Great SpeechesFor someone who claimed he had been educated by "littles" — a little now and a little then — Abraham Lincoln displayed a remarkable facility in his use of the written word. The simple yet memorable eloquence of his speeches, proclamations and personal correspondence is recorded here in a representative collection of 16 documents. This volume contains, complete and unabridged, the Address Before the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois (1838), which emphasized a theme Lincoln was to return to repeatedly, namely, the capacity of a people to govern themselves; the "House Divided" speech at the Republican State Convention in Illinois (1858); the First Inaugural Address (1861), in which he appealed to the people of an already divided union for sectional harmony; the Gettysburg Address (1863), a speech delivered at ceremonies dedicating a part of the Gettysburg battlefield as a cemetery; the Letter to Mrs. Bixby (1864), expressing Lincoln's regrets over the wartime deaths of her five sons; the Second Inaugural Address (March 1865), urging a post-war nation to "bind up its wounds" and show "charity for all"; and his Last Public Address (April 11, 1865). New notes place the speeches and other documents in their respective historical contexts. An invaluable reference for history students, this important volume will also fascinate admirers of Abraham Lincoln, Americana enthusiasts, Civil War buffs and any lover of the finely crafted phrase. |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 29
Page 3
... whole country. It would be tedious, as well as useless, to recount the horrors of all of them. Those happening in the State of Mississippi, and at St. Louis, are, perhaps, the most dangerous in example and revolting to humanity. In the ...
... whole country. It would be tedious, as well as useless, to recount the horrors of all of them. Those happening in the State of Mississippi, and at St. Louis, are, perhaps, the most dangerous in example and revolting to humanity. In the ...
Page 11
... whole matter—in substance, it is this: The people say to General Taylor, “If you are elected, shall we have a national bank?” He answers, “Your will, gentlemen, not mine.” “What about the tariff'”“Say yourselves.” “Shall our rivers and ...
... whole matter—in substance, it is this: The people say to General Taylor, “If you are elected, shall we have a national bank?” He answers, “Your will, gentlemen, not mine.” “What about the tariff'”“Say yourselves.” “Shall our rivers and ...
Page 12
... whole of legislation into his own hands, is what we object to—is what General Taylor objects to—and is what constitutes the broad distinction between you and us. To thus transfer legislation is clearly to take it from those who ...
... whole of legislation into his own hands, is what we object to—is what General Taylor objects to—and is what constitutes the broad distinction between you and us. To thus transfer legislation is clearly to take it from those who ...
Page 14
... whole people for an object which will benefit only a portion of them, is the greatest real objection to improvements, and has been so held by General Jackson, Mr. Polk, and all others, I believe, till now. But now, behold, the objects ...
... whole people for an object which will benefit only a portion of them, is the greatest real objection to improvements, and has been so held by General Jackson, Mr. Polk, and all others, I believe, till now. But now, behold, the objects ...
Page 18
... whole subject, and leave the Congress, called on to pass it, free to exercise its own discretion, entirely uncontrolled by any declaration found in the statute book.” In Niless Register, vol. 73, page 293, there is a letter of General ...
... whole subject, and leave the Congress, called on to pass it, free to exercise its own discretion, entirely uncontrolled by any declaration found in the statute book.” In Niless Register, vol. 73, page 293, there is a letter of General ...
Contents
24 | |
Farewell Address at Springfield Illinois | 52 |
Message to Congress in Special Session | 62 |
Proclamation of a National FastDay | 76 |
Final Emancipation Proclamation | 98 |
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