If his honesty and independence put him at a disadvantage, as publisher and editor, in the struggle for existence, he had still his trade as a compositor to fall back upon As a journeyman printer he would earn his bread, and preserve the integrity of an upright spirit.

And so without a murmur, and with cheerfulness and persistency, he hunted for weeks on the streets of Boston for a chance to set types.

This hunting for a job in a strange city was discouraging enough.

Twice before had he visited the place, which was to be his future home.

Once when on his way to Baltimore to see his mother, and once afterward when on a sort of pleasure tramp with three companions.
But the slight knowledge which he was able to obtain of the town and its inhabitants under these circumstances did not now help him, when from office to office he went in quest of something to do.