Lincoln never speculated.  Apparently he had no great desire to acquire wealth.  He had many opportunities in the days of the State’s early growth to make good and safe investments, but he never took advantage of them.  Many of his fellow lawyers were becoming wealthy, but Lincoln still rode the circuit wearing the familiar gray shawl about his shoulders, carrying a carpet-bag filled with papers and a change of underclothing, and a faded, green cotton umbrella with “A.  Lincoln” in large white muslin letters on the inside.  The knob was gone from the handle of the umbrella and a piece of twine kept it from falling open.  A young lawyer who saw him for the first time thus—­one who grew to love him and who afterwards gave his life for the Union—­in relating the circumstance a long time afterward, exclaimed:  “He was the ungodliest figure I ever saw.”

An interesting and vivid description of Lincoln’s personal appearance and manner in the trial of a case is furnished by one who was a witness of the scenes which he so admirably describes.  The writer says:  “While living in Danville, Illinois, in 1854, I saw Abraham Lincoln for the first time.  The occasion of his visit was as prosecutor of a slander suit brought by Dr. Fithian against a wealthy farmer whose wife died under the doctor’s hands.  The defense was represented by Edward A. Hannegan, of Indiana, ex-United States Senator and afterward Minister to Berlin, an able and eloquent man; and O.B.  Ficklin, who, after Douglas and Lincoln, was considered the best lawyer in Illinois.  Lincoln had all he could do to maintain himself against his two formidable adversaries, but he was equal to the occasion.  The trial lasted three or four days, the examination of witnesses consuming most of the time.  In this part of the work Lincoln displayed remarkable tact.  He did not badger the witnesses, or attempt to confuse them.  His questions were plain and practical, and elicited answers that had a direct bearing upon the case.  He did nothing for effect, and made no attempt to dazzle the jury or captivate the audience.  When he arose to speak he was confronted by an audience that was too numerous for all to find seats in the court-room.  He was attired in a fine broadcloth suit, silk hat, and polished boots.  His neck was encircled by an old-fashioned silk choker.  He perspired freely, and used a red silk handkerchief to remove the perspiration.  His clothes fitted him, and he was as genteel-looking as any man in the audience.  The slouchy appearance which he is said to have presented on other occasions was conspicuously absent here.  As he stood before the vast audience, towering above every person around him, he was the centre of attraction.  I can never forget how he looked, as he cast his eyes over the crowd before beginning his argument.  His face was long and sallow; high cheek bones; large, deep-set eyes, of a grayish-brown color, shaded by heavy eyebrows; high but not broad forehead; large, well-formed head,