Lincoln, the unknown

LINCOLN THE UNKNOWN• 107on as long as he lived, the recipient of the telegram was called"For God's Sake Linder."On election night, Lincoln remained in the telegraph office,reading the returns. When he saw that he had lost, he startedhome. It was dark and rainy and gloomy. The path leading tohis house had been worn pig-backed and was slippery. Suddenly,one foot shot from under and hit the other. Quickly herecovered his balance. "It's a slip," he said, "and not a fall."Shortly after that he read an editorial about himself in anIllinois paper. It said:Hon. Abe Lincoln is undoubtedly the most unfortunatepolitician that has ever attempted to rise in Illinois. Ineverything he undertakes, politically, he seems doomed tofailure. He has been prostrated often enough in his politicalschemes to have crushed the life out of any ordinaryman.The vast crowds that had rushed to hear him debate withDouglas encouraged Lincoln to believe that he might make alittle money now by giving lectures; so he prepared to talk on"Discoveries and Inventions," rented a hall in Bloomington,stationed a young lady at the door to sell tickets—and not onesolitary person came to hear him. Not one!So once more he returned to his dingy office with the inkstainon the wall and the garden seeds sprouting on top of thebookcase.It was high time he was getting back, for he had been awayfrom his law practice for six months, earning nothing. Now hewas out of funds entirely; he didn't have enough cash on handeven to pay his butcher's and grocer's bills.So again he hitched up Old Buck to his ramshackle buggy,and again he started driving over the prairie circuit.It was November, and a cold snap was coming. Across thegray sky above him wild geese flew southward, honking loudly;a rabbit darted across the road; off in the woods somewhere awolf howled. But the somber man in the buggy neither saw norheard what was going on about him. Hour after hour, he rodeon, his chin on his breast, lost in speculation, submerged indespair.