Books with author Deceased Edward Eggleston

This book is intended to serve three main purposes. One of these is to make school reading pleasant by supplying matter simple and direct in style, and sufficiently interesting and exciting to hold the reader's attention in a state of constant wakefulness; that is, to keep the mind in the condition in which instruction can be received with the greatest advantage. A second object is to cultivate an interest in narratives of fact by selecting chiefly incidents full of action, such as are attractive to the minds of boys and girls whose pulses are yet quick with youthful life. The early establishment of a preference for stories of this sort is the most effective antidote to the prevalent vice of reading inferior fiction for mere stimulation. But the principal aim of this book is to make the reader acquainted with American life and manners in other times. The history of life has come to be esteemed of capital importance, but it finds, as yet, small place in school instruction. The stories and sketches in this book relate mainly to earlier times and to conditions very different from those of our own day. They will help the pupil to apprehend the life and spirit of our forefathers. Many of them are such as make him acquainted with that adventurous pioneer life, which thus far has been the largest element in our social history, and which has given to the national character the traits of quick-wittedness, humor, self-reliance, love of liberty, and democratic feeling. These traits in combination distinguish us from other peoples.

See the times as they were, the people, the places, the food, the importance of events as they happened. From Columbus boyhood to his discovery voyage; John Cabot, Henry Hudson, William Penn, Ben Franklyn, Washington, Jefferson, Daniel Boone, Fulton, Morse and the Telegraph, Lincoln, Civil War, Spanish War, Great Expositions, Panama Canal to the purchase of Alaska... this small volume of history is, incredible

Edward Eggleston crafted this American treasure for the benefit of children in a new country, seeking an identity and something to be proud of. He stated that "the primary aim of this book is to furnish the little learner reading matter that will excite his attention and give him pleasure".The author gives a sense of the pioneer spirit in the new American colonies in an ideal way, with adventures and bravery and an excellent combination of well-known figures and the ordinary person engaged in extraordinary change. These stories were written with the objective of informing and entertaining the children who would build whatever America would become. The book is crammed with great captains and political men, but they are far from alone in the quilt of American stories that work together to create a pleasantly hopeful idealism. Wise women, wily hunters, brave children and the all-encompassing fight for the independence of America are everywhere in these stories. The Founding Fathers tower over the charming stories in this book and help to embody the ideals that Eggleston hoped to see dominate the new country and its next generation. Whilst 'Stories of Great Americans: For Little Americans is an authentic historical work and in that capacity it is tremendously informative to the adult reader, it remains excellent for its original purpose, teaching the young. It lends itself to bedtime stories or teaching younger readers about the development of a colonial society within a realistic and faithful but generally uplifting volume.About the PublisherForgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.comThis book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Whatever is incredible in this story is true. The tale I have to tell will seem strange to those who know little of the social life of the West at the beginning of this century. These sharp contrasts of corn-shuckings and camp-meetings, of wild revels followed by wild revivals; these contacts of highwayman and preacher; scenes of picturesque simplicity, grotesque humor and savage ferocity, of abandoned wickedness and austere piety, can hardly seem real to those who know the country now. But the books of biography and reminiscence which preserve the memory of that time more than justify what is marvelous in these pages.Living, in early boyhood, on the very ground where my grandfather—brave old Indian-fighter!—had defended his family in a block-house built in a wilderness by his own hands, I grew up familiar with this strange wild life. At the age when other children hear fables and fairy stories, my childish fancy was filled with traditions of battles with Indians and highwaymen.In a true picture of this life neither the Indian nor the hunter is the center-piece, but the circuit-rider. More than any one else, the early circuit preachers brought order out of this chaos. In no other class was the real heroic element so finely displayed. How do I remember the forms and weather-beaten visages of the old preachers, whose constitutions had conquered starvation and exposure—who had survived swamps, alligators, Indians, highway robbers and bilious fevers! How was my boyish soul tickled with their anecdotes of rude experience—how was my imagination wrought upon by the recital of their hair-breadth escapes! How was my heart set afire by their contagious religious enthusiasm, so that at eighteen years of age I bestrode the saddle-bags myself and laid upon a feeble frame the heavy burden of emulating their toils! Surely I have a right to celebrate them, since they came so near being the death of me.Doubtless I shall hopelessly damage myself with some good people by confessing in the start that, from the first chapter to the last, this is a love-story. But it is not my fault. It is God who made love so universal that no picture of human life can be complete where love is left out.

See the times as they were: the people, the places, the food, the importance of events as they happened. From Columbus' boyhood to his discovery voyage; John Cabot; Henry Hudson; William Penn; Ben Franklin; Washington; Jefferson; Daniel Boone; Fulton; Morse and the telegraph; Lincoln; Civil War; Spanish War; Great Expositions; Panama Canal; purchase of Alaska. This small volume of history is incredible in the extent of material and its ability to reach young readers.

Originally published in 1891 as a portion of the author’s larger “The Household History of the United States and Its People,” this Kindle edition, equivalent in length to a physical book of approximately 16 pages, recounts, in simple language, the story of the first permanent English settlement in the New World—Jamestown.Sample passage:When Captain John Smith went back to England, in 1609, there were nearly five hundred white people in Virginia. But the settlers soon got into trouble with the Indians, who lay in the woods and killed every one that ventured out. There was no longer any chance to buy corn, and the food was soon exhausted. The starving people ate the hogs, the dogs, and the horses, even to their skins. Then they ate rats, mice, snakes, toadstools, and whatever they could get that might stop their hunger. A dead Indian was presently eaten, and, as their hunger grew more extreme, the people were forced to consume their own dead. Starving men wandered off into the woods and died there; their companions, finding them, devoured them as hungry wild beasts might have done. This was always afterward remembered as “the starving time.”About the author:Edward Eggleston (1837-1902) discovered a gift for writing when he was a high school student in Indiana. His militant opposition to slavery, however, caused him to refuse an offer to attend the University of Virginia. In 1871 he began a career as a popular novelist, but eventually his interest shifted from fiction to history. Other works include “The Beginning of a Nation” and “A First Book in American History.”

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.