Beautifully written in 1865 by a political contemporary, this is one of the greatest and most sensitive works of nineteenth-century American biographic literature. It contains Lincoln's most masterful speeches and writings, along with a contemporary, detailed exposition of Lincoln's views - and his political and military decisions - that held the Union together during the American Civil War. For years (and still today) it was and is an original source of information on Lincoln's life and work, masterfully woven together by Joseph Barrett.