should be defeated, I do not know what would become of us all. To me, to him, there is more at stake in this election than he dreams of."
"What can you mean, Mrs. Lincoln? I do not comprehend."
"Simply this. I have contracted large debts, of which he knows nothing, and which he will be unable to pay if he is defeated."
"What are your debts, Mrs. Lincoln?"
"They consist chiefly of store bills. I owe altogether about twenty-seven thousand dollars; the principal portion at Stewart's, in New York. You understand, Lizabeth, that Mr. Lincoln has but little idea of the expense of a woman's wardrobe. He glances at my rich dresses, and is happy in the belief that the few hundred dollars that I obtain from him supply all my wants. I must dress in costly materials. The people scrutinize every article that I wear with critical curiosity. The very fact of having grown up in the West, subjects me to more searching observation.
