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No. 14~ THEY ONLY INCREASE the STATURE of the MAN Prepared in the Interests of Book Collecting at the The University of Michigan No. 14~ THEY ONLY INCREASE THE STATURE OF THE MAN. 1Sept 1947 A Little Dinner reminded us that we had more than two hours to for Lincoln wai t before the Lincoln At 12:01 A.M. on July ­ Papers could be opened. 2G, 1947, the Robert Todd He proposed that we Lincoln Collection of pa­ might pass the time plea­ pers relating to his father, santly listening to some of Abraham Lincoln, was our company tell us what opened to the public. they hoped to find in the This was that moment for collection. ,..rh ich many men had Dr Evans called first on wai ted years. The faces of Carl Sandburg. With a those men grouped around gentle smile on his face, the safes which had held and in the Middle West­ the papers were bright ern voice familiar to all with hope or troubled Lincolnians, Mr Sandburg wi th fears and worries or announced that he would stilled to conceal emo­ accompany himself on his lions. Yet were they all ex­ guitar with songs of the pectanL This was the mo­ American past. First, there ment; starring 00'\'''' they was a Revolutionary War would have - or they song by Joseph Warren would not have-s-answers about his hopes for the 10 questions about Lin­ future of our America coln which puzzled them. and then there was a bal­ These Lincoln Papers Reprinted with permission of S. J. Ray and . lad of Lincoln's time- the Kansas City Star had been sealed at the in- about a boy and a girl. sistence of the President's son be­ the Robert T . Lincoln Collection. After the strings of his guitar were cause, he said, they "contain many We were welcomed by our host and still, Mr Sandburg spoke movingly references of a private nature to the cooled and relaxed in the lVashing. about his belief that when the pa­ immediate ancestors of persons now ton manner before we took our pers were opened there would be living." At least, that is Robert Lin­ places at the single long table. I found a clearer understanding of coln's formal statement of the rea­ was seated at the left of Verner W. Lincoln, an amplification of the son for closing the Papers for twen­ Clapp (Libr ary of Congress) and qualities which make him stand out ty-one years. Some folk say that on the right of Foreman M. Lebold in the history of our country. He Robert Lincoln's real reason was (Chicago Lincoln collector). F. hoped most particularly that histo­ to prevent a certain Lincoln biogra­ Lauriston Bnllard (collector and rians, whom he believed had mis­ pher from having access to the Pa­ author of Abraham L incoln & The interpreted certain episodes, would pers. W idow Bixb y) , who had Mr Clapp find their errors corrected in the There is in the Library of Con­ on his left and Jay Monaghan papers. Finally, he referred to the gress a charming room known as (Lincoln bibliographer and State next speaker, Maj or General Ulysses the Whittall Pavilion. It is, I be­ Historian of Illinois) on his right, S. Grant III as an old classmate. lieve, part of the Library's Division sat directly across the table from They had been candidates for cadet­ of Music. The evening of July me. The conversation among the ships at West Point in 1899; the twenty-fifth, the room was used to five of us during the dinner was grandson of President Grant had honor Lincoln. The Librarian of almost exclusively about Lincoln passed all his examinations and Mr Congress had invited a group of and Lincolnians. Sandburg had failed in arithmetic. Lincoln scholars to be his guests at After the table had been cleared, General Grant was on the point a dinner preceding the opening of the Librarian of Congress rose and of escaping from the room, when the Librarian of Congress urged Congress and his staff for their recepti on line at Buffalo, but he him to tell us the story of Lin­ many and importa nt courtesies to could not go. President Lincoln coln's courtesy to his grandfather. scho lars, It was praise truly meant had invited his son twice to attend " Words were d ifficu lt with my and well deserved . William H . Ford's Theatre, bu t he did 1I0t go. gTand(ather," he said, "and Li n­ Townsend (au tho r and L incoln However. he was standi ng beside coln knew that fact. Just before collector of Lexi ngton, Kentucky) Preside nt Garfield, when the latter he was to be commissioned a lieu­ spoke next from his personal know­ was assassinated. ten alit general, in 1863, my gra nd­ ledge of Robert T. L in coln and h is Ralph G. Newman (Ch icago spe­ father was called to the White many letters to his aunt, Emili e ciali st in Lincoln materia l and co­ House. T here Lincoln told hi m Todd Helm , which are now in the author of T he American Il iad) told what was int.ended and gave him Townsend collection. He revealed us he was most anxious to find a cop y of the p ub lic statement he the Presiden t's son as a shy, reur­ drafts of the Emancipation Proc­ was ready to issue the next day. ing, generous man whose greatest lamation and possibly some notes That gave my grandfather a chance fear was that he might be accused relative to a famous broadside to compose a suitable re ply:' Gen­ of trading on his father's tradi tion. printing in 1864. He also hoped era l Gra nt also told us that Gen­ It was his desire to be whoUy inde­ there woulcI be numerous family eral Sherma n advised h is grand­ pendent and to win success in life papers in the collection. Frederick father not [Q accep t the appoint. by his own efforts. H . Meserve (p ioneer collector of men t and that, according to Gen ­ David C. Mearns (of th e Libra­ Lincoln ph otographs) expressed eral Schofield, in accepting the ry of Congress) traced the h istory the sentiments of every guest when command, hi s gra nd father stipu­ of the Robert T. Lincoln Collec­ he said th e even ing of July twenty­ lated that he would have direct tion from the time of its formation, fifth, 191i. was a historic event. He access to Lincoln himself at all immediately after Lincoln' s death, told of hi s efforts, made at Robert times instead of through official until it was deposited at the Li­ Lincoln' s requ est. to prevent a rep­ "channe ls." brary in '9t9 and came formally lica of the Barnard statue of Lin­ J am es G_ Randall (professor of into the possession of the Library coln [rom being placed in London. Hi story at the University oI1JJinois in 1!J2B. 1n the coursc oi telling the Aiel'ed W. Sterrt (Chicago col­ aw l author of several books about story, Mr Mearns refuted one edu­ lector of Lincolniana) turned our Li ncoln and his era) spoke of his cator's claim of having "saved the minds far afield, when he expressed desire to find a fuller picture of papers (or posterity: ' Jay Monag­ h is wish that th e spirit of Abraham Lincoln at work. He wanted drafts han said he was looking forward Lincoln 's hu manity might spread of speeches. messages, and letters to to th e openi ng of the Papers be­ ra pid ly beyond th e borders of our show how Lincoln's thoughts devel­ cause there ought to be doru ments coun try to the rest of th e world. oped when he was writing. Dr Bul­ in them which would amplify our Rufus R . W ilson (p ublisher and lard then explained that he had knowledge o f Linco ln's foreign pol­ ed itor of T he Uncollected Wo rks of not expected to speak, but th at he icy. He tho ugh t this a logical de­ Lincoln) followed Mr Stern's line was well su pplied with questions ductio n beca use the saving of such of reasoning by po inting out that (or which he though t he might find materi als would have appealed to Ab raham Lincoln "is the gen tlest answers in the Papers. Among the Robert Lincoln. memory ol our world:' H e felt questions he asked were why did Louis A. Warren (direc tor of the confident that nothin g in the Pa­ Lincoln appoint Pope and Burn­ Lincol n National Life Foundation) pers would change our reasons for side? did Lin coln receive a letter reminded the company that Lin­ that memory and nothing woul d (rom Victor Hugo? did he suggest col n had wired Gen eral Schofield reduce his stature. Ben Bu tler for the vice-presidency? on J uly '3 , 1863, "] care very little J ohn E. W ash ington (author of what became of the letter !rom Ma­ [or the p ublication of any letters T irey Knew L incoln) spoke mo v­ jor Anderson on h is desk on March I have written." T hen he read two ingly of Lincoln 's relations with 5. 186 1? dill Lin coln use the phrase unp ub lished sketches by Robert Negroes and of his own hopes that "resign his place" or "resign his Lincoln.
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