Lincoln's Gamble: The Tumultuous Six Months that Gave America the Emancipation

[Eva Elisabeth]

(09-04-2014 08:24 AM)RJNorton Wrote:  

(09-03-2014 06:29 PM)Eva Elisabeth Wrote:  Just to add: Carpenter and Seward both quote Abraham Lincoln with exactly this sentence:
"Now this signature is one that will be closely examined, and if they find my hand trembled they will say 'he had some compunctions."
Carpenter's book was published in 1866, Frederick Seward's reminiscences in 1916, Seward was an eyewitness. Did one hear or copy from the other?

Eva, I do not know, but apparently a very similar sentiment was described in a letter Charles Sumner sent to George Livermore dated January 9, 1863. I tried to find the text of this letter online but so far have drawn a blank.

Sorry, Roger, mea culpa, shame on me. I copied something wrong when I looked this up originally for another recent post. Here's the correct Carpenter account (and the sentence is not therein):
   
   
I'll type it later instead of the pics, as soon as I've some more time.