been sent to him. As this printed address covered two newspaper pages,
Mr. Lincoln struck an attitude and quoted from a speech by Daniel
Webster:

"Solid men of Boston, make no long orations!" and burst out laughing.
When Mr. Brooks asked about _his_ speech for that occasion, Mr. Lincoln
replied: "I've got it written, but not licked into shape yet. It's
short, _short_, SHORT!"

During the forenoon of the 18th, Secretary John Hay was anxious lest the
President be late for the special Presidential train, which was to leave
at noon for Gettysburg.

"Don't worry, John," said Mr. Lincoln. "I'm like the man who was going
to be hung, and saw the crowds pushing and hurrying past the cart in
which he was being taken to the place of execution. He called out to
them: 'Don't hurry, boys. There won't be anything going on till I get
there!'"

When the train stopped, on the way to Gettysburg, a little girl on the
platform held up a bouquet to Mr. Lincoln, lisping: "Flowerth for the
Prethident."

He reached out, took her up and kissed her, saying:

"You're a sweet little rosebud yourself. I hope your life will open into
perpetual beauty and goodness."

About noon on the 19th of November, the distinguished party arrived in a
procession and took seats on the platform erected for the exercises. The
President was seated in a rocking-chair placed there for him. There
were fifteen thousand people waiting, some of whom had been standing in
the sun for hours. It was a warm day and a Quaker woman near the
platform fainted. An alarm was given and the unconscious woman was in
danger of being crushed.

The President sprang to the edge of the staging and called out:

"Here, let me get hold of that lady."

With a firm, strong grasp he extricated her from the crush and seated
her in his rocking-chair. When that modest woman "came to," she saw
fifteen thousand pairs of eyes watching her while the President of the
United States was fanning her tenderly.

This was too much for her. She gasped:

"I feel--better--now. I want to go--back to--my husband!"

"Now, my dear lady," said Mr. Lincoln. "You are all right here. I had an
awful time pulling you up out of there, and I couldn't stick you back
again!"

A youth who stood near the platform in front of the President says that,
while Mr. Everett was orating, Mr. Lincoln took his "little speech," as
he called it, out of his pocket, and conned it over like a schoolboy
with a half-learned les