New Series CNN Lincon:Divided We Stand FEB 14

[RJNorton]

In last night's episode Harold Holzer maintained that Abraham Lincoln appeared in person before the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War to defend his wife on charges of disloyalty. Most books I have read agree with Mr. Holzer.

Not everyone agrees, however. In Gerald J. Prokopowicz' Did Lincoln Own Slaves?: And Other Frequently Asked Questions About Abraham Lincoln Prokopowicz calls the story a legend and answers "no" to the question of whether it ever happened.

In Dr. Edward Steers' Lincoln Legends: Myths, Hoaxes, and Confabulations Associated with Our Greatest President the author asks, "Did Lincoln go before the Conduct of War committee?" Steers concludes, "As of this writing, however, the myth remains an orphan, but an interesting one. Lincoln never appeared before the committee."

In 1975 Mark E. Neely, Jr. wrote an article entitled "Abraham Lincoln did NOT Defend His Wife Before the Committee on the Conduct of the War."