questioned. Its errors are of omission, rather than of commission; while
its merits are so great as to render it indispensable to all future
writers on the subject. Every public speech, message, letter, or
document of any sort of Mr. Lincoln's, so far as accessible in 1865,
will be found included in the volume. The rapidly occuring events of
the civil war, with much of their secret history, are tersely and
graphically described. The "Reminiscences" of Mr. Carpenter, covering
about thirty pages, add interest to the volume.


ABRAHAM LINCOLN: The True Story of a Great Life. Showing the
inner growth, special training and peculiar fitness of the Man for his
work. By William O. Stoddard. Illustrated. 1 vol. octavo, pp. 508. New
York: Fords, Howard & Hurlbert, 1884.


Mr. Stoddard was one of President Lincoln's secretaries during the civil
war, and very naturally his work ought to have strong claims upon the
interest and attention of American readers. His book is not of a
profound or critical character; but a singularly honest and candid and
strictly personal biography, simply written for readers of all ages and
degrees of intelligence. It sheds considerable light on the political
history of the civil war and on the events which led to it. With the
military history, it deals but little. Still its brief, vigorous and
vivid sketches furnish an exceedingly fascinating bird's eye view of the
great struggle. But its most valuable feature is the clearness with
which it depicts Lincoln, the man,--his sagacity and patience at
critical moments, his keen perception of "popular" sentiment and
disposition, his _individuality_, his distinctive fitness for the
tasks and burdens which fell upon him. This work, at once so accurate,