McKinley's Speech to Lincoln

The speech had its fine points, but it just wouldn't do. It would have raised a tornado of criticism. McKinley didn't want to hurt the man's feelings. He must not kill the man's splendid enthusiasm and yet he had to say no. Here is the second most famous letter that Abraham Lincoln ever wrote. His most famous one was written to Mrs. Bixby, expressing his sorrow for the death of the five sons she had lost in battle. The letter sold at public auction in 1926 for $12,000 - more money than Lincoln saved during half a century of hard work.