Mr. Jackson frankly states in his preface that he had very little education. It would be gratuitous to parade the numerous minor faults that his book contains. Want of organization marks the entire book. The author has incorporated almost the whole of the "History of Dallas county, Texas: from 1837 to 1887, by John Henry Brown," but without any apparent reason for doing so he has broken up Brown's history and has scattered about the parts in such a manner that the reprinted portions will be difficult of identification by subsequent writers. He has brought the lists of county and city officials down to 1908. The author has also drawn upon the "Memorial and biographical history of Dallas county, Texas. . . . Chicago, 1892," without giving any credit to the same. The contents of the book that are original may be classified under verse, biographical sketches of pioneers of Dallas county and reminiscences of the author and his family, accompanied in many instances with photographs of the subjects. The biographical sketches in most instances are short—one or two pages. The reminiscences constitute the raison d'être of the book and include "The experiences of John and Mary Jackson, that emigrated from Devonshire, England, in . . . 1848, to Texas" (pp. 2-60), "When I took the gold fever" (1860), (pp. 177-204), and a "Diary of a trip to England" (1894), (pp. 287-322). About the first mentioned of these reminiscenses centers the chief interest of the book; it narrates not only the incidents of the journey to Texas, but recounts the hardships and privations experienced after settling in Dallas county. This part of the book will find sympathetic readers in most of the old settlers of this State.
E. W. WINKLER .
How to cite:
"Sixty Years in Texas", Volume 012, Number 4, Southwestern Historical Quarterly Online, Page 312. http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/publications/journals/shq/online/v012/n4/review_9.html
[Accessed Thu Dec 4 17:19:22 CST 2008]
