2015 Surratt Conference

[L Verge]

Another stroke prevented!

I received a message from Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer yesterday that he will be unable to speak at the Surratt conference in two weeks under doctors' orders. Last year, Harold literally destroyed one shoulder in a fall and has already undergone three surgeries as well as fighting a persistent infection. He is facing a fourth surgery in the near future.

On March 19, he will be honored at an event in New York as the winner of this year's Lincoln Prize, and within a few weeks, he will be a guest at the White House. His doctors are concerned about too many activities.

An emergency email to another Lincoln scholar who has been on the conference roster for nearly a year solved our problem, however. The Honorable Frank J. Williams, retired Chief Justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court, and president of the nationally recognized Lincoln Forum - as well as numerous other historical organizations, will be speaking on his massive collection of Lincoln memorabilia and has agreed to extend his remarks to cover the topic Why Lincoln Matters, which Harold was going to present.

P.S. Frank served(s) as a Presidential adviser on the legalities of what to do with those interned at Guantanamo, so you might want to ask his opinion on that situation... Shades of military tribunals 150 years ago.