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An occasional recollection if not pleasant is not amiss if only to assist memory for memory depends greatly upon association – by dwelling on incidents connected with our event it brings other into remembrance that would otherwise have sank into oblivion – my earliest acquaintance in this country was a family of Irwin – my Father’s knowledge of him commenced from the receipt of the following letters – Mr. Booth
“Dear Sir – If you are in want of an honest sober industrious faithful and experienced workman to tend your machines please address your unknown friend.
James Irwin”
Father did address his “unknown friend” and the consequence was his removal to Saugerties and our acquaintance Mr. I. after the necessary preliminaries of his engagement had been gone through remarked “Sir, there is one thing I forgot to name which may perhaps prove an objection – I am a proffessor of Religion!”
“And what the devil has that to do with paper making?” Father immediately pronounced him a hypocrite and the result proved him right – he opened a boarding house in a part of the mill and was more than suspected of furnishing his table by pilfering from the night workers baskets – subsequently he opened a grocery – Thus procured recipes for making pills and lye water – attached M.D. to his name – removed to New York – cut a great swell having at one time twenty three advertisements in the “Sun” paper – he then retired a while to appear more conspicuously in Courtland Street – a few years afterwards while passing through a mean street in the suburbs I saw on one shutter of the poorest house there James Irwin, M.D. – on the other “Washing & Ironing” by Mrs. James Irwin, M.D., I suppose – He had two sons near my own age one of whom was my constant playmate – both of which were drowned within three years of each other – the last from the fact of not being allowed to learn to swim – My acquaintance with my old and valued friends the “Persons” commenced soon after this and a singular circumstance to wit – going one day to the wharf I saw a boy engaged in the to me novel employment of fishing – after observing him for some time with wonder, I requested the privilege of trying my luck and was made happy by obtaining his consent – in a few moments I felt the jerk of a fish and in less than an instant a catfish or bullhead lay panting on the ground – a Monarchy could not have given me greater pleasure – in my haste to disengage him I ran the hook in one hand and the horns of the fish in the other, thus carrying out the old adage that no pleasure is free from pain – this led to one acquaintance and friendship which for a period of sixteen years is unbroken.