Celui qui n’ a égard en écrivant qu’ au goùt de son siècle,
songe plus à sa personne qu’ à ses écrits. Il faut tou-
jours tendre à la perfection; et alors cette justice
qui nous est quelquefois refusée par nos con-
temporains, la postérité sait nous la rendre.
La Bruyère.
AMERICAN GENIUSES.
For your welfare, may your country listen to my feeble voice, prosper withyour prosperity, and the eagle of liberty spread throughout the world.
Joseph Rocchietti.
New York, the first of 1845.
| CHAPTER I. | The People of the United States Is Not a New People. |
| CHAPTER II. | The Present Fashionable Literature Is Unworthy of This Greaat Nation. |
| CHAPTER III. | The American Literature Is Rather Too Much Mixed with the Belief of Different Religious Faiths. |
| CHAPTER IV. | Of Newspapers. |
| CHAPTER V. | Of Tourists in Foreign Countries. |
| CHAPTER VI. | American Theatres. |
| CHAPTER VII. | Politics and Laws. |
| CHAPTER VIII. | Religion. |
| CHAPTER IX. | International Copyright. |
| CHAPTER X. | Conclusion. |
[Pg 5]
Many americans, and a few foreigners, think that America is yet too younga country for possessing a National Literature. If they intend to say,that the number of classical writers of America, cannot yet compete withthe number of classical writers of any old country, of course, it cannotbe otherwise. But, that the living present americans cannot have an equalnumber of writers, as the living old nations, for no other reason, butbecause this nation is a new one, is what I deny.
Were America a nation of indians beginning now their civilization,independently of any other already civilized nation, to reproach thembecause they have not a competent literature as well as the old civilizednations, it would be the same as to reproach the times of Abram, becausethey were not civilized as the present most civilized nations. Such is notthe case with the United States of America. The american soil is new; but,the american people is not younger than the european people. This countryis composed of colonies from the old continent, who came here with thevery laws, religions, learning, languages, prejudices, arts, andliterature of the old continent. The classical writers of their mothercountries belong to the american also:[Pg 6]