LETTER LXVI.
Washington, 4th Dec. 1833.
To my old friend, Mr. Dwight, of the New York Daily
Advertiser.
My last letter tell'd you that the Message I
had been to work on for some time was jest finished—but
the very next day we had to take it all to
bits, and spring to and write enymost the hull of a new
one, for we found we had gone too much into particulars,
especially about the counts; and letters from Mr. Van
Buren, advised us to say as little about such matters as
possible, for Congress would only make us tell pretty
much the hull on't over agin—and the best way was to
say little at first, and trust to luck and chance afterwards.
As soon as the Gineral came to know of this,
says he, `Major you must look out and keep in that latin
about the Bank any how.' So we kept that in, but it
was plagy troublesome to make it work well with the
rest on't, for when you come to make English on't, it
reads that the Gineral would have taken the Bank by
the throat right off, if he thought he could make that
latin pill operate afore the charters expire—and then
agin he says the Bank does wrong in bringing its business
to a close so rapidly as it is now doing. There is one
thing however that's true enuf, for seein that Judge
Marshall is a stubborn know nothin kind of critur, and
would have a finger in givin the Bank that pill the Gineral
speaks of it in latin, I don't believe it would have
operated before the charter expired, if it had 40 years
more to run—so there is more wit and cunnin in what
the Gineral says than folks think for.
There was another thing puzzled us tu a trifle about
the Bank. Last year when we thought it had no rale
chink in it, the Gineral thought best to take the deposites
away from it, but since I tell'd the Gineral in my
Bank report there was more than a hundred cords of the
rale grit, we had to say in the Message they had too much
The post office accounts was the next bother; and
that puzzled all on us peskily. But we got round that
by very lucky discovery; and you see by the Message
there has been an error in keepin the counts in the post
office ever since General Washington's time, and every
post master Gineral, up to Major Barry's time, never
found it out; and it was so curious that he took nigh
upon five years to git at it. But its all clear now, for
he is an amazin shark fellow at siferin. We struck out
all about the grand tower, for Clay has been over the
same ground, and Mr. Van Buren thought it was best
to say nothin about it. And it was thought best too to
say nothin about the Nullifiers, for some of Mr. Van
Buren's friend's in Georgia headid by Crawford are gettin
up nullification there, worse than Calhoun's last
winter; and it maks all the difference in the world when
you come to see that ones own friends are doin what our
enemies did afore.
As soon as we sent the Message to Congress, we set
about gittin up a supper for all our folks who had been
to work out, and we had a grand time, all our Majors
was there. The Gineral was so beat out, he didn't
stay long; but some on 'em kept it up all nigh day light.
We had some rale good songs tu; and one of our
Majors is a plagy sharp singer. I got a copy of one on
'em; but I haint got time now to send you the hull on
on't, so I'll jest give you 3 verses only.
Come comrades one and all
Here assembled in the hall
Let us sing of times past, present and to come;
We have everything at stake,
And our fortunes yet to make,
And the public good is now-a-days “a hum.”
Times past have all gone by
And old laws are “all my eye”
The present and the future we are sure in
When the Gineral's time is up,
We'll fill again the cup,
And drink to Amos Kindle and Van Buren.
We have no one to thank
For a discount at the Bank,
Since we've got the public money from Nick Biddle
And as we alone have ernt it
We'll use it as we want it
Security is now all fiddle diddle.
I wish you would tell folks to stop callin me Jack
Downing—twas well enuf when I wasnt quite as much
up in the world a I now be, and it was jest so with
Mr. Van Buren—folks would keep callin him “Mat;”
but it warnt right, and it aint good manners nuther.
And there is another thing I dont like; but I dont care
so much about it (for I aint asham'd of any letter I
ever did write) and that is printin in a Book all the
Letters I first writ, and mixing up other Letters and
Sam Patch, and callin some of my Letters to you counterfits.
As soon as I get the Gineral threw this Congress,
I'll turn tu and get my Letters all together that
I writ to you, beginnin with the grand tow'r. Major
Earl is drawn my likeness, and the Gineral's and Mr.
Van Buren's and the most of our folks for me. He is
a master hand at it; and Zekil Bigelow tells me if I'll
give him the copyright, he'll new shingle our old barn
for nothin. How comes on your book about the Hartford
convention? The Gineral wants you to send him
a copy on't as soon as it is done—he wants to see how
nigh Yankee Nullification comes to Nullification now-a-days.
Yours, &c.
J. DOWNING, Major,
Downingville Militia, 2d Brigade.
