“What is there in this spot of earth Repellant to all zest of mirth, Heart-felt by me, And which on being seen again, The Hill, the River and the Plain To sadden, all agree!”[304] Cramer realized that books having a local interest would find a ready sale. One of these was Judge Hugh Henry Brackenridge’s _Modern Chivalry_; another was his _Incidents of the Insurrection in Western Pennsylvania_, which was an effort to vindicate himself for his course in the Whisky Insurrection. Judge Addison’s impeachment in 1803, by the Republican General Assembly, had created profound interest in Pittsburgh. The account of the trial was immediately published in Lancaster, then the capital of the State, and eagerly read. Another book of local interest was Colonel James Smith’s _Captivity among the Indians Westward of Fort Pitt in the Year 1755_, published at Lexington, Kentucky, in 1799. Although a Republican himself, Cramer’s mercantile instincts led him to sell books written in opposition to that party. A little volume of poems was of this class. David Bruce, a Scotchman living in the adjacent village of Burgettstown, whom Cramer designated as “an ingenious Scotch poet of Washington County,” had published in 1801, in Washington, Pennsylvania, a book which, while mainly political in character, had considerable merit. Bruce was a strong Federalist, and his volume was dedicated to Judge Addison. To the Republicans, Brackenridge, Gallatin, McKean, and other more or less local celebrities, Bruce’s references were disparaging. To Brackenridge he addressed the cynical lines: “When Whisky-Boys sedition sang, An’ anarchy strod owre the lan’ When Folly led Rebellion’s ban’ Sae fierce an’ doure, Fo’ks said ye sleely lent a han’ To mak the stoure.”[305] A book of the same character, but covering a wider range, and of a higher literary tone, was _The Echo_. It had a local interest in that it contained a number of clever satirical references to Judge Hugh Henry Brackenridge. In the latter part of the eighteenth century, Hartford was the literary center of Federalistic ideas. They were promulgated by a group of young authors known as the “Hartford Wits.” Included in the coterie was Richard Alsop, who was the principal writer of _The Echo_. _The Echo_ had originally appeared serially, but in 1807, the parts were collected and published in a volume. The allusions to Brackenridge indicated a keen sense of humor and considerable poetic spirit. An article written by Brackenridge had appeared in 1792 in the _National Gazette_ of Philadelphia, then recently established as the organ of the Republicans, in which he urged savage reprisals against the Indians, who were causing trouble west of Pittsburgh. To this screed, _The Echo_ made the mocking reply: