Monday, February 18, 2008

Colonial America: Essays in Politics and Social Development

Today, I am reading Colonial America: Essays in Politics and Social Development edited by Stanley N. Katz, John M. Murrin, and Douglas Greenberg. This book mostly consists of excerpts from or boiled-down versions of monographs, thus saving the besieged graduate student some time. For that, I applaud it.

Since it is a book of essays, the 123 meme doesn't really capture the overall flavor of the book, but I'll give it a shot anyway. Page 123 falls near the end of Peter N. Moogk's "Reluctant Exiles: Emigrants from France in Canada Before 1760":
Another captain in their employ had returned to France without delivery receipts for his mythical workers; "I was obliged to pay that [fine] on your behalf" complained the writer. This frank discussion about evading the laws indicates that there were admiralty officers who cooperated in the deception, undoubtedly for a consideration. Thus embarkation lists should be treated with caution.

I'm not reading the rest of Moogk's article today, but we are considering it in my 17th century seminar. Today, I have articles by Jared Diamond, Patricia Seed, and James H. Merrell. I'm unfamiliar with Merrell, but I've read Diamond's books and Seed's Ceremonies of Possession, so it shouldn't be too onerous.

No comments: