ond all these reasons, I felt that the generality of the works of low
literature which I came across were from the pen of people with far less
education than the author I selected, who, as I have before remarked,
belongs to one of the wealthiest families in Kentucky, and for whom,
consequently, neither the want of education nor the want of
opportunities of mixing in respectable society--had he wished to do
so--can be offered as the slightest extenuation.[BP]

I feel also that I owe some apology to my American friends for dragging
such a work before the public; but I trust they will find sufficient
excuse for my doing so, in the explanation thus afforded, of the way the
mind of Young America gets poisoned, and which will also partly account
for the abuse of this country that is continually appearing in their
Press. I feel sure there is hardly a gentleman in America, whose
acquaintance I had the pleasure of making, who would read even the first
twenty pages of the book; and I am in justice hound to say, that among
all the works of a similar class which I saw, _English Items_ enjoys
unapproachable pre-eminence in misrepresentation and vulgarity, besides
being peculiarly contemptible, from the false being mixed up with many
true statements of various evils and iniquities still existing in
England, and which, being quoted from our own Press, are calculated to
give the currency of truth to the whole work, among that mass of his
countrymen who, with all their intelligence, are utterly ignorant of
England, either socially or politically.

The subsequent career of this censor of English manners and morals is
too remarkable to be passed over in silence. I therefore now proceed to
give you a short epitome of it, as a specimen of morals and manners in
Kentucky, as exhibited by him, and his trial. My information is taken
from the details of the trial published at full length, a copy of which
I obtained in consequence of the extraordinary accounts of the
transaction which I read in the papers. Professor Butler had formerly
been tutor in the family of the Wards, and was equally esteemed by them
and the public of Louisville generally. At the time of the following
occurrence the Professor was Principal of the High School in that city.

One of the boys at the school was William--brother of Mr. Matt. F. Ward:
it appears that in the opinion of the Professor the boy had been guilty
of eating nuts in the school and denying it, for which o