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Abraham Lincoln was one of the most gracious presidents America has ever had. His reputation for compassion and mercy – even for Confederate soldiers – set him apart from most of the other commanders-in-chief who’ve held his office.
Toward the close of the war, in February of 1865, Lincoln left Washington to participate in the Hampton Roads Peace Conference, held in Newport News, Virginia. While there, he met with several Confederate leaders, and during the dialogue, the conversation turned to the subject of their fate once the war came to its inevitable close…with the South being defeated. Lincoln stated in matter-of-fact terms, that due to their loyalty to the South, they’d forfeited their rights to immunity from punishment.
After a long pause, one of the Southerners addressed the president. “Then, Mr. President, if we understand you correctly, you think that we of the Confederacy have committed treason; that we are traitors to your government; that we have forfeited our rights, and are proper subjects for the hangman. Is that not about what your words imply?”
“Yes, you have stated the proposition better than I did,” said Lincoln. “That’s about the size of it.”
“Well, Mr. Lincoln,” the commissioner replied after another pause, “we have about concluded that we shall not be hanged as long as you are President – if we behave ourselves.”
These rebels were among those who knew Lincoln had a reputation for compassion…even for his enemies.
In fact, Lincoln’s desire for reconciliation and pardon extended all the way to the Confederacy’s President, Jefferson Davis. When asked by General William Tecumseh Sherman if he wanted Davis captured, Lincoln gave this reply in a letter:
I’ll tell you, General, what I think of taking Jeff Davis.
Out in Illinois there was an old temperance lecturer who was very strict in the doctrine and practice of total abstinence. One day, after a long ride in the hot sun, he stopped at the house of a friend, who proposed making him a lemonade. When the friend asked if he wouldn’t like a drop of something stronger in the drink, he replied that he couldn’t think of it. “I’m opposed to it on principle,” he said. “But,” he added with a longing glance at the bottle that stood conveniently at hand, “if you could manage to put in a drop unbeknownst to me, I guess it wouldn’t hurt much.”
Now, General, I am bound to oppose the escape of Jeff Davis; but if you could manage to let him slip out unbeknownst-like, I guess it wouldn’t hurt much.”
150 years has passed since Lincoln’s assassination, and still, the forgiveness and compassion he modeled are at the forefront of his reputation.
150 years from now, will compassion, mercy, and forgiveness be at the forefront of your reputation?
Resource’s Origin:
Lincoln on Leadership by Donald T. Philips. Warner Books, 1992, Pages 60-61.
Topics Illustrated Include:
Compassion
Enemy
Forgiveness
Leadership
Mercy
Reconciliation
Reputation
Revenge
War
(Resource cataloged by David R Smith)
