Vesalius is one of the foundation stones of modern medicine. Forsaking the study of anatomy by reading the ancients, he instead dissected bodies and drew detailed illustrations of his observations. He was enormously influential in the development of modern medicine. This 1910 biography opens up his life admirably. The printed book contains many illustrations taken from his works. The listener will want to be aware that modern historians of medicine are much more positive about the contributions of medieval Arabic medical teachers than the author of this book. - Summary by David Wales

He says about this work: "I have tried to record the events that have given character and colour to my own life, and at the same time to reflect upon the impressions made upon my mind by experiences that I could not always reconcile with what I had learned of American ideals and standards." - Summary by author in the preface

Brave Men and Women is a collection of stories about historical figures who, through success and failure, made an impact on their world. As noted in the Preface, the author's aim "has simply been to form a sort of mosaic or variegated picture of the Brave Life - the life which recognizes the Divine Goodness in all things, striving through good report and evil report, and in manifold ways, which one is often unqualified to judge, to attain to the life of Him who is 'the light of the world'." - Summary by Kristin Hand

Clarissa Harlowe Barton was a pioneering American nurse who founded the American Red Cross. She was a hospital nurse in the American Civil War, a teacher, and a patent clerk. Since nursing education was not then very formalized and she did not attend nursing school, she provided self-taught nursing care. Barton is noteworthy for doing humanitarian work and civil rights advocacy at a time before women had the right to vote. She was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame in 1973.Volume 2...

The Cambridge Modern History is a universal history covering the period from 1450 to 1910. It was published in 14 volumes between 1902 and 1912. The series was planned by Lord Acton, who intended it to be a monument of objective, collaborative scholarship, and edited by A.W. Ward, G. W. Prothero and Stanley Leathes. From the preface: "In accordance with the scheme of the Cambridge Modern History, this volume takes as its main subject a great movement, the Reformation, and follows the theme to a fitting close in its several divisions...

Written after the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment and published in 1923, "This book's essential contribution must be sought in its revelation of the bearing of American politics upon the question of woman suffrage." The book traces the history of the women's suffrage movement in the United States from 1848 through 1920. The Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution giving women the right to vole was passed by Congress on June 4, 1919 and ratified August 18, 1920. - Summary by J. M. Smallheer

This book is a brief, but cogent discussion of Western philosophy-- from Francis Bacon and Giordano Bruno through Descartes, Spinoza, and Leibniz, Hume, Berkeley and Kant, the German idealists and Hegel, and ending with such nineteenth century luminaries as Mill, Spencer, and Nietzsche. Enchanted with Copernicus, Bruno goes to the stake for positing an infinity of inhabited worlds. Descartes, a professed skeptic, manages to justify everything the Jesuits taught him at La Flèche, while Spinoza, in mystical awe, envisions a pantheistic cosmos in which thought and extension are one and the same thing--God...

In this autobiography, written when the author was 82 years old, Ida Tarbell looks back at her life and remarkable career as an investigative journalist. Ms. Tarbell is best known for her 1904 work, "The History of the Standard Oil Company," which was a significant factor in the dissolution of the Standard Oil monopoly. She was a noted writer and lecturer, served on two presidential committees, and is considered by her actions to be an important feminist . - Summary by Ciufi Galeazzi

The fourteenth volume of the 15-volume series The World’s Story has a different concept than the previous books edited by Eva March Tappan. This book lists a detailed timeline of important events, starting from the early Eastern cultures till up to recent events from the beginning of the 20th century. The original book was compiled in German by historian Karl Ploetz and translated into English for this series by William H. Tillinghast . - Summary by Sonia

Described by the author as: BEING A TRUE HISTORY OF THE GOLD, JEWELS, AND PLATE OF PIRATES, GALLEONS, ETC., WHICH ARE SOUGHT FOR TO THIS DAY. Ralph Delahaye Paine was an American journalist and author popular in the early 20th century. Paine's book tells of pirates, heroes, scoundrels, and treasure seekers creating, stealing, seeking, and sometimes finding great wealth. It also tells of treasures yet undiscovered . It remains the stuff of dreams for countless kids growing up, and those of us who never grew up. - Summary by Tony Posante

Part of the scholarly and scientific publications of the United States National Museum series: United States National Museum Bulletin.In these series, the Museum publishes original articles and monographs dealing with the collections and work of its constituent museums— The Museum of Natural History and the Museum of History and Technology. These are gathered in volumes, octavo in size, with the publication date of each paper recorded in the table of contents of the volume. Since 1959, shorter papers relating to the collections and research of that Museum have been gathered in Bulletins titled “Contributions from the Museum of History and Technology,”...

A brief history of the life Henry the Fifth. - Summary by KevinS

"THE author of this volume desires . . . to say . . . that it is his earnest hope that this record of a hero may be an aid to brave and true living in the Republic, so that the problems knocking at its door for solution may find the heads, the hands, and the hearts equal to the performance of the duties imposed by them upon the men and women of this generation. William Lloyd Garrison was brave and true. Bravery and truth were the secret of his marvelous career and achievements. May his countrymen and countrywomen imitate his example and be brave and true, not alone in emergent moments, but in everyday things as well."

These Norwegian tales of elemental mountain, forest and sea spirits, have been handed down by hinds and huntsmen, wood choppers and fisher folk. They are men who led a hard and lonely life amid primitive surroundings. The Norwegian Fairy Book has an appeal for one and all, since it is a book in which the mirror of fairy-tale reflects human yearnings and aspirations, human loves, ambitions and disillusionments, in an imaginatively glamored, yet not distorted form. [from the book's preface]

Published as the third volume in the Modern Criminal Science Series, Cesare Lombroso, renowned Italian criminologist, collected a wealth of information regarding the incidence, classification, and causes of crime. Crime calendars, the geography of crime, unusual events and circumstances leading to more frequent crime, political motivations and associations of criminal enterprise and an assessment of the real value and effectiveness of prisons and reform programs are all included in this three part volume. - Summary by Leon Harvey

Robert van Bergen was one of the first Americans to enter Japan after the country opened its borders to foreign visitors following centuries of isolation. He taught English to Japanese aristocrats, eventually becoming principal of the Nobles' School in Tokyo. This book, which he wrote for young readers during his stay in the country, was first published in 1897. It includes many illustrations. From the preface: "Our schoolbooks on geography and general history touch but lightly upon the Japanese...

Gertrude Bell's Syria: The Desert and the Sown describes her travels in the Levant during the first years of the 20th century. In this vivid and painstakingly documented narrative, Bell recounts her visits to Damascus, Jerusalem, Beirut, Antioch and Alexandretta, as well as the time she spent in the deserts of the region. Fluent in Arabic and several other languages, Bell brings to her account a level of insight beyond the reach of an average travel writer. She would later go on to play a highly influential role in the politics of the Middle East, drawing on the knowledge and personal connections she built up during these and other travels...

Christian Science is a 1907 collection of essays Mark Twain wrote about Christian Science, beginning with an article that was published in Cosmopolitan in 1899. Although Twain was interested in mental healing and the ideas behind Christian Science, he was hostile towards its founder, Mary Baker Eddy . He called her, according to American writer Caroline Fraser, "[g]rasping, sordid, penurious, famishing for everything she sees—money, power, glory—vain, untruthful, jealous, despotic, arrogant, insolent, pitiless where thinkers and hypnotists are concerned, illiterate, shallow, incapable of reasoning outside of commercial lines, immeasurably selfish...

Henry VII, the founder of the Tudor dynasty, less known than his son, Henry VIII, or granddaughter Elizabeth I, is often overlooked. This King toppled the ruling House that had held England's throne for over four hundred years, the Plantagenets, and took a divided, war torn country and made one of the richest in Europe by the time of his death in 1609. Henry VII’s reign was characterized by thrift, prudence, and cool-headed political strategies. The author, James Gairdner , was a British historian. He specialized in 15th-century and early Tudor history. - Summary by Cavaet

The Able McLaughlins won the Pulitzer Prize for a novel in 1924 in Margaret Wilson's debut work. Aptly described as "Little House on the Prairie - but for adults" the novel follows a group of Scottish families who pioneer the Iowa prairie in the 1860’s. The main storyline concerns Wully, the eldest McLaughlin son, who returns home from the Civil War to find that his sweetheart, Chirstie, has experienced an unspeakable tragedy that will profoundly affect the couple's lives. Their story is one of shame and honor, secrets and guilt, fear and loathing, revenge and forgiveness...

Upon publication of “The Untempered Wind” in 1894, Joanna Wood quickly rose to international prominence, becoming in the next few years the most highly paid fiction-writer in Canada. In this novel, we find a detailed picture of village life. The narrative weaves through a variety of character types: the refined and the coarse, the humble and the self-righteous, the virtuous and the vicious. All these types are measured according to their treatment of Myron Holder, a young unwed mother — a “fallen woman” in the eyes of this “spiteful, narrow-minded village...

You get to choose what you want to read! So long as the source is Public Domain for you, any short story or chapter that tells of legends, heroes, myths, or ancient lore, is welcome. We are looking for representations of many different cultures within each collection. If you have questions of whether a source is Public Domain for you , I recommend asking about that in this project's discussion before you begin recording. Simply post the question with a link to the source you've found. :) Limit of 2 sections per reader in a given Myths & Legends collection. - Summary by Lynette Caulkins

The book which now appears before the public may be of interest in relation to a question which the late agitation of the subject of slavery has raised in many thoughtful minds, viz. — Are the race at present held as slaves capable of freedom, self-government, and progress. The author is a coloured young man, born and reared in the city of Philadelphia. This city, standing as it does on the frontier between free and slave territory, has accumulated naturally a large population of the mixed and African race...

Walter Waddington Shirley was made Regius Professor of Ecclesiastical History and Canon of Christ Church, Oxford in 1863. This short work comprises the text of a lecture he gave at Oxford University in January, 1866. In it, he describes the historical setting in which scholasticism flourished and then summarizes its features. - Summary by Barry Ganong

Superbly written, this overview of the Civil War, won a Pulitzer Prize in History in 1918. Rhodes covers not only the battles and the generals of the war but gives us a good deal of insight into the politics, economics, international relations and the strategy/thinking of the times. When at times he brings forth an opinion it is clearly stated, so as not to be confused with the facts. Comprehensive and enjoyable, you will find this History of the Civil War both illuminating and captivating. NOTE: Footnotes will not be read but can be found online at https://archive.org/details/historycivilwar01rhodgoog/mode/2up.

The water was evaporated by the ever-shining sun until there was none left for the thirsty plants. Every year more workers died in misery. A stranger from another world comes and experiences the attempts by two different cultures with different languages to understand what the other wants. Not all educated cultures are cordial or sympathetic to new arrivals. This book explores one potential outcome of the meeting of alien races. - Summary by Paul Harvey

This collection is dedicated to recordings of short mythical or legendary works which are in the Public Domain. The stories tell of legends, heroes, myths, and ancient lore from many different cultures.

The Greenstone Door is a historical novel, set between 1830-1860’s New Zealand. The main character, Cedric Tregarthen, is remembering his past, telling the story both from his vantage point as an old man remembering, and as a young man experiencing his life. The story starts with the sack of the Te Kuma pa and the death of his father, his subsequent adoption by the trader Purcell and protection of Te Waharoa. He grows up among the Maori people, with his foster sister Puhi-Huia and his friend, Rangiora...

Mary Wollstonecraft was one of the early promoters of gender equality long before other crusaders took up the cause. She is perhaps best known for her books, “A Vindication of the Rights of Women” and “A Vindication of the Rights of Men” . But she also wrote widely on education and used fiction formats to promote her progressive views. This book using the genre of didactic children’s stories, was written the same year as her “Mary: A Fiction” 1788, but was first published anonymously...

Book 5 of the story of Mildred Keith by Martha Finley. We join Mildred as she settles into home life as wife and mother. We also see the rest of the Keith children begin to make starts of their own - some near to home, and others far away and perhaps lost forever. The Dinsmore cousins continue to be part of the story as well. - Summary by Michelle Hannah

A problem of philosophy is completely different from a problem of science. In science we accept our subject-matter as it is presented in unanalysed experience; in philosophy we examine the first principles and ultimate questions that concern conscious experience itself. The problem of truth is a problem of philosophy. It is not a problem of merely historical interest, but a present problem—a living controversy, the issue of which is undecided. Its present interest may be said to centre round the doctrine of pragmatism, which some fifteen years ago began to challenge the generally accepted principles of philosophy...

Rudolf Virchow , professor of medicine and pathology at the Charité Hospital in Berlin, published more than 2000 papers and dozens of books. His investigation of the 1847-1848 typhus epidemic in Upper Silesia laid the foundations of public health in Germany. During the Revolution of 1848, Virchow helped found a journal promoting medicine as a social science. For physicians, his contributions to the understanding of the pathophysiology of disease and to the working vocabulary of medicine were fundamental, but Virchow also believed that social injustice and political oppression lay at the heart of many illnesses and that "the physician is the natural attorney of the poor."

Despite its brevity, this Little Blue Book #142 by the Oxford historian, Sir F.M. Powicke, provides a valuable overview of the political history of Germany from medieval to modern times, culminating in the career of Otto von Bismarck , the Prussian Junker who masterminded the unification of Germany and served as its first Chancellor. - Summary by Pamela Nagami, M.D.

This collection is dedicated to recordings of short mythical or legendary works which are in the Public Domain. The stories tell of legends, heroes, myths, and ancient lore from many different cultures.

These moralistic stories within stories date back to the Sanskrit text Panchatantra . They were first translated into Arabic by a Persian named Ruzbeh who named it Book of Kalilah and Dimna and then by Abdullah Ibn al-Muqaffa and later Joseph Harris in 1679 and then remodeled in 1818. Max Mueller noted that La Fontaine was indebted to the work and other scholars have noted that Jeanne-Marie LePrince de Beaumont and John Fletcher were both familiar with the fables. The Fables of Pilpay are a series of inter-woven fables, many of which deploy metaphors of anthropomorphized animals with human virtues and vices.

The Waning of the Middle Ages , subtitled A study of the forms of life, thought and art in France and the Netherlands in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, is Johan Huizinga's most famous work. It was published in 1919 as Herfsttij der Middeleeuwen and first translated into English in 1924. Huizinga defends the idea that the exaggerated formality and romanticism of late medieval court society was a defense mechanism against the constantly increasing violence and brutality of life. The break off between Middle Ages and Renaissance was, according to him, a period of pessimism, cultural exhaustion, and nostalgia...

Rufus Matthew Jones was an American religious leader, writer, magazine editor, philosopher, and college professor. He was instrumental in the establishment of the Haverford Emergency Unit . One of the most influential Quakers of the 20th century, he was a Quaker historian and theologian as well as a philosopher. In 1917 he helped found the American Friends Service Committee. This work was delivered as a Swarthmore Lecture in August 1920 and was printed by the Swarthmore Press Ltd.

'Thoughts on South Africa' is a collection of Schreiner's observations of colonial South Africa in the early 19th century, mostly regarding Boer-English relations. The book was published posthumously in 1923. Prospective listeners should be aware that it reflects the place, culture and language of the time in which it was written.

“The essays contained in this volume treat of various subjects. With the exception of perhaps one we must consider all these papers as fragments. Written during the early Seventies, and intended mostly as prefaces, they are extremely interesting, since traces of Nietzsche's later tenets—like Slave and Master morality, the Superman—can be found everywhere. But they are also very valuable on account of the young philosopher's daring and able handling of difficult and abstruse subjects. "Truth and Falsity," and "The Greek Woman" are probably the two essays which will prove most attractive to the average reader.” - Summary by Maximilian Mügge, Translator

At its height, the British Empire was the largest in history. This short volume traces its development through the long 18th century, from 1714 to the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Founded on the prosperity of Sir Robert Walpole's ministry , the Empire emerged from the Indian conquests of that gifted military amateur, Lord Clive, and was extended under the leadership of William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, who drove the English to victory in the Seven Years' War . Surmounting the loss of the American colonies and twenty years of conflict with France, by the first quarter of the 19th century, the British navy, master of the oceans, presided over an Empire upon which the sun never set.

A young scholar, recently graduated from Princeton College, travels across the United States as a member of the working class, taking any job he could find, enduring hardships and struggling to make a living. He travelled mainly on foot, designing for himself a social experiment on experiencing different class and culture structures and the reality of working conditions at the end of the 19th century. This volume continues the story that began in the first volume , and spans the region from Illinois to California - Summary by Phyllis Vincelli

Volume 1 of Ida Tarbell's biography of Lincoln covers his life from his boyhood to his election to the presidency in 1860. Tarbell, in addition to her famous work in investigative journalism , was a noted Lincoln scholar. Her writings on Lincoln, originally published as articles in McClure's Magazine, were highly acclaimed. - Summary by Ciufi Galeazzi LIfe of Abraham Lincoln, Volume 2

St. Clair's defeat was a battle fought between the United States and the Western Confederacy of Native Americans on November 4, 1791, during the Northwest Indian War. Out of a US force of roughly 1000 men and officers, only 24 escaped unharmed. It has been cited as the most decisive defeat in the history of the American military and its largest defeat ever by Native Americans. This pamphlet is a compilation of three articles published in 1847, 1851 and 1864.

In my Volume on Aristotle in this series, I tried to give an account of ancient, classical, and social Education; in the present volume I have endeavored to set forth the nature of modern, romantic, and unsocial Education. This education originates with Rousseau. With much reluctance I have been obliged to dwell, at considerable length, on the facts of his life, in order to show that his glittering structure rests, not upon any broad and firm foundation of well-generalized and well-sifted experience, but upon the private tastes and preferences of an exceptionally capricious and self-centered nature...

With this collection of short stories, Dunbar sought to draw on the success of his dialect poems by recreating and portraying the southern plantation during slavery. The stories focus on the stereotypical portrait of slaves as obedient workers happy to spend their lives in service of their benevolent owner. His attempt to find success was only partially realized, as his stories drew not only criticism but, in some cases, anger at their very stereotypical nature. The book itself, however, proved to be more lucrative than previous fiction works had been for the author.

In 1912 textile workers in Lawrence, Massachusetts, mostly immigrants, went on strike in response to a pay cut, speedups, and unsafe working conditions. Representatives from the Industrial Workers of the World came in to help organize the strike. The city declared martial law and a tense standoff went on for weeks. National newspapers provided breathless coverage of the strike and painted drastically different pictures of what was happening and who was to blame. When a woman was shot in ambiguous circumstances, strike leaders were tried for murder--not for shooting her, but for purportedly inciting mob violence leading to her death...

This is the last volume of the 15-volume series The World’s Story, originally started by Eva March Tappan. This book, edited by Horatio W. Dresser deals exclusively with the time of the First World War, the events leading up to it, the battles and war engines, the political and diplomatic background endeavours and the cost - human and monetary - of this War. - Summary by Sonia

The first volume in a series of Catholic Church history books written for children. Volume 1 covers the time period from after Our Lord's death till the 5th Century.

The Cambridge Modern History is a universal history covering the period from 1450 to 1910. It was published in 14 volumes between 1902 and 1912. The series was planned by Lord Acton, who intended it to be a monument of objective, collaborative scholarship, and edited by A.W. Ward, G. W. Prothero and Stanley Leathes. From the preface: "The present volume, as its title imports, relates a complicated series of conflicts of which the origin or the pretext has for the most part to be sought in the great religious schism with which the preceding volume was concerned...

Although Cairo is most famous for the ancient Egyptian pyramids of Giza located at its outskirts, the city as we know it today dates back only to 969. Since then, numerous rulers of different Muslim dynasties built fortifications, mosques and other buildings that earned Cairo the name "city of a thousand minarets". In this book, Stanley Lane-Poole traces the history of Cairo from the early Muslim period to the British Invasion of 1882. While doing so, he gives vivid descriptions of many of the mediaeval buildings that shape Cairo's cityscape to this day. This book is part of the "Mediaeval Town" series published in the early 20th century. Proof listeners: SaraHale and MrsHand

The Bolshevik Myth is a book by Alexander Berkman who with his partner Emma Goldman was deported from the USA under the 1918 Anarchist Exclusion Act and shipped to the young Soviet Russia. He describes his experiences in Bolshevik Russia from 1920 to 1922, where he saw the aftermath of the Russian Revolution of 1917. Written in the form of a diary, The Bolshevik Myth describes how Berkman's initial enthusiasm for the revolution faded as he became disillusioned with the Bolsheviks and their suppression of all political dissent...

A heartwarming novel which visits the last two years of the American Civil War. The center of the story is the conflict of emotions and deeds between a father and son who hold opposing views of the conflict and the surprising role that President Lincoln plays in wishing to reconcile the two. A novel of both pathos and rejoicing. - Summary by KevinS

The setting for this novel is the Boer War in South Africa in 1880. This novel is interesting and exciting on several levels: there are complicated love entanglements, evil Machiavellian treachery, political reflection having to do with the ethics of the colonialism of the day, for one subject for thought, and war in all its lurid and shocking and murderous detail.

An account of the expedition [of the U.S. Army] in pursuit of the hostile Chiricahua Apaches in the spring of 1883. Bourke was a Medal of Honor awardee in the American Civil War whose subsequent Army career included several campaigns in the Indian wars of the mid to late 19th century in the American West. He wrote prolifically. He was mostly free of the unfortunate disdain for Native Americans common in 19th century America. He was quite admiring of many aspects of the Native American. “… Bourke had the opportunity to witness every facet of life in the Old West—the battles, wildlife, the internal squabbling among the military, the Indian Agency, settlers, and Native Americans...

Sketches of those who braved the 'Great White North' in exploration and adventure. - Summary by KevinS

This is a brief account of the Comstock Lode silver mines, and description of the geographic features of the state of Nevada including the railroads. Silver not only defined Nevada, but influenced the opening of the American West as far as San Francisco. Dan De Quille wrote extensively on the history of mining in the area of Nevada, and published the larger work “The Big Bonanza” assisted by Mark Twain, both of whom were part of the Sagebrush School of writers. - Summary by Larry Wilson

This little book opens on the eve of the French Revolution. The government is crippled by financial mismanagement, ruled by a King who, in the author's words, is "devoid of both ability and energy," and resented by a tax-oppressed peasantry and a rising middle class. The Revolution escapes the control of its instigators and France is plunged into the Terror and international war. Enter Napoleon, a man with "an enormous capacity for work," who can "get to the root of a matter and master technicalities with great swiftness," but whose "vulgar desire for recognition...

During the turbulent moment in English history involving King James 1 and 6, Nigel Olifaunt, a Scottish lord, seeks to protect his family home and holdings, but meets with recalcitrance and treachery, which eventually results in his imprisonment. But there are forces of good that help to set him free and right injustices.

Abigail Mott was a Quaker and abolitionist from New York who, along with fellow Quaker M. S. Wood, has compiled a provocative collection of stories of “Colored Americans.” They range from well-known figures such as Phillis Wheatley and Sojourner Truth to the common men and women who give poignant insights of their life. Selections consist of short anecdotes, essays, stories, letters and poetry. Many have strong religious and spiritual themes. - Summary by Larry Wilson

Dedicatory Letter. Dear Doris, I could not tell you all the things which have ever happened in the world, but I have tried to tell you shortly about all the most important things from the very beginning, even before people had come into the World at all, right down to our own wonderful times. I have chosen the greatest men and women to tell you about, and in reading their stories I hope you will understand better something of what the times were like in which they lived, and what the other people too were like who were not so great and the kind of lives they led...