Thanks to an investigation into the cabin’s foundation, Schablitsky and her team of archaeologists have uncovered a stunning breadth of objects that provide insight into the lives of the enslaved and free Black residents of the Bayly property. (Atlas Obscura)

. . . I decided to pull a Thoreau and go camping near my home. Nothing wild, just me, my tent and a few important supplies. I kissed my wife goodbye, walked two miles into a New England forest and spent the night.  (Inside Hook)

Theodore Parker approves this message

“…Lincoln did not actually use the word “democracy” in his speech, so how can we be sure he had democracy in mind when he spoke? The answer is, because we know he adopted and adapted the phrase from a definition of democracy coined by the Rev. Theodore Parker (1810-1860), a New England transcendentalist and abolitionist. Looking at why Lincoln did so sheds light on the meaning the most famous passage of the most famous speech in U.S. history.” (The Root)

Who doesn’t want to study Thoreau?

Merlin’s Song

I

Of Merlin wise I learned a song,—
Sing it low or sing it loud,
It is mightier than the strong,
And punishes the proud.
I sing it to the surging crowd,—
Good men it will calm and cheer,
Bad men it will chain and cage—
In the heart of the music peals a strain
Which only angels hear;
Whether it waken joy or rage
Hushed myriads hark in vain,
Yet they who hear it shed their age,
And take their youth again.

II

Hear what British Merlin sung,
Of keenest eye and truest tongue.
Say not, the chiefs who first arrive
Usurp the seats for which all strive;
The forefathers this land who found
Failed to plant the vantage-ground;
Ever from one who comes to-morrow
Men wait their good and truth to borrow.
But wilt thou measure all thy road,
See thou lift the lightest load.
Who has little, to him who has less, can spare,
And thou, Cyndyllan’s son! beware
Ponderous gold and stuffs to bear,
To falter ere thou thy task fulfil,—
Only the light-armed climb the hill.
The richest of all lords is Use,
And ruddy Health the loftiest Muse.
Live in the sunshine, swim the sea,
Drink the wild air’s salubrity:
When the star Canope shines in May,
Shepherds are thankful and nations gay.
The music that can deepest reach,
And cure all ill, is cordial speech:
Mask thy wisdom with delight,
Toy with the bow, yet hit the white.
Of all wit’s uses, the main one
Is to live well with who has none.