Of course, in those days everybody went to church. Young Bryant began when he was only three years old. History does not say how he behaved, but there was not much chance to be naughty in church in those times. Every parish had its tithing man, whose business it was to maintain order in the church during divine service, and who sat with a stern countenance through the sermon, keeping a vigilant eye on the boys in distant pews and in the galleries. Sometimes when he detected two of them communicating with each other, he went to one of them, took him by the arm, and leading him away, seated him beside himself. He was also directed by law to see that the Sabbath was not profaned by people wandering in the fields or fishing in the brooks. When he was eight years old, young Cullen began to make poetry. His grandfather thought him rather bright at this, and a year or two later asked him to turn the first chapter of the Book of Job into verse. He did it all. Here are two sample lines: His name was Job, evil he did eschew. To him were born seven sons; three daughters, too. For this he received a ninepenny piece, though his father thought the lines rather bad. CHAPTER IV THE YOUNG POET Bryant’s poetic career began when he was twelve years old. Besides some “Enigmas” and a translation from the Latin of Horace, he made a copy of verses to be recited at the close of the winter school, “in the presence of the master, the minister of the parish, and a number of private gentlemen.” The verses were printed in the _Hampshire Gazette_, March 18, 1806, the year before Longfellow was born. This same newspaper had other contributions also from the pen of “C. B.” Dr. Peter Bryant was something of a politician. He was several times a representative in the Massachusetts legislature, and finally a senator. He belonged to the Federal party, which was then in opposition to the president. Jefferson was president, and in 1807, for the purpose of protecting American interests, he laid an embargo on shipping. This brought on severe hard times, and caused great indignation among the Federalists. Dr. Bryant thought his young son might write a satirical poem about it. So “The Embargo; or, Sketches of the Times,” was written and printed in a volume. There was a line on the title page saying the poem was written by “a youth of thirteen.” One of the great periodicals of that time, called the _Anthology_, reviewed the book, and while speaking well of it, said it seemed impossible that such a poem had been written by a “youth of thirteen.” So when the first edition was sold and a second was printed the following year, young Bryant’s friends prefixed an “Advertisement,” as they called it—a paragraph in which they assured the public that the author was only thirteen, and there were plenty of people who would vouch for it. In this edition the name William Cullen Bryant was boldly printed.