Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Letter to James C. Conkling cover art

Letter to James C. Conkling

By: Abraham Lincoln
Narrated by: Barrett Whitener
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £1.79

Buy Now for £1.79

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

During the Civil War, Union supporters in President Abraham Lincoln's hometown of Springfield, Illinois, asked him to speak at a rally on September 3, 1863. Lincoln could not attend but wrote this letter to be read at the gathering by his long-time friend, James C. Conkling. The letter was accompanied by a brief note that read, "I cannot leave here now. Herewith is a letter instead. You are one of the best public readers. I have but one suggestion. Read it very slowly. And now God bless you, and all good Union-men."

Shortly after the rally, John Murray Forbes wrote to Lincoln, referring to the letter and the Emancipation Proclamation issued on January 1, 1863. Forbes declared that the letter "will live in history side by side with your proclamation." He noted, "It meets the fears of the timid and the doubts of the reformer. It proves that the Proclamation and the policy resulting from it are the most conservative, both of liberty and of our form of government."

©2007 Listen & Live Audio, Inc. (P)2007 Listen & Live Audio, Inc.

What listeners say about Letter to James C. Conkling

Average customer ratings

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.