Abraham Lincoln, Reply to Missouri Committee of Seventy (1864).
“

I desire so to conduct the affairs of this administration that if at the end, when I come to lay down the reins of power, I have lost every other friend on earth, I shall at least have one friend left, and that friend shall be down inside of me.

— Abraham Lincoln on Friendship

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "I desire so to conduct the affairs of this administration that if at the end, when I come to lay down the reins of power, I have lost every other friend on earth, I shall at least have one friend left, and that friend shall be down inside of me." in the context of "Abraham Lincoln, Reply to Missouri Committee of Seventy (1864)." to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Quote Image
Source: Wikiquote: "Friendship" (Hoyt's New Cyclopedia Of Practical Quotations: Quotes reported in Hoyt's New Cyclopedia Of Practical Quotations (1922), "Friends", p. 296-300; "Friendship", p. 300-302. [[File:John George Brown - Sympathy (1885).jpg|thumb|right|I would not enter on my list of friends (Though graced with polish'd manners and fine sense, Yet wanting sensibility) the man Who needlessly sets foot upon a worm. ~ William Cowper]]) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed February 05, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app

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Abraham Lincoln

About Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln, a self-taught lawyer and politician, steered the United States through its most tumultuous period, the Civil War. His unwavering commitment to preserving the Union and abolishing slavery forever altered the course of American history and enshrined him as a champion of equality and justice.