American History Told by Contemporaries. VoL III., "National Expansion, 1783-1845"
Edited by Albert Bushnell Hart. (Mac- 4nillan and Co. 8s. 6d. net.)—We have taken occasion to mention the earlier volumes of this serieS,--and need but repeat in the briefest way our sense of its value and interest. It appeals chiefly, of course, to American readers, but there is much that touches on our own affairs, and much, if the past is ever to give us lessons about the future, that may well be useful hereafter. The "War of 1812" occupies but a small part of the volume— some twenty-five pages out of a total of more than six hundred— and' an English reader is certainly inclined to say that our side of the affair is very imperfectly presented. That, indeed, does but represent the actual condition of things at the time. The people of the United States wholly failed to appreciate the exceptional position of England struggling for existence against the Napoleonic regime. It is easy to see why they failed. All their traditions were hostile. Let us hope that should another Napoleon arise and band Europe against us once more, we sheuld find more sympathy in the great Republic of the West.
Previous page
