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Born into a Sephardic Jewish immigrant family, Dr. Issachar Zacharie was the preeminent foot doctor for the American political elite before and during the Civil War. An expert in pain management, Zacharie treated the likes of Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun, General George McClelland and most notably, President Abraham Lincoln.
As Zacharie's professional and personal relationship with Lincoln deepened, the President began to entrust the doctor with political missions. Throughout Lincoln's presidency, Zacharie traveled to southern cities like New Orleans and Richmond in efforts to ally with some of the Confederacy's most influential Jewish citizens.
This biography explores Dr. Zacharie's life, from his birth in Chatham, England, through his medical practice, espionage career and eventual political campaigning for President Lincoln.
List of contents
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
Author's Note
Introduction
Part One. The Past Is Prologue
¿1.¿"Sucking the egg"
¿2.¿"Act according to the custom of that place"
Part Two. I. Zachariah, Jr., Cheroperdist
¿3.¿"No Cure No Pay"
¿4.¿"Where more money could be made faster"
¿5.¿"We the undersigned"
¿6.¿"A humble individual"
¿7.¿California
¿8.¿"Prince of chiropodists"
¿9.¿The Mystic Cords of Memory
10.¿"A chiropodist of marvelous skill"
11.¿"Dr. Zacharie has operated on my feet"
12.¿"Ode to Dr. Zacharie"
13.¿"My own chiropodist is a Jew"
Part Three. Spy and Diplomat
14.¿The General Prohibition
15.¿"Spare no expense"
16.¿Spymaster
17.¿"Monomaniacs"
18.¿A Service He Alone Was Capable Of
19.¿He Lacks Stability
20.¿"Done things for me that would astonish you"
21.¿"Can't go Lincoln"
22.¿"I promised I would elect you"
23.¿"My family are crazy with joy"
Part Four. Later Years
24.¿"Surely you don't intend to go for Grant"
25.¿"Republics are unquestionably ungrateful"
26.¿Return to England
27.¿Death of an Eccentric Man
28.¿Aftermath
Appendix: Zacharie's Accounts
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index
About the author
E. Lawrence Abel is an emeritus professor at Wayne State University in Detroit. He is the author of more than forty books and his articles have been published in various popular and scholarly magazines and journals.
