Introductory note on The Destruction of Dá Derga’s Hostel (Volume 49, Harvard Classics)

There she was undoing her hair -- the loveliest woman the eyes of men ever beheld, the light of wooing in her regal eyes. A longing for her overwhelmed the warrior-king. (Volume 49, Harvard Classics)

Introductory note on Thomas Carlyle (Volume 25, Harvard Classics)

Many sons of Scotland have striven eagerly for the great place held by Sir Walter Scott. Carlyle describes the qualities that combined to make him the idol of his people and the master of historical romance. (Volume 25, Harvard Classics)

Introductory note on Charles Darwin (Volume 11, Harvard Classics)

Just as the individual has a definite length of life, so have species a limited duration. The progress and transition of the world, Darwin declares, will see the extinction of certain variants of human life. (Volume 11, Harvard Classics)

Darwin first outlines his theory of natural selection, Sept. 5. 1857.

Introductory note on Voltaire (Volume 34, Harvard Classics)

Voltaire's daring courage led him to publish a series of letters which contained unfavorable comparisons of French customs with the English. For this he was threatened with the Bastille. (Volume 34, Harvard Classics)

Introductory note on American Historical Documents (Volume 43, Harvard Classics)

Until 1783 the British refused to believe that the Liberty Bell had rung. Then they signed a treaty formally recognizing the Colonies as free and independent states. (Volume 43, Harvard Classics)

Treaty between England and the United States signed Sept. 3, 1783.