It took some four weeks to build the raft, and in that period Lincoln
succeeded in captivating the entire village by his story-telling. It
was the custom in Sangamon for the "men-folks" to gather at noon and
in the evening, when resting, in a convenient lane near the mill. They
had rolled out a long peeled log on which they lounged while they
whittled and talked. After Mr. Lincoln came to town the men would
start him to story-telling as soon as he appeared at the assembly
ground. So irresistibly droll were his "yarns" that, says Mr. Roll,
"whenever he'd end up in his unexpected way the boys on the log would
whoop and roll off." The result of the rolling off was to polish the
log like a mirror. Long after Lincoln had disappeared from Sangamon
"Abe's log" remained, and until it had rotted away people pointed it
out, and repeated the droll stories of the stranger.