Judyville High School - Jargon Yearbook (Judyville, IN)

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'wi , O' 'TG 'QP .1 99-:fwff 'QQIFX ki THE .uhm 21 9 ee s C ex'- MQ R is In Jig! M! el, W' lincoln sea nn as 6 P t I Iilmo M. Francis won the medal for the best essay on Abraham Lincoln. The prize was given by the Illinois XYatch Company. Abraham Lincoln, one of the greatest statesmen and presidents the world has ever known, was born February 12, 1300. His father, Thomas Lincoln, married Nancy Hanks in the year 1306. Lincoln's early life was made up of privations and hardships. The little log cabin in which Lincoln was born was as lowly as the manger in which Christ was born. flue of the greatest things concerning Lincoln was his appreciation of his mother. This fact became evident when we read his last words: All that ' I am or ever hope to be I owe to my angel mother. His mother died when he was nine years of age, and her dying request to him was: Be SOITIC- f thing, Abe. Always in his career did he live up to his mothers last request, No doubt the hardships of poverty and lonely pioneer life developed his wonderful strength of character. He said in reference to his early life: lt can all be condensed in a single sentence that you will find in Grey's Iflegy, 'The short and simple annals of the poor'. The many worth while things that Lincoln accomplished, and his ability as a leader, were due largely to the library that he possessed when he was young. It consisted of three columes which were: the Bible, Aesop's Fa- bles, and I'ilgrim's Progress. Day aftcr day he read them and pondered the complexities which they contained, until they were fixed firmly in his mind. Better could not be found in all the universities of Europe, and we begin to understand where he got his moral vision, and his shrewd humor. I Lincoln grew into manhood morally clean. He had no bad habits to , ' overcome, was free from vice and crime, and used no liquor which in that day was used so universally. He had a genius for making friends, and with- ullt a thought of the great responsiblities that awaited him, he had fitted himself well by his faithfulness in such duties as fell to him. l Ile was admitted to the bar in the middle part of the nineteenth century, and practiced law for a while. Ilere, as elsewhere, his absolute honesty held sway. He never hesitated to protest against injustice, and he believed that The Golden Rule, which he so thoroughly learned from the book of his early library. could be used in law and politics. Ile was very kind to the poor and unfortunate. Anyone who favored the slaves, even in the free state of Illinois, was sure to alienate friendsg but Lincoln was one of the few who never hesitated at the sacrifice. He said, I know there is a God and that he hates injustice and slavery. I see the storm coming and I know His hand is in it. If he has a place and work for me, I am ready. I have told them 'a house divided against itself cannot stand,' and Christ and reason say the same. After the election of 1960, the pioneer railsplitter was at the head of the gp United States government. The southerners were constantly trying to make is war on the government. Lincoln had said in his inaugural address that he Q Q33 would not be the aggressor, and he held steadfastly to this promise. He said ' ll o ' -U . , 9 Page fifty-four

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'wi . 0' 'Q 'Xt-1' U' ad -Qygsx F 'THE JARGUN -, S a J 0 Lib 0, Ill f ' Q QD M9 f.. HDD Une day at mimi, lmeing in a melancholy state ul' mind, I wandered intn the lilnrary to seek cunsulatinn. Ilaring searched tlirwugh the many dust cm'- N ered vulumes, I fnund une with the name Yictnr Ilugu inscrilwed un the sur- face. Nut that the name was familiar lint lrecause it appealef and was snnn scanning the pages. I I tn me l npened It was first read for lack nf a lietter, Init each leaf lmnre new treasures, I and mv interest kindled. .Xware ul- lieing led intn an ancient, crumliling W su 'llCtl1l'C. I laegan tn gaze in astunishment at the antiquities. which In me were a nurelty. Frmnn i'umn Inv rmnn he led me, puinting nut this and prais- ing that. .Xt last fear Hed and my keen scrutiny mingled with his in a cnncentrated study. Up racky stairs, thrnugh eerie rnfnns we traveled, until mx' lmdily energy was sn cumpletely alrsnrhed in wwnder that I was hirced tu linld un fan' Stlppuft. 1 .Xll this while he chanted wnrds which came like music sn charming and wunderful as tu place me in an intuxicating state of admiratiii ll. Seeing that the iinpressinn was made he suddenly npened a massive . 1 , irnn alum' and emerged intu the street. .Xlthough I accumpmiel lnm mx th nughts and soul still ruamed thrnugh the interim' uf the nld tintliic strucs ture. Ile teased and joked as we cuntinned, 'til my mind was again my uwn. XYhen an ehli in the tide uf scurrying pedestrians was reached, I was intru- duced tn men ideal and exceptional in mural and mental alwilities. Stain again my strength seeped in admiring these new wonders as I stumlvled alnng. Then without the least warning the pages instantly ceased and I dug fiercely at the hack fur inure uf the stnry. lYhen finally I had mastered nn inlirniity, I ruse and luwked arnund. Day was waning and already lights were Hickering in distant windnws. The afternnnn was spent. hut it had ' purchased a usurper of leisure hunrs. Une whn cn uld with the str.-ke nl a pen, transfurm us intu a lifelike character uf his uwn makeupg while serving U' b Hn Und literature. e arts in sn tasty a plate as tn win lmnth faith and cnnhdenct in the held ul iecil Xl DL' l '78 4 O 159 If N' Page fifty-flzref

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+I' 41- 22 M , a'9 B A' ,refs-af J! .f f THE JARGON - X s Q. W if N G16 af 'O ' 4 f.. mb to them: You have no oath registered in Heaven to destroy the govern- Cf? ment, while 1 have the most solemn one Io preserve, protect, and defend it. He wished to destroy slavery, but not in a manner that would violate the Constitution. In spite of the fact that Lincoln and Douglas had indulged in some very spirited debates about slavery, at the close of the inaugural address, Doug- las warmly grasped the president's hand and pledged his support to the Constitution. The war was one continuous horror to the tender-hearted man, who was so deeply affected by death. Un February 20, 1361, death entered his home, taking his little son, XYillie. This affected him much, as had the death of his former sweetheart, Ann Rutledge. .-Xll of this added to his concern for the welfare of his country, made him indeed a man of sorrows. President Lincoln always lived up to the name of Honest Abe, which he had earned in his early life, To a man of his tender and honest nature slavery was abhorrent. He had made a vow in 1831, when he was twenty-two years of age. that if he ever had the opportunity to hit that thing, he would hit it hard. The time for the master stroke at this hated institution had now arrived and Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1865, which was to make the black man free forever. The weary years of the war dragged on, with all its horrors and dis- couragements. and Lincoln was re-elected to the presidency. Richmond was at last evacuated, and Lee surrendered on .Xpril 9, 1965, thus ending the war. Lincoln's entrance into Richmond, thirty-six hours after Davis had fled, having set hre to the city, was unattended by martial music or applauding multitudesg but there was one very touching spectacle. lt was the large D number of negroes kneeling, praying and shouting, 1iress de Lawdf' He was their emancipator, who had delivered them from their awful bondage. The burdens and sorrows of bloodshed had made an old man of him, and the appearance of his countenance was very sad. The war was over, with the union saved and slavery doomed. Lincoln now turned his mind to the period of reconstruction. He had told Grant In let Jefferson Davis escape, all unbeknown to himself, that he would take no part in the killing of the Lionfederates. even the worst of his enemies. The unsellish life of this man of the common people was brought to a close by,-an assassins bullet, .-Xpril 15, 1864, while he was at the Ford theater. James Wlilkes Booth, the murderer, was finally caught in a barn and shot down. The nation's loss of this great president can not be estimated. This man, who never willingly planted a thorn in anyone's path, and who could say, at a time when many had been disloyal to him, 1Vith malice toward none and charity for all. His worst enemies never accused him of being selfish in politics, or working to further his own ends. His tender heart always responded to any appeal for mercy, and he always granted to the one asking, if he could possibly find any excuse whatever. This annoyed some of the , generals, who feared military discipline would be destroyed. Un the other , hand, his great determination in the cause of justice is shown, when a slave U. Q3 trader had been condemned and imprisoned for live years. He was fined Q-2 f ' ' F o ik?ZQKQ ' Page fifty-five