The American Encyclopedia Of History, Biography And Travel - free ebook by Thomas H. Prescott

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The American Encyclopedia Of History, Biography And Travel

Thomas H. Prescott

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110 chapters

AMERICAN ENCYCLOPEDIA

AMERICAN ENCYCLOPEDIA

OF HISTORY, BIOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL, COMPRISING ANCIENT AND MODERN HISTORY: THE BIOGRAPHY OF EMINENT MEN OF EUROPE AND AMERICA, AND THE LIVES OF DISTINGUISHED TRAVELERS. Illustrated with over 100 Engravings. COLUMBUS: PUBLISHED AND SOLD EXCLUSIVELY BY SUBSCRIPTION, BY J. &amp; H. MILLER. 1857....

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PREFACE.

PREFACE.

One of the most useful directions for facilitating the study of history, is to begin with authors who present a compendium, or general view of the whole subject of history, and, afterwards, to apply to the study of any particular history with which a more thorough acquaintance is desired. The Historical Department of this work has been compiled with a view to furnishing such a compendium. It covers the whole ground of Ancient History, including China, India, Egypt, Arabia, Syria, the Phœnicians,

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DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY.

DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY.

A German Historian thus sums up all that is known of Ethiopian history—that is, of the part which the great Negro race, inhabiting all Africa with the exception of the north-eastern coasts, performed in the general affairs of mankind in the early ages of the world:—‘On the history of this division of the species two remarks may be made: the one, that a now entirely extinct knowledge of the extension and power of this branch of the human family must have been forced upon even the Greeks by thei

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HISTORY OF THE MIDDLE AGES.

HISTORY OF THE MIDDLE AGES.

Under the title of the Middle Ages is comprehended that period of history which succeeded the destruction of the Roman western empire and extended to the end of the fifteenth or beginning of the sixteenth century, when learning was revived in Europe. This period of about eight hundred years may be said to divide ancient from modern times. The early portion of the middle ages is sometimes styled the Dark Ages; for during this time the ancient civilization of Rome, a bequest from Egypt and Greece,

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HISTORY OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND.

HISTORY OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND.

CONQUEST BY THE ROMANS. Previously to the year 55 before Christ, the British Islands, in common with the whole of northern and western Europe, were occupied by barbarous tribes, who bore nearly the same relation to the civilized nations of Greece and Italy, which the North American Indians of the present day bear to the inhabitants of Great Britain and the United States. The Romans, who for ages had been extending their power over their rude neighbors, had concluded the conquest of Gaul, now cal

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HISTORY OF FRANCE.

HISTORY OF FRANCE.

The Franks, a tribe of German origin, had marched from their hereditary possessions on the Lower Rhine to the Meuse and the Sambre, A. D. 486. From this place, their warlike king, Clovis, led them forth to war and plunder. After he had conquered and put to death the last Roman governor, Syágrius, in Soissons, and made himself master of the country between the Seine and the Loire, he advanced against the Alemanni, who were in possession of an extensive kingdom on both banks of the Rhine. He defea

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HISTORY OF SPAIN.

HISTORY OF SPAIN.

About the opening of the fifth century, when Alaric, the terrible king of the Visigoths, had sacked and burned the City of the Seven Hills, his brother, Adolph, crossing the Pyrenees, penetrated into Spain, and founded, in that secluded province of the Roman Empire, a kingdom, of which the capital was Toledo—situated on a steep rock, which was washed on three sides by the waters of the Tagus. The Gothic monarchy, thus established, lasted for three centuries, when Roderick, who wore the crown of

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HISTORY OF GERMANY AND AUSTRIA.

HISTORY OF GERMANY AND AUSTRIA.

The Empire of the West, which Charlemagne had constructed at so much cost of blood and treasure, fell to pieces after he had gone to the grave; and the crown of Germany, being separated from that of the Frankish monarchy, was worn by one branch of the Carlovingian race, while the members of another were enacting the part, without exercising the authority, of kings on the banks of the Seine. But in 911, the various princes of Germany, assuming an attitude of independence, elected Conrad of Franco

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HISTORY OF RUSSIA.

HISTORY OF RUSSIA.

While England, under the first of her Scottish kings, was falling from the high estate she had occupied under her native princes; while in France the genius of Richelieu was making itself felt; while the glory was departing from the Spanish monarchy; while the Thirty Years’ War was beginning to desolate Germany; while the illustrious career of Gustavus Adolphus was opening upon Sweden; and while the warriors of Turkey were yet terrible to the nations of Europe, Michael Theodoriwitz, earliest of

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HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES.

HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES.

COLONIAL HISTORY North America, with the exception of Mexico, was not colonized by Europeans so early as the southern part of the Continent. The discoveries of Cabot, A. D. 1497, had given England a valid claim to the whole coast from Labrador to Florida; but the country presented none of the allurements that had incited and rewarded the Spanish adventurers. Fertile and well wooded, indeed, intersected by noble rivers, and inclosing safe and capacious harbors and bays, it seemed a promising regi

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DEPARTMENT OF BIOGRAPHY.

DEPARTMENT OF BIOGRAPHY.

HERNANDO CORTEZ. The portion of the new world earliest colonized by the Spaniards was the Island of St. Domingo, Hayti, or Hispaniola, discovered by Columbus in his first voyage in the year 1492. For nearly twenty years this island was the only colony of importance held by the Spaniards in the new world; here alone did they occupy lands, build towns, and found a regular commonwealth. Cuba, although the second of the islands discovered by Columbus, remained long uncolonized; indeed it was not til

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WILLIAM PENN.

WILLIAM PENN.

William Penn, the celebrated founder of Pennsylvania, was born in London on the 14th of October, 1644. He was the only son of Sir William Penn, a naval commander of distinction, first during the Protectorate of Cromwell, and afterwards in the service of Charles the II , from whom he received the honor of knighthood. His health having suffered from his active duties, Admiral Penn retired from service in 1666, although then only in the forty-fifth year of his age. His wife, the mother of William P

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BENJAMIN FRANKLIN.

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN.

This celebrated individual, the youngest but two of a family of seventeen children, was born at Boston, in Massachusetts, on the 17th of January, 1706. His father was at first a dyer, and afterwards a soap-boiler and tallow-chandler, and had quitted England in order to escape the prosecution of the non-conformists, under Charles II. His son Benjamin was sent to a grammar-school at eight years of age, with a view of being educated for the church; but this design was soon abandoned, and the subjec

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PETER THE GREAT.

PETER THE GREAT.

Peter , Czar, or Emperor of Russia, usually styled The Great , was one of the most remarkable persons in the history of modern times. A sketch of his life may therefore prove interesting, as furnishing an example of what may be accomplished for the benefit of mankind by one enterprising mind. But first as regards the country over which it was his fortune to rule. Russia is a territory of vast extent in the northern part of Europe and Asia. Presenting every variety of climate, this extensive regi

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COUNT RUMFORD.

COUNT RUMFORD.

Benjamin Thompson , better known by the name of Count Rumford, which he afterwards acquired, was born at Woburn in Massachusetts on the 26th of March 1753. His ancestors appear to have been among the earliest of the colonists of Massachusetts, and in all probability came originally from England. They seem to have held a respectable rank among their neighbors, and to have been for one or two generations moderately wealthy. Ebenezer Thompson, the grandfather of Count Rumford, held a captain’s comm

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NICOLAS COPERNICUS.

NICOLAS COPERNICUS.

In the whole range of human science, no subject is calculated to excite such sublime ideas as astronomy; and to its study, therefore, the greatest minds have been directed both in ancient and modern times. Ancient, however, as are the investigations into the relations of the heavenly bodies, a correct idea of the planetary system was scarcely known before the sixteenth century of the Christian era. The theory generally received on that subject by the Chaldeans, Egyptians, Greeks, and other ancie

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TYCHO BRAHE.

TYCHO BRAHE.

Of eminent astronomers, the next in point of time was Tycho Brahè, who, though adopting the Ptolemaic notion of the earth being the fixed and immovable centre of the universe, yet did good service to the progress of the science by his numerous observations and discoveries. Descended of an ancient and noble family, originally of Sweden, but settled in Denmark, Tycho was born December 14, 1546, at Knub Strup, in the bailiwick of Schönen, the jurisdiction of which was then held by his father. When

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GALILEO.

GALILEO.

The Copernican theory, which Tycho had labored in vain to supersede, was next received and supported by an Italian philosopher, whose name and history are inseparably interwoven with the progress of astronomy. That illustrious individual, Galileo Galilei, usually known by his Christian name, was born at Pisa in 1564. His father, a Tuscan nobleman of small fortune, caused him to be educated for the profession of medicine at the university of his native city. While studying there, he became deeply

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KEPLER.

KEPLER.

Cotemporary with Tycho Brahé and Galileo, and to some extent the associate and successor of the former, was John Kepler, one of the most eminent astronomers who have appeared in any age, and to whom the science is indebted for much of its present perfection. He was born December 27, 1571, at Wiel in Wurtemberg, and was descended of a noble but reduced family. His father, originally an officer of distinction in the army of Wurtemberg, was, at the time of young Kepler’s birth, in the humble capaci

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NEWTON.

NEWTON.

The year in which Galileo died, was that in which Isaac Newton was born. This eminent individual, who was destined to establish the truth of the discoveries of his illustrious predecessors, Copernicus and Galileo, was born on the 25th of December 1642, at Coltersworth, in Lincolnshire, where his father cultivated his own moderate paternal property. After receiving the rudiments of education, under the superintendence of his mother, he was sent, at the age of twelve, to the grammar school at Gran

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HUYGENS.

HUYGENS.

While Newton, in England, was thus enlarging the boundaries of astronomy, and conferring upon it a degree of accuracy and system hitherto unknown, a number of continental philosophers were contributing materials, which, though of an humble character, were not the less necessary to the future progress of the science. First among these was Christian Hüygens, Lord of Zeelhem, born at the Hague on the 14th of April 1629, and descended of a rich and respected family. His father, secretary and counsel

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HALLEY.

HALLEY.

Dr. Edmund Halley , a name well known in the annals of astronomy, was the only son of a soap-boiler in London, and was born in 1656. He received the rudiments of his education at St. Paul’s School in his native city; and in his seventeenth year, became a commoner in Queen’s College, Oxford. At first he applied himself to the study of the languages and sciences, but at length gave himself wholly up to that of astronomy; and before he had attained his nineteenth year, published a method of finding

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FERGUSON.

FERGUSON.

We pass by several authors and observers who contributed during the time of Hüygens and Halley, to the advancement of astronomy, to notice the life of an individual whose career, while beneficial to the science under review, furnishes an ever-memorable instance of the acquirement of knowledge under the most pressing difficulties and obstructions. The most of those to whom we have adverted were men in independent circumstances, or at least so situated as to obtain at once a liberal education and

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SIR WILLIAM HERSCHEL.

SIR WILLIAM HERSCHEL.

The science of astronomy, which, from the time of Copernicus, had been gradually improving, through the laborious exertions of Tycho Brahè, Galileo, Kepler, Hüygens, Newton, Halley, Delisle, Lalande, and other eminent observers of the starry firmament, was considerably advanced by the discoveries of Herschel, whose biography now comes under our notice. William Herschel was born at Hanover on the 15th of November 1738. He was the second of four sons, all of whom were brought up to their father’s

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SIMON BOLIVAR.

SIMON BOLIVAR.

The Spanish colonies of South America remained for three centuries in quiet submission to the mother country, if we except the desperate attempt of the Peruvian Indians, under Tupac Amaru, to throw off the yoke of their oppressors. Never were despotism, avarice and slavish obsequiousness to power, more thoroughly displayed than in Spanish America, under the government of the viceroys and captains-general, who, with all the principal officers of the viceroyal court, were sent to America from Madr

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FRANCIA, THE DICTATOR.

FRANCIA, THE DICTATOR.

This singular individual, named José Gaspar Rodriguez Francia, was born near Assumpcion, in Paraguay, in the year 1757. His father was either a Frenchman or a Portuguese, and his mother a Paraguay Creole. He was one of several children. At the university of Cordova, in Tucuman, he received such an education as a classical seminary in the interior of South America could furnish. Being a person of a shrewd, saturnine disposition, and retired, studious habits, he contrived, by close application, to

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ALEXANDER WILSON.

ALEXANDER WILSON.

This extraordinary man, who, from being originally an operative weaver, became by his own unaided exertions one of the most celebrated ornithologists of his day, was born in Paisley on the 6th of July 1766. His father was a distiller, poor in fortune, though said to have been endowed with an active and sagacious mind. He was so unfortunate as to lose his mother at the early age of ten, and was left without the tender and judicious care which a mother alone can give. On attaining his thirteenth y

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JAMES WATT.

JAMES WATT.

James Watt , the son of a merchant, was born at Greenock, in Scotland, on the 19th of January, 1736. He received the first part of his education at a school in his native place, and completed it at home, by his own diligence. The science of mechanics, for which he afterwards became so famous, formed, at an early age, his favorite study; and, in conformity with his desire, he was, at the age of eighteen, apprenticed to a mathematical instrument-maker, in London. The bad state of his health, howev

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JOHN HOWARD.

JOHN HOWARD.

John Howard , whose name as a philanthropist must be familiar to a number of our readers, was born at Clapton, in the parish of Hackney, in the immediate vicinity of London, in or about the year 1727. His father was an upholsterer and carpet-warehouseman, who had acquired a considerable fortune in trade, and had retired from business to live at Hackney. Being a dissenter, and a man of strong religious principles, he sent his son at an early age to be educated by a schoolmaster named Worsley, who

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GEORGE GORDON, LORD BYRON.

GEORGE GORDON, LORD BYRON.

George Gordon , the only son of Captain John Byron, by his second wife, Miss Gordon, of Gight, and grandson of the celebrated Admiral Byron, was born in Holles Street, London, on the 22d of January, 1788. His ancestry, of which he is said to have been more proud than of having been the author of Childe Harold and Manfred, was composed of persons of distinction, but possessing much of that daring recklessness of character which so early displayed itself in the subject of our memoir. His great unc

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PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY.

PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY.

Percy Bysshe Shelley , eldest son of Sir Timothy Shelley, Baronet, of Castle Goring, Sussex, was born in that county, on the 4th of August, 1792. At the age of thirteen he was sent to Eton, where he was distinguished from his schoolfellows by a melancholy and reserved disposition, and an abstinence from every amusement natural to youth. He soon began to develop a rigid, unconventional tenacity of character, in relation to what he deemed the reason and justice of things, and he was in consequence

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OLIVER GOLDSMITH.

OLIVER GOLDSMITH.

Oliver Goldsmith , the son of a clergyman, was, according to some writers, born in 1729, at Elphin, in Roscommon, Ireland; but, according to the inscription on his monument, at Fernes, in the province of Leinster, on the 29th of November, 1731. After having acquired the rudiments of education at a private school, he was, in June, 1744, admitted a sizer of Trinity College, Dublin, where he graduated B. A., in 1749, but did not display remarkable abilities in the course of his academical studies.

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EDWARD GIBBON.

EDWARD GIBBON.

This celebrated historian, the son of a gentleman who for some time represented the borough of Petersfield in parliament, was born at Putney, on the 27th of April, 1737. After having received the elements of instruction at a day school, and under a private tutor, he was, in 1746, sent to an academy at Kingston-upon-Thames; and from thence, in 1748, to Westminster, where he entered the school, and resided in a boarding-house kept by his aunt. His delicate health soon occasioned his removal from W

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DAVID HUME.

DAVID HUME.

This celebrated historian was born at Edinburgh, on the 26th of April, 1711. He was of a good family, both by father and mother, and the former dying whilst he was an infant, he was brought up under the care of his mother, whom he describes as a women of singular merit. A passion for literature took possession of him at a very early period of his education, and, in consequence of his sobriety and studious disposition, he was destined by his family for the law; but ‘while they fancied,’ he says i

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ALEXANDER POPE.

ALEXANDER POPE.

Alexander Pope was born in Lombard Street, London, of Roman Catholic parents, on the 22d of May, 1688. He was according to Johnson, more willing to show what his father was not, than what he was; but his principal biographers make him the son of a linen-draper, who had grown rich enough to retire from business to Binfield, near Windsor. Alexander was deformed from his birth, and of so delicate a constitution, and such weakness of body, that he constantly wore stays; and when taking the air on th

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JOHN ADAMS.

JOHN ADAMS.

John Adams , a distinguished patriot of the revolution, was born at Braintree, Massachusetts, October 19, 1735. The ancestors of Mr. A. had left England for the wilds of America, in order to enjoy their religious opinions unmolested. They were among the first settlers of Massachusetts, Henry Adams, the great-great-grandfather of John, and one of the original proprietors of the town of Braintree, having fled from England, with other Puritans, in the year 1630. Their condition was that of substant

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THOMAS JEFFERSON.

THOMAS JEFFERSON.

Thomas Jefferson , the third President of the United States of America, was born April 2, (old style,) 1743, at Shadwell, in Albemarle County, Virginia, and was the eldest of eight children. His father, though his education had been entirely neglected in early life, being a man of strong mind, acquired, by subsequent study, considerable information. He died when the subject of our sketch was about twelve years old, having previously given him every means of knowledge that could be procured, and

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SAMUEL ADAMS.

SAMUEL ADAMS.

Samuel Adams was one of the most remarkable men connected with the American revolution. He was descended from a family that had been among the early planters of New England, was born in Boston, September 27, 1722, was educated at Harvard college, and received its honors in 1740. When he took the degree of master, in 1743, he proposed the following question: ‘Whether it be lawful to resist the supreme magistrate, if the commonwealth cannot be otherwise preserved?’ He maintained the affirmative, a

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JAMES OTIS.

JAMES OTIS.

James Otis , a distinguished American patriot, was born February 5, 1724–5, at Great Marshes, in what is now called West Barnstable, Mass. His family was one of the most respectable in the colony, and of English origin. In June, 1739, he entered Cambridge college. The first two years of his collegiate course are said to have been given more to amusement than to study, his natural disposition being vivacious and ardent; but subsequently he was distinguished for his application and proficiency. Af

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FISHER AMES.

FISHER AMES.

Fisher Ames , one of the most eloquent of American statesman and writers, was born at Dedham, in Massachusetts, April 9th, 1758, of very respectable parents. Soon after the completion of his 12th year, he was admitted to Harvard college, with the reputation of uncommon talents and attainments. Diligence, regularity and success marked his collegiate course of four years. After receiving his degree, in 1774, the narrow circumstances of his widowed mother compelled him to postpone, for several year

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COLONEL AARON BURR.

COLONEL AARON BURR.

Colonel Aaron Burr was born on the 6th of February 1756, at Newark, in New Jersey. His father, the Rev. Aaron Burr, was the first president of the College of New Jersey, which was opened at Newark, but was subsequently removed to Princeton; his mother was the daughter of the Rev. Jonathan Edwards, so distinguished as a metaphysician and divine, and who succeeded his son-in-law in the presidency of the College. The former died in 1757, and the latter in the following year, leaving only two childr

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ALEXANDER HAMILTON.

ALEXANDER HAMILTON.

Alexander Hamilton was born in 1757, in the island of Nevis. His father was a native of England, and his mother of the island. At the age of 16, he became a student of Columbia college, his mother having emigrated to New York. He had not been in that institution more than a year, before he gave a brilliant manifestation of the powers of his mind in the discussion concerning the rights of the colonies. In support of these he published several essays, which were marked by such vigor and maturity o

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PATRICK HENRY.

PATRICK HENRY.

Patrick Henry , the second son of John and Sarah Henry, and one of nine children, was born May 29, 1736, in the county of Hanover and colony of Virginia. Until ten years of age, Patrick Henry was sent to a school in the neighborhood, where he learned to read and write, and made some small progress in arithmetic. He was then taken home, and, under the direction of his father, who had opened a grammar school in his own house, he acquired a superficial knowledge of the Latin language. At the same t

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JOHN HANCOCK.

JOHN HANCOCK.

John Hancock , was born at Quincy, near Boston, and was the son and grandson of an eminent clergyman, but, having early lost his father, was indebted for his liberal education to his uncle, a merchant of great wealth and respectability, who sent him to Harvard university, where he was graduated in 1754. He was then placed in the counting-house of his benefactor, and not long afterwards visited England, where he was present at the coronation of George III , as little prescient as the monarch hims

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ETHAN ALLEN.

ETHAN ALLEN.

Ethan Allen , a brigadier-general in the American revolutionary army, was born in Salisbury, Connecticut, but was educated principally in Vermont, to which state his parents emigrated whilst he was yet young. His education was of a limited character. In the disturbances which agitated Vermont, he took an active part against the royal authority, in favor of the Green mountain boys , the name by which the settlers in that territory were designated. In 1775, soon after the battle of Lexington, in c

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BENEDICT ARNOLD.

BENEDICT ARNOLD.

Benedict Arnold was one of the most distinguished generals in the American army during the earlier part of the contest of the colonies with Great Britain, and subsequently infamous as a traitor to his country, was born in Connecticut, of obscure parentage, and received an education suitable to an humble condition. The occupations of his youth were not fitted to prepare him for the functions which he was called upon to exercise in the sequel. At first a dealer in horses, he sustained losses in hi

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HORATIO GATES.

HORATIO GATES.

Horatio Gates was born in England, in 1728. He early embraced the career of arms, and rose to the rank of major by the force of merit alone. At the capture of Martinico, he was to aid general Monkton, and, after the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, was stationed at Halifax in Nova Scotia. Seven years afterwards, he was again called into active life, by the breaking out of a new war, and was with Braddock when that unfortunate commander was defeated, in 1755. In consequence of a severe wound which he re

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THADDEUS KOSCIUSKO.

THADDEUS KOSCIUSKO.

Thaddeus Kosciusko , the last generalissimo of the republic of Poland, one of the noblest characters of his age, was descended from an ancient and noble, though not rich family, in Lithuania, aad was born in 1756. He was educated in the military school at Warsaw. The prince Adam Czartoriski, perceiving his talents and industry, made him second lieutenant in the corps of cadets, and sent him, at his own expense, to France, where he studied drawing and the military art. After his return, he was ma

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NATHANIEL GREENE.

NATHANIEL GREENE.

Nathaniel Greene , a major-general in the American army, was born, May 22, 1742, near the town of Warwick in Rhode Island. His father was an anchor smith, and, at the same time, a Quaker preacher, whose ignorance, combined with the fanaticism of the times, made him pay little attention to the worldly learning of his children, though he was very careful of their moral and religious instruction. The fondness for knowledge, however, of young Greene was such, that he devoted all the time he could sp

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FREDERIC WILLIAM AUGUSTUS STEUBEN.

FREDERIC WILLIAM AUGUSTUS STEUBEN.

Baron von Frederic William Augustus Steuben ; a distinguished Prussian officer, who attached himself to the American cause in the revolution of 1776. He had been aid-de-camp to Frederic the Great, and had attained the rank of lieutenant-general in his army. Sacrificing his honors and emoluments in Europe, Steuben came to America in 1777, and tendered his services to congress, as a volunteer in their army, without claiming any rank or compensation. He received the thanks of that body, and joined

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BARON DE KALB.

BARON DE KALB.

Baron De Kalb , a major-general in the American army, was born in Germany, about the year 1717. When young, he entered into the service of France, in which he continued for 42 years, and obtained the rank of brigadier-general. In 1757, during the war between England and France, he was sent, by the French government, to the American colonies, in order to learn the points in which they were most vulnerable, and how far the seeds of discontent might be sown in them towards the mother country. He wa

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RICHARD MONTGOMERY.

RICHARD MONTGOMERY.

Richard Montgomery , a major-general in the army of the U. States, was born in 1737, in the north of Ireland. He embraced the profession of arms, and served under Wolfe, at Quebec, in 1759; but, on his return to England, he left his regiment, although his prospects for promotion were fair. He then removed to America, for which country he entertained a deep affection; he purchased an estate in New York, about 100 miles from the city, and married a daughter of judge Livingston. His feelings in fav

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GILBERT MOTIER LAFAYETTE.

GILBERT MOTIER LAFAYETTE.

Gilbert Motier Lafayette , (formerly marquis de,) was born at Chavagnac, near Brioude, in Auvergne, Sept. 6, 1757, was educated in the college of Louis le Grand, in Paris, placed at court as an officer in one of the guards of honor, and, at the age of 17, was married to the granddaughter of the duke de Noailles. It was under these circumstances that the young marquis de Lafayette entered upon a career so little to be expected of a youth of vast fortune, of high rank, of powerful connections, at

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ISRAEL PUTNAM.

ISRAEL PUTNAM.

Israel Putnam , a distinguished soldier in the French and English wars, and subsequently in that of the revolution, was born of English parents, at Salem, in the then province of Massachusetts, Jan. 7th, 1718. Being intended for a farmer, he received only a common education. He had a strong mind, vigorous constitution, great bodily strength, enterprise and activity, excelled in athletic exercises, and, while a stripling, was ambitious of performing the full labor of manhood. He married very youn

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STEPHEN DECATUR.

STEPHEN DECATUR.

Stephen Decatur , a celebrated American naval officer, was born January 5, 1779, on the eastern shore of Maryland, whither his parents had retired while the British were in Philadelphia. He entered the American navy in March, 1798, and was soon promoted to the rank of first lieutenant. While at Syracuse, attached to the squadron of commodore Preble, he was first informed of the fate of the American frigate Philadelphia, which, in pursuing a Tripolitan corsair, ran on a rock about four and a half

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COMMODORE ISAAC HULL.

COMMODORE ISAAC HULL.

Commodore Isaac Hull , was born in Connecticut, March 9th 1775. His father was an officer in the American army during the whole of the revolutionary war, and was detained for a long time a prisoner in the Jersey prison-ship. Commodore Hull’s passion for the sea was very early displayed, and became stronger as he grew up. With the hope of diverting his attention to other pursuits, he was sent by his friends to his uncle, General William Hull, at Boston, where he went to school. The object desired

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OLIVER HAZARD PERRY.

OLIVER HAZARD PERRY.

Oliver Hazard Perry , a distinguished American naval officer, was born at Newport, Rhode Island, in August, 1785. His father was an officer in the United States navy, and he was early destined to follow his father’s profession. In 1798, he entered the service as a midshipman on board the sloop of war General Greene, then commanded by his father; and, when that vessel went out of commission, he was transferred to a squadron destined to the Mediterranean. He served during the Tripolitan war, and,

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JOHN MARSHALL.

JOHN MARSHALL.

John Marshall , Chief Justice of the United States, was born in Fauquier county, Virginia, on the 24th of September 1755. He was the son of Colonel Thomas Marshall, a planter of a moderate fortune, who afterwards served with distinction in the American army, during the war of the Revolution; and he was the eldest of 15 children. Colonel Marshall had removed with his family to a place called ‘The Hollow’ in the mountains east of the Blue Ridge, and, from the want of schools in that neighborhood,

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JOHN PAUL JONES.

JOHN PAUL JONES.

PAUL JONES. John Paul Jones was born at Arbingland, in Scotland, July 6th 1747. His father was a gardener, whose name was Paul ; but the son assumed that of Jones in subsequent life, for what reason is not known. Young Paul early evinced a decided predilection for the sea, and, at the age of 12, was bound apprentice to a respectable merchant of Whitehaven, in the American trade. His first voyage was to America, where his elder brother was established as a planter. He was then engaged for some ti

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GENERAL ANDREW JACKSON.

GENERAL ANDREW JACKSON.

General Andrew Jackson was born on the 15th of March, 1767, at the Waxsaw settlement, in South Carolina. His parents emigrated to this country, two years previously, from the north of Ireland. He lost his father at a very early age; and the task of bringing him up devolved exclusively upon his mother. Intending him, it is said, to become a clergyman, she resolved, though restricted in her pecuniary circumstances, to give him a liberal education. For this purpose, she placed him at an academy, wh

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WINFIELD SCOTT

WINFIELD SCOTT

Winfield Scott , commander-in-chief of the American army, was born June 13, 1786, near Petersburg, Virginia. He is descended from a Scotch family, who were obliged to take refuge in America after the rebellion of 1745. After completing his preparatory education, he spent a year or two at William and Mary college, and afterward studied the law, and was admitted to the bar in 1806. In the autumn of 1807, he emigrated to South Carolina, intending to practice his profession at Charleston, but meetin

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ZACHARY TAYLOR.

ZACHARY TAYLOR.

Zachary Taylor was born in Orange County, Virginia, in November, 1784. He was the second son of Col. Richard Taylor, whose ancestors emigrated from England about two centuries ago, and settled in Eastern Virginia. The father, distinguished alike for patriotism and valor, served as colonel in the revolutionary war, and took part in many important engagements. About 1790 he left his Virginian farm, and emigrated with his family to Kentucky. He settled in the ‘dark and bloody ground,’ and for years

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JOHN E. WOOL.

JOHN E. WOOL.

John E. Wool , a distinguished American general, was born in Newburgh, New York, in 1789. He received but a scanty education, and passed the greater part of his youth in the store of a merchant at Troy, in the situation of clerk. He afterwards commenced the study of law, but at the end of a year he gave up the idea of following this profession, and, war having been declared with Great Britain, he procured a captain’s commission in a regiment of infantry, and joined the forces under General Van R

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DANIEL WEBSTER.

DANIEL WEBSTER.

Daniel Webster was born in the town of Salisbury, New Hampshire, January 18, 1782. His father, Major Ebenezer Webster, was one of the pioneers of the settlement in that quarter. He served with credit in the old French war, and also in the war of the revolution, especially under Stark, at Bennington. Major Webster established himself in a newly-granted township at the confluence of the Winnipisiogee and Pemigewasset, after the peace of 1763. In this region, then lying almost in a state of nature,

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HENRY CLAY.

HENRY CLAY.

Henry Clay was born April 12, 1777, in Hanover county, Virginia. His father was a Baptist clergyman, of small means, who died when his son was only five years of age. He was one of a large family of children, who were left under the care of their mother—a firm-minded and truly excellent woman. Henry’s early advantages consisted in the privilege of attending a common country Virginia school; and such were the circumstances of the widow, that thus early, he was obliged to contribute to the suppor

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HON. JUDGE WOODBURY.

HON. JUDGE WOODBURY.

The subject of the accompanying likeness is one, perhaps, as well known to the people of this country as any name engraven upon its political scroll. His long public service has been such as to keep him prominently before the public eye for forty years, during which period he has sustained an unsullied reputation, and has commanded the respect and a large share of the confidence of all parties. Mr. Woodbury graduated at Dartmouth College in 1809, and immediately applied himself to the study of t

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HON. ROBERT RANTOUL, JR.

HON. ROBERT RANTOUL, JR.

We can give no better sketch of Mr. Rantoul’s life than to quote from Hon. Charles Sumner’s eulogy pronounced in congress. He was born August 13th, 1805, at Beverly, in the county of Essex, the home of Nathan Dane. Here under happy auspices of family and neighborhood, he commenced life. His excellent father, honored for his public services, venerable also in years and flowing silver locks, yet lives to mourn his last surviving son. The sad fortune of Burke is renewed. He who should have been as

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FRANKLIN PIERCE.

FRANKLIN PIERCE.

Franklin Pierce , president of the United States, is the son of Benjamin Pierce, who rose to the rank of brigade-major in the American army during the revolutionary war, and held several political offices in the state of New Hampshire. Franklin Pierce was born in the western part of that state, in the town of Hillsborough in 1804, and after completing his academical studies, entered Bowdoin college, Maine. Immediately on leaving college he commenced his legal studies with Judge Howe, of Northamp

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SAMUEL FINLEY BREESE MORSE.

SAMUEL FINLEY BREESE MORSE.

Samuel Finley Breese Morse , an American artist, better known, perhaps, as the inventor of the electric telegraph, is the eldest son of the Rev. Jedediah Morse, the first American geographer, and was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, April 27, 1791. He was educated at Yale College, where he graduated in 1810. He had from a very early age determined to be a painter; and his father finding his passion for art incorrigible, consented to indulge him in his wishes; and he accordingly sailed for Eng

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M. DAGUERRE.

M. DAGUERRE.

This far-famed Frenchman, who has given his name to the art which he first discovered, the Daguerreotype, died not long since, at his residence, near Paris. The likeness which we present herewith, is from an original, taken after his own style and invention, and is necessarily correct. It would be superfluous for us to enlarge upon the merits of an art so familiar to all. Daguerre was an artist, a painter, and also possessed considerable chemical talent and taste; and it was while experimenting

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OMAR PASHA.

OMAR PASHA.

Omar Pasha who commands the Turkish army, is an Austrian subject, and a native of Coroalia. He was born in 1801, at Vaski, a village situated in the circle of Ogulina, thirteen leagues from Fiume. His family name is Lattas. His father was lieutenant-administrator of the circle; his uncle was a priest of the United Greek Church. Admitted, when very young, into the School of Mathematics of Thurm, near Carlstadt, in Transylvania, after having completed his studies with distinction, the young Lattas

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EDWARD EVERETT.

EDWARD EVERETT.

Edward Everett , an American orator, scholar, and diplomatist, was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts, in April 1794. His father was a respectable clergyman in Boston; and his elder brother was minister at the court of Spain. He received his early education at Boston, and entered Harvard college when little more than thirteen years old, leaving it with first honors four years later, undecided as to a pursuit for life. He turned his attention for two years to the profession of divinity; but, in 18

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WASHINGTON IRVING.

WASHINGTON IRVING.

Washington Irving was born in the city of New York, April 3, 1783, in which place his father, William Irving, had been settled as a merchant some twenty years. After receiving an ordinary school education, at the age of sixteen, he commenced the study of the law. Three years later he contributed, under the signature of Jonathan Oldstyle, a series of letters to the ‘Morning Chronicle,’ a newspaper of which his brother, Peter Irving, was editor. These juvenile essays attracted much notice at the t

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WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT.

WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT.

William Cullen Bryant , an American journalist and poet, was born at Cummington, Hampshire county, Massachusetts, November 3d , 1794. His forefathers, for three generations, were medical men; but this family penchant for physic did not exist, apparently, in the case of our poet, who changed the professional current by becoming a lawyer. For ten years he followed the tortuous course of legal practice, but at last gave it up for the more genial profession of literature. In 1808, Mr. Bryant publish

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GEORGE BANCROFT.

GEORGE BANCROFT.

George Bancroft , the distinguished American author and historian, was born at Worcester, Massachusetts, in the year of 1800. His father, who was himself an author and a doctor of divinity, gave to his son’s mind the bent and disposition which in after-years conducted him to celebrity, position, and power. Not yet seventeen, Mr. Bancroft graduated at Harvard college, with honors, and soon entered upon a course of literary pursuits, having as their ultimate end the profession of a historian. In 1

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WILLIAM HICKLING PRESCOTT.

WILLIAM HICKLING PRESCOTT.

William Hickling Prescott , an eminent American historian, was born in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1796, the son of an able lawyer, and grandson of that Prescott who commanded our troops at Bunker’s Hill. When he was twelve years of age his family removed to Boston, where Prescott has since resided, and where his classical training, begun in the place of his birth, was continued with success by Dr. Gardiner, a pupil of Dr. Parr. In 1811 he entered Harvard college, and was graduated there in 1814, w

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HIRAM POWERS.

HIRAM POWERS.

Hiram Powers , sculptor, was born in Woodstock, Vermont, July 29, 1805. He was the eighth child of a family of nine, and his parents were plain country people, who cultivated a little farm. He acquired such education as the district school afforded, and he also found leisure to get some knowledge of divers kinds of handicraft, among which was the art of drawing. His father finding it difficult to maintain his family upon his farm removed to Ohio, where he shortly after died, and the future artis

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DEPARTMENT OF TRAVEL.

DEPARTMENT OF TRAVEL.

From the semi-barbarous epoch of the middle ages to the present century, which has seen the birth of steam navigation, the form and rig of vessels have undergone many modifications. We are about to give a rapid historical sketch of these, quoting, as far as possible, those types of naval architecture celebrated in preceding centuries. Still, we are hardly permitted to go back farther than the ninth century, where we find some certain ideas respecting the Scandinavian vessels. Before this period

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HISTORICAL SKETCH OF NAVAL ARCHITECTURE.

HISTORICAL SKETCH OF NAVAL ARCHITECTURE.

Never was one seen larger, finer, or more imposing in bulk and decoration. She had thirty-four oars on each side. If the tradition is accurate, she must have been as long as the galleys of the sixteenth century. It was, it will be seen, a vessel of considerable importance; for galleys with twenty-six oars only were about one hundred and thirty feet long. The dragons were built to resist a sea more stormy than the Mediterranean. Consequently they had broad sides and a vast stern, so as to have a

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EARLY MARITIME DISCOVERIES.

EARLY MARITIME DISCOVERIES.

The Portuguese were among the first to signalize themselves in the career of geographical discovery. At the beginning of the fifteenth century, Prince Henry, son of John I, was at the head of the marine of Portugal. Under his immediate direction, several voyages were undertaken to the coast of Africa; in one of which the voyagers were driven by a storm out of their usual course along shore, and for the first time the terrified mariners found themselves in the boundless ocean. When the storm abat

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CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.

CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.

Christopher Columbo or Colon , better known by his Latinized name of Columbus, was born at Genoa about the year 1436. His father was a woolcomber, in not very affluent circumstances; although connected, according to some accounts, with persons of superior rank. Columbus was the eldest of a family of four. His two brothers, Bartholomew and Diego, will afterwards be mentioned in connection with his discoveries; his sister married an obscure person of the name of Bavarello. Of the early life of Col

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MAGELLAN—FIRST VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD.

MAGELLAN—FIRST VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD.

Ferdinand Magellan was by birth a Portuguese, decended from a good family, and born towards the end of the fifteenth century. In consequence of certain services in the Indian Seas, he applied to the government for some recompense; but being treated with neglect, he left his own country to seek employment in a foreign land. In company with Ruy Falero, an eminent astronomer, and one of his associates, he traveled into Spain, and explained to Charles V , the reigning monarch, his project of making

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SIR FRANCIS DRAKE.

SIR FRANCIS DRAKE.

Mr. Drake was first apprenticed to the master of a small vessel trading to France and Zealand; at the age of eighteen he went purser of a ship to the Bay of Biscay, and at twenty made a voyage to the coast of Guinea. Having obtained Queen Elizabeth’s permission for an expedition against the Spaniards, five ships were fitted out, having on board 164 able men and a large quantity of provisions. This fleet sailed out of Plymouth Sound on the 5th of November, 1577; but meeting with a violent storm,

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HENRY HUDSON.

HENRY HUDSON.

The distinguished English naval discoverer, Henry Hudson , sailed from London in the year 1607, in a small vessel, for the purpose of discovering a north-east passage to China and Japan, with a crew of only ten men and a boy besides himself, and, proceeding beyond the 80th degree of latitude, returned to England in September. In a second voyage, the next year, he landed at Nova Zembla, but could proceed no farther eastward. In 1609, he undertook a third voyage, under the patronage of the Dutch E

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LE MAIRE AND SCHOUTEN—FIRST VOYAGE ROUND CAPE HORN.

LE MAIRE AND SCHOUTEN—FIRST VOYAGE ROUND CAPE HORN.

A belief that to the south of the strait of Magellan there would be found an open sea, or some other passage leading to the South Sea, had many years been gaining ground, when a company of Dutch merchants determined to make the experiment, which, if successful, would open to them, as they belived, the trade to India, by a new, instead of an interdicted passage, which the strait of Magellan then was. Jacob le Maire was appointed principal merchant, and president of the ships; and Wilhelm Schouten

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VOYAGE OF CAPTAIN JAMES, FOR THE DISCOVERY OF A NORTH-WEST PASSAGE.

VOYAGE OF CAPTAIN JAMES, FOR THE DISCOVERY OF A NORTH-WEST PASSAGE.

In the year 1630, several wealthy merchants of Bristol united in fitting out a vessel for the purpose of accurately examining the whole northern coast of America. The command of this vessel, which was small, only of seventy tons burden, but one of the strongest ships of her size that had ever been built, was given to Captain James. She was provisioned for eighteen months, and manned with only twenty-two seamen, but these were all excellent sailors. His stores having been all shipped, and the men

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DAMPIER.

DAMPIER.

William Dampier was born in Somersetshire, England, in the year 1652. He lost both his parents when very young, and was bound apprentice to the master of a ship at Weymouth, with whom he made a voyage to France and another to New England. In 1673, he served in the Dutch war, and was afterwards an overseer to a plantation in Jamaica. He next visited the bay of Campeachy as a logwood cutter, and, after once more visiting England, engaged in a band of Buccaneers, as they called themselves, although

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CAPTAIN WOODES ROGERS.

CAPTAIN WOODES ROGERS.

This voyage was undertaken chiefly by the merchants of Bristol, England. Captain Woodes Rogers was appointed commander in chief, and William Dampier first pilot of the expedition. They sailed from Kingroad, Bristol, on the 1st of August, 1708, their force consisting of the Duke, a ship of three hundred tons burden, thirty guns, and one hundred and seventy men, commanded by Rogers; and the Duchess of two hundred and seventy tons, twenty-six guns, and one hundred and fifty-one men, under the comma

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CAPTAIN JOHN CLIPPERTON.

CAPTAIN JOHN CLIPPERTON.

About the beginning of the year 1718, some English merchants, foreseeing war between England and Spain, resolved to fit out two ships for the South Seas. Two ships were accordingly provided, one called the Success, the other the Speedwell. The command of the former was given to captain Clipperton, and captain Shelvock was appointed to command the latter. They sailed from Plymouth on the 13th of February 1719, with a fair wind; but the whole stock of wine, brandy and other liquors, for the use of

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COMMODORE ANSON.

COMMODORE ANSON.

The expedition under Commodore Anson was fitted out by the English government in the year 1740, to attack the Spanish settlements in America. The squadron consisted of six vessels of war, and two victuallers. These were the On the 18th of September, 1740, the squadron weighed from St. Helens, and reached Madeira the 25th of October. Having sailed hence, they discovered the land of Brazil, on the 16th of December, and on the evening of the 19th cast anchor at the island of St. Catherines. Having

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BYRON.

BYRON.

In the year 1764, the Dolphin and Tamar, English ships-of-war, were fitted out for the purpose of prosecuting discoveries in the South Seas. Byron was commander-in-chief, and Captain Mouat commander under him. On the 3d of July, the commodore hoisted his broad-pendant, and they sailed in prosecution of the voyage. On the 13th of September they came to an anchor in the road of Rio de Janeiro, on the coast of Brazil, when the commodore paid a visit to the governor, who received him in state. They

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CAPT. WALLIS.

CAPT. WALLIS.

In 1766, Capt. Wallis, of London, having been appointed to command the ship Dolphin, destined for a voyage round the world, received orders to take under his command the Swallow sloop, and Prince Frederick store-ship. They sailed on the 22d of August, and, on the 7th of September, came to anchor in the road of Maderia. On the 12th, they sailed thence, and by the 12th of November, were in 30 degrees of south latitude, when they found the weather so cold as to have recourse to their thick jackets.

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DE BOUGAINVILLE.

DE BOUGAINVILLE.

A settlement having been commenced by the French on Falkland’s Islands, in the month of February, 1764, the Spaniards demanded them as an appendage to the continent of South America; and France having allowed the propriety of the demand, Mons. de Bougainville was ordered to yield possession of the islands to the Spaniards. On the 5th of December he sailed from the harbor of Brest, in the frigate La Boudeuse, having on board the Prince of Nassau Seighen, three gentlemen who went as volunteers, el

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CAPTAIN JAMES COOK.

CAPTAIN JAMES COOK.

James Cook was born in a mud hut at Marton, in the north riding of Yorkshire, 27th October 1728. His father was an agricultural servant, who, with his wife, bore a most unexceptionable character for honesty and industry. The village school-mistress taught the boy to read; but at eight years of age his father, through his good conduct, was appointed to be bailiff of a farm near Great Ayton, belonging to Thomas Skottowe, Esq. , who at his own expense put James to a day-school in that town, where h

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CAPTAINS PORTLOCK AND DIXON.

CAPTAINS PORTLOCK AND DIXON.

This voyage was undertaken for the purposes of commerce; principally, indeed, for the fur-trade, on the north-west coast of America, which had been strongly recommended by Captains Cook and King in their last voyage. Two vessels were fitted out for this purpose, the King George and Queen Charlotte, by a society of merchants and others, the former commanded by Nathaniel Portlock, the latter by George Dixon, both of whom had been with Captain Cook; the King George having sixty men, the Queen Charl

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MONSIEUR DE LA PEROUSE.

MONSIEUR DE LA PEROUSE.

France becoming jealous of the renown acquired by the English circumnavigators, determined to send out an expedition, which, in its scientific equipments, should vie with them in every respect. Two ships were appointed to this service, the Boussole and Astrolabe, the former commanded by La Perouse, the latter by M. de Langle, both captains in the navy, and men of considerable attainments, besides being assisted by men of science and artists. The voyage is interesting as far as it goes; but, unfo

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GEORGE VANCOUVER.

GEORGE VANCOUVER.

George Vancouver , born about the year 1750, accompanied captain Cook in his second voyage round the world, and, on his return, went out with him in the Discovery, to the north pole, and arrived again in England in 1780. In the latter end of the last mentioned year, he was appointed a lieutenant of the ship Fame, part of lord Rodney’s fleet, then on its way to the West Indies, where he remained till 1789, being employed, during the last six years, on the Jamaica station, in the sloop Europa. On

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CAPTAIN D’ENTRECASTEAUX.

CAPTAIN D’ENTRECASTEAUX.

On September 28th, 1791, in the two sloops, La Recherche and L’Esperance, of sixteen guns, and one hundred and ten men each, they weighed from the harbor of Brest, completely equipped for a voyage of circumnavigating the globe. The conduct of the expedition was assigned to Captain D’Entrecasteaux. The leading object of the voyage was to endeavor to procure intelligence relative to Captain La Perouse, who had long been missing in the South Seas, and to make a complete tour of New Holland; an isla

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PARRY’S VOYAGES FOR THE DISCOVERY OF THE NORTH WEST PASSAGE.

PARRY’S VOYAGES FOR THE DISCOVERY OF THE NORTH WEST PASSAGE.

FIRST VOYAGE. On the 16th of January, 1819, Lieutenant Parry was appointed to the command of his Majesty’s ship Hecla, a bomb of three hundred and seventy-five tons; and the Griper, gun brig, one hundred and eighty tons, commissioned by Lieutenant Matthew Liddon, was at the same time directed to put herself under his orders. The object of the expedition was to discover a north west passage into the Pacific. Every individual engaged in the expedition was to receive double pay. They took in provis

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SIR JOHN FRANKLIN.

SIR JOHN FRANKLIN.

This intrepid navigator was born at Spilsby, in Lincolnshire, in the year 1786. In 1800, he went as a midshipman, on board the Polyphemus; and, in 1802, proceeded with Captain Flinders, to New Holland, in the Investigator, from which vessel, on its arrival at Port Jackson, in July, 1803, he was removed, as supernumerary master’s-mate, to the Porpoise storeship, and was shortly afterwards wrecked on a coral reef. He then joined the Bellerophon, in which he was engaged at the battle of Trafalgar;

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TRAVELS IN AFRICA.—PARK, DENHAM, CLAPPERTON, LANDER, AND OTHERS.

TRAVELS IN AFRICA.—PARK, DENHAM, CLAPPERTON, LANDER, AND OTHERS.

The vast continent of Africa, measuring 5000 miles in length, and about 4700 in its greatest breadth, and the area of which is calculated at 12,000,000 square miles, or nearly one-fourth of the entire land area of the globe, has presented greater obstacles to human enterprise than any other equal portion of the earth’s surface. The peculiar physical condition of Africa has operated as one cause of her isolation from the rest of the world. The other portions of our earth situated under the tropic

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SAMUEL HEARNE.

SAMUEL HEARNE.

Samuel Hearne was born in London, in 1745, and, at the age of eleven, embarked on board a vessel under the command of Captain (afterwards Lord) Hood; with whom he was engaged in many successful victories against the French, and acquired the right to a considerable share of prize-money, which he requested might be transmitted to his mother, who ‘would know better than himself how to dispose of it.’ At the termination of the war, seeing little chance of his advancement in the king’s navy, he quitt

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JOHN LEWIS BURCKHARDT.

JOHN LEWIS BURCKHARDT.

John Lewis Burckhardt , descended from an eminent family in Switzerland, was born at Lausanne, about the year 1785. He received the rudiments of his education at a school at Neufchatel, and completed his studies at the universities of Leipsic and Gottingen. At the latter, he recommended himself, by his talents and general good conduct, to the favorable notice of the celebrated Blumenbach, who gave him a letter of introduction to Sir Joseph Banks, upon whom Burckhardt called, on his arrival in Lo

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JAMES BRUCE.

JAMES BRUCE.

James Bruce was born at Kinnaird, near Falkirk, in Stirlingshire, on the 14th of December, 1730, and, in 1738, was placed under the care of his uncle, a barrister in London, who sent him, in January, 1742, to school, at Harrow. Here he so successfully prosecuted his studies, that Dr. Cox, the head-master, said of him, in a letter to a friend, ‘When you write to Mr. Bruce’s father about his son, you cannot say too much; for he is as promising a young man as ever I had under my care; and, for his

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JOHN LEDYARD.

JOHN LEDYARD.

John Ledyard was born about 1750, at Groton, Mass., and after having received a good education, and passed some time among the Indians of America, for the purpose of studying their manners, went to Europe about the year 1776, and made the tour of the world with Captain Cook, as corporal of a troop of marines. On his return to England in 1780, he formed the design of penetrating from the north-western to the eastern coast of America; and, after some conversation on the subject with Sir Joseph Ban

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JOHN BAPTIST BELZONI.

JOHN BAPTIST BELZONI.

John Baptist Belzoni was born about 1780, at Padua, in Italy, and passed the greater part of his youth at Rome, where he was preparing himself to become a monk, when, he observes, ‘the sudden entry of the French into that city, altered the course of my education, and being destined to travel, I have been a wanderer ever since.’ In 1803, he visited England and married; when, having but scanty means of subsistence, he went to Scotland and Ireland, and exhibited, at various theatres, a series of ex

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GEORGE FORSTER.

GEORGE FORSTER.

George Forster , born some time about the year 1750, went out as a writer in the service of the East India Company to Madras, whence, in 1782, he set out on his return to England, by way of Persia and Russia. Embarking on the Ganges, towards the latter end of June, he proceeded through Rajmahal, Monghee, and Patna, to Benares, where he spent three months in familiarity with the Hindoos, and in endeavoring to discover the origin of the Brahmin theology. After making an excursion to the fort of Bi

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EDWARD DANIEL CLARKE.

EDWARD DANIEL CLARKE.

This distinguished traveler and antiquarian, son of the Rev. Edward Clarke, was born at Willingdon, in the county of Sussex, on the 5th of June 1769. Whilst very young, he gave proofs of a roving disposition, and of a fondness for natural history and chemistry, and many amusing anecdotes are related of his conduct under the influence of these predilections. He received the rudiments of education at an academy in the village of Uckfield; and, in 1779, was sent to the grammar school at Tunbridge,

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RICHARD POCOCKE.

RICHARD POCOCKE.

Richard Pocoke was born at Southampton, some time in the year 1704. After having received a classical education, and acquired a knowledge of several oriental languages, he, in August, 1733–4, about which time he took the degree of LL. D. , visited France and Italy; and in 1736, he set out on an expedition to the east. He reached Alexandria in September, 1737, and proceeded thence to Rosetta, where he visited Cosmas, the Greek patriarch, and observed the veneration of the people for ‘two of those

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OVERLAND JOURNEY TO INDIA.

OVERLAND JOURNEY TO INDIA.

The following description of the route from England to India was drawn up by Dr. Buist, of the Bombay Times: The only way, not many years ago, of reaching India from England, was by sailing vessels, which, touching at St. Helena or the Cape of Good Hope, made the voyage in about four months. Now, the journey is usually performed partly by sea, and partly by land, in from thirty-five to forty days. This overland journey, as it is called, admits of variation. Some travel across France to Marseille

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