St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1879-05-09
RrYant's History.

ton of the public the subjoined criti-
cism without note or comment con-
corning Vol. ii, of Bryant's History of
the United States, written by Mr.. Free
man, historical editor of the British
Quarterly Review, as it appeared in
that periodical for January 1879. Mr..
Freeman says:
We must, for general characterize
ton of this very admirable history, re-
fer to our notice of the first volume
british Quarterly Review, JAN, 1877.
The high commentator of it which we
there felt it our duty to bestOw, is
abundantly justified 10y the sustained
excellence of the second volume. In
form it is popular i'll the best sense of
the term. Instead of Il mere compila-
ton, no pains or scholarship have been
spared in the investigation of original
sources of information, but the result is
given i'll a lucid, graphic narrative,
equally free from pedantry and from
fine writing. The authors have evil
IDENTIFY aimed ut making the results of
the most scholarly research Ineligible
to every reader of average intelligence.
torian is attained. NOught is eXtenu-
ated, nOught set down in malice. The
present volume brings down the his
tory only to 174O, and the State of
Texas under Spanish rule. The quar-
rel between Great Britain and the
American Colonies is not vet reached.
The historian is not yet subjected
therefore to his severest tests. But
h. ha %
Indie neudence has sufficed for national
animosities to cool. Historians on both
sides can now venture to Judge fairly,
and indeed they would suffer in public
estimation if they did not. Every his
torian or biographer will have his pref
eTential sympathies with both princi-
pies and mon. His narrative would be
of little value if he had not. But this
is perfectly compatible with essential
fairness of treatment. The present
work, It's we said before, is fair and
lofty in spirit; Il work conceived and
executed, that is, in the true historical
spirit, and will, we trust, do much to
discredit the school histories of the
United States, which have done so little
justice to the Mother Country, wrong
us in much we deem her to have been.
Since the first volume appeared, two
years ago, the venerable poet whose
name appears on the title-page in con-
junction with that of Mr.. GAY, and
whose vigorous and manly preface we
specially referred to, has passed away.
Mr.. Gay is thus left alone to complete
the work. 1t is understood that the
division of labour originally proposed,
assigned to Mr.. Gay the collection and
manipulation of materials, and to MIR.
Bryant the careful supervision of them,
and of course judicial advice and de-
termination. This service Mr.. Bryant
performed for both volumes now pub
lished, exercising upon them careful
and minute critical Judgment. Mr.. Gay
is now left to complete the work, and
he has given abundant evidence that it
will not suffer under his sole author
ship. Here and there we have noticed
IA few slips of the pen and few minor
mistakes of date and fact. These are
perhaps inevitable to the most careful
authorship.
The colonial period of the history is
not yet completed. The present vol
ume opens with the Pequot war of
l636-a war between the settlers of
New England and the Pequot Indians.
A large portion OF the volume is Occu-
pied with the history and polity of Mas
sachusetts and the other New England
States; and the Puritans of New Eng
land-their strength and weakness,
their faith and their superstitions, their
moral grandeur and their Intolerance
are wildly and fully delineated. The
history of Virginia and the southern
colonies Is also contained in this volume.
A full account is given of the Dutch,
the French, and the Spaniards, in their
American settlements. The four chap
tiers relating to the early history of the
extreme south and west, which at this
period were Independent elements, have
been written by the Rev. E. E. Hale,
who has made special study of Span
ish and French colonization. We shall
look with interest for the portion of the
work which deals with the national
history of the States, and in the mean
while heartily commend this instalment
of very noble work.