I.
| chain | patient | Kentucky | furry |
| ashes | potatoes | Indiana | bacon |
| rifle | inclosed | household | loosed |
In the autumn after Abraham Lincoln was eight years old, his parents left their Kentucky home and moved to Indiana.
They had no wagon, and all their household goods were carried on the backs of two horses. At night they slept on the ground, sheltered only by the trees.
It was not more than fifty or sixty miles from the old home to the new; but it was a good many days before the family reached their journey's end. Over a part of the way there was no road. The movers had sometimes to cut a path through the thick woods.
The boy was tall and very strong for his age. He already knew how to handle an ax, and few men could shoot with a rifle better than he. He was his father's helper in all kinds of work.
It was in November when the family came to the place which was to be their future home. Winter was near at hand. There was no house nor shelter of any kind. What would become of the patient, tired mother, and the gentle little sister?
Hardly had they reached the spot chosen for their home than Lincoln and his father were at work with their axes. In a short time they had built what they called a camp.
This camp was but a rude shed made of poles and covered with leaves and branches. It was inclosed on three sides. The fourth side was left open, and in front of it a fire was built.
This fire was kept burning all the time. It warmed the inside of the camp. A big iron kettle was hung over it by means of a chain and pole. In the kettle the fat bacon, the beans, and the corn were boiled for the family's dinner and supper. In the hot ashes the good mother baked corn cakes, and sometimes, perhaps, a few potatoes.
One end of the camp was used as a kitchen. The rest of the space was the family sitting room and bedroom. The floor was covered with leaves, and on these were spread the furry skins of deer and bears and other animals.