Introductory note on John Woolman (Volume 1, Harvard Classics)

John Woolman was the foremost leader of the early Quakers and contributed much to the spiritual life of the American Colonies. He was a pioneer in the crusade against slavery. (Volume 1, Harvard Classics)

John Woolman died Oct. 7, 1772.

Introductory note on Edmund Burke (#2) (Volume 24, Harvard Classics)

Wakened by the death cries of her sentry, Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, fled by a secret passage from the fury of a vile mob. The royal family was arrested and taken to Paris to await their fate. (Volume 24, Harvard Classics)

Introductory note on John Henry Newman (Volume 28, Harvard Classics)

A boxer in public games desired to study philosophy at Athens. There were no furnaces to tend, no tables to wait on, no books or magazines to peddle, yet this sturdy young Greek managed to work his way through college. (Volume 28, Harvard Classics)

Introductory note on Plutarch (Volume 12, Harvard Classics)

The man who put pebbles in his mouth and orated to the sea, shaved one-half of his head so that he would be obliged to stay at home until he had perfected his oratory -- a strange method of attaining eminence, but a successful one. (Volume 12, Harvard Classics)

Introductory note on English poetry (Volume 40, Harvard Classics)

When polite English society conversed in French -- considering English a vulgar tongue, fit only for servants and working people -- Chaucer, nevertheless, wrote poems in this "vulgar" English, which charm us because of their quaint words. (Volume 40, Harvard Classics)