48 WILLIAM BARTRAM 



(sic), and animate (sic) ^^ her with affection and attachment to him- 

 self in preference to any other. The volatihty of their species, and 

 operation of their passions and affections, are particularly conspicuous 

 in the different tribes of the thrush, famous for song; on a sweet May 

 morning we see the red thrush (turdus rufus) perched on an elevated 

 sprig of snowy Hawthorn . . . exerting their (sic) accomplishments in 

 song, striving by varying and elevating their voices to excel each other, we 

 observe a very agreeable variation, not only in tone but in modulation; 

 the voice of one is shrill, another lively and elevated, others sonorous 

 and quivering. . . .^7 



It is apparent that Bartram did not believe that all birds in 

 the universe had one language, since he definitely speaks of 

 "languages" and "dialects." It is more than probable that 

 when he stated that birds have a universal language he meant 

 merely that all birds in the universe had some sort of sound 

 communication with members of their own species. 



This entire point is not quite so important in the study of 

 Bartram's philosophy of nature as the use he made of it. He 

 used it as but one item in a vast series which proved to him that 

 all nature is good and wise and that, consequently man's con- 

 duct ought to emulate nature. " Let us," he preached, "... by 

 studying and contemplating the works and power of God, learn 

 wisdom and understanding in the economy of nature. . . . Let 

 us be obedient to the ruling powers in such things as regard 

 human affairs, our duties to each other, and all creatures and 

 concerns that are submitted to our care and controul." ^* In a 

 word, nature, next to being a source of aesthetic delight to 

 him, was also a guide to moral conduct.^^ If he emphasized 

 the benevolence of birds and other animals and spoke even 



"" These grammatical errors are corrected in the Van Doren text, which also 

 employs a more modern system of punctuation. 



" Travels, xxxi-xxxii. 



'Ubid., 57. 



'" One cannot help noting the striking similarity between Bartram's philosophy 

 of nature and Emerson's as expressed in " Nature," with its grand divisions into 

 Nature as Commodity, Nature as Beauty, Nature as Language, Nature as 

 Discipline, etc. It has already been noted (see Preface) that Carlyle had called 

 Emerson's attention to Bartram's Travels in enthusiastic terms, but that was 

 after Emerson had published his Nature. For a detailed treatment of Bartram's 

 influence on English and American literature see Part III and Conclusion. 



