A skilled historian and a masterful storyteller himself, Thomas was widely regarded as the greatest Lincoln historian of his generation. With these essays, he combines historical depth with narrative grace in delineating Lincoln's qualities as a humorist, lawyer, and politician. From colorful tall tales to clever barbs aimed at political opponents, Lincoln clothed a shrewd wit in a homespun, backwoods vernacular. He used humor to defuse tension, illuminate a point, put others at ease--and sometimes for sheer fun. From an early reliance on broad humor and ridicule in speeches and on the stump, Lincoln's style shifted in 1854 to a more serious vein in which humor came primarily to elucidate an argument. "If I did not laugh occasionally I should die," he is said to have told his cabinet, "and you need this medicine as much as I do." Thomas brings his deep knowledge of Lincoln to essays on the great man's tumultuous career in Congress, his work as a lawyer, his experiences in the Courts, and his opinions of the South. A gracious survey of Lincoln's early biographers, particularly Ida Tarbell, stands alongside an appreciation of Harry Edward Pratt, a key figure in the early days of the Abraham Lincoln Association. Thomas also assesses Lincoln's use of language and the ongoing significance of the Gettysburg Address.

This diverse collection is enhanced by an introduction by Michael Burlingame, himself a leading biographer of Lincoln. Burlingame provides a balanced portrait of Thomas and his circuitous path toward writing history.

Acknowledgments   ix
Introduction   xi
PART 1: THE WORDS OF LINCOLN
1. Lincoln's Humor: An Analysis   3
2. Abraham Lincoln   23
3. Lincoln's Way with Words   28
4. The Meaning of the Gettysburg Address, Then and Today   34
PART 2: THE LIFE OF LINCOLN
5. Lincoln and Democracy   45
6. Some Popular Misconceptions about Lincoln   60
7. Lincoln and New Salem   71
8. Lincoln and the South   79
9. Lincoln from 1847 to 1853   90
10. Abe Lincoln, Country Lawyer   139
11. Lincoln and the Courts, 1854-61   153
12. Edwin M. Stanton Takes Over the War Department   189
PART 3: THE BIOGRAPHERS OF LINCOLN
13. Backstage with the Lincoln Biographers   207
14. Harry Edward Pratt   222
15. Our Lincoln Heritage from Ida Tarbell   230
16. The Art of Biography   246
Index   253