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 Tom
Lowry, along with wife and co-researcher Beverly, literally
have done their homework. As amateur historians, they reviewed
80,000 Civil War court martial records housed at the National
Archives. There, they uncovered 543 previously unknown documents
and notations written or signed by Abraham Lincoln. These
brief notes not only shed new light on this enigmatic figure,
but the Lowrys use these documents to confirm Lincoln's legendary
compassion, kindness, and mercy.
The most common
charge brought against officers was "conduct unbecoming." One
officer's crime was pulling a lieutenant's whiskers and hiding
his suspenders. Another was tried because he was caught while
stripped naked, dancing and singing bawdy songs.
 The
most frequent crimes for enlisted men were desertion and
drunkenness, often a combination of both. Words used in their
defense were as entertaining as the charges. One man claimed
he did not desert, he was just looking for liquor at a cheaper
price. And another said, "I am French--I needed something
to drink." The latter was pardoned on a technicality. Both
Lincoln and Judge Advocate General Joseph Holt searched for
technicalities, irregularities, or other flaws in the process
in order to pardon soldiers and return them to duty. As Lincoln
says, "I don't believe it will make a man any better to shoot
him."
Lincoln showed
considerable leniency for many crimes, and pardoned every
case involving "sleeping sentinels." However, he had little
tolerance for traitors, sexual predators, or violent criminals,
and sent many of them to face gallows or firing squads.
And this leads
to the final chapter of the book, "Lincoln at the Millennium." Lowry
asks, "who should be remembered as the 'Person of the Millennium'?" It
must be someone whose life work demonstrates endurance and
universality. These are timeless qualities and both are manifest
in Lincoln's foremost principle and fundamental belief, that
each person has the right to rise; and, that a democratic
government must embody that purpose and perpetuate it. The
court martial records validate this. They show that Lincoln
cared a great deal about the individual soldier, and that
this was inseparable from his goal to preserve the Union.
It was through the Union that individuals' rights would be
protected, namely, the right to rise, to progress, and to
fulfill his or her potential.
The Lowrys showed
tremendous perseverance and dedication by diving into these
80,000 records. One can imagine their awe as they touched
the papers Lincoln touched, and discovered Lincoln's words
exactly as he left them over 130 years ago; as notes in the
margins of bureaucratic forms, some written hurriedly, some
firmly and boldly. The role of amateur historians cannot
be underestimated. After discovering these 543 original Lincoln
notations, the Lowrys aren't amateurs any more.
Dr. Lowry's
unique titles combine his background in medicine with his
original research of Civil War court martial records. These
books include:
The Story the Soldiers Wouldn't Tell : Sex in the Civil
War
Tarnished Scalpels: The Court-Martials of Fifty Union Surgeons
The Civil War Bawdy Houses of Washington, D.C.: Including a Map of Their Former
Locations
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