I Remember Abraham Lincoln. By Virginia Sale (A Monologue suggested by the story He Knew Lincoln by Ida M. Tarbell)

Transcription

1 I Remember Abraham Lincoln By Virginia Sale (A Monologue suggested by the story He Knew Lincoln by Ida M. Tarbell) Introduction by Virginia: When I was at the University of Illinois many years ago, I was sent by the college newspaper to interview a dear little old lady who, as a child, had actually known Abraham Lincoln. May I take you now with me on my visit to see Grandma Willoughby (SHE QUICKLY CHANGES INTO THE OLD LADY MAKE-UP) OLD LADY ENTERS SCENE SOUND DOOR-BEL SHE GOES TO DOOR, OPENS IT, SHE IS FACING CAMERA AS SHE SEES HER VISITOR. OLD LADY How do you do? Oh, you re the young lady from the college newspaper. Well, do come in. (USHERS HER VISITOR IN AND CLOSES DOOR AFT HER). Well, I m right glad to see you. I ve been expecting you. Now you phoned me and said you d like to come here and have me tell you whatever I can remember about Abraham Lincoln. Will you sit down in that chair. Comfortable: You ll never believe it, but many s the time Abraham Lincoln has sat in that very chair, talkin, and arguin, and jokin. Huh? Oh no, that was not here in Urbana. Yes, it s true, Mr. Lincoln did come over here to Urbana quite often when he was a young lawyer he used to practice some of his law cases at our court house there on Market Street. But I was too young to remember him then. It was a number of years later, after he had become quite important in politics, that I went to live with my Aunt Martha, and Uncle Billy in Springfield, Illinois and Mr. Lincoln used to come into Uncle Billy s store there. What? Oh, yes, we always called him

2 Mister Lincoln Huh? Well, now I don t know maybe some folks who knew him when he was younger down in New Salem called him Abe but we always had a kind of respect for him we always called him Mister Lincoln. Well, as I started to say, Mr. Lincoln used to come into Uncle Billy s store there in Springfield almost every morning, even after he was elected president, and he was getting ready to go down to Washington and I can remember him so well he had a kind of high nasal voice, and he used to always say, Hiya Billy! Heard any new stories? (SHE SNICKERS GENTLY) He was the greatest man for stories. Why he and Uncle Billy used to swap yarns by the hour. In fact Mr. Lincoln was severely criticized by many folks after he became president. They used to say, He does not realize the gravity of the situation. That would make my Uncle Billy so mad he had quite a temper, Uncle Billy did.and I can remember how he d pound on the counter, and he d yell, The gravity of the situation? The gravity of the situation? And then he s always go on and tell them about the time he went down to Washington to see Mr. Lincoln in the summer of 64. Well, you see at that time everything was very discouraging our boys were bein killed and the president was bein criticized, and I remember one morning Uncle Billy he says to Aunt Martha, he says, You know I ve been hearin about all the trouble Mr. Lincoln s havin t down there in Washington, and you know what I ve a notion to do? Twon t hurt a bit for me to close the store for a few days and I m goin to get on the train, and then it might do him some good to see

3 somebody from home. Well, Aunt Martha, she says Now I think that s a good idea, Billy. You go down there and try to cheer him up, but don t you talk to him about war or politics. Well, Uncle Billy, he did, he went down to Washington, and he went into a waitin room there where a lot of folks were waitin to see the president. And there was a secretary there he was a former Springfield boy Uncle Billy knew him. But this secretary, he d got kinda uppity since he d gone to Washington, and he pretended not to recognize my uncle he says, Did you have an appointment to see the president? Well, that made Uncle Billy s temper flare up again and he says, Now looky here, Johny, you know as well as I do, I don t need an appointment to see my good friend, Abraham, Lincoln. Now you march right in there, Johny, and you tell him, or write him a note if he s busy, that Billy Brown s out here, and when he s got the time he ll see me. Well, it happened just at that moment, that the door to the inner office opened and there was Abraham Lincoln, and he saw my uncle, and he says, Why Billy Brown, what you doin and he says, My sakes, you re a sight for sore eyes. You know what you re goin to do you re comin home and have supper with Mother and me.: So my uncle did, he went home and had supper with President and Mrs. Lincoln at the White House yes. And after sup-..huh? Oh yes, that was a real love match. Huh? Well, now I can t help what s been written or said otherwise, I know my folks always felt that that was a real love match between Mary Todd and Abraham Lincoln. Well, as I was sayin after

4 supper the president and my unlce went out on the side porch and they sat down on the steps, and President Lincoln, he says, Billy, whatdid you come to Washington for? And he had a kind of glint in his eye, and he said, Do you want a government job, or Post Office, or something? Uncle Billy said, Why no, Mr. Lincoln, I just came down here to see you I had them funny stories, I thought it was about time you heard them, and then I wanted to tell you how much we miss you back there in Springfield, we re goin to be awful glad when you folks can come back home. The President says, Billy do you mean to say you came all the way to Washington just to see me you don t want anything? Uncle Billy says, That s right Mr. Lincoln, I just came to see you. President Lincoln says, Oh Billy, I m just plumb homesick. It seems to me this war ll never be over, I can t sleep nights, cause our boys, they re gettin killed, and I can hear their mothers cryin, and I want to help em, Billy I want to help em, but I just can t.the Union s gotta to be saved, Billy, the Union s got to be saved! Well, it just seemed like he was all pent up, he wanted to talk to somebody, and Uncle Billy said, he talked and talked, told him all about the war and the generals well, it was almost morning when my uncle had to leave and take his train back to Springfield. Well, after that things sort of smoothed out well, the war went along better, and then Lincoln was reelected president, and then the war was over, and there in Springfield, I can remember so well I was just a little bitty girl but I remember how they were planning a big celebration because the

5 Lincoln family were coming home on a visit, and they were decoratin the whole town with flags, and goin to have a parage and band concert and speeches and so forth, and one morning I was helpin Uncle Billy in the store, and Hiram Jones he was a neighbor from up the street and he come runnin in, and he was all out of breath, and he was so pale he come runnin in, and he was all out of breath, and he was so pale he could hardly talk we knew something was wrong, and he says Billy (SHE ALMOST BREAKS) Well, he told us the news, and you know I never in all my life before or since have seen two great big husky men break down and cry the way those two did. Well, it was just awful there in Springfield the next few days we thought that funeral would never end they took him all over the country. Uncle Billy kept sayin, They re makin a great big fuss over him, and he s not a man who likes fussin. We want him here at home, and they won t let us have him. Well, my folks never went to the cemetery. Nope Uncle Billy used to say. I like to think of him as I really knew him. Almost any time there at my store, I can imagine that the front door s goin to open, and in ll walk my good friend, Abraham Lincoln, and he ll say, Hiya Billy! Heard any stories? Yes, I remember Abraham Lincoln, I remember him well,.and a better man never lived leastwise we never thought so. He just suited us there in Springfield, Abraham Lincoln did.