sailor, and therefore the words of his cousin had considerable
influence over him. He began to think that he had been guilty of
acting foolishly, and to waver in his purpose.

[Illustration: On board the canal boat.]

One day the boat came to a lock the same time as another boat, and the
crews of the two vessels were about to fight for the first turn, when
James spoke out boldly, and declared that the right belonged to the
other boat, and that it should precede them. The captain was so struck
with his cousin's manly defence of the right, that he ordered his men
to give way. A fight was prevented, and fair play was given to the
first comers. Some of the men in his own crew called him a coward, but
that had no effect on James. He had long ago settled in his own mind
that the greatest coward was the one who did not dare to do right.

Not long afterwards James offended one of the men, who at once set upon
him. To save himself, James knocked the man down. All the men at once
called upon James to pitch into him while he was on the ground. But
James replied that he never struck a man when he was down. This was a
new idea to the men, who had called him a coward because he would not
fight for that which did not belong to him. Ever afterwards they
regarded him with respect. Even they, rough and brutal as they were,
could appreciate the generous spirit which prompted such noble actions.

One of the boatmen, named Harry Brown, was a good-hearted fellow, who
took a great fancy to James. This man was, however, so very fond of
drink, that he was always getting into trouble. James tried to
persuade Harry to give up drinking, and the man listened willingly to
the kind advice which he found so hard to follow. When speaking of
James to one of the crew, Harry said, "Jim is a great fellow. I should
like to see what sort of a man he will make. The way he rakes me down
on whisky, tobacco, and swearing is a caution, and he does not say a
word that is not true. I like him, though. I always like a man to
show his colours."

All through life it was the same. No matter where he was, or in what
circumstances he was placed, James Garfield always showed his colours,
and he was never afraid to nail them to the mast.

Therefore the ignorant, drunken crew not only respected the lad who so
boldly reproved them, but boasted of the companionship of one so unlike
themselves. Said the steersman to the bowman of another boat, "We have