When he got to bed, he would say his lessons over to his brother.  He would tell his brother what he had been reading.  But his brother would fall asleep while Horace was talking.

Horace liked to read better than he liked to work.  But when he had a task to do, he did it faith-ful-ly.  His brother would say, “Let us go fishing.”  But Horace would answer, “Let us get our work done first.”

Horace Gree-ley’s father grew poorer and poorer.  When Horace was ten years old, his land was sold.  The family were now very poor.  They moved from New Hamp-shire.  They settled in Ver-mont.  They lived in a poor little cabin.

Horace had to work hard like all the rest of the family.  But he borrowed all the books he could get.  Sometimes he walked seven miles to borrow a book.

A rich man who lived near the Greeleys used to lend books to Horace.  Horace had grown tall.  His hair was white.  He was poorly dressed.  He was a strange-looking boy.  One day he went to the house of the rich man to borrow books.  Some one said to the owner of the house, “Do you lend books to such a fellow as that?”

But the gen-tle-man said, “That boy will be a great man some day.”

This made all the com-pa-ny laugh.  It seemed funny that anybody should think of this poor boy becoming a great man.  But it came true.  The poor white-headed boy came to be a great man.

Horace Greeley learned all that he could learn in the country schools.  When he was thirteen, one teacher said to his father,—­

“Mr. Greeley, Horace knows more than I do.  It is not of any use to send him to school any more.”

HORACE GREELEY LEARNING TO PRINT.

Horace Greeley had always wanted to be a printer.  He liked books and papers.  He thought it would be a fine thing to learn to make them.

One day he heard that the news-paper at East Poult-ney wanted a boy to learn the printer’s trade.  He walked many long miles to see about it.  He went to see Mr. Bliss.  Mr. Bliss was one of the owners of the paper.  Horace found him working in his garden.  Mr. Bliss looked up.  He saw a big boy coming toward him.  The boy had on a white felt hat with a narrow brim.  It looked like a half-peck measure.  His hair was white.  His trousers were too short for him.  All his clothes were coarse and poor.  He was such a strange-looking boy, that Mr. Bliss wanted to laugh.

“I heard that you wanted a boy,” Horace said.

“Do you want to learn to print?” Mr. Bliss said.

“Yes,” said Horace.

“But a printer ought to know a good many things,” said Mr. Bliss.  “Have you been to school much?”

“No,” said Horace.  “I have not had much chance at school.  But I have read some.”

“What have you read?” asked Mr. Bliss.

“Well, I have read some his-to-ry, and some travels, and a little of everything.”