been received and some of them accepted. The above is the last communication of the retired editor to the Messenger. When, at the end of his first session, he voluntarily resigned his headship of the Virginia Female Institute, returned to Richmond and resumed the practice of law, he had to employ his pen in behalf of his profession.
Whatever credit may be granted him, or denied, it must be admitted that he, for four years and a quarter, conducted the Southern Literary Messenger, with a loving zeal, a staunch independence and the best intentions. He retains his attachment to the Messenger and may occasionally put himself in Mr. Thompson's company.
Mr. John Reuben Thompson's Administration
1847-1860
In seeking the control of the Messenger Mr. Thompson was influenced by the same considerations that Mr. Minor had been. He was young, but quite well posted in literature and the author of some published prose and poetry. He was an alumnus of the University of Virginia, a graduate of its Law School, under Judge Henry St. George Tucker, and now a member of the Richmond Bar. He was a very agreeable gentleman;
