The tri-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1866-1868, 1867-10-29
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clearinghouse; but it was quietly,
decently kept while [ stayed 10 it, and
he and his family were kind and friend
ly. regret to add that liquor proved
his rum not many years afterward. My
first day in, New York was Friday,
and the family being Roman Catholic,
no meat was eaten or provided, which
| understood; but when Sunday even
ing was celebrated by unlimited card
playing in that same house, my tradi-
tlons were decidedly Jared. 1 do not
imply that my observances were better
or worse than my hosts, but that they
were different. -.,
Having breaktasted, began to ran
sack the city for work, and, in my
total Ignorance, traversed many streets
where none could possibly be found
In the course of that day and the next,
however, | must have visited fully two
thirds of the printing offices on Manhat-
tan Island without a gleam of success.
1t was midsummer. when business i'll
New York is habitually dull; and my
youth and unquestionable air of country
greenness must have told against me.
When l called at the Joaumdl of Conn
naerce, it's editor, Mr.. David Hale,
bluntly told me l was a runaway ap-
prentice from some country office,
which was very natural though mis-
taken presumption. l returned to my
! lodgings on Saturday evening, thorough
! ly weary, disheartened, disgusted with
New York, and resolved to shake its
dust from my feet next morning, while
l could still leave with money in my
pocket, and before its alms-house could
toreclose upon me. -...
But that was not to be. On Sunday
afternoon and evening several young
Irishmen called at Mr.. McGloricks i'll
their holiday saunterings about town
and being told that J was young
printer in quest of work, interested
themselves in. my effort with the spon-
taneous kindness of their race. One
among them happened to know a place
where printers were wanted, and gave
me the requisite direction; SO that on
visiting the designated spot next morn
ing readily found employment and
thus, when barely three days resident,
l had found anchorage in New York.
The printing establishment was John
7. Vests, over McElrath & Bangs's
publishing house, No. SO Chatham
street, and the work was at my call,
simply because no printer who knew
the city would accept it. 1 was the
composition Of very small (32mo)
New Testament, in double columns, of
agate type each column barely twelve
ems wide, with centre column in pearl,
barely four ems wide the text thickly
studded with references BY Greek and
superior letters to the notes, which of
course were preceded and Disseminated
qy corresponding indices, with prefato,
ry and supplementary remarks on each
book, set in pearl, and only paid for as
agate. The type was considerably
smaller than any to which l had been
accustomed-the narrow measure and
thickly sown italics Of the text, with
the strange characters employed as in.
dices, rendered it the slowest and by
far the most difficult work l had ever
undertaken, while the making up, prov
ing, and correcting twice and even
thrice over, preparatory to ostereotyping,
nearly double the time required tor or
dinary composition. was never a
swift type-setter. [ aimed to be an
assiduous and correct one; but my
proofs on this work at first looked as
though they had caught the chicken
pox and were in the worst stage of
eruption. For the first two or three
weeks, being sometimes kept waiting
fer letter, scarcely made my board,
twelve to fourteen hours per day 1 was
able, at my best, to earn but dollar
per day. AS scarcely another compost
tor could be induced to work on it more
than two days, 1 had this job in good
part to myself, and persevered to the
end of it. t... ..-. .....
l had removed, very soon after OBJ
tanning it, to Mrs. Mason's shoemaker
boarding house, at the corner of Chat
ham and Duane streets, nearly opposite
my work; SO that | was enabled to
keep doing nearly all the time that |
did not need for meals and sleep. When
it was done, | was out of work for a
fortnight, in spite of my best efforts to
obtain more; so l attended, as an un-
known spectator, the sittings Of the Ia
riff Convention, which was held at the
American Institute, north end of the
City Hall Park, and presided over by |
Hon. William Wilkins, of Pittsburg,
Pa. next found work in Ann street,
on a short-lived monthly, where my
pay was not forthcoming; and the next
month saw me back at Vests, where a
new work-a commentary on the Book
of Genesis by Rev. George Bush-had
come in; and 1 worked on it through
out: The chirography was blind the.
author made many vexatious alterations
in proof; the page was small and the
type close; but though the reverse Of
fat, in printers jargon, it was not near
" so abominably lean as the Testament;
and regretted to reach the end Of it.
When I did, [ was again out of work.