ABSTRACT
The nations of the old world have each a literature peculiarly its own. Theirs is the growth of centuries; successive ages have contributed to form its character and mould its features. Spain is the land of romance, the character of her literature may be seen in that of almost every century of her history; her youth was passed in deeds of chivalry, or dozed away in the luxurious halls of the Alhambra. Each successive defeat afforded the Carthaginians new lessons in the art of war, till, at length, Rome herself trembled at their progress. Our national pride has been roused by the perusal of sundry journals and books of travels, purporting to contain faithful descriptions of men and manners in America; the remarks of English and Scotch reviewers have, in various instances, induced us to be more careful in the use of language, and to discard much that is superfluous or provincial in our vocabulary.
