The Lambertville press. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1858-1???, 1859-01-20

honorable man, the knight-errant, and the mill
tary Samson as represented in Parton's semi
romance.
Leaving the moral character of the hero,
with the authors varnish somewhat marred by
the old mans stile we proceed to examine the
martial glory with which he is surrounded, =
as vapor to vanish away. Amusing, and not
without interest, are the numerous detections OF
gross errors of statement, - " reckless ln-
difference to facts in work boasted of as writ
In the main body of his narrative, "-says the
ancient critic who says he is not willing to re-
ceve fiction for fact, -" the misstatements are
almost innumerable; and, indeed, much of it
mere fiction" We proceed to the selection OF
some specimens which are not without historical
Importance,
In his account of the assault on Quebec and
the fall of Gen. Montgomery, Parton has placed
Burr by his side when he falls when in fact he
was at the other end of the town with Arnold.
Nor is that all Burr shoulders the general
and runs very considerable distance with him
upon his back knee deep in the snow, while the
victorious and pursuing enemy were within forty
PAGES of him. "a thing which he could no
more have done than he could have shouldered
an elephant" "The records of impudent folly
cannot afford parallel to this tale, couched in
Mr. Parton's most elaborate efforts at elo
quence."
In the affair of Quebec, Burr was volun-
teer, and doubtless fought bravely. He was
without commission of any grade. BY favor
of Arnold he was in effect captain; but he is
not spoken of in any historical account of that
event; and the fame of his achievements over
whelming the country, filing all mouths, and
electrifying Congress, and Gen. Washington
was never heard of until made public in Anno
Domino, 1858, by j. PARTON, Author Of the
Life of Horace Greeley" &c.
The author has Burr appointed Brigade
Major, and passing the winter in camp with
Arnold On the authority of the Hon. TAR
PING REEVE, Burr's brother-in-law, our critic
finds a more comfortable birth for him at his
sisters Preside in Litchfeld, Connecticut.
The exhibition of one or more of these many
Partonisms is all that we have now time or
room for
The author makes Burr favored member of
Gen. Washingson's military family, and for "a
short time one of his aids-de-camp" Why
only for a short time =? "He was not pleased
with the situation, and declined further service
in that capacity, and became the aid of Gen.
Putnam
"The truth is" says our aged critic, who
knoweth whereof he afirms, "Bur never was
an ad-de-camp of Washington. He resided a
short time in the Generals family, but soon be-
trayed such qualities of mind and heart, as pre-
vented his receiving the appointment which he
was ambitious to obtain, and the failure of it
was the cause of deep-rooted enmity to that
illustrious man, which he cherished during his
whole life always indulging in detractions from
Washingtons fame, both civil and military, and
manifesting an opposition to his administration,
enhanced in bitterness by his personal grudge
in not being able to impose upon his discerning
mind
So much for j. Parton's Romantic Biography
Of Aaron Burr This specimen of its authen-
ITCHY may be taken as a fair average of the 696
pages How sad that there is no law of the
land to punish such impostors and truth-murder-
ers How more sad when their miserable fables
are more popular than the most truthful state
ments of facts B.
Consider your estate, aud leave playing and
testing to children