New Publications

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NEW PUBLICATIONS.

THE NEW AMERICAN CYCLOPÆDIA: A Popular Dictionary of General Knowledge. Edited by George Ripley and Charles A. Dana. Vols. I., II and III. New York: D. Appleton & Co. 1858.

This new and elaborately prepared Cyclopædia will, if it be carried out with the same care, liberality and discrimination which characterize the initiatory volumes, supply a want long and painfully felt, and reflect infinite credit upon American literary enterprise. That it will be so carried out and that the volumes yet to come will fulfil the promise held out by the first three, which now lie before us, we can have little doubt when we behold upon the title-page the well-known imprint of the APPLETONS as publishers, and recognize in the names of editors and contributors, many who, in their various departments and specialities, both of science and letters, have come to be regarded as Representative Men.

Perhaps a more opportune time than the present for the undertaking of such an enterprise could not have been selected. It is now more than a quarter of a century since a complete Cyclopædia was published in this country. Since that time what great events have transpired!—what vast improvements have been made in the mechanical arts—what vast discoveries in science—what radical changes in morals—what singular mutations and kaleidoscopic shiftings in politics! During that time we have doubled our population and our area—peopled one vast gold region and are now peopling another—gone through a war—buried our third generation of great Statesmen—built flourishing cities in the West almost as rapidly as the genie caused Aladdin's Palace to spring up like an exhalation of the night—bound the Sister-States together with innumerable iron-banded railways—built magnificent Ocean Streamers—made vast discoveries in the Arctic Circle and in the interior of Africa—invented the Photograph and the Lightning Press—introduced the pain-killing Choloroform and a hundred lesser blessings that cannot be specified—and finally we have reached the crowning triumph of the age, and setting at naught both time and distance, have spanned the mighty Jeep and united two worlds with the Electric Telegraph!

The present work, therefore, while retaining all that was valuable in its predecessors, will perforce regard most things from a new stand point and incorporate in almost every paragraph the results of modern discovery and the spirit of modern research. It will furnish a condensed exhibition of the present state of human knowledge on all the most important subjects of inquiry, while it will not enter upon the discussion of controverted points of science, politics, philosophy or religion, and above all, will not be made a vehicle for the expression of personal notions and individual opinions. The aim of its editors has simply been to give an accurate and impartial account of the development of opinion in the exercise of thought; of the results of physical research in all its various fields; of the chief events in the world's history; and of persons who have become celebrated through the possession of peculiar gifts or through their connection with the memorable events of the eras in which they lived. This we take to be a simple statement of what a work of this description should be, and no doubt most editors conscientiously endeavor to carry it out. If they sometimes fail, it is scarcely to be wondered at.

Passing from generals to particulars, let us turn over the pages of the three large and splendidly printed volumes before us, and examine the material of which they are composed. The third volume does not quite exhaust the letter B, so that we may conceive on what a large scale the work is gotten up, and the number of volumes necessary to complete it, if the remainder is carried out in the same manner as the beginning. We perceive at once that a vast number of writers, many of them marked by the utmost diversity of thought and expression, have had a hand in the preparation of the various articles. In the first volume alone, nearly one hundred writers have taken part, including persons in almost every quarter of the United States, in Great Britain, and on the Continent of Europe. No restriction, says the Preface, has been laid upon their pens, except that of abstinence from the expression of private dogmatic judgments, and from the introduction of sectarian comments at war with the professed historical character of the work. The great mass of materials thus produced have been carefully revised by the Editors, and moulded with as complete unity both in substance and form, as was, perhaps, either possible or desirable, with such a wide diversity in the original sources. That such editorial care has been laboriously exercised on these first three volumes, a somewhat attentive examination has sufficed to convince us.

Generally speaking, the amount of space devoted to the various articles has been judiciously regulated. It is, of course, obvious that in a work primarily intended for popular instruction and amusement, long and exhaustive treatises on the subject brought forward in its pages, would be utterly out of place; neither was it proper to be unduly concise and to dismiss in a paragraph a topic whose proper discussion would require a volume. The most difficult part of the editorial labor on such a work as this is to discriminate wisely between two extremes. All that could be done to strike the golden mean has been done, we doubt not, in the present case, the plan having been, instead of entrusting the subjects treated of to the facile but superficial pens of literary hacks, to confide the different branches of science to men of eminent accomplishments in each; the articles on History to historical students in special provinces, on military and naval affairs to military and naval men; on Technology and machinery to machinists and engineers; and so on—thus securing, so far as it was possible, the utmost condensation that was compatible with the completest information.

In the first volume, among those articles which are particularly noticeable are those on Abstinence and Total Abstinence; on Academy and Acclimation; on John Adams and John Quincy Adams, both of which biographies are very full and exceedingly interesting; on Addison, in which an appreciative writer does the gentle essayist full justice; on Agricultural Schools and on Agriculture itself, in which a vast amount of information is condensed; on America and Americus Vespucius; on Anæsthetics (a capital resume); on the Andes; on Animalculæ; on Anthracite (Illustrated by figures); on the Arabian Literature.

Among the principal articles in Vol. II. we may especially note those on Architecture, Artesian Wells, Astronomy, Australia, Babylon, Baltimore, Bank, Bastile, Bavaria, Barnum (who has considerably more space than he deserves) and Von Bauer, the great enabryologist, (who has considerably less).

In Vol. III will be found numerous articles interesting to Lawyers: such as Bentham, Blackstone, Brougham, Bentinck, Bill in Equity, Blue Laws, &c. To Farmers: Bee, Bee-keeping, Bone-dust, Broom-corn. To Mechanics: Beam, Bellows, Belt, Blasting, Bleaching, Blow-pipe, Blowing Machine, Brick, Bridge, Bell, Bookbinding. To Merchants: Belgium, Bengal, Nicholas Biddle, Bill of Lading, Bill of Sale, Borneo, Bottomry, &c. To Military men: Bem, Benningsen, Benadotte, Blake, Blucher, Bolivar, Bomb, Bomarsund, Bonaparte, Brigade, Battalion, Military Bridge, &c. To Clergymen: Bethune, Beecher, Bellows, Brace, Boardman, Beza, Bible Societies, Bishop, Brahma, &c. And so with nearly or quite all of the other professions.

Particularly noticeable in this third volume are the biographical sketches of such men and women of the age as Vice President Breckenridge​ ,¹ Rev. Robert J. Breckenridge​ ,² James³ and Erastus Brooks,⁴ Robert Browning,⁵ Elizabeth Barret Browning,⁶ Charlotte Bronte,⁷ Frederika Bremer⁸ and others conspicuous in the great army of B's. In looking over some of these we quickly recognised the elegant pen of Edward Everett,⁹ the forcible style of George Hillard,¹⁰ the classic ease of Ticknor,¹¹ the great explorer of Spanish Literature, and the sympathetic, but somewhat over-eulogistic vein of J. Esten Cooke¹² of Virginia. The biographies of the Brownings and of Charlotte Bronte are deliciously written and will well repay the attentive perusal of the literary amateur. In all that pertains to modern literature and to literary people, indeed, the new Cyclopædia may be especially recommended as one of the safest of critical authorities.

Toward the end of the third volume we come across the word "Brooklyn" and a somewhat extended article descriptive of our city. The article commences by locating us geographically and giving a brief sketch of the early times in our history. Then follow some interesting statistics of population, number of churches, of religious denominations, common schools, &c. After a word or two devoted to the Water Works, our proposed system of Sewerage, our Police and our Military Companies, the writer proceeds to give the following figures, which statistical list closes the article, and which we extract entire:

In 1835, the real and personal property of the city was valued at $26,390,151; in 1857, it was, according to the City Comptroller's report, $98,976,025. The Census of 1855 gives Brooklyn 1,652| acres of land under cultivation, and 1,196| acres unimproved. The cash value of the farms was $4,765, 450; of stock $554,157; 430} acres of market gardens gave a product worth $120,078. There were in that year 511 stone buildings, valued at $4,930,500; 8,039 of brick, worth $39,133,750; of wood 13,562, worth $29,778,815; making the total number of buildings 22,573, of which no value was assigned to 270. The value of real estate, exclusive of farms, was $73,843,065, or, including farms and stock, $79,162,672. There are 3 daily, 2 weekly, 1 semi-weekly and 1 monthly periodicals; 9 banks of issue and discount, with about $2,500,000 capital; 3 savings banks, and 10 insurance companies with nearly $1,000,000 capital. The city railroad company, with a capital of $1,000,000, own the 5 horse railroads which traverse the city from Fulton and Hamilton avenue ferries in all directions.—The Long Island Railroad (capital $3900,00, has its terminus near the South ferry. The three gas companies by which the city is lighted have a capital of nearly $3000,000. Brooklyn contains a number of important manufactories. Their manufactured products are about in the following proportion yearly; Agricultural implements $30,000; brass and copper foundries $400,000; silver-plating 7,000; bronze castings $26,000; copper smithing $375,000; fish-hooks $10,000; furnaces $900,000; gold and silver refining $224,000; iron pipe $350,000; Francis's metallic life boats $80,000 (this is the only manfactory of the kind in America); safes $200,000; silver ware $60,000; tin and sheet-iron $150,000; wire-sieves $25,000; cotton batting $75,000; felting and wadding $5,000; dressed flax $600,000; fringes and tassels $40,000; dressed furs $120,000; paper $20,000; rope and cordage $2,500.00 (there are about 10 rope-walks affording employment to nearly 1200 persons); twine and net $12,000; large-bier $750,000. There are some 15 breweries in the upper part of the Eastern District toward Bushwick. The locality in which they are situated is called "New Germany" or "Dutchtown." In this neighborhood on Sundays the people attend Church in the morning, and in the afternoon and evening take their wives and little ones to the numerous beer gardens where beside lager beer, gymnastic apparatus. Drunkenness is not usual among them. There are nearly a dozen distillers and rectifiers, producing the value of nearly $6,000,000 a year; one establishment alone uses, when in full operation, 3,000 bushels of grain per day. Immense quantities of spirits are shipped direct from Brooklyn to France. Other manufactories are clocks, $10,000; pianos $250,000; bronze powder, yearly product, $10,000; soap and candles, $250,000; camphene, $2,000,000; chemicals, $60,000; refined sugar and syrup, $2,000,000; confectionery, $20,000; drugs and medicines, $15,000; dyewood, $100,000; fish and whale oil, $200,000; gas $462,000; glue, $150,000; ivory black and bone manure, $110,000; japanned cloth, $200,000; lamp-black, $4,000; lard oil, $10,000; refined licorice, $50,000; malt, $100,000; oil-cloth, $200,000; linseed and other oil, $300,000; paints and colors, $54,000; rosin oil, $25,000; Kerosene, $200,000; saleratus, $500,000; starch, $30,000; vinegar, $12,000; white lead, $1,250,000, giving employment to 225 men; whiting $60,000; lamps, lanterns, gas fixtures, &c, $125,000; stoves, $85,000; steam engines, $75,000; ship's blocks, $70,000; ship building (in 1855), $945,000, employing 540 men (there are 7 or 8 ship-yards at Greenpoint, beside extensive marine railways on which large ships are hauled up for repairs) steamboat finishing (same date) $150,000; tree-nails $20,000; thermometers $1500; sashes and blinds $120,000; coaches and wagons $70,000; registers and ventilators $100,000; pumps $15000; steam do $100,000; flour and feed $1,000,000; packing boxes $25,000; casks and barrels $130,000; planed boards $500,000; shingles $10,000; veneering $16,000; glass $800,000 (the first, and we believe the only, plate glass manufactory in America was started in Brooklyn in 1855); lime $12000; marble $100,000; cut stone $250,000; leather $50,000; patent leather $250,000; morocco 2,000,000; paper hangings $30,000; rugs and mats $100,000; window shades $50,000; gold pens $100,000; hats and caps $100,000; tobacco and cigars $200,00.

Truly, a formidable list of facts and figures, but interesting, as showing what Brooklyn is doing in the useful arts.

The entire article has evidently been carefully compiled, and gives at a glance as complete a view of our history, present condition and resources, as can possibly be compressed into a few pages. The author, we understand, is Mr. I. W. England, a member of the New York press, and, at present, a resident of the Eastern District. We know of no one who could have better represented us in this great national work.

Upon the whole, we are inclined to think that the new Cyclopædia, setting aside a few deficiencies and redundancies which may easily be corrected in future editions, will fully justify the hopes of its publishers, editors and the reading public. When one considers for a moment this vast range of subjects included in these volumes and reflects upon the fact that many of them, if fully discussed, would furnish materials for a quarto each by itself, it is impossible not to award the highest praise Messrs. Ripley¹³ and Dana¹⁴ for the very judicious and able manner in which they have thus far executed a most formidable literary undertaking.

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