President Lincoln speaks at Gettysburg

I had my hands full in Gettysburg, trying to handle all the logistics plus keep the president safe.

Mr. Lincoln arrived in Gettysburg by train on the evening of November 18 and walked to the Wills House in the diamond where he stayed overnight. In the morning, he rode a horse in the procession to the cemetery.

The featured speaker was Edward Everett, president of Harvard College. Mr. Everett went on and on and on, comparing the battle held in Gettysburg this past July to every battle in the history of the world.

When Mr. Everett was finally finished, I introduced the president. He gave brief remarks that lasted just over two minutes.  The official photographer for the event had been frustrated, as Mr. Lincoln was already seated back down before the man could arrange his photograph to take his picture. The president left after the ceremony to return to Washington.

My work after the program did not conclude until the following day. When I returned to Washington, the president was not happy with the remarks he gave. He told me "that speech will not scour." But Mr. Everett, at least, had been impressed, saying that Mr. Lincoln had said more in two minutes that he had said in two hours.

A reporter from the Washington Chronicle was also impressed, saying in his newspaper "the speech, though short, glimmered with gems, evincing the gentleness and goodness of heart peculiar to him."