Why Abraham Lincoln Once Pardoned A Doll
Abraham Lincoln is often depicted as a dour and serious man, given over to melancholy and sadness instead of joy. And indeed, considering that he presided over a devastating conflict that tore at the very fabric of the United States and left hundreds of thousands dead, sick, or injured, it’s hardly a surprise that he’s not portrayed as a joking and playful man. As it turns out, however, he was known to crack wise from time to time, and when it came to his children, he was a doting and loving father. Indeed, as The Washington Post reported, Lincoln’s philosophy when it came to disciplining his children was apparently, “less is more,” and the lads were known to be holy terrors, given over to vandalism, running about unchecked, and generally being little hellions.
While that may have been tolerated in Springfield, at the White House, the staff had considerably less patience with Lincoln’s young sons, and at one point a White House gardener was so exasperated with the president’s rambunctious boys that, through a comic series of events, the president wound up pardoning a doll.
Lincoln's sons couldn't stop burying their doll in a White House garden
With little to do at the White House but run about and raise hell, Tad Lincoln and his brother Willie wound up with a doll, dressed in Union finery. Unfortunately, “Jack,” as the boys called him, wasn’t fit for military life, and would oft find himself court-martialed for abandoning his post or falling asleep while on duty, in the boys’ imaginations, as Mental Floss notes. The lads would repeatedly then sentence him to death at dawn, shot by the boys’ toy canon, and then buried.
Unfortunately, those repeated burials and exhumations got to be too much for White House gardener John Watt. One day, Watt had it with the Lincoln boys, and through a series of events, wound up accompanying the boys to the president’s office while his (Lincoln’s) advisers tried valiantly to mask their shame at being interrupted by a miscreant boy and a gardener. Long story short, the boys asked their father this time to pardon Jack, sparing him death by canon and then burial in Watt’s garden. Lincoln gladly pardoned Jack, even affixing his presidential signature to the document.
Unfortunately, Jack continued to be a bad soldier, and just a few days later, the doll was found hanged from a tree, having been convicted of espionage.
114 thoughts on “Why Abraham Lincoln Once Pardoned A Doll”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
This Was The Fastest Speed Chuck Yeager Ever Flew
How The Military Used Dogs As Anti-Tank Weapons
How The Great Plague Impacted Isaac Newton's Scientific Career
The Truth About The Olympic Corrections Center Jailbreak
Myths About H.H. Holmes You Need To Stop Believing
The Unsolved Mystery Of 'Handbags' In Ancient Stone Carvings
The Unusual Truth Of The Veiled Prophet Ball
Here's Why Alexander Hamilton And Aaron Burr Really Dueled
Here's How Much The Royal Family's Master Of The Household Makes
A Look At Pablo Escobar's Luxury Prison
Reading your article helped me a lot and I agree with you. But I still have some doubts, can you clarify for me? I’ll keep an eye out for your answers.
This was beautiful Admin. Thank you for your reflections.
Pretty! This has been a really wonderful post. Many thanks for providing these details.
Pretty! This has been a really wonderful post. Many thanks for providing these details.
I appreciate you sharing this blog post. Thanks Again. Cool.
I just like the helpful information you provide in your articles
That’s good, but I still don’t understand the purpose of this page posting, no or what and where do they get material like this.
There is definately a lot to find out about this subject. I like all the points you made
There is definately a lot to find out about this subject. I like all the points you made
This is my first time pay a quick visit at here and i am really happy to read everthing at one place
Hi there to all, for the reason that I am genuinely keen of reading this website’s post to be updated on a regular basis. It carries pleasant stuff.
Very well presented. Every quote was awesome and thanks for sharing the content. Keep sharing and keep motivating others.
There is definately a lot to find out about this subject. I like all the points you made
I like the efforts you have put in this, regards for all the great content.
This was beautiful Admin. Thank you for your reflections.
I very delighted to find this internet site on bing, just what I was searching for as well saved to fav
This was beautiful Admin. Thank you for your reflections.
I do not even understand how I ended up here, but I assumed this publish used to be great
I think the content you share is interesting, but for me there is still something missing, because the things discussed above are not important to talk about today.
Try to slowly read the articles on this website, don’t just comment, I think the posts on this page are very helpful, because I understand the intent of the author of this article.
Pretty! This has been a really wonderful post. Many thanks for providing these details.
Great information shared.. really enjoyed reading this post thank you author for sharing this post .. appreciated
It’s really a nice and useful piece of info. I’m glad that you shared this useful info with us. Please keep us informed like this. Thanks for sharing.
to say concerning this paragraph, in my view its
I have not checked in here for some time since I thought it was getting boring, but the last few posts are great quality so I guess I’ll add you back to my daily bloglist. You deserve it my friend 🙂
Good post! We will be linking to this particularly great post on our site. Keep up the great writing
I’m often to blogging and i really appreciate your content. The article has actually peaks my interest. I’m going to bookmark your web site and maintain checking for brand spanking new information.
actually awesome in support of me.
very informative articles or reviews at this time.
There is definately a lot to find out about this subject. I like all the points you made
Cool that really helps, thank you.
Nice post. I learn something totally new and challenging on websites
Awesome! Its genuinely remarkable post, I have got much clear idea regarding from this post
Keep working ,terrific job!
I like this web blog very much, Its a really nice spot to read and obtain information.