table for the teacher, and the
neighbourhood uncomfortable for the parents. Neither the father nor
his wife appear to have had any idea of their good fortune. Mrs. Marcy
once declared him the worst boy in the country. He showed little
disposition to study and less inclination to work; yet it was noticed
that he read all the books to be found in the homes of his playfellows
and in the libraries of the district. The character of the books made
no difference; he preferred reading anything to reading nothing,
though history and general literature, such as the works of Addison,
on whose style he seems to have moulded his own, were his favourite
volumes. When, at last, he met Salem Towne, his earliest, and, in a
sense, his best education began. Towne recognised the latent genius of
the lad and told him of it, encouraging him to enter college and the
law. Marcy used often to declare, in later years, that he owed
everything he ever gained in life to the influence and example of
Salem Towne. The affectionate regard which Marcy felt for his boyhood
friend, a regard which endured until the day of his death, belongs to
the chapter of pathetic incidents in Marcy's life.

Soon after leaving Brown University, Marcy settled in Troy and became
violently hostile to DeWitt Clinton. After Clinton's downfall, he was
appointed recorder of Troy; and after Clinton's restoration, he was
promptly removed. Just now he was trying to practise law, and to edit
the Troy _Budget_, a Bucktail newspaper; but he preferred to read,
sitting with his unblacked boots on the table, careless of his dress,
and indifferent to his personal appearance. He looked dull and
inactive, and people thought he lacked the industry and energy so
necessary to success in any profession; but when the _Budget_
appeared, its editorials made men read and reflect. It was the skill
with which he marshalled facts in a gentle and winning style that
attracted Van Buren and made them friends.

Marcy's appointment as adjutant-general created intense indignation,
because he took the place of Solomon Van Rensselaer, who had served in
the War of 1812, bravely leading the attack on Queenstown Heights and
holding his ground until dislodged by superior force; but, it was said
in reply, that Marcy had the honour of capturing the first British
fort and the first British flag of the war. The fight was not a bloody
encounter like the Queenstown engagement; yet, for men new to war, it
evidenced