Being a good penman, Lincoln was often called on to write a line in copybooks. Among the proud possessors of a copybook so favored was Joe Richardson. In his book Lincoln wrote these commonplace, yet significant lines: "Good boys who to their books apply Will all be great men by and by." Lincoln was brought up in the midst of superstitions that prevailed in every act of life, but they seem to have made no impression on him. Many of the most estimable people believed the sun went round the earth, from the indisputable fact that in the morning it was on one side of the house and in the afternoon was on the other side. Many also believed the earth to be flat, because any one trying to go so far as to go around it would naturally become lost, travel in a circle, as all lost people do, and come back to the same place, thinking they had gone around the world. People who argued otherwise were merely "stuck up" and "just proud to show themselves off." Doubtless, his belief about the sun and earth lost him his first love affair. He was going to school to Andrew Crawford, who also taught good manners, when he began to exchange special attention with Miss Roby, a fine lass of fifteen. He especially had her gratitude for some help he gave her in a spelling class. When she was about to spell "defied" with a "y," he pointed to his eye, just in time to save her from disgrace with the teacher, and from losing her place in the class. But one day as they were walking along the road she made a remark that brought up an unfortunate subject. "Abe," said she, "look yonder, the sun is going down." "Reckon not," was the unfortunate reply. "It's us coming up. That's all." "Don't you suppose I've got eyes," she answered indignantly. "Reckon so," he replied, "but the sun's as still as a tree. When we're swung up so's the shine's cut off, we call it night." "Abe," said she, "you're a consarned fool," and away she went, leaving him to the glory of his "stuck-up larnin'." III. SOME SIGNS ALONG THE EARLY WAY The Lincoln boy impressed all who knew him as being different from other boys, though they did not know just how. We now know that the difference consisted in his having a purpose to have a mind rather than to have a good time. And yet, Lincoln loved joyful sports and he was a favorite in all the social gatherings of the community. But his mind was not composed of sport experience, nor his interest in life inspired by sport success. The world-mind of books contained more value and richer promise than the turmoil of happenings among companions, or than those who were juggling interests in the hope of events. Lincoln's books were very limited in number but exceedingly wide in their humanity. Weems' "Life of Washington" seems to have given him his ideal of American character and statesmanship, while the "Statutes of Indiana" aroused his interest in civil law and the American government.