Excerpt from Selected Writings of Abraham Lincoln The first half-dozen volumes of the series offer authors, British or American, who are strictly contemporary. In terest in writers of our own day naturally precedes interest in the older, even standard writers. So far as appeal is concerned, literature, like charity, begins at home, both as to time and place. Later, some of the elder master pieces will be of'fered, like a novel of Scott's, or George Eliot's, or a play by Sheridan or Goldsmith. But it should be realized and recognized that the work of mod ern men such as Stevenson, or Huxley, can lay claim to equal consideration so long as it is sound as art and sane and tonic in the representation of life. An author of to-day is not of necessity to be treated as a suspect, although he has not so long been tested by critical opinion. It is believed that the contemporary writers included here have produced masterpieces deserving inclusion in any fair, broadminded, and enjoyable study of the native letters. That is why they are presented herewith, and given prominence. R. B. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.