Brown will probably be longest remembered for his
strong pictures of the yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia, his use of
the Indian in romance, and his introduction of the outdoor world of the
wilderness and the forest.
POETRY--THE HARTFORD WITS
The Americans were slow to learn that political independence could be far
more quickly gained than literary independence. A group of poets, sometimes
known as the Hartford Wits, determined to take the kingdom of poetry by
violence. The chief of these were three Yale graduates, Timothy Dwight,
Joel Barlow, and John Trumbull.
TIMOTHY DWIGHT (1752-1817).--Before he became president of Yale, Dwight
determined to immortalize himself by an epic poem. He accordingly wrote the
_Conquest of Canaan_ in 9671 lines, beginning:--
"The Chief, whose arms to Israel's chosen band
Gave the fair empire of the promis'd land,
Ordain'd by Heaven to hold the sacred sway,
Demands my voice, and animates the lay."
[Illustration: TIMOTHY DWIGHT]
This poem is written in the rocking horse couplets of Pope, and it is
well-nigh unreadable to-day. It is doubtful if twenty-five people in our
times have ever read it through.
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