Annotation
[1] Tarbell (Appendix), p. 355. William Fithian's stepsons, Lieutenant Colonel John C. Black of the Thirty-seventh Illinois, and his brother William P. Black, had been badly wounded in the Battle of Prairie Grove in northwest Arkansas on December 7, 1862. Ward H. Lamon relates, ``I shall never forget the scene, when I took to Mr. Lincoln a letter written by Dr. Fithian to me, describing the condition of the `Black boys,' and expressing his fears that they could not live. Mr. Lincoln read it, and broke into tears. . . .'' (Recollections of Abraham Lincoln, pp. 104-105). John C. Black survived to a distinguished career in politics.