e of Gen. Garfield's striking characteristics
while he was growing up, was, that when he saw a boy in the class excel
him in anything, he never gave up till he reached the same standard, and
even went beyond it. It got to be known that no scholar could be ahead
of him. Our association as men has been almost as close as that of our
boyhood, though not as constant. The General never forgot his neighbors
or less fortunate kinsmen, and often visited us as we did him."

More vivid than any picture I could draw is this description, by the
most intimate friend of his boyhood, of James Garfield's way of life,
his struggles for an education, his constant desire to excel, and his
devotion to duty. We have already pictured the rustic boy in his humble
room, cooking his own food, and living, as his cousin testifies, on a
dollar a week. Is there any other country where such humble beginnings
could lead to such influence and power? Is there any other land where
such a lad could make such rapid strides toward the goal which crowns
the highest ambition? It is the career of such men that most commends
our Government and institutions, proving as it does that by the humblest
and poorest the highest dignities may be attained. James was content to
live on mush and molasses, pork and potatoes, since they came within his
narrow means, and gave him sufficient strength to pursue his cherished
studies. Nor is his an exceptional case. I have myself known college and
professional students who have lived on sixty cents a week (how, it is
difficult to tell), while their minds were busy with the loftiest
problems that have ever engaged the human intellect. Such boys and young
men are the promise of the republic. They toil upwards while others
sleep, and many such have written their names high on the tablets in the
Temple of Fame.

CHAPTER XI.

LEDGE HILL SCHOOL

Ever since he began to study at Geauga Seminary James had looked forward
to earning a little money by keeping school himself; not an advanced
school, of course, but an ordinary school, such as was kept in the
country districts in the winter. He felt no hesitation as to his
competence. The qualifications required by the school committees were by
no means large, and so far there was no difficulty.

There was one obstacle, however: James was still a boy himself--a large
boy, to be sure, but he had a youthful face, and the chances were that
he would have a number of pupils older than