The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1880-01-26
H,storv Of Cumperland County.

morocco WIN gilt eugeS. IL Is well Prihieu
and contains an excellent map identical with
that published in the Atlas of Cumberland Co
by Beers & Co. in 1871. Attention is first
attracted to the illustrations of which the book
is full. Twenty-one of them are fine steel
portraits. and the others, over 100, arc wood
cuts We naturally look for the pictures of
the famous old worthless who wrought at the
foundations of our Commonwealth, for those of
George Cleeves Fernando Georges, Richard
Tucker, Vines, Jocelyn, Jordan and Others
Then for the men who were distinguished in
later days. for the Brackets Munjoy, Church,
Tying, March, Westbrook, Waldo, Pepperell
and Parson Smith Failing these, we seek for
the Prebles, the famous old General, his gal
liant son the Commodore and the old Judge;
for Parsons Deane, Nichols and Payson; Tor
Sheriff Tying, and his father-in-law, old Capt
Ross, who brought the great mast ships; for
Deacon Milk and the Deerings. They are not
among the distinguished in the galaxy, and we
turn to the famous, and seek for Longfellow,
Hawthorne, Governor Andrew, Senator Fessen-
den, Senator Morrill,, Geo Evans, DIR. Hill,
Neal Dow, John Neal, n. p. Willis. We ask
seek for J. B. Brown, w. W. Thomas, Samuel
E. Spring, St. John Smith, Capt. Coyle, John
NJ Wood, Jacob Mcclellan, Charles Fobes,
Still disappointed, we wonder If place has
been saved for those who have won the vener-
alton and esteem of their fellow-citizens; for
Professors Cleaveland, Smythe, Packard and
the venerable President Woods; for Cows.
Dunlap, Wells and Paris: for Masters Jack
son and Libby; for Judges Howard, Ware,
Davis, Shepley, Gather and SOM Fox, Charles
Barrett, Oliver Gerrish, Ira Berry. DIR. Wood.
How hard it seems to gain admittance Could
not Samuel Fessenden, Charles S. Daveis, A
B. Thompson, F. o. J. Smith, John A. Poor,
the Andersons, the Robes, the Irishes COM
mand place? Then we sadly learn that i'm
mortality is boughten gear. But this was I'M
avoidable. 1t would be obviously impos-
sible to give the pictures of all our lead
ing men, and leave a living profit for the pub
fishers, and the gallery was therefore
opened to those who were able and willing
TO contribute to the undertaking. Here is
where some of the fortunate erred. The steel
plate is "a thing of beauty and and JOY for
ever" but the wood-cut in portraiture is I'M
even. In the hands Of an artist, and when
worked very finely, it is sometimes very good
indeed but when it is bad it is horrid. There is a
tide they should have remembered, which taken
at the flood leads on to fortune, and they should
have put in $3.50 more and had a steel picture
which would have assured them a glorious
Immortality Two or three who have been
peculiarly slandered by the artist, whose
hand, perhaps slipped, like the little boy's
lips when he whistled in meeting, are
understood to be prowling about with pistols,
hoping to meet him, but happy man, (Little by
nance he is probably safe on the banks of the
Schuylkill.
The text is by W. w. Clayton. 1t cannot
fairly be called history, as it is a compilation
and condensation of works previously pub
lished with little new material except the
biographical. But the work is skilfully done,
and the scattered material we'll arranged and
united. The history of Portland is meagre.
1t is curious that Willis did not ,crite much
history. He compiled the work of Smith,
Deane and Freeman, adding valuable COM
ments, but left gap Of the whole time COW
cred by his own observation. So that we have
little Of the present century's history. and this
work of course has the same lack. Bruins
wick history is good, because he had Wheeler's
fine history to condense from. For Gorham
he had Pierce's history, for Windham, Smiths S,
for Harpswell, Wheeler's; for North Var
mouth Russelrs; for Westbrook, William
E. Gould's lecture. Those of the other
towns differ with the ability of the citizen
whose local pride induced him to gath
er the material We cannot wish this
work undone because some things may be pre-
served which would otherwise be lost to the
historian; but we may regret that the $4,000
which will go to the city of Philadelphia for
this could not have been spent in thorough
work Of genuine historical value by a compe-
tent man like William Goold, whose local
knowledge and cultivated memory would have
enriched it by stores of valuable anecdote.
But the real and great value of this work is
large portion Of the book and possess the merit
of being almost auto-biographic. They cannot
fail to be appreciated by the reader, and will
certainly be so by the editorial profession
Elder Otis Sawyer contributes valuable
sketch of the Shakers, and we heartily wish
that he may take up the subject more at
length, and publish an extended history Of
this interesting settlement, which can be done
by no one more Thoroughly and elegantly than
by himself.
The history of the legal profession is good
being quite fully furnished by Willis "Courts
and Lawyers" and the medical profession
well represented, the material being drawn
from their own published records. Masonry
is meagre, that Of Portland being the list OF
meetings published so frequently in the daily
papers The most interesting history of the
York and Cumberland Railroad is lacking
The history of the Episcopal and Catholic
churches is good, and the latter is new and
valuable contribution. The history Of Journal
ism is of course excellent, it having been COM
pletely done some years ago by Mr.. Richardson
of the Advertiser in Griffin s volume.
We cannot too much commend the accuracy
of the proof-reading and the careful rendering
of Names The few errors only emphasize the
correctness of the whole, while the faults OF
the book, are, as we have before intimated
inherent necessarily in the plan of the work
The compiler could not give time and energy
as labor of love, like the historian proper
and the publishers could not sacrifice them
selves in digging up the histories of dead and
gone worthless, when a richer mine lay nearer
at hand. We therefore commend it to the
public with the hearty praise which the Con
necticut man bestowed upon his dinner: ''It
is good enough what there is of it, and enough
of it, such as it is"
written for Sacarapa. Folks"
Harper for this month tells the following
good story:
Parson B--lived a few miles tout on the
road running from certain elm-bowered city
of Maine to small manufacturing village iusI