At the trade of a tailor, the young man had served an apprenticeship of seven years.  He was a good workman, and had, during the last two years of his apprenticeship, assisted his master in cutting; so that in the art to which he was educated he was thoroughly at home; and, in setting it up, would have been sure of success.  But success was by no means so certain a thing in the new pursuit unwisely adopted.  He had been familiar with it for only about two years; in that time he had performed his part as a clerk to the entire satisfaction of his employers; but he had not gained sufficient knowledge of the principles of trade, nor was his experience enlarged enough to justify his entering into business, especially as he did not possess a dollar of real capital.  The result was as might have been expected.  A year and a half of great difficulty and anxiety was all the time required to bring his experiment to a close.

Finding that he was in difficulty, two or three of his principal eastern creditors, whose claims were due, sent out their accounts to a lawyer, With directions to put them in suit immediately.  This brought his affairs to a crisis.  An arrangement was made for the benefit of all the creditors, and the young man thrown out of business, with less than a hundred dollars in his pocket.  Nearly about the same time, Mr. Dielman, the father of his wife, failed likewise.

As a serious loss has been sustained by his eastern creditors on account of the unfortunate termination of his business, Fletcher could not think of going back.  He therefore sought to obtain employment as a clerk in Madison.  Failing in this, he visited Louisville and Cincinnati, but with no better success.  He was unknown in the two last-named cities, and therefore his failure to obtain employment there was no matter of surprise.

Things now wore a very serious aspect.  A few weeks found the unhappy young man reduced to the extremity of breaking up and selling his furniture by auction in order to get money to live upon.  There was scarcely a store in Madison at which he had not sought for employment.  But all his efforts proved vain.  He had a good trade; why, you will ask, did he not endeavour to get work at that?  You forget.  It was the trade of a tailor!—­the calling so despised by his wife.  How could he own to her that he was but a tailor!  How could he break to her the disgraceful truth that she had married a tailor!

The money obtained by selling their furniture did not last a very long time.

“I will make another effort to obtain employment in Cincinnati,” said the young man, after they were reduced almost to their last dollar.  “It is useless to try any longer in this place.  I have waited and hoped for some favourable turn of fortune, until my heart is sick.”

His wife made no objection, for she had none to make.

On the next day, Fletcher left for Cincinnati.  He arrived there in the night.  On the following morning, he left the hotel at which he had stopped, and, going into Main street, entered the first merchant-tailor’s shop that came in his way.