in legislative procedure and manipulation, and the acquiring of basic procedure and constitn- tional principles. He had heard great questions discussed by able and Informed men. He had met cultivated women, too, and, In short, had visited a new world. Small wonder that, when he reached New Salem, he plunged Into study with such abandon that his health suffered and his friends thought him mentally affected. Hence- forth the ilog-cabin hamlet on the Sangamon held little or nothing that was attractive to the aspiring young Lincoln.” So perhaps it is not too much to say that the greatness that was to be Abraham Lincoln's dates from that February day, a hundred years ago, when he turned his back on the scene of his first appearance on the stage of public af- fairs. Neither the scene nor his appearance upon it were especially Impressive. Beveridge has given us an excellent description of both. He writes: “Upon the west bluff of the Kaskaskia river, gixty feet above high water, stood In 18M, per- haps a hundred bulldings. All but two were of wood, some of them frame structures, but most of them log cabins, A little frame Preshyterian church house, without a steeple, nestled on a side street, while a still smaller bullding served for all other religious denominations as well as for school purposes and public gatherings. . . . Five or six of the bigger houses were taverns or boarding places, two of them would accommo. date thirty or forty persons, though they were not entirely finished. . . . “About eight hundred people, Including chil dren, lived in the town, and the adjacent country was scantily settled; but marriages were fre- quent, For the most part the surrounding land was heavily timbered, but to the north and west rolling prairies stretched Into the horizon. The river bottoms were covered thickly with great trees, vines and all manner of rank vegetation; and from this valley eame at the seasonable time clouds of mosquitoes, “The streets of the village were eighty feet in width, deep with mud or dust, according to the weather, There were no sidewalks. Two main roads ran through the place, one the National road, scarcely opened as yet in this section, from Washington seven hundred and eighty-one miles distant to St. Louis eightytwo miles to ‘the southwest. Malls from I'hiadelphia and other eastern cities were between two and three weeks on the way. . . . The Rail- Splitter 5 by Charles Mulligan “Such was Vandalia when on a winter day late in November, 1534, the regular stage coach was driven into the capital of Illinois the passengers was Abraham Lincoln, one of the newly elected representatives from Sanga- Among mon county. “He wore a new suit which, made by a tallor in Springfield, had cost him sixty dollara Lin- coln had borrowed from Coleman Smoot two hundred dollars in order properly to equip him- self and pay his expenses while away from New Salem on his first legislative adventure. The loan was, whimsically declared Lincoln when asking Smoot for the money, a kind of penalty upon Smoot for having voted for him. He was better attired and had more clothes than ever before In his life.” During this session Lincoln played a very small part and such measures as he voted upon had comparatively little historical significance. He was appointed to one minor standing committee and later to two special committees The first bill he introduced, providing for a private toll bridge across Salt creek In Sangamon county, was passed promptly. But when he branched on' into larger fields of legislation he was not 80 successful The disposal of public lands belonging to the United States was an important question at that time. On January 10. 1X35, Lincoln offered a resolution “that our senators be Instructed and our representatives requested to use their whole influence in the congress of the United States to procure the passage of a law relative to the public lands, by the operation of which the state of lilinois would be entitled to receive annually a sum of money not less in amount than 20 per cent upon the amount annually paid into the treasury of the United States, for pub- lie lands lying within the limits of the said state of Illinois.” This resolotion was laid on the table, without roll-call, where it peacefully ex- pired. Even more important than the public land question was the problem of the National bank, the main issue in the Presidential campaign of 1532 in which Andrew Jackson was re-elected. A resolution, supporting Jackson's stand on this question, was Introduced in the Illinois legisia- ture In January, 1835, and precipitated a vig- orous dispute. Says Beveridge: *. . . For pearly three weeks Lincoln heard what was sald on all phases of the National bank and the currency; but it does not appear that he took part in the controversy.” But if Lincoln played an insignificant role during his first legislative experience, he was to play an active and conspicuous part in the spe cial session of the legislature which Gov. Joseph Dunean called the following December, (This was the same Joseph Duncan who, as one of Ma). George Crogan's "boy lieutenants,” had won a vote of thanks from congress for their herolsm at the defense of Fort Stephenson dur. ing the War of 1812) During this session the state was reapportioned, the necessary legisla. tion for starting work on the Illinois and Mich- igan canal was passed, as were the first of the flood bills providing for other internal improve. ments which rose to such a high tide in the next legislature and played no small part in the panle of 1837. But more important, as regards Lincoln's career, was the fact that during this time he was helping pave the way for removing the capital to Springfield, an incident which brought him his first real prominence. Re-elected to the legislature In 1836, at its opening session in December he became the Whig floor leader and was “recognized on all hands as a clever par- lamentary tactician and likely to become the manager in the house, . . . His supreme purpose now was to achieve the removal of the capital to Springfield and upon the achievement of that design he concentrated every faculty during the next three montha” ® In 1833 the legislature had authorized a ref. erendum vote by the people on the question of selecting a permanent site for the capital but no majority was given for any one location. Toe leaders In the voting were Alton, Vandalia, Bill Introduced by Lincoln in |B40Q Gov, Josepn Duncan Springfield, Jacksonville and Peoria, In the order named. The citizens of Vandalia didn’t want to 1 i £16.00) and hope lose the capital so they raise fully began to build a new state house to re place the one In which Lincoln had first served as a legislator and which was now becoming sadly dilapidated. They little realized how the manipulations of some very clever politicians, including lanky Abe Lincoln, were to doom them to disappointment. By the reapportionment act of 15835 Sangamon county had seven representatives and {we sena- tors, the largest delegation In the legislature. Because of the height of all these men (the aver age was well over six feet) they were called the “Long Nine.” The senators were Job Fletcher and Archer Herndon and the representatives were Abraham Lincoln, John Dawson, Dan Stone, Ninian W. Edwards (son of a former governor), William F. Elkin, R. 1. Wilson, and Andrew Me- Cormick. They voted solidly together on all ques tions and held out the bait of such an important block of votes to backers of the internal improve ments schemes in return for support of Spring. field as the new capital “Although Lincoln and the Springfield parti sans, of whom he was in command, strove to de. lay final action on the location of the capital until the passage of the Internal Improvement bill, they could not prevent frequent considera. tion of that irritating and dangerous subject” says Beveridge. “Sometimes they were on the very edge of defeat, twice they were actually beaten. His colleagues were despondent, hope- less ; but Lincoln never despaired. In the dark est hours he called the Long Nine to his room in the tavern, heartened them and devised plans for victory.” That victory came on February 28 1837. “Six days before adjournment, after three months of passage of the Internal Improvements bill with improvements of impracticable streams, and ap- propriations of cash to importunate counties, the general assembly in joint session chose capital. . . had yielded its harvest.” other members of the Long Nine went back to was formally enrolled as an attorney. On April 15, 1837, the Sangamon Journal car. in the Courts of this Judicial Circuit. Office No. 4, Hoffman's Row, upstairs, Springfield.” (Twen- ty-eight years later, to a day, the columns of this newspaper would appear with heavy black dent.) representatives, winner of the fight for Spring. field as the state capital, most talked of and best liked of all the Whigs of SBangamon county, and now partner of one of the ablest lawyers In Illi. nols and the foremost Whig in the state.” «Thus, Albert Beveridge-—"Astounding progress! But yesterday pottering about New Salem in contact only with little things and crude surroundings, heavily In debt and with dim prospects for ad- vancement ; today starting on the high road of ambition and achievement I” © by Western Newspaper Union, HERE'S CHAIR SET EASY TO CROCHET By GRANDMOTHER CLARK * not pick up your No, 8 crochet hook and thread about size 15 and erochet this attractive three piece set for your living room chair or for a gift? It will surely be a preciated and admired. 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