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hunted up the ex-postmaster and demanded the small balance due to the government; the amount was seventeen dollars and some odd cents. His friend and neighbor Dr. A. G. Henry happened to be present when the agent made this unexpected demand, and, knowing Lincoln's extreme poverty, took him aside and offered to lend him the sum required. "Hold on a minute," said Lincoln, “and let's see how we come out." Going to his sleepingroom, he brought out an old stocking and, untying it, poured on the table the exact amount, just as it had been paid to him in pennies and small silver pieces. Many a time had Lincoln been in bitter want, many a time hard-pressed for money; but the receipts of the little post-office were to him a sacred trust to be kept until required of him.

The debt incurred by the "winking out" of the store of Berry and Lincoln pressed upon him. So vast did it seem that he was accustomed to speak of it as "the national debt." But, unlike most national debts, it was ultimately paid. In the course of business, the notes that he and Berry had given for the stock-in-trade fell into the hands of a person who was more than usually impatient; for every man's credit, in those days, was unlimited. The creditor in this case seized Lincoln's horse, saddle, and bridle, and sold them under a sheriff's execution. One of Lincoln's steadfast friends, Bolin Greene, attended the sale, from which Lincoln, greatly cast down in his mind, absented himself. Greene bought the outfit, and, to Lincoln's great surprise and relief, gave them to him with the in

junction: "Pay for them, Abe, when you get ready, and if you never get ready, it's all the same to me." Not long after this, Bolin Greene,-long be his name remembered!-died, and Lincoln was asked by his townsmen of New Salem to deliver a eulogy at his burial. The rising young lawyer attempted the grateful task, but his voice failed him. The tears ran down his cheeks as he rose to speak, and, overcome with emotion, he sat down without saying a word. More eloquent than words, his tears spoke his affection for the man who had been his friend in need.

CHAPTER VI.

THE YOUNG POLITICIAN.

Elected to the Legislature-Stump Speaker and Political Debater— Encounters on the Stump-The Lincoln-Stone Protest against Slavery "The Long Nine"-Removal of the State Capital to Springfield-Compliments to the Sangamon Chief-Lincoln a Full-Fledged Lawyer-Riding the Illinois Circuit-Distinguished Associates at the Bar-Lincoln as a Harrison Man.

IN 1834 Lincoln again became a candidate for the Legislature. This was to be expected. On the previous occasion he had made what was a very good run, although, as we have seen, he had a very few days in which to finish his canvass after returning from the wars. The election took place in August, and, after a sharp fight, Lincoln was elected. Many Democrats, we are told, voted for him from purely personal and friendly reasons, and he was sure of the united support of the Whigs. The four successful candidates, with their votes, were as follows: Lincoln, 1376; Dawson, 1370; Carpenter, 1170; Stuart, 1164; Lincoln thus leading the poll. To say that Lincoln was elated would faintly express his satisfaction over this great but not unexpected triumph. He was now twenty-five years old, hardy, in perfect health, manly, tolerably self-possessed, and not ashamed to address himself to the discussion of any of the questions of the day, and fully competent to

hold his own with the general run of debaters on the stump, or in the Legislature. He had mastered the elementary law-books, was familiar with legal phrases and forms, knew every rod of the country roundabout the region from which he was a representative, and, above all, knew the people, their wants, their hopes, fears, aspirations, habits, and manner of life. With a few books he was on the most intimate terms. These were the Bible, Shakespeare, Burns, Æsop and The Pilgrim's Progress. He was honest, truthful, kind-hearted, patient, long-suffering, brave, and tender. Without forming his literary style on any model, indeed scarcely even thinking of style, he had insensibly acquired a method of expressing himself, both in reading and writing, which may well serve as an example for the youth of to-day. He used only words of one syllable, where that was practicable, and, instead of diluting his thoughts with many words, he went straight to the point, concisely and without any delay. He was awkward in appearance, diffident, and, while not unduly distrustful of himself, always preferred another before himself, and ever showed himself ready to give place to others. Above all, and to the latest day of his life, Lincoln was not ashamed to confess his ignorance of any subject; he never lost an opportunity to get instruction.

The capital of Illinois was then at Vandalia. The Legislature was made up of men who, like Lincoln, had been selected from their fellows by friends and neighbors, chiefly for personal reasons, and by the free suffrages of the voters. What are now known

as machine politics, in which corrupt and selfish party interests are concerned, were unknown in those primitive days. The members came together, passed the laws thought most needful for the people, and then went home. Clad in a suit of decent but not especially elegant blue jeans, Lincoln, with his commanding height, was a marked figure in the Legislature. But we do not learn that he was remarkable for anything else but his height, then six feet and four inches. If he created any impression otherwise, it was when, the day's session over, he tilted his chair back in some place where the budding statesmen chiefly congregated, and entertained them with stories of which the repute has lasted long. But the tall young backwoodsman, now passing into the era of statesmanship, was keenly alive to all that was going on. He held his place in the legislative debates, but he listened to others. He introduced few bills, but he narrowly observed what other men were doing in this direction; and, while he said little, he took in everything and thought a great deal. The session of that winter was not lost to him.

Next year he was again nominated for the Legislature and was again elected, this time receiving, as in 1834, the largest vote of any candidate voted for in the region. In his appeal to the voters, that year, Lincoln said: "I go for all sharing the privileges of the government who assist in bearing its burdens. Consequently, I go for admitting all whites to the right of suffrage who pay taxes or bear arms (by no means excluding females)." And again: "Whether elected or not, I go for distributing the proceeds of

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