Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1833-08-12
LETTER FROM MAJOR DOWNING.
From bie Portland Cearicr.
agsUtSE

/ from t4f f0ffidnd tPHfifF.
agsUtNr
WAsuIsGrnN Cry, July % 1889.
! Tony nld mend the editor al tho Portland cou
/ net away down east the Aletn OF Maine.
! My dear Old nienfl you don, know but you
might thnk strange ont that should be back here
+ to Washington more thsn fortnight, and not
/ wtlo Ia You Bui liant forgot you. You ncedn
ue afraid Of that We amt very npt to forget onf
! ucst irlends md You mey depend upon II Jack
! Downing wlll never forget the editor oil The fart-
| land Courier any more than Andrew Jackson viii
! fnrer, Jack Downing You NnS the first person
that ever gave me II il INTO public life, aud yoas
been boosting me along evcl sl0co And Just be-
| tween you and me. | think In getting into why
new where shall be able by md 10y to do some
tl.ing To pay YOU far IT, The reason thntI haven't
VIII 70 you hefrc - that Ne have Ind pretty &c.
oas business 10 attend 10 since we got back But
we've jast got through with II, and Nh Van Buren,
has centrd ont and gone back about the quickest
To New York nnd guess with bed bug IN liis
onr Nov Il between YOU aud ne IN confidence,
Il tell you low It's but ptny don let on obout 1t
ia any unn else for tho world Didn't YOU think
pegny strange hat made lis cut back 80 quick
from Concord without .alrg 10 Portland of Forts
mouth or DoWnmsyille You know the papers
have snidit Wns because the Presldent want very
well and the President had 10 make TINT excuse
hin, sell IL avn of LIS letters but II was no such
thing The plosldcn, could marched on foot
twenty mile 1ny then, md only get HIM nj tho
hond of my norningvle company, ard he'd n
made II Whole Brush res 'ment sean'pef hke a
flock Of shr'p.
But yon Sc the Trouble pnt woa, sonio difficulty
botwccn aud MI Van Buftn Some how ot
other Mr.. Van Euren always looked KIND OF ia
ious urns NIL tho time nlior ho met us nj NV
Yorl, md | couldn't help mlndtna every ,'mt
ts lolts hollrted houah for Major Downing, he
would turn ~ red a. a hla2o al fac
And wherever We stuppcd to take bite OF to
huso n chat. he would always work IT. Il he coold
somehow or other MS 10 crowd IN between me
ard tie President Wei yc sec ! wouldn't mind
much about IT, but would Jest sep round Together
eld, And though say II myself, The iph; would
look nj mr, lei nc be on which aide would, mud
after they erred hoerah for the President, they'd
mos, always sing out hooah io Major Down
ing MI Van l,aIcn hept growing more ma
more fdety u we got 10 Concord AMI ih'ie
we had a room fun ef stlndy cd democrats Of Now
IIomp slirc md nil, they Ind oil noeked ronnd
the old prosidcnt and shook hands with hun, he
happened 10 introduce me Ia some 81 en- before he
did Nj Van Gmcn. At ihni the fat wna IN the
FIRE Mr. Vnn nuren wheeled nbou md marched ont
OF tho room looking ~ though he could bic board
mn il of The President bad 10 send for hlm three
tunes before hc could get him back INTO The room a
gam -- And when he did come lie didhffrrak 10
me isr tic whelr evonng. However, we krpi IL
from the company pretty much but when we come
to go up Ia bed thnt night We had renl 11aire
|, wns nothing bu, jaw, Jaw, the whole night Ar
W ooibury nnd Mi Cnss tried 10 pnclfv us oil they
copJ but IT wns oil IN VAN, We dldn ohc OF ~
get wink of sleep, and Shouldn't II the hlSh, h"h
listed n fortnight Nj Van Bnren snld The Presi
dent Ind dfhononrcd the country 10y 1lneing
military Malar on hall pay before TIM second ON
Ger Of the government The Ptesldent h'Eg'd
him TO CONSIDER thu, II wns very particular
friend Of his . that Ind been etcot help 10 him n,
both ends ofthe country thai had kept the Bfl-
tsb out of Ma,awhsks away down IN Maine. ma
had marched my company clear from poSnng
VILE to Washington on my way 10 south Carroll
nm To put down the nullliors nnJhe thought wna
ontliIcd to as much respect as any man III The conn
hy.
This nct,led Mr. Van Rnrnn pcshy lie sad
he thought II wns u fine time OF dag # raw jockey
from, the obscure village AWAY down east Ia4i he
cause he had mnors com Mission, was gong to
throw tho Vice President Of the United states nhd
the hends Of Departments, INTO tho bnck ground.
Al this my dn"4ler began TO rae, ana stepped
right up TO Inn md says ], Mr.. Van 'nfch, you
ere the last mnn oneht TO cali me n Jockey. And
II
nv company with Sargent Joel q, therr head, and
call DowningvIlIo an obscure village l II let You
use nv head Tor foot bull as long you live NJ
tcrwards-For ifthcy wouldn't blow you INTO ten
thousand atoms, III never guess oenln' we gol so
hl gh al last thai the old President hopt ell the bed
like a boy for he had Land down 10 frsi nm, bong
it was near daylight, though he could ut got 70
sleep And says he, Mr.. Donaldson, SET Gown ana
write Mr. A nderson nj Portland nay TREND josh
ma Downing NJ DowningyIlle, TIA, can conc
I'm gong tn staft for Washington this moioing
what soys Mr. Cnss and no. go 10 Por'smon'h
and Exeter and round there ! tell you says tho
President, I'm going to start ft,r Washington l''s
morning, md IN three days III he there w hol,
seys Mi Woodbury., and not 60 10 i"'uah'i
where they have spent so niurh money ~ &c' y"
dy for ns tell you, say the ifcsioeh', 'ha1 ny
foot IS down 90 not a step further bu, iun about
thi, morning for Washington What, says !, and
moi 20 10 Downlngv,llo what will uncle Joslru"
snv} At tins the President looked hitlc hurt
and snys he Major Downing can't help IT. ~
for o. iIg any further with such Il Dan MS ms aboul
my ,nrsl lnnol and will no and ! . resolved MT
10 budee another inch. And sure enough the IRE
sideni was ns goo as his word, aud we were All
packed mp by sunrise, and IN thfcc deys VIC "e'c ~
Washington.
And here we've been ever since, battling Inc
watch about the next Presidency. MI van hu
rcn says the President promised II 10 h'm' ana he
new charges me and the President w'ih a Plo' 10
work myself into i, and leave hm out IT'S true
ryo been nominated in good mnny papers IN the
National Integencer, md N the Munich Chunk
Courier, printed away off among the conl dlssers
in Pcnnsyvany, aud good many nofe--An'
them are pennsylvany chaps are teal peaefs '0f
eccting folks when they take hold ana 'ha' w"N'
makes Mr. Van Buren, so uneasy. Inc l'cs'ucn
tells him as he has promised TO help hun ne sha'' 10
what he can for him; but 1t tue iolNs "t' 'o'' 70,
- L. o,, hoI, !, Mr. Van Buren, wanicd /