59

obviously purportinr to te Martin's biography. It was
written partly in narrative, partly in dramatic form,
and appeared as a serial in the Baltimore Weekly Mag-
azine,¹⁰⁷ edited by John B. Golvin and printed ty
pechin. This anonymous History of Jack Martin
claimed in its second installment on August 9, 1800,
to be founded on fact, tut in the issue of March 18,
1801, the author denied having "the most distant in-
tentions of injuring the feelings of any man." In
the issue of August 30, 18OO, when a poem was inserted
to the memory of Mrs. Sally Martin, Alexander Martin's

wife, who had died during the yellow fever epidemic
of 1800, the editor, perhaps from some delicacy of
feeling, did not include an installment of the
History of Jack Martin - which facts my indicate
identification of Martin, then editor of the Ameri-
can, with the principal character of the pasquinade.

To take what appear to te the main events of the
subject's life from the scurrility which composes the
History of Jack Martin, the "hero" was born in or near
Boston, attended a public free school, and later
served an apprenticeship in the "btlack art" (used
throughout the tale to indicate printing). He followed
the usual course, printor's "devil", "head devil";

and at the conclusion of his apprenticeship, voyaged
107 Appendix A. Imprint bibliography, item 556.