In
February 1809, the United States awaited the inauguration of our forth
president, James Madison, which was one month away. On the European continent Napoleon
was facing a new type of opposition, guerrilla warfare, in the Peninsula Wars.
In Spain citizens resisted when he replaced their king. They led ambushes,
sabotaged the “invaders”, and ignored the usual rules of war.
On
Sunday February 20, 1809 two babies were born each of whom would change the
course of history. In time they both challenged conventional wisdom in
different areas. Their beginnings could not have been more different. The first
was born in Shrewsbury England to a wealthy, well-connected family. (His father
was a doctor and his mother was a Wedgewood, a family already known for making excellent
china.) The other was born in a modest 12
foot by 18-foot one-room cabin in Hardin County Kentucky. The family and relatives were poor.
The English family was Unitarians, while the later was Separate Baptists who
didn’t consume alcohol, dance, or “frolic”. The former grew up in a family
where lively, intelligent conversations were the frequent by product of evening
meals of plenty. The later family never had “too much on the table”. Given the
absence of education, conversation was probably sparse.
We
recently visited the Galapagos Islands, about 600 miles off the coast of
Ecuador. As you likely know, this is a unique, protected environment of a wide
assortment of species. Some only exist on those islands. This is the first of
what may be several postings concerning this trip. As you have probably figured
out, the young boy from England was Charles Darwin, who is inexorably linked to
the Galapagos. The other was perhaps our greatest president, Abraham Lincoln.
Darwin’s important role in these islands and the coincidence of he &
Lincoln share a birthday makes this a good place to start.
Lincoln’s
family moved around during his youth, looking for better opportunity. Darwin’s
family stayed at their estate, the Mount. Darwin showed an early interest in
nature, while Lincoln was forced to work around the house. Darwin went to the
best schools, but often got poor grades, attributed to his lack of attention.
His father worried “he had no direction in his life”. Lincoln had one year of
formal education. (Of course this was supplemented by his prodigious effort in
self-schooling.) Not insignificantly, both lost their mother before the age of
10. Darwin’s father convinced him to enroll in medical school at the age of
16. He found the lectures “dull” and the
surgery “distressing”. His father sensed
a disaster, and withdrew his son after two years. Darwin was then placed at
Christ College, Cambridge to earn a BA, as the first step to becoming a minister.
Once again parental direction could not override his unbridled interest in
nature. As was the rage at the time, Darwin loved to collect beetles, and spent
lots of time with various similarly inclined scientists. He graduated with a
degree in Geology from Christ College Cambridge in 1831. He was 10th
in his class of 178, not bad for all dad’s worries. The plans for ministry were off the table. Shortly after graduation
Darwin received an invitation to join a sea voyage to chart the west coast of
South America, as well as collect specimens. Dad, predictably, was against this
two year “boondoggle”. However, an uncle convinced him this might be good, and dad
subsequently acceded to the request and provided needed funding. That voyage
took Darwin half way around the world. (In contrast, Lincoln never traveled
very far. He lived his life in about one quarter of our current borders.) The
trip started just after Christmas 1831. It lasted five years. Darwin’s work on
that voyage, and his subsequent thinking changed the way we see nature. What if
dad had not changed his mind?
The
year Darwin set sail on the Beagle, Lincoln struck out on his own. He found a
series of jobs, each without much future. For example, in 1832, he and a
partner purchased a general store. Later that year he ran for the Illinois
state assembly. He lost because he had no financial backing, or
connections. Two years later he tried
again, and won. He stayed in the state legislature for 8 years.
While
Lincoln was toiling in the state legislature, Darwin was on an adventure. He
studied the geology of land they visited. He also collected so many specimens
(and thought they were so valuable) he sent home boxes and boxes complete with
careful notes at many ports they visited. The scientists who received them were
thrilled at the diverse and sometimes unknown specimens. Darwin’s only regret was his frequent bouts
of seasickness.
In
1836 the Beagle returned home. Darwin has reams of un-sent notes, and hundreds
of new specimens. At age 27, he had no job. Soon he decided his work would be
to study and write about his research. Dad arranged a group of “angels” to privately fund that work. The ensuing 25 years
were years of hard work and growing success for Darwin. He moved to London to
focus on his work, and later was accepted into the elite Royal Society, which
began nearly 200 years earlier. In 1853 he was awarded their prestigious Royal
Medal for his work. He published several books culminating in the release of
the Origin of the Species in 1859. (That book was funded by a Treasury grant of
the equivalent of today’s $100,000, not a bad investment.) One year earlier he
learned of Alfred Russell Wallace who was developing similar ideas concerning
the new idea of evolution. There was a joint presentation to the Linnean
Society in 1858, which Darwin missed because of illness. His radical thinking
and intelligence resulted in the theory of evolution and the concept of the
survival of the fittest. Both have stood the test of time, but were widely
challenged and ridiculed at the time they were introduced. They were particularly challenged by the church which believed God created the world in six days. To me, his thinking is well
summarized by this quote: “It is not the strongest of the species that
survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change”.
Time and again on the islands we saw how birds or reptiles evolved to live more
efficiently.
One of my favorite pictures of Darwin is
below, showing ape like tendencies.
In
their prime of life, neither gentleman distinguished himself in courtship. Twice,
Lincoln decided on a partner, became engaged, and then backed out before the
wedding. Three times was a charm, as he was captivated by Mary Todd in 1840, waited two years to propose, and tied the knot in 1842. Darwin moved a bit more quickly,
but equally unsurely. In July 1838, he contemplated marriage by writing
advantages & disadvantages. On the plus side were: “a constant companion,
friend in old age, and better than a dog”. On the down side was “less money for
books, and a terrible loss of time”. He ended up marrying a cousin, Emma Wedgewood,
in 1839. I’m guessing they didn’t get Limoges china.
Lincoln’s
progress was inconsistent. In his early-married life, Lincoln started a law
practice in Springfield, IL, often representing railroads. In 1846 he ran for
congress, and won. However, he failed to get a subsequent expected appointment
and returned to practice law. In 1854 he gave his Peoria speech, which was his
first strong public stand against slavery. In the 1856 election he was
considered, but not chosen for the Republican VP position. However, his real national
political presence started in 1858 when he had seven debates with Steven
Douglas as they vied for a US senate seat. Lincoln was eloquent in the debates,
but lost the election.
Luck
smiled on him at the 1860 Republican convention. Supporters of the front-runners,
particularly, Samuel Chase and William Steward, fought hard, but inconclusively
in ballot after ballot. Finally, Lincoln was chosen as a compromise candidate. In
the general election he carried almost all states except the south, which was
united in their desire to leave the nation over the issue of slavery. Before
his inauguration in March 1861, several southern states left the union. One
month into office, the Civil War started when southern troops fired on Fort Sumter.
The
ensuing years were gut wrenching for the president and our divided country. He
was troubled by a series of poor generals to lead the union troops, inflation,
a need to raise taxes to fund the war, and his need to exert unpopular executive
powers in time of war (such as suspending habeas corpus). Voters punished his
Republican party in the mid term elections of 1862 (complaints of inflation,
higher taxes, and too much government power. Sound familiar?) However, slowly,
the tide of the war turned.
A
few months after a convincing victory by the north, the president was asked to give
a short speech at the Gettysburg Soldiers’ Cemetery in November 1863.
Astoundingly, the president was not the featured speaker. That honor went to
the distinguished Edward Everett. Everett spoke for over two hours and was well
received. However, history is unanimous; on that day Lincoln delivered one of
the best political speeches in our history. The assessment the next day was not
unanimous. The Chicago Times observed “The cheek of every American must tingle
with shame as he reads this silly, flat and dishwatery utterances of the man
who has been pointed out to intelligent foreigners as the President of the
United States.” Below is a picture of Abe on a battle site.
In the end the south could not compete with
the more wealthy and industrial north. Lincoln won re-election in November
1864, and the war ended in April 1865. The 13th amendment
prohibiting slavery passed in December 1865. Not bad for less than 5 years work.
Unfortunately
for the country, the bodyguard assigned to guard the president and his guests
at the Ford Theater in April 1865 decided to join the president’s driver for a
drink away from the theater. Lincoln was shot and died at the age of 56.
Darwin
lived for nearly 20 more years. He wrote 25 books including an autobiography,
and was widely recognized. Unfortunately, the pressures of his life resulted in
many episodes of health challenges and intermittent bouts of failing health. He
died on April 19, 1882. His clear legacy
lives on.
Two
very different men, each born on the same day, changed to world they knew and
influenced later generations. However, don’t assume it was just 20th
of February. Others who share that birthdate include local political hack Joe
Alioto, actor Loren Green, labor organizer JL Lewis, and indescribable Charles
Van Doren.
