John Lawson's amazingly detailed yet lively book is easily one of the
most valuable of the early histories of the Carolinas, and it is
certainly one of the best travel accounts of the early
eighteenth-century colonies. An inclusive account of the manners and
customs of the Indian tribes of that day, it is also a minute report of
the soil, climate, trees, plants, animals, and fish in the Carolinas.
Lawson's observation is keen and thorough; his style direct and vivid.
He misses nothing and recounts all -- from the storms at sea to his
impressions of New York in 1700, the trip down the coast to Charleston,
and his travels from there into North Carolina with his Indian guides.
The first edition of this work was published in London in 1709. While
various editions followed in the eighteenth century -- including two in
German -- this edition is a true copy of the original and is the first
to include a comprehensive index. It also contains "The Second Charter,"
"An Abstract of the Constitution of Carolina," Lawson's will, and
several previously unpublished letters written by Lawson. A number of
DeBry woodcuts of John White's drawings of Indian life, sketches of the
beasts of Carolina which appeared in the original 1709 edition, and
Lawson's map contribute additional interest to this volume.
