Essays in Historical Criticism

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Essays in Historical Criticism (1901)
by Edward Gaylord Bourne

Contains a revised version of "The Legend of Marcus Whitman" (previously published in The American Historical Review)

2497286Essays in Historical Criticism1901Edward Gaylord Bourne


Yale Bicentennial Publications

ESSAYS IN HISTORICAL CRITICISM




Yale Bicentennial Publications

With the approval of the President and Fellows of Yale University, a series of volumes has been prepared by a number of the Professors and Instructors to be issued in connection with the Bicentennial Anniversary, as a partial indication of the character of the studies in which the University teachers are engaged.

This series of volumes is respectfully dedicated to

The Graduates of the University


ESSAYS

IN

HISTORICAL CRITICISM

THE LEGEND OF MARCUS WHITMAN . THE AUTHORSHIP OF THE FEDERALIST . PRINCE HENRY THE NAVIGATOR . THE DEMARCATION LINE. THE PROPOSED ABSORPTION OF MEXICO, 1847-1848 . LEOPOLD VON RANKE, etc., etc.


BY

EDWARD GAYLORD BOURNE

Professor of History in Yale University




NEW YORK : CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS

LONDON: EDWARD ARNOLD

1901


Copyright, 1901,

By Yale University.


Published, September, 1901.







UNIVERSITY PRESS • JOHN WILSON AND SON • CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.


PREFACE


The first essay in this collection, The Legend of Marcus Whitman, although bearing the same title as the article which I published in The American Historical Review last January, is substantially a new piece of work. In Part II the material contained in that article is reproduced and in addition the testimony of the sponsors of the story and of their supporters has been subjected to rigorous criticism, and the origin of some of its peculiar elements has been brought to light. The distinguishing feature, however, of the essay as published here is the full presentation of the literary history of the legend. It is my hope that this account of the genesis, diffusion, and wide acceptance in the latter half of the nineteenth century of a narrative about a momentous event in American history that is as unhistorical as the legend of the Donation of Constantine will prove to be a serviceable contribution to the literature of historical criticism.

The circumstances of the preparation or publication of these essays are indicated in the footnotes, except in the cases of the short paper on The Federalist Abroad, which formed part of an Introduction to a new edition of The Federalist in the Universal Classics, and of The Beginning of the Seminary Method in Teaching History which was contributed to The Educational Review. All the essays have been revised, and in some cases slight additions have been made.

In venturing to select a title for the collection which is accurately descriptive of only the first three or four essays, I have been influenced by the desire to indicate precisely the character of what is perhaps the most distinctive part of the book. The other papers, too, if not strictly essays in historical criticism, were written in the spirit of it and in conformity to its methods.

E. G. B.

New Haven, September, 1901.

CONTENTS


I

THE LEGEND OF MARCUS WHITMAN:

Part I
Page
Sketch of Marcus Whitman
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
3
His Extraordinary Posthumous Fame
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
4
The Legend
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
6
Its Source
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
8
The Story unknown before 1864
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
16
Put before the American Board
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
22
The Origin of the Story
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
26
Its Diffusion
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
29
Shown to be unhistorical
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
36
Barrows's Oregon
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
40
New Life infused
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
42
Systematic Propaganda
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
47
Countermining
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
51
Whitman Day
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
52


Part II
Real Cause of Whitman's Journey
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
55
The Sponsors of the Legend untrustworthy
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
61
Later Variations of the Story
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
64
The Affidavit of Cushing Eells
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
69
Whitman's Purpose in going to Washington
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
75
His Visit without Political Significance
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
79
Genesis of the Imaginary Details of the Alleged Interviews with Webster and Tyler
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
82
Whitman in Boston; the Primary Objects of his Journey
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
86
Whitman and the Emigration of 1843
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
89
The Real History of Marcus Whitman
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
99


Notes
Spalding's Memorial
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
100
Earliest Printed Version of the Fictitious Interview between Webster and Whitman
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
101
Elwood Evans's Summary of his Conclusions in the Whitman Controversy, 1884
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
104
George Catlin's Account of the Visit of the Flatheads to St. Louis
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
105
de Saint- Araant on Whitman, 1852
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
106
Mrs. A. L. Lovejoy on Whitman's Ride
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
106
Mr. A. L. Lovejoy's Account of Whitman's Ride
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
108


II

THE AUTHORSHIP OF THE FEDERALIST
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
113
The Problem
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
113
The Authorship of Numbers 18, 19, and 20
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
115
The Structure of The Federalist
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
117
Internal Evidence in cases of Numbers 49-58
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
119
Numbers 62 and 63
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
137


III

MR. PAUL LEICESTER FORD ON THE AUTHORSHIP OF THE FEDERALIST
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
149
His supposed "Syllabus of The Federalist"
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
154


IV

THE FEDERALIST ABROAD
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
159
In France
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
159
In Germany and South America
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
161


V

MADISON'S STUDIES IN THE HISTORY OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
165
Early Direction of his Studies
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
165
His Authorities
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
166
His Use of the Material
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
167


VI

PRINCE HENRY THE NAVIGATOR
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
173
The Significance of his Work
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
173
His Aims
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
174
His Method
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
183
His Activities
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
187

VII

THE DEMARCATION LINE OF POPE ALEXANDER VI
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
193
Precedents
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
194
The Occasion
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
195
The Treaty of Tordesillas
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
202
Magellan's Voyage
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
206
The Congress of Badajos
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
209
The Attitude of England
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
214
The Attitude of France
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
215
Results
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
216


VIII

SENECA AND THE DISCOVERY OF AMERICA
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
221
Seneca misinterpreted by Roger Bacon
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
221
By All Subsequent Writers
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
222


IX

THE PROPOSED ABSORPTION OF MEXICO IN 1847-1848
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
227
The Mexican and the Spanish War
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
227
President Polk's Policy
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
229
Cabinet Deliberations on the Mexican Question
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
230
All of Mexico
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
233
The Cabinet Discussion of the Treaty
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
238
The Treaty in the Senate
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
240


X

LEOPOLD VON RANKE
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
245
History in the Nineteenth Century
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
245
Ranke's Early Interests
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
246
His First Teaching
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
248
His Contribution to Historical Criticism
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
250
His Work as a Teacher
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
253
His Ideal
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
255
His Works
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
257


XI

RANKE AND THE BEGINNING OF THE SEMINARY METHOD IN TEACHING HISTORY
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
265
Precursors of the Historical Seminary
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
266
Karl V. Raumer
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
267
Ranke on his Seminary
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
269
Von Sybel and Waitz on Ranke's Seminary
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
273

XII

FRANCIS PARKMAN
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
277
The Opportunity for American Scholars in History
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
277
Parkman's Early Life
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
279
His Self-training
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
280
The Oregon Trail
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
281
The Conspiracy of Pontiac
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
282
His Novel, Vassal Morton
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
283
His Series of Histories
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
283
His Characteristics as an Historian
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
285
His Fame
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
287


XIII

JAMES ANTHONY FROUDE
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
291
Froude's Environment in Youth
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
291
His Devotion to Carlyle
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
293
His Views of History
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
294
His Characteristics as an Historian
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
296

INDEX
....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
299

This work was published before January 1, 1929, and is in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.

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