Lincoln and Shakespeare

[maharba]

I see. Kelso introduced Lincoln to Shakespeare. And as cagey a country lawyer as Lincoln was, he still thought so highly of Shakespeare as to smuggle it into court pleadings even in a country setting. And it proved availing as you say with Othello in that 1847 case. I took a look too at some letters and I see Lincoln to James Hackett
and John Gardner to Lincoln mentioning Shakespeare. Lincoln says there in 1863 that he still had not read several plays, but that he really liked Macbeth. Even favoring there Hamlet's soliloquy above the more well favored suicide contemplation. Then you wonder if JWBooth had accepted Lincoln's visit, and then got off on that topic of Shakespeare which both cherished, would history have been altered? Then we wouldn't be having this conversation.