Lesson 49
Part2 Dialogue
Two friends are talking about a new movie.

W: What's on at the cinema this week?
M: "Fight for Freedom".
W: What's it about?
M: It's about a time when there were black slaves in North America. It's about their fight for freedom.
W: That sounds interesting. That was a hundred years ago, wasn't it?
M: No,more, about 130 years ago. Most of the slave owners were rich farmers who lived in the south. They wanted to keep their slaves.
W: How do you know so much about it? Have you seen the movie?
M: No,I haven't. I read about it in the newspaper. It's also about the man who wanted to end slavery--Abraham Lincoln.

Lesson 50
Reading
Read this passage to find answers to these questions:
1.What was Lincoln's greatest work?
2.Why was he killed?

ABRAHAM LINCOLN

Abraham Lincoln,the son of a poor family, was born in Kentucky, USA, on February 12th, 1809. As a child he used to work hard and help his father on the small farm where they lived. His mother, who loved him very much, died in 1818. Happily for him, his father's second sife was kind to him too. When she saw that Abraham liked reading, she did all she could to help him. But the family was so poor that the boy could not get many books. he spent very little time at school, perhaps no more than a year in all. As a young man he worked in a store and later in a post office. He studied law in his spare time and became a lawyer. This was a time when there were still slaves in the USA. Lincoln became very interested in politics. He was against slavery. In all his political life, he worked hard to build a free state for all the people. In 1860, Abraham Lincoln became President of the United States. Then he worked still harder for the freedom of the slaves. But the Southern states wanted to set up a country of their own, where they would be free to keep black slaves. Lincoln said that it was not right for the South to break away from the Union. Fighting broke out between the two. This was the American Civil War, which lasted four years. In the end the North won. Northern and Sothern states joined up again as one country and the slaves were set free. In 1864, Lincoln became President of the United States for the second time. But he had many enemies--slave owners in the South and rich people in big cities who had grown rich on the work of slaves. They hated Lincoln because he fought for the freedom of all people. On April 14th,1865 Lincoln was shot at a theatre in Washington, D.C. He died early the next morning. The whole country was very sad at the news of his death; the people had considered him to be a great leader, and a wise, kind and honest man. Today, Abraham Lincoln is considerewd as one of the greatest of all American presidents.

Lesson 52
Part 1 Dialogue

The year is 1860.Tom Grade (T.G) who writes for a newspaper, is asking Abraham Lincoln (A.L) some questions.

T.G: People are calling for the freedom of all slaves. What is your answer to that?
A.L: I will give you an honest answer. I am fighting for an end to slavery and for the freedom of all slaves.
T.G: What about the famers in the South? They will have a lot of difficulties if the slaves are set free. Who will pick the cotton?
A.L: I agree that the farmers might have some problems. But the freedom of all people in the world is more important than that.
T.G: I know that you have made a lot of enemies. Some white people will lose money if you are successful. Are you afraid of your enemies?
A.L: No.I will not stop my fight against slavery until all slaves are free. There will be an end to slavery. Slaves will have their freedom.