The late President Garfield was born in a log-cabin--a real cabin, for
it had only one room. The roof was of rude split shingles, and the floor
of puncheons. His father died while the boy was still a baby, leaving
the mother very poor, with four children to bring up as best she could.
The country, Northern Ohio, was wild and new, and the boys had small
opportunity for education, and few companions of their own age. Except
the Bible, there were almost no books in that region, and there were no
periodicals for young people then, so that even if the young Garfields
had been able to spare time for reading, they had nothing to read.
[Illustration: MOLLIE GARFIELD.