The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-07-12
Finished Work in 1910

Since that date, declared Colonel Boyle to me as we sat in the library of his house in Queens Gate Terrace, "one may say that almost every moment of my spare time has been given to my history, which you see there. pointing to two great boxes of wrought iron, the open top of one of which revealed five ponderous tonnes, each some eight inches thick and a couple of feet tall
 T finished it in 1910" the colonel added but since have made revisions and addi- tions.
 What started me on it? Well. I suppose it really was reading. as a boy, that in- tensely interesting novel by Fenimore Cooper Lionel Lincoln It contains a very vivid description of the battle of Bunker Hill. and this interested me so greatly that resolved thereupon to make myself intimately acquainted with the his- tory of the American Revolution. When I attempted to do so. however. I was as tounuded to discover how little written history there was. There was one by Stedman, who was an officer in the Brit
 sh commissariat during the war, but this was an exceedingly unsatisfactory one, and there was no other that I could dis cover. So. youngster as then was, 15 or 16 perhaps, I began visiting libraries and museums to see what I could discover about the period and made careful notes of what l found out. At 19 I went to Malta with the Rifle brigade dt was 55 years ago this very day that I landed there), and during this and many other absences from this country all work in connection with the history has, of course, had to be suspended, but, apart from these, | can say truthfully that all my leisure time has been devoted to this his- torical work"
 The present writer has dipped into Colonel Boyles history and found it writ ten with much literary distinction The English historian who praised it so high ly by the way, was Sir George Trevelyan, who consulted and made use of it in writing his own work, published in 1907 "The American Revolution" In this work Sir George acknowledged his debt to Colonel Boyle's comprehensive store house of information which he further describes as 'arranged with admirable clearness and Illustrated by sound and most perceptive observations and criti- cisms." He also refers to the Invaluable privilege of studying it."
 Has Valuable Library Himself
 Colonel Boyle himself possesses an ex- tensive library of Americana, including the London Chronicle for the whole period of the Revolution-or from 1774 to 17s4-study of which, he declares, brought to light much Illuminating and
 important matter. One of the portions of his history to which he himself attaches most value, by the way, in his account of the naval and military transactions in the West Indies, among them the expedi- ton to San Juan, in which Nelson took so active part, and which are, he de- clares, more completely described than any narrative hitherto published.
 I understand that negotiations are now in progress with a view to the publication of Colonel Boyle's monumental work in the United States. Should these come to nothing, 1t strikes one that the United States government might do worse than come forward with an offer for the 10 big volumes of which Colonel Boyfes Notes consist. F~
 I asked the colonel, by the way, if he would pass any criticism on the various histories of the Revolution that have been published in recent years most of which, 1t is often declared, distort history accord ing to the nationality of the historian especially. say the critics, when the his- torian is an American.
 No" replied Colonel Boyle, TT have not found that to be the case. The prin- cipal fault I have to find with most his- torian of the War of Independence Is that they greatly exaggerate the numbers of the British forces employed"