[Ads-l] Lincoln belonged to the ages or the angels?

[Stephen Goranson]

Having asked about important etymologies, and now spurred by Garson and Fred on the "fool some of the people" quote, my related comment here is mere opinion without sufficient evidence, even perhaps against evidence. Recall the much-discussed important saying:
Did Secretary of War Stanton say, after Lincoln died on April 15, 1865, now he belongs to the ages, or to the angels, or neither?

Several later texts have ages. But.
Stanton was a hard-case guy, with no shortage of enemies; he had Quaker and Methodist ancestors, and in 1831 he converted to the Episcopalian church.

Whenever was a time for Stanton to be religious and pray, surely such an occasion was witnessing the death of Lincoln.  I think he said angels. Now may they take him.

Much later, considering his place in history, with constructed past—invented tradition a-la-Hobsbawm—memory of many went with ages.
.
Stephen
https://people.duke.edu/~goranson/



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