In 1908, in a wild and remote area of the North Caucasus, Leo Tolstoy, the greatest writer of the age, was the guest of a tribal chief \u201cliving far away from civilized life in the mountains.\u201d <\/p>\n
Gathering his family and neighbors, the chief asked Tolstoy to tell stories about the famous men of history. Tolstoy told how he entertained the eager crowd for hours with tales of Alexander, Caesar, Frederick the Great, and Napoleon. <\/p>\n
When he was winding to a close, the chief stood and said, \u201cBut you have not told us a syllable about the greatest general and greatest ruler of the world. We want to know something about him. He was a hero. He spoke with a voice of thunder; he laughed like the sunrise and his deeds were strong as the rock\u2026His name was Lincoln and the country in which he lived is called America, which is so far away that if a youth should journey to reach it he would be an old man when he arrived. Tell us of that man.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI looked at them,\u201d Tolstoy recalled, \u201cand saw their faces all aglow, while their eyes were burning. I saw that those rude barbarians were really interested in a man whose name and deeds had already become a legend.\u201d He told them everything he knew about Lincoln\u2019s \u201chome life and youth\u2026his habits, his influence upon the people and his physical strength.\u201d When he finished, they were so grateful for the story that they presented him with \u201ca wonderful Arabian horse.\u201d<\/p>\n
The next morning, as Tolstoy prepared to leave, they asked if he could possibly acquire for them a picture of Lincoln. Thinking that he might find one at a friend\u2019s house in the neighboring town, Tolstoy asked one of the riders to accompany him. \u201cI was successful in getting a large photograph from my friend,\u201d recalled Tolstoy. As he handed it to the rider, he noted that the man\u2019s hand trembled as he took it. \u201cHe gazed for several minutes silently, like one in a reverent prayer, his eyes filled with tears.\u201d<\/p>\n
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