Lincoln Speech

The fact that Lincoln begins his speech with "my friends" is a way  of making the people listening feel close to himself. Its hardly possible that every person hearing the speech is Lincoln's friend.
Using strong words he captivates the listener's attention and transforms the speech into something deeper. This can be seen  on changing 25 years to "quarter century". An unnecessary change that transforms the speech into something more professional. He confirms himself almost as an owner of the land when he establishes that one of his children is buried in the land. If we think about it, this statement is actually not necesary, but if creates a very strong feeling of personal relation towards the land, the city and the people.