LINCOLN, Abraham (1809-1865). Autograph letter, signed ("A. Lincoln"), to John Bennett. Springfield, Illinois, 7 March 1843.

2 pp. on bifolium, 10 x 8 in. (254 x 203 mm); integral leaf addressed in Lincoln's hand; silked; creasing from when folded.

LINCOLN'S FIRST BID FOR NATIONAL OFFICE.

In full: "Friend Bennett: Your letter of this day was handed me by Mr. [George U.] Miles--It is too late now to effect the object you desire--On yesterday morning the most of the whig members from this District got together and agreed to hold the convention at Tremont in Tazewell county--I am sorry to hear that any of the whigs of your county, or, indeed of any county, should longer be against conventions-- On last Wednesday evening a meeting of all the whigs then here from all parts of the State was held, and the question of the propriety of conventions was brought up and fully discussed, and at the end of the discussion, a resolution reccommending (sic) the system of conventions to all the whigs of the State, was unanamously (sic) adopted--Other Resolutions also were passed, all of which will appear in the next Journal--The meeting also appointed a committee to draft an address to the People of the State, which address will also appear in the next Journal--In it, you will find a brief argumant (sic) in favor of conventions; and although I wrote it myself, I will say to you, that it is conclusive upon this point--that it can not be reasonably answered.
The right way for you to do, is to hold your meeting and appoint delegates any how; and if there be any who will not take part, let it be so--The matter will work so well this time that even they who now oppose will come in next time-- The convention is to be held at Tremont on the 5th April, and according to the rule we have adopted your county is to have two delegates--being double the number of your representatives-- If there be any good whig who is disposed still to stick out against conventions, get him at least to read the argument in their favor in the address--Yours as ever, A. Lincoln."

An early political letter relating to Lincoln's first bid for national office--his unsuccessful campaign for the Whig Party's nomination for the 7th Congressional District of Illinois. Lincoln writes to John Bennett (1805-1885), a friend and fellow Whig from Petersburg in Menard County, Illinois (near Lincoln's old home of New Salem), regarding an upcoming convention to choose the Whig party's Congressional candidate. Notably, Lincoln reveals his authorship of the "Address to the People of Illinois", a Whig campaign manifesto issued only three days before this letter, in which he used for the first time the metaphor "a house divided against itself cannot stand": "That 'union is strength' is a truth that has been known, illustrated, and declared in various ways and forms in all ages of the world. That great fabulist and philosopher, Aesop, illustrated it by his fable of the bundle sticks; and he whose wisdom surpasses that all philosophers has declared that 'a house divided against itself cannot stand.'" Lincoln would famously reuse this metaphor to a larger effect, and in a different context, in his House Divided Speech, during his 1858 senate campaign.

The Illinois 7th Congressional district in Sangamon County was created in 1843, following the state's rapid population growth that gained it three new congressional seats. Due to Democratic-controlled legislative gerrymandering, the 7th became a Whig stronghold, centered around Springfield, the state's newly relocated capital. In the winter of 1842-43, Lincoln, who had not held office since leaving his seat in the state legislature in 1841, decided to seek the Whig nomination. On 1 March 1843, he attended a Whig assembly at Springfield that recommended that each of the 11 counties in the District hold a convention to choose delegates for a district convention, at which the party nominee would be selected. Three days later, on 4 March, "An Address to the People of Illinois" was published to justify the convention system and elaborate on the party platform.

Lincoln's nomination faced an uphill battle, as he faced off against two friends and able politicians, John J. Hardin and Edward D. Baker. His bid was further challenged by criticisms resulting from his association with the wealthy Todd-Edwards clan, claims of being a deist, and his near-duel with political rival James Shields in 1842. During the first weeks of March, Baker and Lincoln were in a close race, and at the Sangamon County Convention on March 20, they both received strong support. Only after several ballots was Baker selected, and Lincoln—much to his protest—was named head of the county's delegation to the district convention, where he was instructed to cast ballots for Baker. Despite his loss, Lincoln received comfort from the Menard County convention, held on April 1, which endorsed his candidacy. Lincoln later wrote to Martin S. Morris, "It is truly gratifying to me to learn that while the people of Sangamon have cast me off, my old friends of Menard who have known me longest and best, stick to me..." (Burlingame, p. 644).

On 1 May, at the district nominating convention in Pekin, the voting remained deadlocked between Baker and Hardin. Although Lincoln hoped to emerge as an alternative, the outcome rested on a single vote from delegate J.M. Ruggles, who indicated that while he preferred Baker, he was pledged to Hardin. Baker thus declined his candidacy, and Hardin was nominated. Hoping to help Baker in another way, following Hardin's nomination, Lincoln showcased his astute political sensibilities and pragmatism by introducing a resolution known as the "Pekin Agreement", which established a rule of rotation for the congressional seat. "The quick-witted Lincoln had limited Hardin to one term before he had even been elected to office. Baker would follow him [in 1844]--and by inference the third candidate, Lincoln, would succeed Baker [in 1846]. Thus Lincoln put himself in line for the nomination, though he had lost..." (Blumenthal, p. 280). Although Hardin would go against this agreement and contest Lincoln in the 1846 election, Lincoln would come out the victor for his first, and only, seat in the United States Congress. Basler I, pp. 318-319.

Provenance:

Previously sold, Christie’s, New York, June 9, 1993, lot 230

Louise Taper, Beverly Hills, California

Property from the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Foundation

This lot is located in Chicago.