LATE PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH LITERATURE IN THE STATE NORMAL "" "Literature is the immortality of speech." PHILADELPHIA · CHRISTOPHER SOWER COMPANY, No. 614 ARCH STREET. 2763 PREFACE. one. NE of the demands of the present day is "thin Most subjects are too extensive to be mastered in all their details in the time that can be devoted to them in a preparatory course of study. What is required is a thorough knowledge of a few fundamental facts and principles in each branch, as a basis for future attainments. Hence the demand for small books, in which these facts and principles are given in clear and definite statements, unencumbered by unessential details. The present work is intended to conform to this requirement. It aims to give just such and so much literary information as is indispensable to the learner; to show the growth of our literature through its various eras; to present a concise view of the lives and characters of its great representative authors; and to bring forth from the thought-treasures of our language a variety of literary gems for the enrichment of the mind of the student. The plan of the work is entirely new. Most works on literature are suited to impart knowledge only; this is calculated to impart both knowledge and culture-knowledge by its historic facts, culture by its philosophical development and its illustrative |