In the spring of 1830 when Abe was twenty-one his father moved to Illinois where fertile land was to be had on easy terms. The household goods were carried on an ox-wagon and it took two weeks to make the long and tedious journey. In the new settlement the men set to work to clear away the forest and build cabins. Abe helped to split rails to fence in the little farm. He not only helped at home, but worked for others as occasion demanded. We are informed that he bargained with a Mrs. Miller “to split four hundred rails for every yard of brown jeans dyed with white walnut bark that would be necessary to make him a pair of trousers.” A little later he made a trip to New Orleans with a boat-load of meat, hogs, and corn. In that city for the first time he saw slaves bought and sold. You remember that slavery had been introduced into America early in the seventeenth century. For a long time slavery existed in both the northern and the southern colonies, but in the course of time it was limited to the south where alone slave labor was profitable. Lincoln did not think that it was right that negroes should be sold like cattle, and he said, “If ever I get a chance to hit that thing [slavery] I’ll hit it hard.” After his return home, he became clerk in a country store. Here by his scrupulous honesty he earned the nickname “Honest Abe.” One day he made an overcharge of fourpence and that night he walked several miles to return the money. During his leisure he continued his studies. Books were scarce, and on one occasion he walked six miles to borrow a grammar. In 1832 Abe Lincoln was elected captain of a company of volunteers who marched with the regular troops against the Indian chief, Black Hawk. Most of the men went home when their term of enlistment expired but Abe Lincoln re-enlisted and served as a private. This was his only experience in actual warfare. When he returned home he presented himself as a candidate for the legislature. His neighbors heartily supported “humble Abraham Lincoln” who was one of them, but he was defeated. He was a clear, straightforward speaker with a pointed, well-told joke for every occasion. After his political defeat he opened a store in partnership with a friend. As Lincoln spent his time in studying and telling jokes and Berry spent his in drinking, it is no wonder that the business proved a failure. Berry died soon after this; Lincoln assumed all the debts of the firm and paid them to the last penny, although it required his savings for over fifteen years.