"I think Lincoln had the seeds of greatness before he won the presidency; he was very ambitious, yet he had an integrity and presence about him that was an indication of what he would become later. I don't know of any other man who could have gone into the Civil War as a leader and come out as humbled as he did, with the critical spiritual greatness that he showed.

"My favorite story about Lincoln took place when he was still a lawyer in Springfield, representing a client who was fighting the railroad interests. A friend approaching Lincoln's office saw a man come sailing out of the second-story window, hit the ground, get up, brush himself off, and run away. The friend rushed upstairs to ask Lincoln what had happened.

" 'I threw him out the window,' Lincoln said.

" 'Why? What did he do?'

" 'He was a lawyer for the railroad, and he asked me to cheat. He offered me five thousand dollars, but I turned him down. Then he offered me ten thousand dollars, and I turned him down again. Finally, he offered me fifteen thousand dollars, and I threw him out the window.'

"The friend asked Lincoln why he had chosen that point to throw the man out, and not earlier.

" 'Because,' Lincoln answered, 'he was getting near my price.'

"I think it takes a great man to know when he's close to selling out, and then to joke about it. I think Lincoln certainly had some craving for power, but when he got it, he was humbled by the awesome responsibility that came with it during the Civil War."