"Other men have, do doubt, excelled him in particular qualities or accomplishments. There have been far more learned men; far more eloquent men; far more enterprising and active men, in the out-door work of the sacred office. But, in the assemblage and happy union of those high qualities, intellectual and moral, which constitute finished excellence, as a man, a Christian, a divine, and a philosopher, he was, undoubtedly, one of the greatest and best men that have adorned this, or any other country, since the Apostolic age.

1 Miller, Life of Jonathan Edwards, p. 213.

REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD.

REPRESENTATIVE WRITERS.

THOMAS JEFFERSON.

ALEXANDER HAMILTON.

OTHER WRITERS

CHARLES BROCKDEN BROWN (1771-1810). Was the first American nov. elist. He wrote "Wieland," "Ormond," and "Arthur Mervyn." He was the first of our authors to make a living out of literature.

JOHN TRUMBULL (1750-1831). Wrote "McFingal," a satire upon the Tories in the manner of Butler's "Hudibras."

JOEL BARLOW (1754-1812). Wrote the " Columbiad," a very dull epic. His "Hasty Pudding" is still readable.

FRANCIS HOPKINSON (1737-1791). Wrote the most popular ballad of the Revolution, entitled the "Battle of the Kegs."

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PHILIP FRENEAU (1752-1832). Poet, editor, and political writer. His two best poems are Lines to a Wild Honeysuckle" and "The Indian Burying-Ground.”

TIMOTHY DWIGHT (1752-1817). President of Yale College from 1795 to the time of his death. A theologian whose works are still instructive. He wrote the hymn "I love thy Kingdom, Lord," and the patriotic song, 'Columbia, Columbia, to Glory Arise."

JOSEPH HOPKINSON (1770-1842). Wrote "Hail Columbia."

THOMAS PAINE (1737-1809). Author of "Common Sense," a patriotic pamphlet, "The Rights of Man," a defence of the French Revolution, and "The Age of Reason," a coarse attack upon Christianity.

JAMES MADISON (1751-1836) and JOHN ADAMS (1735-1826) were great statesmen and able political writers. The former was one of the writers of the "Federalist," and the latter wrote an elaborate " Defence of the Constitutions of Government of the United States." JOHN MARSHALL (1755-1835). Statesman and Chief-Justice of the United States. He wrote a standard "Life of Washington."

WILLIAM WIRT (1772-1834). Lawyer and politician. He wrote "Letters of a British Spy," and a "Life of Patrick Henry."

III.

THE REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD.

(1763-1815.)

THE Revolutionary Period embraces about fifty years, and includes two events of great importance. The first of these is the War of Independence; the other, the adoption of the Constitution. Around these two events gathers nearly all the literature of the time. This literature can be understood only as we comprehend the spirit and principles of the founders of our republic. No other period better illustrates the relation of literature to prevailing social conditions. For half a century the struggle against British injustice and oppression, and the establishment of a great national government, absorbed a large part of the intellectual energies of the people. Great practical questions were pressing for solution. It was the age of political pamphlets and popular oratory. The literature of the time arose, not to enrich the treasures of artistic expression, but to mould and move popular thought and action.

The leaders of the revolutionary movement were heroes. We cannot peruse their determined and often eloquent words without being moved with admiration. There is an ardor in them that kindles anew the spirit of freedom. The deliberate and resolute courage of the Revolutionary patriots has never been surpassed. True to the spirit of their forefathers, who had sought refuge from oppression

in the wilds of a new continent, they were bravely jealous of their liberties. With Anglo-Saxon fidelity they were loyal to England until repeated and inexcusable acts of tyranny drove them into resistance. It was only when the hope of receiving justice from the mother country had completely died out, that the desire and purpose of independence arose.

The general cause of the Revolution was the stupid and tyrannical claim of the British government "to bind the colonies in all things whatsoever." The fatal course of George III. and of his ministers may be best explained as a madness sent from heaven, like the hardening of Pharaoh's heart, to prepare the way for the coming of a great nation. For many years the British king, supported by Parliament, had pursued a policy of usurpation and tyranny. The list of grievances in the Declaration of Independence, where each statement points to a particular fact, makes up a terrific indictment. Jefferson was only faithful to facts when he declared, "The history of the present king of Great Britain is a history of unremitting injuries and usurpations, among which appears no solitary fact to contradict the uniform tenor of the rest, but all have in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states." The petitions and remonstrances of the colonists remained unnoticed. The king demanded absolute and abject submission.

But it was impossible that the people of America should become a race of slaves. Liberty was a part of their inheritance as Englishmen. They cherished the memory of Magna Charta and the Bill of Rights of 1689. The tragic fate of Charles I., brought to the block for his tyranny, was not forgotten. The hardships and dangers