difference; all President Jackson wanted was a good and one who had been firm in support of him.

man,

I went to work, but with no very good will I assure you; and though Jack fretted and coaxed, I had no disposition to hurry, and once when he went out to get the toes of his shoes mended, I ventured to pick out all I had done. It was of no use, for he was so eagerly determined to go, that if I had not finished his coat, he would certainly have started without it, for he said he could swop his watch on the road any time for a new coat, or any one. would be willing to trust him for one till he procured his salary, when he told his name. He says the President must be aware of his integrity and high-minded patriotism, and will undoubtedly reserve one of the salaries for him, as a compensation for his arduous public services. The public papers, he says, will give him a lift in his pretensions, and there is no doubt but that he shall be successful. One thing is certain, the same town will never hold Jack and me. He is always coming to me for advice when he gets what he calls the agitations,' and I have talked myself almost into a consumption to infuse a little common sense into him; but all to no purpose, he will ask advice and then do as he is a mind to.

Your loving cousin,

6

SARAH DOWNING.

LETTER XXXIII.

In which Mr Downing tells about the talk he had with the Boston Editors on his way to Washington.

DEAR UNCLE JOSHUA,

I have got so fur at last, and

a pretty hard run I've had of it to get here, I can tell

ye.

This running after offices is pretty tuff work for poor folks. Sometimes I think there aint much profit in it after all, any more than there is in buying lottery tickets, where you pay a dollar and sometimes get four shillings back, and sometimes nothing. Howsomever I dont mean to be discouraged yet, for if I should give out now and go back again, them are sassy chaps in Portland would laugh at me worse than they did afore. What makes me feel kind of down hearted about it, is because I've seen in the newspapers that tu of them are good offices at Washington are gone a ready. One Mr Livingston's got one of 'em, and Mr Woodbury that lives up in New-Hampshire 's got tother, and I'm considerable afraid the others will be gone before I get there.

I want you to be sure and get my recommendation into the post-office as soon as you can, so it may get there as soon as I do. It's a week to-day since I started from Portland, and if I have good luck I'm in hopes to get there in about a week more. Any how, I shall worry along as fast as I can. I have to foot it more than three quarters of the way, because the stage folks ask so much to ride, and my money 's pretty near gone. But if I can only jest get there before the offices are gone I think I shall get one of 'em, for I got a good string of recommendations in Boston as I come along. I never thought of getting any recommendations of strangers, till a man I was travelling with, kind of talked round and round, and found out what I was after. And then says he, if you want to make out, you must get the newspaper folks to give you a lift, for they manage these matters. And he told me I better get some of the Boston editors to recommend me, or it would be no use for me to go.

I thought the man was more than half right, so when I got into Boston I called round to see the editors. They all seemed very glad to see me, when I told 'em

who I was; and I never see a better set of true republicans any where in the State of Maine. And when I told 'em that I was always a true republican, and my father and grandfather were republicans before me, they all talked so clever about patriotism, and our republican institutions, and the good of the people, that I could n't help thinking it was a plaguy shame there should be any such wicked parties as Federalists, or Huntonites, or Jacksonites, to try to tare the country to pieces and plague the republicans so.

This dont include President Jackson. He is n't a Jacksonite, you know; he's a true republican as there is in Downingville. I had a talk with the Boston Patriot man first. He said he would give me a recommendation with a good deal of pleasure; and when I got my office at Washington I must stick to the good old republican cause like wax; and if all true republicans were only faithful to the country, Henry Clay, the republican candidate, will come in all hollow.

He'll be next President, says he, jest as sure as your name is Jack Downing. Then I went to see the editor of the Boston Gazette. He said he certainly should be very happy to give me a recommendation; and he trusted when I got to Washington where I should have considerable influence, I should look well to the interests of the republican party. He said there was an immensé sight of intrigue and underhand work going on by the enemies of the country to ruin Mr Calhoun, the republican candidate for President. But he said they would'nt make out; Mr Calhoun had found out their tricks, and the republicans of old Virginny and South Carolina were all up in arms about it, and if we republicans in the northern states would only take hold and fight for the good cause, Mr Calhoun would be elected as true as the sun will rise to-morrow.

The next I went to see was the editor of the Boston Statesman. He seemed to be a little shy of me at first,

afraid I want a true republican; and wanted to f I did n't run against Governor Smith last year there in Maine. I told him I had seen Governor Smith a number of times in Portland, but I was sure never run against him in my life, and did n't think I ever come within a rod of him. Well he wanted to know if I was n't a candidate for Governor in opposition to Mr Smith. I told him no, I was a candidate on the same side. Was n't you, said he, looking mighty sharp at me, was n't you one of the federal candidates for governor? My stars, uncle Joshua, I never felt my hair curl quicker than it did then. My hand kind of draw'd back and my fingers clinched as if I was jest agoing to up fist and knock him down. To think that he should charge me with being a federal candidate it was too much for flesh and blood to bear. But I cooled down as quick as I could, for fear it might hurt me about getting my office. I told him I never was a federal candidate, and there never was a drop of federal blood in me; and I would run from a federalist if I should meet one as quick as I would from poison. That's right, says he, I like that, that's good stuff, and he catched hold of my hand and gave it such a shake, I did n't know but he'd a pull'd it off.

He said he would give me the best recommendation he could write, and when I got to Washington I must stick to the old Gineral like the tooth ache, for the federalists were intriguing desperately to root him out of his office and upset the republican party. If the republicans could only be kept together, he said President Jackson, the republican candidate, could be elected as easy as a cat could lick her ear; but if we suffered ourselves to be divided it would be gone goose with us, and the country would be ruined. So you must stick to the re-election of Gineral Jackson, said he, at all events; and then he kind of whispered in my ear, and says he, in case any thing should happen, if Gineral Jackson should

be sick or any thing, you must remember that Mr Van Buren is the republican candidate.

I told him he never need to fear me; I should stick to the republican party thro' thick and thin. So I took my recommendation and trudged along. I have n't time to-day to tell you how I got along with the rest of the editors, and a thousand other things that I met with along by the way, and all the fine things in this great city, and so on. But I shall write to you again soon.

Your loving neffu,

JACK DOWNING.

To Uncle Joshua Downing, Downingville, State of Maine.

LETTER XXXIV.

In which Mr Downing relates his interview with Major

Noah.

Washington City, May 30, 1831.

To the Portland Courier, if it ever gets there, away down east in the State of Maine, to be sent to Uncle Joshua Downing, up in Downingville, with care and speed.

DEAR UNCLE JOSH, I've got here at last, to this great city where they make offices, and I'm determined not to leave it till I get one. It is n't sich a great city after all as New York, though they do a great deal more business here than they do at New York. I dont mean vessel business and trade, for there's no end to that in New York, but in making offices and sich like; and they say its the most profitable business in the country. If a man can get get hold of a pretty good office, he can get rich enough by it in three or four years, and not have to work very hard neither. I tell you what, uncle, if I