Annotated and Abridged Artifact
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Some Recollections: The Story Of My Marriage And Honeymoon
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Abridged Text | ||
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| 11 | The day after our wedding, we set out on our bridal tour, stopping first at Philadelphia and then at Washington, where we were invited to the White House. "The Washington Star" gives the following account of it: | |
| 12 | "Last evening, at eight o'clock the little couple visited, by invitation, at the White House, and were introduced to the President, Mrs. Lincoln, Secretaries Chase, Stanton, Welles, Blair, and Usher, and Senator Wilson, Generals Butler and Clay, Hon. J. J. Crittendon, and many other gentlemen of distinction, nearly all of whom were accompanied by their families. [1 »] The President, in the course of the evening, remarked to General Thumb that he had thrown him completely in the shade; that he, the General, was now the great center of attraction. Refreshments were served to the guests of the President and Mrs. Lincoln, which the little folks appeared to relish as much as any person present. At half past nine they left the White House and repaired to Willard's, where they received the members of the Press and a few select friends." [2 »] | |
| 13 | Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln received us cordially. When Mr. Lincoln stooped his towering form to [3 »] greet us, there was a peculiarly quizzical expression in his eye, which almost made me laugh outright. Knowing his predilection for story telling, I imagined he was about to utter something of a humorous nature; but he only said, with a genial smile, "Mrs. Stratton, I wish you much happiness in your union." After receiving the congratulations of all present, the President took our hands and led us to the sofa, lifting the General up and placing him at his left hand, while Mrs. Lincoln did the same service for me, placing me at her right. We were thus seated between them. | |
| 14 | "Tad," the favorite son, [4 »] stood beside his mother and gazed at me for a few moments, then, looking at his father, said half audibly. "Mother, isn't it funny that father is so tall, and Mr. and Mrs. Stratton are so little?" The President, overhearing the remark, replied, "My boy, it is because Dame Nature sometimes delights in doing funny things. You need not seek for any other reason; for here you have the short and the long of it," pointing to the General and himself. This created quite a laugh. A few minutes afterward "Tad" again whispered to his mother, "Mother, if you were a little woman like Mrs. Stratton, you would look just like her." | |
| 15 | "Mr. Stanton," said the President, "is General Tom Thumb's name upon our army list?" -- " No," said Mr. Stanton, then, turning to the General he inquired. "Where did you receive your title?" "From Queen Victoria."' replied the General (this is a fact not generally known). " Why, how was that?" asked Mr. Lincoln." When I appeared before the Queen at Buckingham Palace," said the General, "there were present besides the Queen, Prince Albert, the Prince of Wales, the Princess Royal" (since Empress of Germany; they were children then), "the Queen Dowager, the Duke of Wellington, and a number of nobility. Mr. Barnum had introduced me as Tom Thumb. The Duke of Wellington remarked to one of the nobility, 'Their Royal Highnesses are head and shoulders taller than Tom Thumb,' Her Majesty heard it, and turning to the old Duke said, 'General Tom Thumb.' The Duke bowed, and with a military salute to me, repeated, 'General Tom Thumb.' and everybody bowed. After that I was always called by the title, and English soldiers always present arms as I pass." [5 »] | |
| 16 | "You have never been called upon to do active duty in the field?" said Mr. Stanton. | |
| 17 | "Oh," quickly responded the President, "his duty now will always be required in the matrimonial field. He will serve with the home guard." [6 »] | |
Annotations
1. Salmon P. Chase was Lincoln’s Secretary of the Treasury. Edwin M. Stanton was the Secretary of War. Gideon Welles was the Secretary of the Navy. Montgomery Blair was Postmaster General. John P. Usher was the Secretary of the Interior. Senator Henry Wilson was from Massachusetts and later became Ulysses S. Grant’s vice president. Benjamin F. Butler and Cassius M. Clay were prominent Union generals. John J. Crittendon of Kentucky was a former Senator from Kentucky who was most famous work was a compromise aimed at preventing the Civil War from starting after Lincoln’s election.
2. Willard’s Hotel was Washington, D.C.’s most prestigious hotel during the Civil War era. It was located near the White House and was considered an important social and political center of Washington life.
3. Lincoln was six feet, four inches tall. He was much taller than the average man at the tine. He may have had Marfan syndrome, a disorder of the connective tissue.
4. Tad Lincoln was nine years old at the time. His died at the age of 18, probably from tuberculosis.
5. This story was concocted, probably by Barnum, to promote Stratton’s fame by connecting him with Queen Victoria. In Barnum’s Life of Barnum, Stratton’s title of “General” Tom Thumb precedes his visit to Buckingham Palace.
6. The home guard would be equivalent to a local militia, but of course, Lincoln is playing with words here and suggests that the only “generaling” he will do will be within the confines of married life.
