An Incomplete Directory of the Descendants of My Greatgrandparents (Classic Reprint)

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Excerpt from An Incomplete Directory of the Descendants of My Greatgrandparents Dear Friends: If asked to whom I address myself so affectionately, I could think of nothing more fitting than to reply, - To those who are my associates through no fault of their own. Some time ago I became interested in compiling and classifying my genealogy. I realized, of course, that all good genealogists are equipped with a high power telescope so that when anything of magnitude appears they can enlarge it and bring it near, and further that discretion must be exercised in the use of such instruments in this business because there are objects above the horizon of every one that, if observed at all, should be looked at only through the reversed instrument. It is customary, I believe, and very agreeable, when possible, to start with some notable person, - the more notable, the better. History furnishes quite an array of persons, of different nationalities and divers colors, whose names are the same as mine, or differ so slightly that a good etymologist could easily reconcile the difference, but I am unable to find that anyone has ever discovered, forged or invented connecting links, with a character of first class magnitude, that I could tie to. To some that may look like downright stupidity, but I am not considering possibilities of that kind, - not in this connection. I know just why those links are not to be found. It is the result of our inborn truthfulness, - hopeless, helpless truthfulness in time of need. I knew I would find evidence of that upon every hand as I proceeded with this undertaking. After prolonged and patient search I became convinced of the impossibility of finding a suitable hero from whom to descend and I consoled myself with the reflection that, after all, I would no doubt show off to better advantage in more ordinary company. If Abraham Lincoln was correct in believing that the Lord loved the common people because He made so many of them, then, for that reason as well as for many others, I think He must have a great affection for us, for I find very few that are uncommon in any respect. It has also been said that "the good die first, " and, as an evidence of our superiority, if evidence is needed, I assure you that we are entitled to make the mournful boast that a very large percentage of our connection have been good enough to die young, while, so far as I can discover, none have ever been sent to jail and very few to the legislature. It is a universally recognized law that only the good can see good and only the great can recognize greatness, and after all this may be my most serious handicap. A large part of the information concerning the early history of our connection has been gleaned from two books kindly loaned me by W. B. Anderson. 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.