Papers Of Abraham Lincoln

George T. Brown to Abraham Lincoln, 14 May 18581

Courier Printing and Bookbinding Establishment,
Alton, Illinois, May 14 1858Hon A LincolnDr[Dear] Sir
You must come down and speak at our County Meeting at Edwardsville on Tuesday (18^th) Much depends on it, and there will be great disappointment if you don't come2

Answer3
Geo T BrownP.S. I wish you would see C. W. Matheney about some notes I owe him. I fear he will sue me, and it is not possible

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for me to pay him yet. Please see him and let me know what you can do–4B.

[ docketing ]
Lincoln, Abraham (President)

G. T. Brown 5

1George T. Brown wrote and signed this letter.

2In May and June 1858, many Illinois counties were holding meetings prior to the 1858 Illinois Republican Convention on June 16 to choose delegates for the event. In 1858, Abraham Lincoln sought a seat in the U.S. Senate against incumbent Stephen A. Douglas. Lincoln lost the election but made a name for himself nationally. See the 1858 Federal Election
Daily Illinois State Journal (Springfield), 10 June 1858, 2:1; Michael Burlingame, Abraham Lincoln: A Life (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008), 1:553-57.

3No letter from Lincoln to Brown in response has been found. Speakers at the Edwardsville meeting included Lincoln, John M. Palmer, Mark W. Delahay, and Joseph Gillespie.
The Illinois State Journal (Springfield), 26 May 1858, 1:3; Summary of Speech at Edwardsville, Illinois.

4It is not known what specifically Brown owed Charles W. Matheny. No letter from Lincoln to Matheny about the subject has been located.

5Lincoln wrote this endorsement.