Lincoln, the unknown

and Jefferson as hisLINCOLN THE UNKNOWN• 27models. His handwriting resembled theirs.It was unusually clear and distinct. People commented on it,and the illiterate neighbors walked for miles to have Abrahamwrite their letters.He was finding a real tang and zest, now, in learning. Thehours at school were all too short, he carried his studies home.Paper was scarce and high, so he wrote on a board with acharcoal stick. Sometimes he ciphered on the flat sides of thehewn logs that formed the cabin walls. Whenever a bare surfacebecame covered with figures and writing he shaved them offwith a drawing-knife and began anew.Too poor to buy an arithmetic, he borrowed one and copiedit on sheets of paper about the size of an ordinary letter-head.Then he sewed them together with twine, and so had a homemadearithmetic of his own. At the time of his death his stepmotherstill had portions of this book.Now he began to exhibit a trait which sharply distinguishedhim from the rest of the backwoods scholars. He wanted towrite out his opinions on various topics; at times he evenbroke into verse. And he took his verse and prose compositionto William Wood, a neighbor, for criticism. He memorized andrecited his rhymes, and his essays attracted attention. A lawyerwas so impressed with his article on national politics that hesent it away and had it published. A newspaper in Ohio featuredan article he wrote on temperance.But this was later. His first composition here in school wasinspired by the cruel sports of his playmates. They used tocatch terrapins and put burning coals on their backs. Lincolnpleaded with them to stop it, and ran and kicked off the coalswith his bare feet. His first essay was a plea for mercy to animals.Already the boy was showing that deep sympathy forthe suffering which was to be so characteristic of the man.Five years later he attended another school irregularly— "byas he phrased it.littles,"Thus ended all his formal attempts at education, with a totalof not more than twelve months of schooling.When he went to Congress in 1847 and filled out a biographicalblank, he came to the question, "What has been your education?"He answered it with one word: "Defective."After he was nominated for the Presidency he said: "WhenI came of age, I did not know much. Still, somehow, I couldread, write, and cipher to the rule of three; but that was all.