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Chapter II—Growing In Wisdom And Stature.
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 The school was in the village a mile and a half away. It was a long walk for a little boy of four, but sometimes his sister Mehetabel, now thirteen years old, carried him on her back. When in winter the snow lay deep on the ground Jimmy's books were brought home, and he recited his lessons to his mother.
 
This may be a good time to say something of the family whose name in after years was to become a household word throughout the republic. They had been long in the country. They were literally1 one of the first families, for in 1636, only sixteen years after the Pilgrims landed on Plymouth rock, and the same year that Harvard College was founded, Edward Garfield, who had come from the edge of Wales, settled in Watertown, Massachusetts, less than four miles from the infant college, and there for more than a century was the family home, as several moss-grown headstones in the ancient graveyard2 still testify.
 
They did their part in the Revolutionary war, and it was not till the war was over that Solomon Garfield, the great grandfather of the future President, removed to the town of Worcester, Otsego County, N.Y. Here lived the Garfields for two generations. Then Abram Garfield, the father of James, moved to Northeastern Ohio, and bought a tract3 of eighty acres, on which stood the log-cabin, built by himself, in which our story opens. His wife belonged to a distinguished4 family of New England—the Ballous—and possessed5 the strong traits of her kindred.
 
But the little farm of eighty acres was smaller now. Abram Garfield died in debt, and his wife sold off fifty acres to pay his creditors7, leaving thirty, which with her own industry and that of her oldest son served to maintain her little family.
 
The school-house was so far away that Mrs. Garfield, who appreciated the importance of education for her children, offered her neighbors a site for a new school-house on her own land, and one was built. Here winter after winter came teachers, some of limited qualifications, to instruct the children of the neighborhood, and here Jimmy enlarged his stock of book-learning by slow degrees.
 
The years passed, and still they lived in the humble8 log-cabin, till at the age of twenty-one Thomas came home from Michigan, where he had been engaged in clearing land for a farmer, bringing seventy-five dollars in gold.
 
"Now, mother," he said, "you shall have a framed house."
 
Seventy-five dollars would not pay for a framed house, but he cut timber himself, got out the boards, and added his own labor9, and that of Jimmy, now fourteen years old, and so the house was built, and the log-cabin became a thing of the past. But it had been their home for a long time, and doubtless many happy days had been spent beneath its humble roof.
 
While the house was being built, Jimmy learned one thing—that he was handy with tools, and was well fitted to become a carpenter. When the joiner told him that he was born to be a carpenter, he thought with joy that this unexpected talent would enable him to help his mother, and earn something toward the family expenses. So, for the next two years he worked at this new business when opportunity offered, and if my reader should go to Chagrin10 Falls, Ohio, he could probably find upon inquiry11 several barns in the vicinity which Jimmy helped to build.
 
He still went to school, however, and obtained such knowledge of the mysteries of grammar, arithmetic, and geography as could be obtained in the common schools of that day.
 
But Jimmy Garfield was not born to be a carpenter, and I believe never got so far along as to assist in building a house.
 
He was employed to build a wood-shed for a black-salter, ten miles away from his mother's house, and when the job was finished his employer fell into conversation with him, and being a man of limited acquirements himself, was impressed by the boy's surprising stock of knowledge.
 
"You kin6 read, you kin write, and you are death on figgers," he said to him one day. "If you'll stay with me, keep my 'counts, and 'tend to the saltery, I'll find you, and give you fourteen dollars a month."
 
Jimmy was dazzled by this brilliant offer. He felt that to accept it would be to enter upon the high-road to riches, and he resolved to do so if his mother would consent. Ten miles he trudged12 through the woods to ask his mother's consent, which with some difficulty he obtained, for she did not know to what influences he might be subjected, and so he got started in a new business.
 
Whether he would have fulfilled his employer's prediction, and some day been at the head of a saltery of his own, we can not tell; but in time he became dissatisfied with his situation, and returning home, waited for Providence13 to indicate some new path on which to enter.
 
One thing, however, was certain: he would not be content to remain long without employment. He had an active temperament14, and would have been happiest when busy, even if he had not known that his mother needed the fruits of his labor.
 
He had one source of enjoyment15 while employed by the black-salter, which he fully16 appreciated. Strange to say, his employer had a library, that is, he had a small collection of books, gathered by his daughter, prominent among which were Marryatt's novels, and "Sinbad the Sailor." They opened a new world to his young accountant, and gave him an intense desire to see the world, and especially to cross the great sea, even in the capacity of a sailor. At home there was no library, not from the lack of literary taste, but because there was no money to spend for anything but necessaries.
 
He had not been long at home when a neighbor, entering one day, said, "James, do you want a job?"
 
"Yes," answered James, eagerly.
 
"There's a farmer in Newburg wants some wood chopped."
 
"I can do it," said James, quietly.
 
"Then you'd better go and see him."
 
Newburg is within the present limits of Cleveland, and thither17 James betook himself the next day.
 
He was a stout18 boy, with the broad shoulders and sturdy frame of his former ancestors, and he was sure he could give satisfaction.
 
The farmer, dressed in homespun, looked up as the boy approached.
 
"Are you Mr. ——?" asked James.
 
"Yes."
 
"I heard that you wanted some wood chopped."
 
"Yes, but I am not sure if you can do it," answered the farmer, surveying the boy critically.
 
"I can do it," said James, confidently.
 
"Very well, you can try. I'll give you seven dollars for the job."
 
The price was probably satisfactory, for James engaged to do the work. There proved to be twenty-five cords, and no one, I think, will consider that he was overpaid for his labor.
 
He was fortunate, at least, in the scene of his labor, for it was on the shore of Lake Erie, and as he lifted his eyes from his work they rested on the broad bosom19 of the beautiful lake, almost broad enough as it appeared to be the ocean itself, which he had a strange desire to traverse in search of the unknown lands of which he had read or dreamed.
 
I suppose there are few boys who have not at some time fancied that they should like "a life on the ocean wave, and a home on the rolling deep." I have in mind a friend, now a physician, who at the age of fifteen left a luxurious20 home, with the reluctant permission of his parents, for a voyage before the mast to Liverpool, beguiled21 by one of the fascinating narratives22 of Herman Melville. But the romance very soon wore off, and by the time the boy reached Halifax, where the ship put in, he was so seasick23, and so sick of the sea, that he begged to be left on shore to return home as he might. The captain had received secret instructions from the parents to accede24 to such a wish, and the boy was landed, and in due time returned home as a passenger. So it is said that George Washington had an early passion for the sea, and would have become a sailor but for the pain he knew it would give his mother.
 
James kept his longings25 to himself for the present, and returned home with the seven dollars he had so hardly earned.
 
There was more work for him to do. A Mr. Treat wanted help during the haying and harvesting season, and offered employment to the boy, who was already strong enough to do almost as much as a man; for James already had a good reputation as a faithful worker. "Whatever his hands found to do, he did it with his might," and he was by no means fastidious as to the kind of work, provided it was honest and honorable.
 
When the harvest work was over James made known his passion for the sea.
 
Going to his mother, he said: "Mother, I want above all things to go to sea."
 
"Go to sea!" replied his mother in dismay. "What has put such an idea into your head?"
 
"It has been in my head for a long time," answered the boy quietly. "I have thought of nothing else for the last year."

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1 literally 28Wzv     
adv.照字面意义,逐字地;确实
参考例句:
  • He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
  • Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候,她不走到真正要昏厥了,决不肯坐下来。
2 graveyard 9rFztV     
n.坟场
参考例句:
  • All the town was drifting toward the graveyard.全镇的人都象流水似地向那坟场涌过去。
  • Living next to a graveyard would give me the creeps.居住在墓地旁边会使我毛骨悚然。
3 tract iJxz4     
n.传单,小册子,大片(土地或森林)
参考例句:
  • He owns a large tract of forest.他拥有一大片森林。
  • He wrote a tract on this subject.他曾对此写了一篇短文。
4 distinguished wu9z3v     
adj.卓越的,杰出的,著名的
参考例句:
  • Elephants are distinguished from other animals by their long noses.大象以其长长的鼻子显示出与其他动物的不同。
  • A banquet was given in honor of the distinguished guests.宴会是为了向贵宾们致敬而举行的。
5 possessed xuyyQ     
adj.疯狂的;拥有的,占有的
参考例句:
  • He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
  • He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。
6 kin 22Zxv     
n.家族,亲属,血缘关系;adj.亲属关系的,同类的
参考例句:
  • He comes of good kin.他出身好。
  • She has gone to live with her husband's kin.她住到丈夫的亲戚家里去了。
7 creditors 6cb54c34971e9a505f7a0572f600684b     
n.债权人,债主( creditor的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • They agreed to repay their creditors over a period of three years. 他们同意3年内向债主还清欠款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Creditors could obtain a writ for the arrest of their debtors. 债权人可以获得逮捕债务人的令状。 来自《简明英汉词典》
8 humble ddjzU     
adj.谦卑的,恭顺的;地位低下的;v.降低,贬低
参考例句:
  • In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见,他将在选举中获胜。
  • Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。
9 labor P9Tzs     
n.劳动,努力,工作,劳工;分娩;vi.劳动,努力,苦干;vt.详细分析;麻烦
参考例句:
  • We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
  • He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后,他已经疲惫不堪了。
10 chagrin 1cyyX     
n.懊恼;气愤;委屈
参考例句:
  • His increasingly visible chagrin sets up a vicious circle.他的明显的不满引起了一种恶性循环。
  • Much to his chagrin,he did not win the race.使他大为懊恼的是他赛跑没获胜。
11 inquiry nbgzF     
n.打听,询问,调查,查问
参考例句:
  • Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
  • The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。
12 trudged e830eb9ac9fd5a70bf67387e070a9616     
vt.& vi.跋涉,吃力地走(trudge的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • He trudged the last two miles to the town. 他步履艰难地走完最后两英里到了城里。
  • He trudged wearily along the path. 他沿着小路疲惫地走去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
13 providence 8tdyh     
n.深谋远虑,天道,天意;远见;节约;上帝
参考例句:
  • It is tempting Providence to go in that old boat.乘那艘旧船前往是冒大险。
  • To act as you have done is to fly in the face of Providence.照你的所作所为那样去行事,是违背上帝的意志的。
14 temperament 7INzf     
n.气质,性格,性情
参考例句:
  • The analysis of what kind of temperament you possess is vital.分析一下你有什么样的气质是十分重要的。
  • Success often depends on temperament.成功常常取决于一个人的性格。
15 enjoyment opaxV     
n.乐趣;享有;享用
参考例句:
  • Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同,我们这次访问更加愉快了。
  • After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话,这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。
16 fully Gfuzd     
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地
参考例句:
  • The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气,然后全部呼出。
  • They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。
17 thither cgRz1o     
adv.向那里;adj.在那边的,对岸的
参考例句:
  • He wandered hither and thither looking for a playmate.他逛来逛去找玩伴。
  • He tramped hither and thither.他到处流浪。
19 bosom Lt9zW     
n.胸,胸部;胸怀;内心;adj.亲密的
参考例句:
  • She drew a little book from her bosom.她从怀里取出一本小册子。
  • A dark jealousy stirred in his bosom.他内心生出一阵恶毒的嫉妒。
20 luxurious S2pyv     
adj.精美而昂贵的;豪华的
参考例句:
  • This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
  • The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。
21 beguiled f25585f8de5e119077c49118f769e600     
v.欺骗( beguile的过去式和过去分词 );使陶醉;使高兴;消磨(时间等)
参考例句:
  • She beguiled them into believing her version of events. 她哄骗他们相信了她叙述的事情。
  • He beguiled me into signing this contract. 他诱骗我签订了这项合同。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
22 narratives 91f2774e518576e3f5253e0a9c364ac7     
记叙文( narrative的名词复数 ); 故事; 叙述; 叙述部分
参考例句:
  • Marriage, which has been the bourne of so many narratives, is still a great beginning. 结婚一向是许多小说的终点,然而也是一个伟大的开始。
  • This is one of the narratives that children are fond of. 这是孩子们喜欢的故事之一。
23 seasick seasick     
adj.晕船的
参考例句:
  • When I get seasick,I throw up my food.我一晕船就呕吐。
  • He got seasick during the voyage.在航行中他晕船。
24 accede Gf8yd     
v.应允,同意
参考例句:
  • They are ready to accede to our request for further information.我们要是还需要资料,他们乐于随时提供。
  • In a word,he will not accede to your proposal in the meeting.总而言之,他不会在会中赞成你的提议。
25 longings 093806503fd3e66647eab74915c055e7     
渴望,盼望( longing的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Ah, those foolish days of noble longings and of noble strivings! 啊,那些充满高贵憧憬和高尚奋斗的傻乎乎的时光!
  • I paint you and fashion you ever with my love longings. 我永远用爱恋的渴想来描画你。


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