On popular sovereignty; rejoinder in the Sixth Lincoln-Douglas Debate (13 October 1858); reported in The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln, ed. Roy P. Basler (1953), vol. 3, p. 279

Has it not got down as thin as the homeopathic soup that was made by boiling the shadow of a pigeon that had starved to death?

— Abraham Lincoln

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "Has it not got down as thin as the homeopathic soup that was made by boiling the shadow of a pigeon that had starved to death?" in the context of "On popular sovereignty; rejoinder in the Sixth Lincoln-Douglas Debate (13 October 1858); reported in The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln, ed. Roy P. Basler (1953), vol. 3, p. 279" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Source: Wikiquote: "Abraham Lincoln" (Quotes, 1850s, Lincoln–Douglas debates (1858)) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed February 05, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
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.