Lincoln and Children /Child Labor : recollection of stories and questions.

[Mylye2222]

We are all aware Lincoln loved children, not only his owns but other's as well. He was beyond his era in treating them as well in interwiews as grown up people
We know he was helpful and benevolent to many of them. Both in his formative /lawyers and Springfield residents years and later as President.
Among those stories (though some may be legend, some are true.)
-A little girl of 9 called alone in the White House and got her deserting brother pardoned.
-A young boy who was looking for a job as a page in the House showed his petition to Lincoln. He first told him he wasn't in charge of House recruiting, but upon the boys insistence, he wrote him a recommendation to show to the doorkeeper at Capitol.
-À former drummer boy, who was just out from hospital, and had nowhere to return after his father's death on the battlefield got interwiew. Lincoln first offered him a place as a newspaper boy, but when the boy replied he was still too sick, Lincoln wrote a card directing some authorities to care of him.

Are there more stories, especially regarding the Presidency to share over here?

Secondly, we know Lincoln spoke once in New Salem his wiews of schooling and education. He favored it. We also know he'd rather been happier as a kid with more instruction and less farm work.

But what did he thought of child labor? Did he had plans to reduce it in sometimes during his second term? After all at the time it was a necessity for most popular families and President himself, as stated above, sent teenagers to work in places in Washington. But does exist a document stating his opinion on the issue? Also at the time, weren't there early advocacy for public instruction and reducing of child labor?

He'd visited a House of Industry in New York. There, yes did the children work, but they had also schooling. It was an early form of apprenticeship. By reducing child labor, I mean putting regulations on it. I doubt he would have suppressed because it was a necessity, but still I can't imagine Abraham Lincoln allowing 5 years old kids digging into a coal mining!

Thank you everyone.

[RJNorton]

Although the story I am about to mention does not regard a child, I think one needs to use caution with many such stories. There is the story of the "Sleeping Sentinel" which has endured all of these years. Lincoln's clemency in this case was the subject of a poem written in 1863 by Francis De Haes Janvier. The story is that Lincoln made a last minute carriage ride, pardon in hand, to stay the execution of a Vermont soldier named William Scott who had been given the death penalty for sleeping on guard duty. In the poem, Janvier depicts Lincoln frantically racing to the firing squad line-up to save the only son of Mrs. Scott, a widow. Although Lincoln was indeed known for acts of mercy and clemency, the story of the "Sleeping Sentinel" may be more legend than fact; no written evidence of Lincoln's pardon of Scott has ever been found. IMO, there is a high probability that the story is apocryphal; nonetheless, it does generally reflect Lincoln's benevolent attitude, particularly with young people and soldiers.

[Mylye2222]

(01-11-2020 04:44 PM)RJNorton Wrote:  Although the story I am about to mention does not regard a child, I think one needs to use caution with many such stories. There is the story of the "Sleeping Sentinel" which has endured all of these years. Lincoln's clemency in this case was the subject of a poem written in 1863 by Francis De Haes Janvier. The story is that Lincoln made a last minute carriage ride, pardon in hand, to stay the execution of a Vermont soldier named William Scott who had been given the death penalty for sleeping on guard duty. In the poem, Janvier depicts Lincoln frantically racing to the firing squad line-up to save the only son of Mrs. Scott, a widow. Although Lincoln was indeed known for acts of mercy and clemency, the story of the "Sleeping Sentinel" may be more legend than fact; no written evidence of Lincoln's pardon of Scott has ever been found. IMO, there is a high probability that the story is apocryphal; nonetheless, it does generally reflect Lincoln's benevolent attitude, particularly with young people and soldiers.

For sure many are proven made up legend. Indeed it illustrate positive points. But surely there are proven facts showing Lincoln and young citizens and /or soldiers. And about written proof, we never will find everything. Lincoln's White House didn't have archive files like nowadays. It's also possible many documents were lost. And when the President writes notes to the applicants for a certain place, the citizens show up to the said place and gives his presidential card to the competent authorities. Then the authorities might well have lost the paper over time.