Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-11-22

boundless miles of trackless forests as Eng
land and Germany and Portugal are divid-
ing Africa. 1t was at this interesting time,
in the middle of the eighteenth century,
that Mr.. James Edward OgIethrope, gentle
man, soldier scholar and Member of Parlia-
ment, became interested in the misfortunes
of that aggrieved class of men with whom
most of us may be in sympathy, the debtors.
And il occurred to this philanthropist that
good buffer to put between Spain, which
was claiming everything on the southern
coast of this country, and England, which
was making equal claims along the
northern coast, would be a colony
of these poor fellows who had nothing
to claim at all. So he took 700 liberated
debtors and brought them over here, and
set them down in Georgia. There they had
good fortunes and evil ones. The Governor
leader spent large measure of his private
fortune in the uplifting and bettering of the
colony of debtors and all the debtors hated
him cordially. That is the way OF the
world. Finally Mr.. Oglethrope went back
and left Georgia to its own desires; the
colony was taken under the Royal Govern
ment, introduced slavery, went against the
founders advice in most ways it could think
of, and became prosperous. Henry Bruce
is the author of this interesting, careful and
graphic narrative, with which Dodd, Mead
& Co. begin their new and promising series
OF biographies of "The Makers of America"
A second volume in this same valuable
series is the story of the founders OF Mary
land, George and Cecilius Calvert, Lords
Baltimore. William Hard Browne, the
author, has had access to material unknown
to previous historians. In the litter and
rubbish of an English attic a great bundle
OF manuscripts came to light not long ago,
and the writings were found to relate to the
CalYerts. These have been diligently
studied, and to good purpose. George Cal
vert, a gentleman nigh in favor in the court
of James l., a noSieman and Secretary of
State, turns Roman Catholic, resigns his
preferments, and follows in the wake of the
Protestant Pilgrim Fathers across the At
lantic to these free shores. He adventures
here and there, having grants of land in
this region and that, but never quite satis-
fed. His son Cecilius settles definitely in
Maryland. The story of the settlement, of
the voyage of the Ark and Dove, OF the re-
ligious problems which arose, and the him
dering OF the Jesuits and of the effect upon
the young COLONY Of the troubles and
changes in the mother country in the days
of the first Charles, and of Cromwell-all
these things are told, and pleasantly told,
and not at a wearisome length in the pages
of this history.
On the 4th day of March, 1S09 President
James Madison was declared and constituted
President of the United States. 1t was
noticed that he was very properly attIred lin
a full suit of cloth of American manufact-
ure;" that he read hisinaugural address in
tone so low that the ten thousand patriots
who came to listen could not hear it; that
when it was afterward printed and read it
was found to be full of commonplaces and
empty of any definite statement of policy,
and that at the Inauguration ball, which
crowned and concluded the glories of the
day. 'the crowd was excessive, the heat op-
pressive, and the entertainment bad" Thus
began an administration which included
within its term OF years the disasters of the
War of 1912.
Madison had been a capital lieutenant for
Jefferson. His forte was to advise, to coun-
sci, to be the power behind the throne. His
place on Olympus was that of Minerva
rather than that of Jove. He was a
scholarly man, interested in philosophy and
theology as well as in politics, and possessed
Of mination-sometimes not a for
tunate possesSion-to see both sides of every
subject. At the outset there were party
troubles There was great difficulty IN
man in the country, was kept out of the
place which belonged to him, and an in
competent ringster was put In.
And then came the war, with its brilliant
successes on the water, and its dismal fail
ures on the land.
All this is told, with painstaking care
fulness, accuracy and interest, in the fifth
and sixth volumes of Prot. Henry Adams
"History of the United States" (Scribuers:
j. r. Weldin & Co. $1,000, which deal with
Madison's first administration. The record
isas minute as the report of cotemporary
newspaper, and more accurate.
Particularly entertaining is the story of
the great battle of Tippecanoe, which was
fought first on the hunting ground which
gives its name to the combat; and afterwards
at much greater length in the newspapers;
and has even very recently been exploited
in political campaign. 1t seems, when
the real truth about it is told, that it was a
pretty small battle. Tecumseh described it
as an unfortunate transaction that took
place between the white people and a few
of our young men at our village" And
that, it appears, was about all there was
of it.
There are several excellent and helpful
maps in these volumes, and at the end is a
full index of all the volumes thus far pub
lished. Prof. Adams is writing a worthy
history of a great nation. That the three
volumes yet to come will be as interesting
and valuable as these five is the hope and
expectation of THE CRITIC.