"There are some interesting analogies between the careers of
Thaddeus Stevens and Abraham Lincoln," noted Stevens biographer
Ralph Korngold. One is that while both detested slavery, both
were guilty Stevens in 1821, Lincoln in 1847 of appearing in
court on behalf of a slaveholder against a fugitive slave woman.
Lincoln's case was more serious, since it involved the liberty
not only of the woman, but of her six children, and since it was
known that her Kentucky owner wished to sell her in the deep
South. Lincoln, however, lost his case, while Stevens won his."1
There were other similarities between the two men. Like Mr.
Lincoln, Stevens lost a parent early in life. Like Mr. Lincoln,
he had a pious and revered mother. Like Mr. Lincoln, Stevens
supported the Second National Bank. Like Mr. Lincoln, he had a
particular concern for the powerless. Like Mr. Lincoln, he was
deprived of a presidential appointment he thought he deserved.
Like Mr. Lincoln, he was several times denied the Senate seat he
craved. Like Mr. L