Trübner's Bibliographical guide to American literature : a classed list of books published in the United States of America during the last forty years : with bibliographical introduction, notes, and alphabetical index / compiled and edited by Nicolas Trübner.
- Trübner, Nicholas, 1817-1884.
- Date:
- 1859
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: Trübner's Bibliographical guide to American literature : a classed list of books published in the United States of America during the last forty years : with bibliographical introduction, notes, and alphabetical index / compiled and edited by Nicolas Trübner. Source: Wellcome Collection.
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![the statesman, “ a historian of great acuteness and diligence; ” which from such a person is valuable praise. Ralph enjoyed a literary pension from the British Government for a short time immediately preceding his death; and so far as our researches enable us to express an opinion, he was the only Ame- rican upon whom such an honour ever was conferred. Franklin, whose name is a “household-word” in Engla^jd, was not only an author of some repute, but his exertions in behalf of science have placed his name high among those who have conferred lasting benefits on their race by their discoveries. His political and philosophical writings exhibit great clear- ness, as well as skill in composition; and but few have the temerity to deny merit to his admirable Autobiography, which is in fact one of the most pleasing compositions in the English language. From Franklin’s early youth until about the year 1770, general literature received much attention, and, did our limits permit, we could name not a few able poetical productions which belong to this era. They display taste as well as scholarship, and are wonderful improvements on the rhymes of the Puritan age. At a time when miscellaneous and light literature attracted so much notice, it was not altogether unnatural a few practical minds should devote them- selves to colonial history; and we take pleasure in recording the fact, inas- much as the labours of these early American chroniclers have been of great value to subsequent historians, and may be considered as indicating a respect for the opinions and wants of posterity not usually entertained by the fathers of nations. In a literary estimate, the works of Cadwallader Golden may take the first rank among the first American historical writings. He produced a History of the Five Nations [of Indians] about 1745, which was republished in London in 1747, and a third edition was published in the same city in 1755. This author turned his attention to the nature of American plants, and sup- plied Linnseus with a well-written account of between three and four hundred American plants, about two hundred of which were for the first time described in the Acta Societatis UpsaUensis. He also wrote on philosophical subjects; and left a collection of unpublished papers, valuable as ante-revolutionary records — from which Mr. Bancroft obtained a vast amount of information not to be had elsewhere. William Hubbard wrote a narrative History of New England, prior to 1700 • but the work of Thomas Prince on the same subject, published in 1736 and in 1755, is of far more value. John Callender, a native of Boston, wrote a Dis- course on the History of Rhode Island in 1739—now valuable for its facts— which was republished in 1838, with notes, and which must ever be considered as the best contribution extant to the early history of the State to which it re- lates. A fuU and entertaining History of King Philip's War was written by the famous Captain Church in 1716, which reached a second edition in a short time, and is now a standard authority on early New England affairs, particularly during King Philip’s time. David Brainerd, who devoted himself to the work of an Indian Missionary, while so engaged, recorded faithfully his adventures, together with his observations on the manners and peculiarities of the various tribes with whom it was his fate to associate. His Diary has proved valu-](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b24877724_0057.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
