It is interesting to see the connection to the president that is felt by Whitman. He takes cursory glances and makes monuments out of them. Whitman seems to be dripping with admiration for the man. Yet he mentions many times during this entry about how plain Lincoln is in dress and action. Whitman associates Lincoln with the common man and this is perhaps a reason his admiration is so deep. To state that one needs a master of portrait painting from the Renaissance to paint an accurate picture of Lincoln shows great reverence indeed.
This shows us how reverent people were to Whitman. I suppose Lincoln is special because he was the president but because Whitman is relating him to the common man so often it seems that this is the aspect most appreciated by Whitman. Whitman was a poet of the people, and Lincoln had the value of the president for the people. Whitman praises the common people of the world in "Song of Myself". Likewise if such a great figure as Lincoln can seem to be, or represent, the common man then we can see why Whitman had such adoration for him.
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