225 Nations lately become Literary. [Ch. XXVI. 



Were not of a nature to command much of the 

 public attention at this time. 



In North Carolina and Georgia nothing worthy 

 of notice was done for the promotion of literature, 

 before the middle of the eighteenth century. In 

 those provinces there was not until this period a 

 single seminary of learning worthy of the name; 

 no native citizen had been at all distinguished for 

 his attainments in knowledge. Of the iew clergy- 

 men then residing in those provinces, the greater 

 part were both illiterate and dissipated ; and al- 

 most all those of the learned professions who 

 were tolerably well informed, were either fo- 

 reigners or had received their education abroad » 



The literary situation of South Carolina, in the 

 former part of the century under review, was 

 much more respectable*. At the commencement 

 of this period all the literary characters in that 

 province were Europeans. The clergy were few, 

 and not more than one of them had been born 

 in the province. The physicians were also Euro- 

 peans,, and chiefly persons who had connexions 

 with the British army or navy. The same may 

 be affirmed of the lawyers: these all resided m 

 Charleston, and were from Great Britain or Ire- 

 land. In 1700 a provincial library was esta- 

 blished in Charleston, by the munificence of the 

 lords proprietors, and of the rer. Dr. Thomas 

 Bray. This introduced a taste for reading among 



* For the greater part of what is here stated respecting South 

 Carolina, the author is indebted to Dr. David Ramsay, of Charles- 

 ton, who, on application, favoured him with a full a-nd instructive, 

 communication oa the subject. * 



