Very soon after Lincoln had distributed his handbills, enthusiasm on the subject of the opening of the Sangamon rose to a fever. The “Talisman” actually came up the river; scores of men went to Beardstown to meet her, among them Lincoln, of course; and to him was given the honor of piloting her—an honor which made him remembered by many a man who saw him that day for the first time. The trip was made with all the wild demonstrations which always attended the first steamboat. On either bank a long procession of men and boys on foot or horse accompanied the boat. Cannons and volleys of musketry were fired as settlements were passed. At every stop speeches were made, congratulations offered, toasts drunk, flowers presented. It was one long hurrah from Beardstown to Springfield, and foremost in the jubilation was Lincoln the pilot. The “Talisman” went to the point on the river nearest to Springfield, and there tied up for a week. When she went back, Lincoln again had a conspicuous position as pilot. The notoriety this gave him was probably quite as valuable politically as the forty dollars he received for his service was financially.
While the country had been dreaming of wealth through the opening of the Sangamon, and Lincoln had been doing his best to prove that the dream was possible, the store in which he clerked was “petering out”—to use his own expression. The owner, Denton Offutt, had proved more ambitious than wise, and Lincoln saw that an early closing by the sheriff was probable. But before the store was fairly closed, and while the trip of the “Talisman” was yet exciting the country, an event occurred which interrupted all of Lincoln’s plans.
This table is now owned by W. C. Green of Talula, Illinois. Originally it was part of the furniture of the cabin of Bowling Green, near New Salem. ]
A CLARY’S GROVE LOG CABIN.—NOW FIRST PUBLISHED.
From a water-color by Miss Etta Ackermann, Springfield, Illinois. “Clary’s Grove” was the name of a settlement five miles southwest of New Salem, deriving its name from a grove on the land of the Clarys. It was the headquarters of a daring and reckless set of young men living in the neighborhood and known as the “Clary’s Grove Boys.” This cabin was the residence of George Davis, one of the “Clary’s Grove Boys,” and grandfather of Miss Ackermann. It was built in 1824, seventy-one years ago, and is the only one left of the cluster of cabins which constituted the little community. ]