Early in January, 1861, Colonel Alex. K. McClure, of Philadelphia,
received a telegram from President-elect Lincoln, asking him (McClure)
to visit him at Springfield, Illinois. Colonel McClure described his
disappointment at first sight of Lincoln in these words:
“I went directly from the depot to Lincoln’s house and rang the bell,
which was answered by Lincoln himself opening the door. I doubt whether
a wholly concealed my disappointment at meeting him.
“Tall, gaunt, ungainly, ill clad, with a homeliness of manner that was
unique in itself, I confess that my heart sank within me as I remembered
that this was the man chosen by a great nation to become its ruler in
the gravest period of its history.
“I remember his dress as if it were but yesterday--snuff-colored and
slouchy pantaloons, open black vest, held by a few brass buttons;
straight or evening dresscoat, with tightly fitting sleeves to
exaggerate his long, bony arms, and all supplemented by an awkwardness
that was uncommon among men of intelligence.
“Such was the picture I met in the person of Abraham Lincoln. We sat
down in his plainly furnished parlor, and were uninterrupted during the
nearly four hours that I remained with him, and little by little, as
his earnestness, sincerity and candor were developed in conversation, I
forgot all the grotesque qualities which so confounded me when I first
greeted him.”