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SLAVERY The first negroes were brought to Jamestown, Virginia in 1619. American Indians were unfit for hard labor, while white men asked high wages. Africans were the best human resources to exploit. The climate of the North was too cold for agriculture, so the Northern colonies had not so many negroes as in the South, where slavery was greatly increased by the invention of the cotton gins. In ..

LINCON SAVES ARMSTRONG'S SON Lincoln studied hard to keep pace with the development of the country, till he became one of the states outstanding lawyers. One day he received a letter from Mrs. Jack Armstrong, the wife of his old friend of New Salem. She wrote to him, asking him to save his son, who had been arrested for murder. The circumstances were as follows: At a camp meeting in Mason Count..

LINCOLN, THE LAWYER It was during the sitting of the legislature that he decided to study law, perhaps because of the influence of John T. Stuart, an eminent lawyer from Springfield. As he was busily engaged in surveying, he generally studied law at night. Eager to absorb knowledge and strong in constitution, he could endure such hard work. Lincoln's second term in the legislature brought him f..

LINCOLN, THE POSTMASTER It was about this time that he began to take an interest in law. He read also Burns and Shakespeare. Through life, these poets were his favorite reading. He wrote a careful summary of all the books he read, and treasured the contents in his memory. Conscientious self-training and familliarity with the Bible and great works of English literature made his language rich, sp..

STRUGGLES WITH POVERTY On returning to New Salem, Lincoln looked for some employment to earn his livelyhood. " What do you say to my learning the blacksmith's trade?" he said to his friend William Green. "The blacksmith's trade!" Green exclaimed with surprise. "what makes you think of that sort of thing, Abe? Why, we've been thinking of sending you to the legislature." " To the legislature? You..

THE CLARY"S GLOVE BOYS There was at that time a gang of young men in New Salem, called the Clary's Glove boys. The strong man in the gang was Jack Armstrong. One day Abraham wrestled with him. He seized the fellow by the throat, and, lifting him from the ground, shook him like a doll. The surprised rowdy knew that he was defeated, and grasping his hand, became his friend. From that moment the C..

KIRKHAM'S ENGLISH GRAMMAR By late July in 1831, when Abraham came back, New Salem was enjoying what proved to be a shortlived boom. It was because of the rumor that the Sangamon River would soon be open for navigation. Some of the people welcomed him when they knew that he was the clever youth who had sailed the boat over Rutledge's milldam a few monthes before. At last Offutt's merchandise arr..

THE BOAT ADVENTURE "What shall I do?" Offutt said. "I expected a boat to have been built by this time, at the mouth of Spring Creek: but I learned yesterday that they haven't started work yet". "Let's build a boat ourselves then." Abraham answered at once. "There's plenty of timber at Spring Creek. We can raft it down to Sangamon and build the boat there." Abraham and his two companions built a..

THE LINCOLNS GO TO ILLINOIS On March 1,1830, the Lincolns began the journey towards Illinois. Their possessions were loaded on three wagons. One was drawn by a four-horse team and each of the others by two yoke of oxen. The new home was located on the north bank of the Sangamon River, a few miles west of Decatur. Abraham was hired out to split fence rail for neighbors. In the autumn of that yea..

DRUDGERY FOR A SPOILED BOOK One evening, after working hard all day, Abraham called on Mr. Josiah Crawford. His purpose was to borrow from him Weems's Life of Washington. Mr. Crawford gladly lent him the book. Every evening, after the day's hard work, he read the book with deep interest. One night, when he went to bed, he happened to put the book under a crack between the log. During the night ..