1795

 

__________ 

“As dangerous to the soul as leprosy to the body.” 

Reuben Post Halleck.

__________ 

 

Halleck, writing in 1911, has an interesting take, regarding the reading of certain novels, going back to an earlier era: 

Timothy Dwight, who became president of Yale in 1795, said that there is a great gulf fixed between novels and the Bible. Even later than 1800 there was a widespread feeling that the reading of novels imperiled the salvation of the soul. Today we know that certain novels are as dangerous to the soul as leprosy to the body, but we have become more discriminating. We have learned that the right type of fiction, read in moderation, cultivates the imagination, broadens the sympathetic powers, and opens up a new, interesting, and easily accessible land of enjoyment. (30/85)

 

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August 3: The Treaty of Greenville is signed by representatives of the U.S. government and various native tribes. Like most treaties signed by the indigenous people, this one will prove but one more step in a depressing trail of disasters. In return for $2,500 in cash and trade goods, annually, leaders of twelve tribes agree to give up the southern half of what will eight years later become the State of Ohio.