Abraham Lincoln: From Skeptic to Prophet (review)

BOOK REVIEWS175 Abraham Lincoln: From Skeptic to Prophet. By Wayne C. Temple. (Mahomet, 111.: Mayhaven Publishing, 1995. Pp. xiii, 446. $29.95.) Wayne C. Temple, chiefdeputy director ofthe Illinois StateArchives and former editorofÜieLincoln Heraldhas given us the most complete account ofLincoln's religion ever written. Based on meticulous research in printed and manuscript sources, his Abraham Lincoln: From Skeptic to Prophet seeks to show that as time went on, Lincoln, thoroughly familiar with the Bible, became deeply religious , although he neverjoined a church nor seems to have expressed any faith in Jesus as Savior. His evermore frequent references to God without mention of Christ would appear to substantiate this contention, which in many ways parallels Richard N. Current's findings almost forty years ago. The book, however, contains much more than mere references to Lincoln's religion. The author is especially interested in the Emancipator's relations with his wife, whose ancestry and medical history he traces meticulously. Showing that a streakofinsanity ran in theTodd family, Temple portrays a deeply troubled woman whose actions were often totally irrational. In addition, he suggests that Lincoln and Mary were intimate before their marriage, a contention hard to prove. He also intimates that Robert Todd Lincoln suffered from psychological disturbances, though these were never as severe as his mother's. In order to substantiate his contentions, the author goes into great detail in describing the Lincoln family's relations with ministers of various denominations . He reprints the eulogies and prayers these clergymen offered at various occasions, at the dedication of the Gettysburg national cemetery, at the funeral of the president, and at the obsequies of members of the family. In addition, we learn about the whereabouts of the pews the Lincolns occupied, the churches they visited, and the money they donated to reUgious institutions. Further details covered extensively in this book consist of the genealogies and vitae ofnot only the clergy but also ofotherpeople with whom the Lincolns came into contact, even of such casual acquaintances as John L. Bums, an old man who as a civilian had taken part in the Battle of Gettysburg and was introduced to the president. While all this may detract attention from the main story, there is no doubt that the author has spared no effort in ferreting out the most obscure minutiae bearing on his subject. The iUustrations throughoutthis volume supplementthis information. Showing largely churches and gravestones bearing on the family, they also offer portraits of the clergymen mentioned in the text. The various chapters are named after the books ofthe Bible, and the author, an active Mason, seeks to connect many of Lincoln's beliefs with those of the fraternity. The book is well written and the author certainly substantiates his thesis. Whether all the minute references to people and genealogies are necessary is questionable, and it may also be doubted that the president tended to pardon all I76CIVIL WAR HISTORY soldiers who had fallen afoul of the military justice system and had been sentenced to death (172). All in all, however, this is a valuable addition to the Lincoln Uterature and will long remain the authoritative work on the subject. Hans L. Trefousse Brooklyn College and Graduation Center, CUNY An Oral History of Abraham Lincoln: John G. Nicolay's Interviews Jet and Essays. Edited by Michael Burlingame. (Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1996. Pp. 208. $29.95.) This slender volume reflects an effort on the part of some Lincoln scholars to reexamine reminiscences gathered by early Lincoln biographers. The work presents interviews conducted by John G. Nicolay, Lincoln's private secretary from i860 to 1865, primarily during the 1870s in preparation for Nicolay's tenvolume biography, Abraham Lincoln: A History (1890), jointly authored by Lincoln's assistant secretary, John Hay. Also, two essays written by Nicolay are published for the first time at the conclusion of the book. The winner of the 1 995 Abraham LincolnAssociation Prize, the project brings together transcripts originally found at Brown University, the Library of Congress, and the Illinois State Historical Library in Springfield. For the most part, the book follows a geographic organization. The first section contains reminiscences gathered in Springfield, from several Lincoln associates including Orville...