The daily republic. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1853-1853, 1853-07-08
THE REPUBLIC.


II was announced in our paper of Wednesday
that J. Ross Browne, esq, would 20 out as an at
tache Of the American legation to China. We
find in the May number Of Harper's Magazine
the following notice of this gentleman and a re-
cent work of his entitled 'sYusef, or the Journey
Of the Frang"
"Mr. Ross BROWNE, who is no stranger TO our
readers, has furnished with a very entertain
ing, and withal instructive book of Eastern ira
vel. For keen observation, graphic dellneaIon
OF character, humorous description, ana ZEN
city of diction, know not where to LOOK Tor
its equal---as we shall endeavor to show by some
what extended extracts. Meanwhile, the CIR
cumstances under which the journey was under
taken and nerformed have a moral in them which
is well worth recording. Some twelve or four
teen years ago, the author, youth OF eighteen,
determined to make tour in the East. In order
to do this il was necessary TO put money III his
purse; and it occurred to him that the profession
of a stenographic reporter the most avalla-
bic means of accomplishing this Indispensable
preliminary, to say nothing of the collateral
advantage of listening to those bursts of Con
gressional elOquencc which he would be the
means of transmitting to an admiring posterity.
A years close application made him master OF
the art; whereupon he set out from his home, in
Kentucky, for Washington. Here he was fortu-
nate enough to obtain assituation reporter in
the Senate, and employed his leisure hours in
reading works of travel, and counting over in
imagination the SIX or eight hundred dollars
which he anticipated would, at the close of the
session, distend his lean purse; on the strength
of which he proposed to make his Eastern tour,
as befitted a gentleman, to whom expense was
not the least object. But he soon found that the
speeches were not so very instructive; and what
was far worse, that reporting them much less
remunerative than he had supposed. So it hap
pened that the expected six or eight hundred dol
lars dwindled down to fifteen, with which very
moderate sum he set out for Jerusalem. BY the
time he had got as far east New York his mo-
ney was expended and endeavoring to obtain
clerkship, he was astounded to learn that any
thing in the shape of salary attached to such
position was Just then out of the question. No
thing better occurred than to ship before the mas
on board whaler. The consequence was voy
age of some eighteen months to the Indian ocean
during which he gained experience in tn
art and mystery of scrubbing decks and catching
whales-very useful branches of education, doubt
less, but not specially remunerative in the case O
our author-who on his return paid his last CEN
to porter for carrying his trunk at Washington
The voyage, however, was not wholly fruitless
for it furnished him with materials for very en-.
tertaining volume, ''Etchings of Whaling
Cruise. For the next four years he did the State
some service as reporter in Congress, and as clerk
in the Treasury Department. But man s fate,
as the Arabs say, is written on his skull; and om
author was destined to chronicle the fcats oil
Yusef Badra, ''the Destroyer of Robbers, ant
Prince of Dragomans, - who about this time be
gan to conduct travellers through Syria. So h,
began once more to look eastward.
''This time he endeavored to reach the East BY
going west, and set out for California and Orc
gon, with u commission in the revenue service, {,
take effect on his arrival. On the voyage h,
passed within sight of Juan Fernandez, for which
island he set out in open boat, in order to gar
some tidings of his, and our, and everybody's ole
friend, Robinson Crusoe. Here occurred that re
markable series of adventures recorded in tn,
last three numbers of our Magazine.
Son arriving in California, our author fount
that his services were not required in the revenu
service But while he was balancing the reativ
advantages of the professions of laundry-man ant
mue-driver, it happened that the convention wal
summoned to form State constitution for Cali
fornia, and he was appointed to report the debates
in that body. If fame speaks truly, not q few OF
the best speeches were composed by the reporter
and afterward adopted by the reputed authors, a.
precisely what they intended to have said. As t.
that however, we cannot speak confidently, al
we were not in the convention. For the prepa
ration of these debates the future author of tYu
sef' received sum which enabled him to under
take his Eastern travels under auspices mort
favorable than those which waited upon his earlier
attempts.
CATER traversng Europe and Italy in various
directions, author found himself in the closing
weeks of September, at Naples. 1t was yet too
early to set out for Syria, and the thought occur
red to him that the time might be proftably spent
i'll gira, or ''turn, - through Sicily; and with
an account of this the book commences.