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Home  »  Volume XVIII: American LATER NATIONAL LITERATURE: PART III  »  § 21. Karl Follen; Francis Lieber

The Cambridge History of English and American Literature in 18 Volumes (1907–21).
VOLUME XVIII. Later National Literature, Part III.

XXXI. Non-English Writings I

§ 21. Karl Follen; Francis Lieber

Two of the ablest Germans who came to this country before 1830, Karl Follen and Francis Lieber, in their mature works used the language of their adopted country, Follen in his essays and sermons, Lieber in his literary essays and books on political science. We can observe this tendency even earlier, in Baron Steuben’s Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States, published in 1779 and reprinted many times for use at West Point. Others published in both languages, notably Carl Schurz, whose widely-read Reminiscences were first written in German, but whose speeches (with many exceptions), reports, and essays appeared mostly in English. The Memoirs of Gustav Koerner are a fit companion piece to the autobiography of Carl Schurz, since they amplify the account of conditions in the Middle West between 1835 and 1865, and particularly the rise of the Republican party.