Gettysburg Address

[Christine]

The other day while I was going over some of my research I reread the funeral sermon of General Frederick Lander, who died March 2, 1862, and was a bit surprised at some of the words which seemed to be echoed by Lincoln in his Gettysburg Address 1 1/2 years later. I know Lincoln was at the funeral of General Lander, so I am wondering if those words were typical of the era, or if perhaps the sermon by Bishop Thomas Clark inspired Lincoln's speech. Anyone know?

This was from Lander's funeral:

"Our heroes do not fall in vain. There are solemn and instructive lessons which come to us from their honored graves. Their blood cries to us from the ground, and solemnly charges us to be faithful to the great cause for which they have sacrificed their all. After what they have done and suffered, shall we dare to falter? Shall we dare to be untrue to the solemn work which they have left for us to finish?"

And the Gettysburg Address: ". . . It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain. . ."

[L Verge]

The sentiments must surely be reflective of the war period, but for those words and clauses to come so close to those of the bishop - and given that Lincoln, a fast study who retained knowledge well, was present at the funeral can certainly give us reason to speculate.

[RJNorton]

On November 12, 1863, one week prior to giving the Gettysburg Address, President Lincoln attended the wedding of Kate Chase and Sen. William Sprague. One book I have says he was there only for a few minutes. The wedding ceremony was conducted by Bishop Thomas Clark. Possibly the sight of Clark reminded Lincoln of what Clark had said in the sermon during the 1862 funeral of General Lander?

[LincolnMan]

Very interesting history. Also, some don't know that the "of the people, by the people, for the people" reference in the Gettysburg Address is not original to Lincoln.

[maharba]

CHRISTINE
The other day while I was going over some of my research I reread the funeral sermon of General Frederick Lander, who died March 2, 1862, and was a bit surprised at some of the words which seemed to be echoed by Lincoln in his Gettysburg Address 1 1/2 years later. I know Lincoln was at the funeral of General Lander, so I am wondering if those words were typical of the era, or if perhaps the sermon by Bishop Thomas Clark inspired Lincoln's speech. Anyone know?

This was from General Frederick Lander's funeral...March 2, 1862

"Our heroes do not fall in vain. There are solemn and instructive lessons which come to us from their honored graves. Their blood cries to us from the ground, and solemnly charges us to be faithful to the great cause for which they have sacrificed their all. After what they have done and suffered, shall we dare to falter? Shall we dare to be untrue to the solemn work which they have left for us to finish?">

I think that was an interesting find, Christine. Abraham Lincoln was in the habit of reading and saving odds and ends from various sources, and incorporating them into future use. He liked Biblical phrasing and I think too from published religious tracts and speeches. Here's a few he may have read and scrapped out a passage or two,

Supplement to The Patriot (London newspaper) May 19, 1851
The London Missionary Society
"It remains for us to know the extent of our obligation and duty.
"My dear Christian friends we are engaged in a great and glorious
and a blessed work."

The Wandering Jew - by Eugene Sue 1846
" Surely the workings of the mind are wonderful — admirable ; far beyond our poor powers to comprehend"

The Republican - by Richard Carlisle 1824
Fourscore and seven years had rolled down the channel of time since the birth of that distinguished individual, whose memory they were met to celebrate...

[RJNorton]

(05-25-2015 11:50 AM)LincolnMan Wrote:  Very interesting history. Also, some don't know that the "of the people, by the people, for the people" reference in the Gettysburg Address is not original to Lincoln.

Here are a couple of previous statements:

In 1384 John Wycliffe said, "This Bible is for the government of the people, for the people and by the people.”

In 1830 Daniel Webster described the federal government as: "made for the people, made by the people, and answerable to the people."

[maharba]

I have seen that Wycliffe before. And then one or two folks very adamant that Wycliff does NOT have that, at all. I couldn't really make heads nor tails of it. It would take much plundering around in several editions, semi-translations, forwards and prefaces. As far as 'four score', I just cited Carlisle's article in 1824 The Republican, but in fact, I think Abraham Lincoln took that from someplace entirely different, yet. And which I have never seen mentioned.

[Eva Elisabeth]

Originally I thought it was from the Bible (Psalm 90:10):
"The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away."
Check the entire psalm:
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?se...ersion=KJV
...and here's the word's etymology:
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=score

[maharba]

I think you're right and that all the other sources, one of which Lincoln may have cribbed 'four score and seven' from, all of them trace back to that verse in the O.T. of the King James Bible. My memory is that dates to 1611, and even that (verse or chapter) may have been copied over by the translators from an earlier Bible version. Several beautiful KJV bible phrases were copied over from earlier bibles, and not just
'translated'. So, "three score" and "fourscore" may date back to the 14th century in usage as english and in some bible version.

Likely we've all been to several funerals and even called on to say a few words at the gravesite. It takes little imagination to know that many must be the time, over the years, that proud friends and relatives must have harkened back to this 90th Psalm and to call to the notice of those attending that "Maude lived to four score and ten or three score and nine, etc". Basically cheering on the longlife of the departed with a bible verse, commending their great age. A preacher more than a politician would be more likely to hear such usage, but possibly Abraham Lincoln attended such.

I was looking using SEARCH in this Syposium for past discussions of The Gettysburg Address, to see if there had been close, line by line, analyses of the Gettysburg Address. I have not come across that, yet. For instance, many would say that this country was not at all created in 1776 but instead in 1787, which would have been 76 years (before the 1863 Gettysburg Address), and in that case given as three score and 16 years ago".

[Wild Bill]

The use of 1776 rather than 1787 is very important in Lincoln's mind as it refers to the Declaration of Independence and "all men are created equal" and his concept of a "New Birth of Freedom" being initiated through the Civil War. I would suggest that analyses of the Gettysburg Address "line by line" can be found in Garry Wills, "Lincoln at Gettysburg: The Words that Remade America" and Gabor Boritt, The Gettysburg Gospel: The Lincoln Speech that Nobody Knows."

After all, Lincoln and the Republicans were going to change the Constitution or 1787 by amending it after the war, rather than junking it as many thought necessary. See Harold M. Hyman, "A More Perfect Union: The Impact of the Civil War and Reconstruction on the Constitution," especially his references to Major William Whiting's influential beliefs that the Constitution was adequate to the Civil War emergency if properly amended.

[RJNorton]

(11-17-2015 12:25 PM)Wild Bill Wrote:  The use of 1776 rather than 1787 is very important in Lincoln's mind as it refers to the Declaration of Independence and "all men are created equal" and his concept of a "New Birth of Freedom" being initiated through the Civil War. I would suggest that analyses of the Gettysburg Address "line by line" can be found in Garry Wills, "Lincoln at Gettysburg: The Words that Remade America" and Gabor Boritt, The Gettysburg Gospel: The Lincoln Speech that Nobody Knows."

Mark Neely writes of this also. He says, "He (Lincoln) always thought the Declaration of Independence of 1776 the fundamental document of the nation's history..."

[Eva Elisabeth]

"I have never had a feeling politically that did not spring from the sentiments embodied in the Declaration of Independence." (Philadelphia, Feb.22, 1861.) 
http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/linc...iladel.htm

"Let us re-adopt the Declaration of Independence, and with it, the practices, and policy, which harmonize with it. Let north and south -- let all Americans -- let all lovers of liberty everywhere -- join in the great and good work. If we do this, we shall not only have saved the Union; but we shall have so saved it, as to make, and to keep it, forever worthy of the saving. We shall have so saved it, that the succeeding millions of free happy people, the world over, shall rise up, and call us blessed, to the latest generations." (Peoria, Oct.16, 1854)
http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/tex...oln2:282.1

I highly recommend this site on the topic:
http://www.mrlincolnandthefounders.org/inside.asp?ID=1

[Eva Elisabeth]

(11-17-2015 12:25 PM)Wild Bill Wrote:  The use of 1776 rather than 1787 is very important in Lincoln's mind as it refers to the Declaration of Independence and "all men are created equal" and his concept of a "New Birth of Freedom" being initiated through the Civil War. I would suggest that analyses of the Gettysburg Address "line by line" can be found in Garry Wills, "Lincoln at Gettysburg: The Words that Remade America" and Gabor Boritt, The Gettysburg Gospel: The Lincoln Speech that Nobody Knows."

...and in "Lincoln's Sword" by Douglas Wilson, pp. 198-237.

[RJNorton]

Thanks to Laurie for sending this link to a short video from the Civil War Trust.

[Gene C]

Thanks Laurie.
A very good video, an excellent web site, and a worthy cause.