CAPE FIRST-GRADERS DISPENSE PRESIDENTIAL HISTORY

February's a very presidential month. President Lincoln's birthday was Feb. 12, and President Washington's birthday is Feb. 22, so the powers-that-be decided to split the difference and make today Presidents Day, honoring both.

As history teaches us, President Washington chopped down a cherry tree and confessed, and President Lincoln kept his papers in his stovepipe hat so they wouldn't blow away.

Or was it the other way around?

First-graders at Washington School in Cape Girardeau have been busy studying the Father of Our Country and Honest Abe.

Their teachers, Susan Riehl and Ginger Ratliff, say that because of the way the birthdays fall, the students haven't had quite as much time to study President Washington, but they gave it their best shot.

"He never lied and he always told the truth," Stephanie Dock said of Washington.

"He chopped down a cherry tree," Callie Hoffman said, then added, "That was just a legend."

Nobody mentioned Washington's powdered white wig, but his dentures came up.

"He wore false teeth. They were wooden," said David Purkey. "They didn't feel good."

"He was a nice man," Whitney Moore said.

"He helped people," added Danialle Dodd.

"He went to war and beat all the other people," said Isaac Renn.

Whitney knew Washington was "one of our presidents." Classmate Amber Garrard chimed in, "He was the first one."

With two presidents to study in one month, a little confusion is inevitable.

"Once this lady came into his store," began Kyle Jaco's narrative on Washington, until he was shouted down by his classmates.

"That was Lincoln!" they told him.

The students were a little more confident about President Lincoln's history.

"He did his math problems on the back of a shovel," said Brandon Reynolds.

Brandon's classmates pointed out that they have to use plain white paper.

"He had to walk a mile to get a book to read," Isaac Egbuke said.

"He didn't have a backpack like us," said Stephanie Bryant. "He had to put his papers in his hat, 'cause his hat was big and tall."

"He did a big speech," Daniel Claussen said.

"He had a dirt floor and he lived in a log cabin and it had one room," said Brittney Thomas.

"He was born in Kentucky," said Christen Craion.

"He liked to read by the fireplace," Jim Ritter said. Jim said he likes to read, too, but added, "we don't have a fireplace."

"He was our 16th president," said Amber Garrard.

"He got shot," Chelsey Sturgeon said.

"He was in the Civil War," David Purkey said.

"They had the Civil War and they fought and tried to kill each other and the president was trying to tell the white ones not to make the black ones be their slaves," Stephanie Dock said.

"He freed the slaves," Daniel Claussen said.

Even given the added study time, students still were a little confused about President Lincoln. They knew Lincoln had something to do with the Civil War, but they weren't quite sure who fought in the war.

One class guessed the combatants were the United States and the Russians, while the other said the United States and China slugged it out.