“For such an awkward fellow, I am pretty sure-footed. (click here) It used to take a pretty dextrous man to throw me,” recalled President Lincoln on the night of his reelection as President in 1864. “I remember, the evening of the day in 1858, that decided the contest for the Senate between Mr Douglas and myself, was something like this, dark, rainy & gloomy. I had been reading the returns, and had ascertained that we had lost the Legislature and started to go home. The path had been worn hog-back & was slippery. My foot slipped from under me, knocking the other one out of the way, but I recovered myself and lit square, and I said to myself, ‘It’s a slip and not a fall.'”...
Abraham Lincoln has a sense of purpose and belonging. He played. He had lighthearted moments in his life. He valued friendship and fairness.
...The Clary Grove boys, the Island Grove boys, the Sangamon River boys and the Sand Ridge boys, each designated by the part of the country from which they came, would gather there to indulge in horse racing, foot racing, wrestling, jumping, ball playing and shooting at a mark. Mr. Lincoln would generally take a lay-off for part of the day and join in the sport. He was very stout and active and was a match for any of them. I do not think he bet on any of the games or races, but they had so much confidence in his honesty, and that he would see fair play, that he was often chose as a judge to determine the winner, and his decisions were always regarded as just.”...
