Extra Credit Questions

[Susan Higginbotham]

The only slapping incident I recall in connection with Robert and his father is the one reported by Mercy Conkling in a letter to her son dated Feb. 12, 1861, describing a reception at the Lincolns' house in Springfield: "Bob figured quite largely. While I was standing near Mr. L--he came up, and in his humorous style, gave his hand to his father, saying "Good evening Mr. Lincoln!' In reply his father gave him a gentle slap in the face." I don't read this as being a slap in anger. Notably, when Bob handed the satchel containing the first inaugural address to a hotel clerk, forcing Lincoln to search through similar-looking bags in order to find his, Bob reported that he was not scolded, only told after Lincoln was reunited with his bag, "Now you keep it!"

As for Tad, I don't understand the vitriol directed toward him, considering his age when he was living in the White House. Yes, he probably took advantage of his parents' lax disciplinary practices and the privileges he enjoyed from being the President's son, and it didn't help when he lost his brother Willie and was deprived of his playmates the Taft brothers, which gave him little to do but pester the adults around him. But by his mother's account--and she should surely know--after his father's assassination, his behavior improved markedly. In June 1865, for instance, Mary wrote to Alexander Williamson that she had "not the least trouble in managing him"--an implicit admission that she had had trouble before--and in September 1865, she told Williamson that Tad was going to school and "for once in his life" was "really interested in his studies." When he wasn't in school, he seems to have been a good companion for his mother, which couldn't have been easy. While I don't think he had the potential that Willie had, people do surprise one, and there's no reason to assume that he wouldn't have grown into a capable, decent man.