“THESE ARE THE TIMES THAT TRY MEN’S SOULS”: THIRD ENGLISH COLLECTED EDITION OF PAINE’S AMERICAN CRISIS SERIES

PAINE, Thomas. The American Crisis. London: W.T. Sherwin, 1817. Octavo, period-style full speckled sheep gilt, red morocco spine label, uncut and unopened; pp. [2], 196. 

Third English collected edition of Paine’s American Crisis series, featuring his immortal lines—“the most dramatic, most memorable that Paine ever wrote, surpassing even any of those in Common Sense. There are few passages in the modern English language more powerful.”"These are the times that try men's souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman." With these famous watchwords, Thomas Paine began the first number in his American Crisis. These inspiring lines, written as the Continental Army saw near-certain defeat, are "the most dramatic, most memorable that Paine ever wrote, surpassing even any of those in Common Sense. There are few passages in the modern English language more powerful" (Fruchtman, 89). 

According to accounts by Paine. “I began the first number of the Crisis, beginning with the well-known expression (‘These are the times that try men’s souls’), at Newark, upon the retreat from Fort Lee and had it printed at Philadelphia the 19th of December, six days before the taking the Hessians at Trenton, which, with the week after, put an end to the black times.” Washington ordered the first Crisis read to his beleaguered colonial army, and "in the late afternoon light of Christmas Day, 1776, officers assembled the American troops into small squads and read to them the text of The American Crisis… The words soon became famous and will always remain so until the cause of citizens' freedom is extinguished" (Keane, 144-5). Paine "published eight Crises essays during 1777 and 1778. The British army evacuated Philadelphia in June 1778, and Paine returned thither with the Congress. The Crises, vigorously written to keep up the spirits of the Americans, had additional authority from his official position" (ANB). 

This Third English collected edition was preceded by the 1788 first English collected edition. "No. 1 of this edition, dated August 9, 1775 and referring to General Gage's proclamation, is an essay from the London 'Crisis' and is here erroneously attributed to Paine. The first number of the 'American Crisis' is number 2 of this collection" (Gimbel-Paine:41). Of The American Crisis, only Numbers I-V and The Crisis Extraordinary were "first printed in America as separate pamphlets. The rest were given directly to the newspapers" (Gimbel-Yale 18). Sabin 58209. Howes P16. See Gimbel-Yale 18-23, 171; Gimbel-Paine:39-40; ESTC T5800; Evans 14953, 15493-95, 15951-55; Sabin 58206-7; Hildeburn 3432, 3595. 

Soiling to title page that is remargined on the gutter not affecting text; minor foxing and toning. A very good uncut and unopened copy.

Book #BV2356.