Hear
the latest series of poems by Dr. Dan Guillory. Combining
his passion for Lincoln history and poetry, in the
The Lincoln Poems, Dan Guillory gives voice to Lincoln,
from extensive research and imaginative insight.
These
poems are presented as if they were written by Abraham
Lincoln himself. They dramatize the private feelings
of Lincoln on such topics as Mary Todd, Anne Rutledge,
prairie wildflowers, frontier towns (like Vandalia,
Decatur, and Springfield), surveying, slavery, favorite
foods, the day after the Battle of Gettysburg, Washington
hotels, music, Old Buck (his horse), the winter of
1830-1831, a rural hanging, his favorite sons (Willie
& Tad), Stephen A. Douglas, and Billy Herndon
(his law partner).
Herald
& Review Newspaper
front page feature
February 17, 2004
Verses
of Lincoln
By
SHEILA SMITH H&R Staff Writer
DECATUR
-- Abraham Lincoln was one of the most hated men after
the Civil War, said Dan Guillory, professor of English
at Millikin University.
It
also was believed that Lincoln was seduced by Mary
Todd, he said.
They
were married Nov. 4, 1842, and she gave birth exactly
nine months later to son, Robert Todd. Mary was considered
a jealous woman, he said.
Guillory,
who is on sabbatical, wooed a small audience at the
Decatur Public Library on Monday with poetry he wrote
about the life of the 16th president.
Even
Govindaraman Jyothinagaram of Bangalore, India, who
is in town visiting his son, attended the event to
hear more about Lincoln.
"I
came to the library to check out some books about
Lincoln and found out about the poetry reading,"
he said through his daughter-in-law, Lakshmi, who
interpreted for him.
While
growing up in India, he said his father had some books
on speeches Lincoln made that became a big influence
in his life.
Lakshmi
said she thought the poetry reading was nice but wouldn't
have come if it hadn't been for her father-in-law's
interest in Lincoln. But she does plan to take him
to the new Lincoln Library in Springfield.
As
Guillory pointed out in his poems, you have to know
a little about Lincoln to really appreciate him.
Guillory
talked about Lincoln's obsession with Ann Rutledge,
who died before he met his wife, Mary Todd. Even his
poem, titled "Hummingbirds for Annie," depicted
the feelings Lincoln had for Rutledge.
"He
told many friends that he could not even bear the
thought of rain falling on her grave," Guillory
said as he put on his glasses and began to read the
poem.
Guillory
said he admired Lincoln's intellectual vitality. He
said Lincoln believed in the Constitution as if it
were a religion.
One
of the first poems Guillory read was called "New
Salem Village, 1833" about Lincoln's move to
Illinois:
Smoke
licks the clouds, and every cedared roof finds its
pointed place in the blueness of October's river birch
and shagbark hickory dropping color-coded messages
everywhere ... The mirrored panels of daylight letting
me step out of the Old Life and into the New.
Guillory
amused the audience with his poem called "Old
Buck," which was the name of Lincoln's favorite
horse as he traveled across Illinois as a young attorney
with the Eighth Judicial Circuit.
The
horse would often have to hear Lincoln rehearse his
trial cases.
While
Lincoln was not much of a fan of novels, he often
read newspapers and anything political.
"He
would be so engrossed in his reading that Mary Todd
would try to get his attention, and one time took
a piece of stove wood and threw it at him. He showed
up to work the next day with a bandage across his
nose," Guillory said as the audience laughed.
Guillory
often would fold his hands and intertwine his fingers
as he read his poems about Lincoln. His calm tones
allowed the audience to feel what Lincoln was going
through, like "Sitting for Brady," "Backporch,
8th and Jackson" and "Lincoln in Vandalia."
Some
personal things about Lincoln historians have not
shared, Guillory said.
He
said Lincoln never liked to shave himself and had
a man in Springfield do it for him. The man was originally
from Decatur and became a successful businessman,
his father was of German descent and his mother was
African-American.
Lincoln
also never liked to be the disciplinarian of his four
boys -- probably because of the abusive manner in
which his father treated him.
He
and his wife often had seances in the White House
after their son Willy died there.
Lincoln
was a Shakespearean at heart and often invited actors
to the White House, Guillory said.
"There
are things that I never knew about Lincoln, and these
little insights into his life were interesting,"
said Betty Smith, a former teacher in Decatur.
"It
just renders him as a real person and not the larger-than-life
figure we believe him to be," said Steven Frech.
Guillory, who lives and breathes Lincoln, has written
several books, including "Living With Lincoln:
Life and Art in the Heartland."
He
said Lincoln's biggest flaws were, "He believed
that anybody could do what he did and improve their
lives. And he never thought the South would secede
from the Union and go to war.
