Bulletin. [Vol. 50, no. 1]

6 BULLETIN of the Abraham Lincoln Association

our foes and conquer." Looking over
the Peoria throng, as a shrewd party
manager, he must have realized that
Harrison had awakened a cyclone of
patriotic enthusiasm. His speech at
the banquet at the Clinton House expressed confidence in party success at
the polls.
County conventions to nominate
candidates for local offices, new in
Whig campaign procedure, were held
in March and April. Each convention
tried to muster as many old soldiers as
possible, with a presidential elector as
the orator of the day. Lincoln attended in March the Sangamon convention where he was renominated
for the legislature. At the Macoupin
convention, his address showed careful
study of Van Buren's biography.
Subtly tracing "Little Van's" shifting
policies, he led his hearers to the conclusion that unyielding patriotism was
not to be found in the incumbent of
the White House. His speech was
well received. The meeting was
temporarily broken up by the arrival
of nine yoke of oxen pulling a log
cabin on wheels. As he concluded, a
local Democratic lawyer challenged
him to a debate on the following day.
The challenge was accepted, but no
effort was made to get a crowd and
the affair was called off.
From Carlinville, Lincoln proceeded to the Madison County Convention at Alton. Reports of his
address indicate a generous use of anecdotes, a characteristic of his speeches
throughout the remainder of the
campaign. On April I ith he was in
Belleville with a half-dozen orators
from St. Louis. The afternoon and
evening were given up to sounding
Whig praises.
With Stuart in Congress, all the

law business fell on the junior member
of the firm. During the first half of
March, Lincoln was constantly in attendance at the Circuit Court of Sangamon County. Upon adjournment,
he and Baker went to Jacksonville, a
Democratic stronghold, for a threeday debate with Douglas and Josiah
Lamborn.
Where Lincoln campaigned in May,
I840 cannot at present be ascertained,
though the Quincy Whig, May 23rd,
stated that he was "going it with a
perfect rush in the northern counties."
On the last day of April, while attending the Tazewell County Circuit
Court, he had met Douglas at Tremont in a debate marked by goodnatured interruptions on the part of
both speakers.
The outstanding event of the entire
campaign was the Young Men's Whig
Convention, held in Springfield, June
3-4. The town, with a population of
2,500, entertained delegations from
fifty-nine counties, a total of 15,ooo
visitors. To accommodate them, a
huge camp ground was laid out near
the southern limit of the city, and a
pavilion seating 5,000 was erected.
The first day was devoted to convention business and the efforts of
thirteen successive orators. On the
morning of the second day the grand
parade was held. Forming in line, six
abreast, the delegations marched out
on the prairie a mile south of town,
then counter-marched and cheered
themselves hoarse as they met. An eye
witness, Judge William Wilson of the
Illinois Supreme Court, described the
parade: "There were 9,670 on foot in
platoons... 250 odd of them were
soldiers of Harrison's and marched in
front with a fine band of music; 260
carriages, wagons & other vehicles fol