It belongs to him at
this moment, and will never leave him. A little while ago, after his
return from Mexico, he darted across the street to exchange a hearty
gripe of the hand with a rough countryman upon his cart--a man who used
to "live with his father," as the general explained the matter to his
companions. Other men assume this manner, more or less skilfully; but
with Frank Pierce it is an innate characteristic; nor will it ever lose
its charm, unless his heart should grow narrower and colder--a misfortune
not to be anticipated, even in the dangerous atmosphere of elevated rank,
whither he seems destined to ascend.
There is little else that it is worth while to relate as regards his
college course, unless it be that, during one of his winter vacations,
Pierce taught a country school. So many of the statesmen of New England
have performed their first public service in the character of pedagogue,
that it seems almost a necessary step on the ladder of advancement.
CHAPTER II.
HIS SERVICES IN THE STATE AND NATIONAL LEGISLATURES.
After leaving college, in the year 1824, Franklin Pierce returned to
Hillsborough. His father, now in a green old age, continued to take a
prominent part in the affairs of the day, but likewise made his declining
years rich and picturesque with recollections of the heroic times through
which he had lived.
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