encouraging to behave well in his presence, it was perilous and doubly wicked to set a bad example before him. Coupled with his observation, this quality made him sharp and critical, for one of his years. "School will keep through the winter," said Me hetabel to her mother, as she came home one day, near the close of the term. "Jacob's father is raising the money to pay the master." "How did you learn? I have not heard of it," answered Mrs. Garfield. "Several of the scholars said so; and they are all going." "Going to have a vacation?" inquired her mother. "Yes; two or three weeks; school will begin in December for the winter." "I am very glad indeed that you can have such an opportunity to attend school," continued her mother. "Then I can go, can I?" "Yes; you can all go except Jimmy. He cannot go so far in the winter; and it will be too hard for you to carry him through the snow." "Will Tom go?" "I hope so; he has worked very hard that the rest of you might go, and now he should go." Ten minutes afterwards Thomas was discussing the matter, and presenting reasons why he could not attend. "I shall find enough to do taking care of the cows and chopping wood, even if there is no snow to shovel, which is not very likely." "But we must let some things go undone, if pos sible, that you may learn when you can," suggested his mother. "In this new country you must take education when you can get it." "I can study at home evenings and stormy days," replied Thomas. "That is what Jimmy must do study at home,' continued Mrs. Garfield. "He has a good start now, and he can make a good reader before next summer.” The result was that Thomas did not attend the winter term, nor James. Their two sisters went, and Mrs. Garfield instructed James and assisted Thomas somewhat in his studies. Long winter evenings in the woods were favorable for study by the light of the blazing fire, that made the cabin more cheerful even than it was in daytime. Pioneers could not afford the luxury of a tallow candle or an oil lamp. Sometimes they adopted a substitute for both the pitch-pine knot. But asually, in winter, pioneers depended upon the light of the fireplace. Fireplaces were very large, so as to admit logs four feet long, with a quantity of smaller fuel in like proportion. When the mass of com. bustible material was fairly ablaze, the light and heat penetrated into every corner of the cabin; and the heat below greatly modified the excessive cold of the loft above. That winter was a memorable one for James. He made decided progress in spelling and reading before. the next summer came, with its hot days and grow ing crops. It was after the winter was over and gone, and the warm sunlight was bathing the forests and gladdening the earth, that James came into possession of a child's volume somehow, either it -- was a present or was borrowed of a neighbor, from which he derived much real pleasure. One day he spelled out and read aloud the following line: "The rain came pattering on the roof." "Why, mother!" he shouted, under visible excite ment, "I've heard the rain do that myself." "You have?" "Why, yes, I have," he continued, as if a new revelation were made to him. And then he read the line over again, with more emphasis and louder than before: "The rain came pattering on the roof." "Yes, mother, I've heard it just so!" and the little fellow appeared to be struggling with a thought larger than ever tasked his mind before. It was the first time, probably, that he had learned the actual use of words to represent things, to describe objects and events - the outside world on paper. From that time James was introduced into a new world, a world world of thought. Words expressed thoughts to him, and books contained words; and so he went for books with all his mind, and might, and strength. There was nothing about the cabin equal to a book. He preferred the "English Reader" to anything that could be raised on the little farm. He revelled in books-such books as he could find at that time when there was a dearth of books. Day after day the "English Reader" his companion. He would lie flat upon the cabin floor by the hour, or sprawl himself out under a tree, on a warm summer day, with the " English Reader" in his hand, exploring its mines of thought, master ing its wonderful knowledge, and making himself familiar with its inspiring contents. This was before the lad was five years old; and he was scarcely six years old when he had committed to memory a great portion of that "Reader." Other volumes, too, occupied much of his attention, though none to such an extent as the "English Reader." Such was his childish devotion to books that his mother could scarcely refrain from prophesying, even then, an intellectual career for him. She knew not how it could be done, -all the surroundings of the family were unfriendly to such an experience, — but somehow she was made to feel that there was a wider, grander field of action for that active, precocious mind. - CHAPTER IV. TRIALS AND TRIUMPHS. E can have a school-house nearer to us," remarked Mrs. Garfield to Mr. Boynton. "For the sake of my James, I wish we could have." "There are scarcely enough families yet to make such a change," replied Mr. Boynton; "some of them would have to go as far as they do now." "That is very true; but more families would have a shorter distance to go than they have now. I think that fact is worth considering." Mrs. Garfield was giving utterance, for the first time, to thoughts that had been in her mind for several months. In her own mind she had numbered the families which might be induced to unite in erecting. a log school-house upon one corner of her farm. She continued: "Suppose you inquire of Mr. Collins and others, and learn what they think about it. If eight or ten families will unite, or even eight families, we can have a school nearer home. I will give the land on which to build the house; and three days' labor by seven or eight men will complete the building. It is not a |