History of the Reed family in Europe and America
(17) [Page 1] - Introduction
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INTRODUCTION.
HTHE pedigree of different families has been kept up to
■ some extent by almost all nations, so that every man
could be called by the peculiar name and relation of his
family. So strong was this habit in ancient times, that a
man without a pedigree was considered equivalent to being
without a parent ; as was Melchisedek, King of Salem. As
far as my observation extends, the practice of retaining a
pedigree first fell into disuse among the Americans soon
after the country began to be settled by European emigrants,
who came here during the seventeenth century ; and for the
following reasons : First, the most of those who came here
were in better circumstances at home than they were after
their arrival here ; but, having spent all their means in
emigration, they were obliged to remain. Having been
misled by designing and interested men to believe that
America was a land which possessed every thing desirable, a
large proportion of the emigrants were sanguine in the
expectation of bettering their temporal condition by emi-
gration ; very much as people were misled by exaggerated
statements in reference to California, and as they have
always been misled by representations in reference to the
West. But in former days it cost a fortune to come from
1
HTHE pedigree of different families has been kept up to
■ some extent by almost all nations, so that every man
could be called by the peculiar name and relation of his
family. So strong was this habit in ancient times, that a
man without a pedigree was considered equivalent to being
without a parent ; as was Melchisedek, King of Salem. As
far as my observation extends, the practice of retaining a
pedigree first fell into disuse among the Americans soon
after the country began to be settled by European emigrants,
who came here during the seventeenth century ; and for the
following reasons : First, the most of those who came here
were in better circumstances at home than they were after
their arrival here ; but, having spent all their means in
emigration, they were obliged to remain. Having been
misled by designing and interested men to believe that
America was a land which possessed every thing desirable, a
large proportion of the emigrants were sanguine in the
expectation of bettering their temporal condition by emi-
gration ; very much as people were misled by exaggerated
statements in reference to California, and as they have
always been misled by representations in reference to the
West. But in former days it cost a fortune to come from
1
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Histories of Scottish families > History of the Reed family in Europe and America > (17) [Page 1] - Introduction |
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Permanent URL | https://digital.nls.uk/94790823 |
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More information |
Description | A selection of almost 400 printed items relating to the history of Scottish families, mostly dating from the 19th and early 20th centuries. Includes memoirs, genealogies and clan histories, with a few produced by emigrant families. The earliest family history goes back to AD 916. |
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