On the recordJuly 28, 1862
Would you drop the war where it is, or would you prosecute it in future with elder-stalk squirts charged with rose-water?
Source
gutenberg.orgAbraham Lincoln: “Would you drop the war where it is, or would you prosecute it in future with elder-stalk squirts charged with…”
Editor's note · Context
In a letter to a Louisiana Unionist, Lincoln uses a vivid metaphor to question whether the war should be abandoned or prosecuted with insufficient force.
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More from Abraham Lincoln
Apr 11, 1865
I do the very best I know how--the very best I can; and I mean to keep doing so until the end.
Apr 11, 1865
If the end brings me out wrong, ten angels swearing I was right would make no difference.
Apr 10, 1865
I am considering, and shall not fail to act when satisfied that action will be proper.
Apr 11, 1865
Unlike a case of war between independent nations, there is no organized organ for us to treat with,--no one man has authority to give up the rebellion for any other man.
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