He weighed out what was due, and
carried it to her, much to the surprise of the
woman, who had not known that she was short
in the amount of her purchase.
Innumerable incidents of this sort are related
of Lincoln, and we should not have space to tell
of the alertness with which he sprang to protect
defenseless women from insult, or feeble children
from tyranny; for in the rude community in
which he lived, the rights of the defenseless were
not always respected as they should have been.
There were bullies then, as now.
A STRANGER AT FIVE-POINTS
(ADAPTED)
One afternoon in February, 1860, when the Sunday
School of the Five-Point House of Industry
in New York was assembled, the teacher saw a
most remarkable man enter the room and take
his place among the others. This stranger was
tall, his frame was gaunt and sinewy, his head
powerful, with determined features overcast by
a gentle melancholy.
He listened with fixed attention to the
exercises. His face expressed such genuine interest
that the teacher, approaching him, suggested that
he might have something to say to the children.
The stranger accepted the invitation with
evident pleasure. Coming forward, he began to
speak and at once fascinated every child in the
room. His language was beautiful yet simple,
his tones were musical, and he spoke with deep
feeling.
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