the
scarcity of coin. The author has expended much labor in
accumulating a mass of interesting and valuable detail, and the
work is a veritable store house of information which is
invaluable to the historian. There is no attempt made to point
out the relation of the economic history of the time with the
political, religious or social developments that were taking
place in the 17th century. The work is valuable chiefly as a
source book.

Social Life of Virginia in the Seventeenth Century. One volume.
Printed for the author by Whittet and Shepperson, Richmond, Va.
In the first portion of this book the author attempts to explain
in some detail the origin of the higher planters in the colony.
A startling array of individual cases are cited to prove the
connection of at least a portion of this class with English
families of education and rank. As usual with the author little
attention is paid to generalizations and he arrives at his
conclusions by induction rather than by deduction. Interesting
chapters are devoted to social distinctions, social spirit,
popular diversions, public and private occasions and duelling.

Burke, John.--The History of Virginia from its First Settlement to
the Present Day. Four volumes. Published in 1804. The chief
value of this work lies in the fact that it contains a number of
documents of great interest to the historian. Chief among these
is a series of papers relating to the dispute over the
Arlington, Culpeper grant. As a general history of Virginia the
work is antiquated. At the time Burke wrote a large part of the
documents and pamphlets relating to the colony were
inaccessible, and as a result he is compelled to pass over very
important periods with the most cursory mention.

Burnaby, Andrew.--Travels through the Middle Settlements in North
America in the Years 1759 and 1760; with Observations upon the
State of the Colonies. Printed for T. Payne, at the Mews-Gate,
London, 1798. One volume. Burnaby's criticisms of Virginia
society are less accurate than those of others who have written
on the same subject because his stay in the colony was so brief.
He is by no means sympathetic with the life of the colony,
chiefly because he does not understand it.

Byrd, William.--The Writings of "Col. William Byrd of Westover in
Virginia Esq." Edited by