The account of town and country life as they were at the beginning of
the present century, and of the growth of those social usages which we
have come almost to regard as instinctive, is very entertaining and
instructive. Barring certain blemishes and a few inaccuracies, which
ought to be excusable in a work of such character, Mr. McMaster's two
volumes form a very valuable and welcome contribution to our national
literature. It was a felicitous thought which prompted him to enter this
peculiar field, and to gather up the important facts which writers on
political history have generally avoided. So thoroughly and so admirably
has Mr. McMaster worked this field that we doubt whether any other
writer, coming after him, will be tempted to invade the same territory.
The work thus far ends with the negotiations which led to the Louisiana
purchase, and we are led to expect three more instalments before it
shall be completed.
* * * * *
Should any readers be tempted by Mrs. Gould's article in this number of
THE BAY STATE MONTHLY to visit Nantucket, they will do well to
take with them, for handy reference and trustworthy guidance, Mr.
Godfrey's _Island of Nantucket: What it was and what it is_.[8] It
is a complete index and guide to all that is interesting in the
island,--tells just how to get there and what to see there,--and
contains, moreover, several special articles, by different hands, on the
history, botany, geology, and entomology of the island.
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