Even the scholarly Morse, the author of the first Geography printed in the United States, indulges in some picturesque flights of imagination, as when he writes that the great men of the Friendly Islands “are fond of a singular kind of luxury, which is, to have women sit beside them all night, and beat on different parts of their body until they go to sleep; after which, they relax a little of their labour, unless they appear likely to wake; in which case they redouble their exertions, until they are again fast asleep.” A careful reading of Mariner’s _Account of the Friendly Islands_, a book published by John Murray & Sons in London in 1817, thirty-four years after Morse published his first Geography, reveals no account of any such custom, and Mariner lived in the Friendly Islands for a number of years. Adams declares in his Geography, published in 1814, that “the White Mountains are the highest, not only in New Hampshire, but in the United States.” Of course he was speaking of the United States of 1814,--territory consisting of the original thirteen states and Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio, and Louisiana, admitted at the time when Adams wrote his book,--but he evidently didn’t know that Mt. Mitchell in North Carolina, the highest peak east of the Mississippi, is more than 400 feet higher than the mountain that bears Washington’s name. If the geographers drew upon their imaginations when describing the physical features of the country, so also did the statesmen. That great apostle of democracy, Thomas Jefferson, sent a communication to Congress after the Louisiana Purchase, conveying what he considered good information about the new possession. The most curious statement in this strange document was about the mountain of salt. He informed Congress that this mountain was said to be 180 miles long, 45 miles wide, and all of white, glittering salt, with salt rivers flowing from cavities at the base. In all probability Lewis and Clark disillusioned Mr. Jefferson in 1806, when they returned from their trip to the Pacific coast and gave accurate descriptions of the country they had traversed. The first English Grammar written in America was prepared by Professor Jones, a mathematical professor, as Dr. Chandler tells me, at William and Mary College. This book was written about 1703 and was printed in London. Only one copy of this grammar is now known, and that is contained in a London collection. Another book was prepared by Caleb Bingham, the first edition of which was printed in 1799. It was called _The Young Lady’s Accidence_. This was the first English Grammar used in the Boston schools. Its only predecessor used in this country was Part II of Webster’s _Grammatical Institute_. Lindley Murray left his native country and settled in England in 1784. The following year he wrote and published in England his _Grammar of the English Language_. This Grammar was the standard textbook for fifty years throughout England and America.