Excerpt from Recollections, 1844-1909 In the foreword may generally be found the writer's only reason for printing; hence it should be read, but seldom is. These recollections were commenced last spring, largely for the threefold purpose of preserving my personal experiences with and reminiscences of a few of the men and women I have known; saying a word or two incidentally of some places I have been in; and adding, under each name as a mere setting, some observations and reflections, thoughts and theories of my own. All this was originally intended for the tearful perusal of family and friends after my death; but these are now the first to urge publication while I am still on earth. In every person, thing, or book there is to me some good. Man is dual - physical and mental. In younger years the former takes care of itself; but late in life one realizes that intellectually no man or woman, thing or book is worth while unless one is thereby made to think. In early life, with some degree of impunity, the laws of God and man may be, and often are, violated; but later I have degenerated into a sort of lazy brute and enter a plea of guilty to any kind of charge and yield any point, rather than take the trouble to either deny or explain. Then, too, I have long believed that the married man who does not keep on the good side of his wife is a chump. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.