s father,
whom I had seen in New York, and who, traveling on horseback, had got
to Philadelphia before me. He introduced me to his son, who received
me civilly, and gave me a breakfast, but told me he did not at present
want a hand, being lately supplied with one; but there was another
printer in town, lately set up, one Keimer, who, perhaps, might employ
me; if not, I should be welcome to lodge at his house, and he would
give me a little work to do now and then till fuller business should
offer.

XLVII

WASHINGTON IRVING

Washington Irving may be called the father of American literature. It
is true he is not the first writer who flourished on American soil,
but in point of accomplishment he is the first literary man to impress
himself upon the readers of the two continents. And what a sweet,
beautiful soul he is! The only rival he has is Franklin, and Franklin
is not a literary man, though he produced a literary masterpiece in
his _Autobiography_. The test of a great piece of literature is, In a
hundred years can it be bought in a new edition for ten cents? The New
Testament can be bought for ten cents, so can the _Autobiography_, and
the _Sketch Book_. These emerge from the sea of mediocrity of early
American life. They abide while the works of the Michael Wigglesworths
and Anne Bradstreets can be found only in the collections of the
fortunate book-lover.

The early settlers believed in the virtue of large families. It is
well, for otherwise Franklin and Irving would have been lost to
American life. Franklin was the youngest son in a family of seventeen
children, there were two girls younger (Benjamin was the eighth child
of the second wife), and Irving was the eighth son and last child in
a family of eleven children. It is not hard to account for Irving's
first name. Nowadays when you meet a boy named Dewey or Garfield it is
not difficult to guess the boy's age. Irving was born in 1783; the air
was laden with the praises of the great American leader. "Washington's
work is ended," said the mother, "and the child shall be named after
him." Several years after this when Washington, as President, was in
New York, Lizzie, the Scotch servant of the Irving family, followed
the great man into a shop and said, "Please, your honor, here's a
bairn was named after you." Washington placed his hand on the lad's
head and gave him a fatherly blessing.

Like Lowell and Bryant, Irving was first devoted to the law, but h