Lincoln and Syphilis

[Gene C]

No doubt the lens I view Lincoln through makes a difference.
While the frontier was rough and tumble, and Lincoln was a product of the frontier, he was also pretty much an abstainer of alcohol & tobacco, which was uncommon for the times.
So.... abstaining from back alley relationships, who knows, but it's conjecture and may not be that unlikely.

I personally think Thomas Lincoln was somewhat disappointed his son did not want the farm and that strained the relationship.
Thomas didn't have that advantage in life, and probably didn't understand why his only living offspring was rejecting this. Abraham had put a lot of sweat equity into the farm.
I think Herndon miss characterized Thomas. Whether he meant to or not, I think Abraham did model himself after Thomas in certain areas of moral values & character.

We have some differences of opinion on some aspects, but that's how we learn and makes this forum enjoyable.