THE ABRAHAM LINCOLN SUICIDE

Popular history will tell you Abraham Lincoln was assassinated on April 14, 1865. Call it revisionist history, but we know Lincoln was not assassinated. He was a haunted soul, hounded by depression, and he was ready to leave the world after giving it his final gift.

Not only did Lincoln suffer from Marfan syndrome, but he was known to be depressed. NPR produced a fascinating piece on his troubles, which ranged from general gloominess to complete breakdowns. And while some argue his depression is what made him great, it's doubtful he had any chance of beating it. Even today doctors struggle to fend off depression, but in the 1800's their tools were even more limited.

Add to that Lincoln's "Suicide Soliloquy" and things start to take quite the grim turn. Was Lincoln's suicide poem not a suicide note? Here are some lines:

• "No fellow-man shall learn my fate" (a hint that we'd think his suicide was a murder)
• "Yes, I've resolved the deed to do, And this the place to do it: this heart I'll rush a dagger through"
• "Rip up the organs of my breath, And draw my blood in showers!"

Whether Lincoln pulled the trigger himself or hired Booth to do him in, there's no doubt he wanted to die. The Civil War was over, the Emancipation Proclamation passed, and his work was done. What was left for his tortured soul to do but die?