What did Mr. Lincoln enjoy doing?

[Liz Rosenthal]

(06-19-2013 10:25 PM)Troy Cowan Wrote:  I said that young Lincoln did not hit the ball with a stick and run the bases. I will stick by my statement and challenge anyone to prove me wrong. This brings us back to the need for setting the time and place. Lincoln did play town ball in Springfield when he was forty years old with other lawyers and nearby businessmen. If you simple say Lincoln played town ball. Some may think that as a child he played town ball. To avoid confusion it becomes necessary, at times, to state the time period.
Little things like "with coattails flying" do become important when you realize that the lawyer Lincoln was playing fully clothed in his business attire. Don't forgot to mention that he was also wearing a top hat when running the bases.

Mr. Cowan, what is your definition of "young"? If you want to nitpick, I can nitpick the use of that word. Lincoln was a lawyer as early as 1837. He wasn't even 30 years old yet. Compared to when he left for Washington 23 years later, he was young, even if he wasn't a "youth." In fact, I would argue that he was still young in the 1840s and early 1850s. Also, since I am now 53 and still consider myself a young person, and Lincoln was just 51 when he left for Washington as the president-elect, I would actually consider him to have been young at that time!

Let's see what else we can nitpick....