KECOLLECTTONS, 183T. 23 



to fight against wild beasts in the arenas for his distrac- 

 tion. Here allow me a short digression. I have 

 omitted above, that before landing and passing at the 

 custom house, a countryman of mine, a sort of lawyer, 

 asked me : " When the custom-house officers will ask 

 you ' what is your profession ? ' what will you answer ? " 

 " Of course I will answer that I am a gardener," I re- 

 plied. " You are a fool if you do that," said he. " Why 

 do you not say that you are a botanist f" I could not 

 help laughing, and answered him, " I suppose I am a 

 botanist as much as you are a lawyer ; probably better, 

 for I know a cabbage from a lettuce, and you you 

 do not know the difference between a lawyer and a 

 liar ! which for me are often synonymous expressions." 

 When we passed the inspector he was first. He said 

 he was a lawyer ! They laughed for a few seconds, 

 then they asked me, " Are you a lawyer too ?" " No, 

 I am a gardener." " Good ! " said one of the in- 

 spectors in French, " you have a better chance to find 

 employment than your friend." He was not my 

 friend. He tried to be, but in vain ; he got my con- 

 tempt. 



I was in New York, but I had very little money. 

 As a compensation I had quantities of letters of recom- 

 mendation to people in New York, Philadelphia, Wash- 

 ington, New Orleans and Havana. In this last city I 



