66 THE HISTORY OF 



of very much greater importance to me; and so I resigned 

 my situation as Permit Clerk at the public stores, very 

 much to the regret of everybody in and out of the Custom- 

 house, and especially those who were applicants for my 

 place ! 



I had purchased a pretty estate in Melrose, and now I 

 enlarged my premises, added to my stock, and raised (dur- 

 ing the summer and fall of 1851) over a thousand fowls, 

 upon my premises. This did not begin to supply the de- 

 mands of my customers, however, or even approach it. 

 And, to give an idea of my trade at that period, I will 

 here quote a letter from one of my new patrons. It came 

 from the interior of Louisiana, in the fall of 1851. 



" Geo. p. Buknham, Esq., Boston. 



"I am about to embark in the raising of poultry, and 

 I hear of yourself as an extensive breeder in this line. Do 

 me the favor to inform me, by return mail, what you can 

 send me one hundred pairs of Chinese fowls for, of the 

 yellow, red, white, brown and black varieties ; the cocks to 

 be not less Jhan eight to ten months old, and pullets ready 

 to lay ; say twenty pairs of each color. And also state how 

 I shall remit you, in case your price suits me, &c. 



I informed this gentleman that I had just what he 

 wanted (of course), and that if he would remit me a draft 

 by mail for fifteen hundred dollars — though this price was 

 really too low for them — I would forward him one hun- 



