March 29, 2026
Weird History of Some of our Presidents
Theodore Roosevelt and Teddy Bear
After noticing a photo of President Abraham Lincoln this morning, I got an idea for today’s topic. It was a photo showing President Lincoln preparing to give a speech at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, 120 days after a battle between the North and South was fought there.
Two talks were delivered at the site on was November 19, 1863, a time where there were still 3000 bodies of both Union and Confederate soldiers still strewn nearby. The first oration was given by Senator Edward Everett of the State of Massachusetts. It was a magnificently worded speech of 13,000 words, and took the Senator two hours to complete. When a few thousand citizens travel the distance to Gettysburg to hear a couple of speeches delivered by two prominent men, they intend to hear some good stuff.
Senator Everett’s beginning sentence alone contained 74 words. -- “Standing beneath this serene sky, overlooking these broad fields now reposing from the labors of the waning year, the mighty Alleghenies dimly towering… yadda, yadda.” -- Those were only the first 24 of the74 words in the first sentence.
When Everett ended his talk, thousands of people went wild. They hollered and applauded for a man to who took two hours to get his point across. The people may not have understood all of what he said, but they ate it up. Some in the crowd were still standing when Lincoln appeared at the podium. He began with these 30 words. “Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.”
When he finished his speech, some in the audience were still mingling, having yet to sit down. Granted, they all anticipated that Lincoln would try to match Senator Everett’s time at the podium. Two minutes vs two hours. Lincoln didn’t get much applause due to the fact that only a handful had heard what he said.”
After giving a blessed talk for one and half minutes, Lincoln ended with “We here, highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain – that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom – and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”
To his credit, Senator Edward Everett later sent Lincoln a letter in which he wrote, "I should be glad, if I could flatter myself, that I came as near to the central idea of the occasion in two hours, as you did in two minutes."
It’s a crying shame that Lincoln was assassinated only five months into his second term. One can only imagine the changes that might’ve taken place in both the North and South had he lived to finish his second term. The position of Presidency has not seen the likes of him since. In actuality you can say that about any President who ever served. None had the same delivery. Each had a different method of dealing with issues in this country.
Before leaving the topic of Gettysburg, I choose to mention the 65 soldiers, Union and Confederate, who received metals for their bravery at Gettysburg. The last to receive the Medal of Honor was 1st Lieutenant Alanzo H. Cushing, who was killed while fighting off the men under General Pickett’s command who made the last Confederate charge at Gettysburg. He was 22 years old at the time. His award was given generations later to a distant relative, Helen Loring Ensign, 84 years old who is now living in California. Before handing the award Mr. Obama said that the award "…reflects our obligation to our men and women in Armed services. No matter how long it takes, it is never too late to do the right thing."
From both sides, there was a total 50,000 soldiers who died during that three-day battle. Although it was the turning point of the Civil War, the war was not declared over until April 6, 1866, by all States except for Texas. We didn’t get the word until August 20, 1866. I was born 86 years later, on the same day of the year.
In January 1865, slavery was prohibited in the U.S. In 1868, people of color were given the right to citizenship in the U.S. And in 1870, all states except for Delaware agreed that all men should have the right to vote… in U.S. elections. Before 1870 most Southern States had laws that people of color couldn’t vote unless they could pass certain literacy tests that many whites couldn’t have passed.
It was a sign of the times. Bad times. I’m not yet certain as to what times we’re sitting in right now. Whatever it is, I doubt we’ll get through it during my lifetime. Regardless, the one thing we can each do, is “Brighten the corner where you are.” That’s a song that a Homer Rodeheaver came up with in 1915. That’d be 111 years ago. I can’t believe there was a need for such a song back then! -- That was a lousy joke, and unfortunately, still appropriate.
end
hayter.mark@gmail.com
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