By law Abe owed the fruit of his labors to his father until he was twenty-one. Thomas intended to see that the boy produced and was not beyond using beatings to make his wishes known. After 1818, when Nancy died of the dreaded milk sickness, she was no longer there to protect her son from his father’s rage. Thomas Lincoln, c. 1850 By then, though, it was nearly too late to stop what was coming. Abe’s mind awakened; he quickly learned to read. He then learned to write. This delighted him so much