where will you get an opening?" asked Mrs. McKinley. "You know how hard times are."
"They tell me they want a teacher over at the Kerr district school. Perhaps I can get that position."
"They don't pay very much over there, do they?"
"They pay twenty-five dollars per month and board the teacher around, mother. It's not much, but it's better than nothing."
Having thus spoken, William McKinley at once set about obtaining the position he had mentioned. It is said his sister, the teacher, and Miss Blakelee helped him, and soon he was installed as the new teacher at the district school, which was about two and a half miles from his home in Poland.
At this time he was but little more than seventeen years of age, and he had pupils under him who were almost if not quite as old. Some of the pupils were rough country lads, who dearly loved to "cut up" and "git the new teacher in a snarl," and on more than one occasion the young schoolmaster had to lay down the law with all the force of his eloquence and the strength of his hands.
As before mentioned, the teacher was expected to "board around," but for the greater part of the time McKinley used to trudge from his home to the school in the morning:, and back again in the afternoon when school was dismissed. As a teacher he continued his studies, and on his long walks always had his books with him. Along the route to school were several comfortable nooks, and at these he would stop to rest and to read, filling his mind with that knowledge which in after life was of such great benefit to him.
In those days the fires of the great Civil War, which was to bring so much trouble to our glorious country, were already smouldering and had been smouldering for years. The great question was that of state sovereignty, or state rights, brought on over the question of which states should own slaves and which should not. Briefly explained, the people of the North held that no new states admitted to the Union should possess slaves, while the people of the South held that such new states had a right to do as they pleased concerning the slave question. Each side was fully convinced that it was in the right, and each was prepared to fight to the bitter end in the upholding of its principles.
As said before, William McKinley had been in the habit of listening to public speakers, and now he listened more attentively than ever, for he was anxious to learn all the details of the magnificent struggle which was so soon to unroll itself before the eyes of the world. But like thousands of others, he did not believe it possible that the South would secede from the Union and set up a Confederacy of its own. Washington had fought for this Union and so had hundreds of other famous men, and he could not bear to think of the states being divided and of their making war upon each other.
The crisis was reached on Tuesday, November 6, 1860, when Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States. He was bitterly opposed by the South, and his election took from that section of our country the power it had before held in national affairs. As the telegraph flashed the news everywhere there was intense excitement, for all felt that the South must either submit to the contentions of the North or go into open rebellion.
Deeming herself fully justified in her course of action, South Carolina took the lead in seceding from the Union, on December 20, and called upon her sister states of the South to do likewise and aid in forming one great slave-holding Confederacy. Other states were not long in coming to the front, and early in the year 1861 the Southern Confederacy was formed, with Jefferson Davis as President and A. H. Stephens as Vice President. As soon as this deed was consummated, the Confederates took it upon themselves to seize all government property within reach.
CHAPTER IV
Bombardment of Fort Sumter — McKinley hears the News — The Call for Volunteers — The Enlistment — Off for the War
One day a horseman, covered with dust and dirt, came into Poland on the gallop and drew up in front of the general store and post-office.
"Fort Sumter has been bombarded!" he cried to the crowd gathered around to receive the mail.
"Fort Sumter bombarded?" questioned half a dozen men. "You are sure of this?"
"Yes, the news came into Youngstown an hour and a half ago."
"If it's true, it means war!"
Instantly there was great excitement, just as there was excitement in every town, village, and hamlet throughout the length and breadth of the land. As the news travelled from mouth to mouth, the people gathered to talk it over and speculate upon what would be the outcome.
"It means a long war," said one.
"Oh, pshaw! there will be no war at all. It will all be over in two or three months," added another.
"The South can't fight, and one big battle will finish the whole thing," said a third.
Nobody dreamed of what was in store for the Nation, — four long years of a bloody contest, fathers and brothers slain, families divided, fortunes lost, business paralyzed, and the best of friends made the bitterest of enemies. It was truly a time to try men's souls. Nobody knew what to expect, nobody knew what would happen next.
In the post-office, sorting out mail matter, was William McKinley. He had given up teaching the district school and was now acting as an assistant postmaster. As the talk from outside sifted to his ears, he looked up in wonder.
"So the South has started the war?" he said.
"Yes, the South has started the war, William," said a man who was waiting for his mail. "They're foolish to do it, for they can't hold out long."
At this McKinley shook his head. "I don't know about that. They have a good many men down there, and they have seen to it that they are pretty well provided with guns and cannon. I read of it in the papers."
"But they can't stand up against us," put in another man. "We will soon knock the spots out of 'em."
"Don't you be too sure of that," came from an old soldier who sat near the door, on a cracker barrel. "I fought alongside of some of those fellows in 1812, and in the Mexican War, and I tell you they can fight just as well as any of us. If war comes, it will be a long and bloody one, mark my words."
The news concerning Fort Sumter proved true. "The shot that was heard around the world" was fired on Friday, April 12, 1861. The cannonading was fast and furious, and Major Anderson, in command of the fort, could do little either to defend himself or in retaliation. The Unionists held the quarters for thirty-four hours and then accepted terms of evacuation offered by General Beauregard, and marched from the place a few hours later.
This was on Sunday, and all day long the people of the North wondered what President Lincoln would do. Great crowds walked the streets at night, and the little village of Poland shared in the general anxiety. On Monday the President issued a proclamation calling for seventy-five thousand men to put down the rebellion.
Seventy-five thousand men! The eyes of the nation were opened at last. Grim war was a reality. The excitement grew, and as the call to arms was made in every city, town, and hamlet, men, young and old, poured forth, to fight for the flag they so loved. And while this was going on in the North, those of the South were equally active and equally anxious to strike a blow in the defence of their principles.
The town
