limbed Lincoln, when, in his desperation, he resorted to foul play. Lincoln, stung by his meanness, seized the bully by the throat with both hands, and, putting forth all his giant strength, flung him in the air, shaking him as though he were a child, the legs of the champion whirling madly over his head. At this astounding performance, the gang of Clary's Grove broke into the circle, and Lincoln, backing against the store, calmly waited their onset. But Jack Armstrong, with what breath remained to him warned off his comrades, and, touched by a feeling of chivalry, shook his adversary by the hand, crying: "Boys! Abe Lincoln is the best fellow that ever broke into this settlement ! He shall be one of us!" That settled it. Out of the fight that he had tried to avoid, Lincoln emerged as champion. Thenceforth, no truer friend, no more devoted ally, than Jack Armstrong to Abraham Lincoln ever lived. In later days, when Lincoln was out of money, out of work, all that Jack had was his. Lincoln was no fighter. He was brave, absolutely unafraid of anybody or anything. He never played cards, nor gambled, nor smoked, nor used profane language, nor addicted himself to any of the rude vices of the times. But far and wide he was reckoned a hero, worshipped by the stalwart wrestlers and runners of the region, cordially liked by the women, respected as a rising and brave young fellow by the elders, and earning for himself the title that stuck to him through life, "Honest Abe." Abe Lincoln became, by general consent, the peacemaker, the arbitrator of all the petty quarrels of the neighborhood. Shunning vulgar brawls himself, he attempted to keep others out of them. An absolutely honest man, he advised exact justice to all who sought his advice; and, whenever there was too much violence developed in debate around Offutt's store door, the tall form of the young manager was sure to be seen towering over the conflict; and when argument failed to quell the disturbance, those long arms invariably brought peace. In all his activities, however, Lincoln never for one moment knew what it was to "let up" on his reading and studies. Very poor he was, but he skimped himself and went without what many boys would call necessary clothing to subscribe to the Louisville Courier, then edited by that famous whig, George D. Prentice, a witty and most brilliant man. This was, as he afterwards, said, his greatest luxury. He read every word, and some of its articles were committed to memory by sheer force of habit. Pondering over the editorial articles of his favorite newspaper, he attempted to discover how they were constructed, and what were the rules by which language was composed and sentences framed. Application to the village schoolmaster gave him a hint as to grammar, and he was not satisfied until he had hunted down, somewhere in the region, a copy of Kirkham's Grammar. This he carried home in great triumph, nor did he pause until he had mastered its contents. He said that he was surprised to find how little there was in a work that was made so much of by the schoolmaster. He had "collared" it in a week, and had returned the book to its owner. UP CHAPTER V A PLUNGE INTO POLITICS P to this time, Lincoln had never held any office except that of an occasional clerk of election. But the spring of 1832 found him out of business, out of work. Offutt's store had gone to pieces, that gentleman's numerous irons in the fire having at last proved too many for him. If ever Lincoln was at liberty to try his hand at politics, this was the time. He had been trained, or rather had grown up, in the backwoods, had gradually made the acquaintance of mankind, had meditated and read, and had accustomed himself to speaking extemporaneously. He was a good story-teller, alert, quick-witted, full of apt illustration and anecdote, and was so close a student of human nature that he was always able to adapt himself to his little audience. Above all, by his unvarying good-nature and helpfulness he had made friends of all who ever met him. At the bottom of a barrel of "trash" that Offutt had taken in exchange for goods, Lincoln found two old law books. On these he fell like a hungry child, and he never left them until he had mastered their contents. In this way, Lincoln had absorbed a great deal of useful knowledge. He was always thirsty for information. If he heard of a new book, and new books were pretty |