During that winter he was boarding near Lincoln,
saw him almost every day, was a constant visitor at Mr. Edwards's
house, and he knew Miss Todd well. He wrote to this magazine declaring
that Mr. Herndon's statement about the wedding must be false, as he
was closely associated with Miss Todd and Mr. Lincoln all winter, and
never knew anything of it. Mr. Thornton went on to say that he knew
beyond a doubt that the sensational account of Lincoln's insanity
was untrue, and he quoted from the House journal to show how it was
impossible that, as Lamon says, using Herndon's notes, "Lincoln went
crazy as a loon, and did not attend the legislature in 1841-1842,
for this reason;" or, as Herndon says, that he had to be watched
constantly. According to the record taken from the journals of the
House sent us by Mr. Thornton, and which we have had verified in
Springfield, Mr. Lincoln was in his seat in the House on that "fatal
first of January" when he is asserted to have been groping in the
shadow of madness, and he was also there on the following day. The
third of January was Sunday. On Monday, the fourth, he appears not to
have been present--at least he did not vote; but even this is by no
means conclusive evidence that he was not there. On the fifth, and on
every succeeding day until the thirteenth, he was in his seat.
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