"ONCE upon a time there lived, and still lives, in a country lying far to the west, a famous squire, rich in lands and paper money. Report made him out to be the son of John Bull, who every one knows has children in all parts of the world.... John Bull had christened this son of his by the name of Jonathan; but by and by, when he became a man grown, being a good hearty fellow, about half horse half alligator,[81] his friends and neighbours gave him the nickname of Uncle Sam; a sure sign that they liked him, for I never knew a respectable nickname given to a scurvy fellow in my life. Be this as it may, his family and all his neighbours at last came to call him nothing else but Uncle Sam; and all his beef, pork, and flour, in fact everything that belonged to him, was marked with a huge U. S., six inches long. As I have a great respect for universal example, I shall give him this name in the sequel of my history, which I hereby commend to the special attention of all wise men, more especially the wise men of the east. As to the fools, everybody knows they are so scarce now-a-days, that I hereby snap my fingers and defy them."[82] In 1835 David Crockett wrote: "Them that danced should pay the piper; but I suppose they will all say as the young man said of the old quaker when the robbers stopped the mail-coach. The old gentleman gave up his purse; the young man held back: a pistol was presented at him: 'Oh,' says he, 'don't shoot; old uncle always pays for me!' So poor old Uncle Sam, I suppose, will pay for all: and I am glad that the funding system has paid off our national debt, so that a few hundreds of thousands won't hurt us much now. General Jackson can pay off the post-office debt as he said he would the old debt, _by borrowing_; and then we'll burn all the books and old extra contracts, and begin _dee novo_, as the Latin scholars say in Congress."[83] In 1835 Charles J. Latrobe, Australian governor and traveller, remarked: "You may recollect I mentioned in a former letter, a certain double-barrelled fowling-piece which the commissioner had brought away from a government agent on the Missouri. It had kept us company ever since, going among us generally by the name of 'Uncle Sam,' such was the _soubriquet_ given by the Americans to the General Government, from the usual initials U.S. or United States, affixed upon Government property."[84] In 1835 Edward S. Abdy, an Englishman, observed: "I mention this trifling circumstance, because it illustrates a striking feature in the national character. 'Uncle Sam' is the veriest slave of habit in existence, and dislikes trouble. He would rather put up with an inconvenience than put himself out of his way." In a note he added: