national events, such as the battle
of Bunker's Hill, the burning of Charlestown, the death of
General Montgomery, the capture of Burgoyne, the treason of
Arnold, and the Fall of British Tyranny. You will easily
conclude that in such a new nation as this, these pieces must
fall infinitely short of that perfection to which our European
literary productions of this kind are wrought up; but, still,
they have a greater effect upon the mind than the best of ours
would have among them, because those manners and customs are
delineated, which are peculiar to themselves, and the events are
such as interest them above all others. The drama is here
reduced to its true and Ancient origin.

Nathaniel Evans also wrote dialogues, performed at the public
Commencements in Philadelphia, like the one on May 17, 1763. We have
already noted that "The Prince of Parthia" was written as a college
play. "The Military Glory of Great Britain" was also prepared as an
entertainment by the graduates of the College of New Jersey, held in
Nassau-Hall, September 29, 1762, with the authorship unknown. It was a
type of play which tempted many men, who later tried their hand at more
important dramatic work.

Another interesting title of the time ran as follows:

An/Exercise,/containing/a Dialogue and Ode/On the Accession of
His present gracious Majesty,/George III./Performed at the
public Commencement in the College of/Philadelphia, May 18th,
1762./Philadelphia:/Printed by W. Dunlap, in Market-Street,
M,DCC,LXII./

In order to understand the spirit which prompted both Brackenridge and
Freneau, one needs must turn to an account of the latter's life, and
learn therefrom certain facts concerning the early college spirit of
Brackenridge, which was ignored by his son in the only authentic record
of his life we have.

From Freneau we understand, for example, that, as early as June 24,
1769, a certain number of students banded themselves into an
undergraduate fraternity, called the American Whig Society, the chief
members of that association being Madison, Brackenridge, Bradford, and
Freneau himself. There is a manuscript book in the possession of the
Historical Society of Pennsylvania, originally owned by Bradford, and
containing some of their later poetical tirades. It is called "Satires
against the Whigs," and is composed of ten pastorals by Brackenridge and
a number of satires by Freneau