The True Bill Press

'THE PERSONAL OBSERVATIONS OF A MAN OF INTELLIGENCE':
NOTES OF A TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA IN 1861

By Sir James Fergusson

Edited and with annotations and an introductory essay by Ben Wynne

Originally privately printed in Edinburgh in 1861.

"Never truly available to the reading public of [the author's] day, this superbly annotated edition of 'The Personal Observations...' makes it a critically valuable addition to all academic library 19th century American history collections in general, and Civil War studies supplemental reading lists in particular."

The Midwest Book Review, February 2010.

"[This] is not a battle book like Sir Arthur Fremantle's. Rather, it is a well-written travelogue, filled with detailed, honest descriptions of the United States and Canada during the early days of the war, which I genuinely enjoyed reading."

Civil War News, September 2010.

"This collection of letters gives the reader a new point of view towards the Civil War in the United States. Fergusson's easy writing style and personal insights, as well as his contact with people on all sides of the war, give a new understanding of the feelings and the people involved...This is a welcome work for scholars of Scottish history, Canadian history or the Civil War."

IRSS (International Review of Scottish Studies), 2010.

"[Fergusson's] analysis of early war hysteria is uniquely informative and sociologically attuned."

Contemporary Sociology: A Journal of Reviews, July 2010.

"This volume constitutes a very valuable primary source for researchers in the field of the U. S. Civil War, providing insight into the general atmosphere prevailing in both camps in the early stages of the conflict...As he was not an envoy and was free to choose his itinerary, Fergusson gives a very rich and sometimes picturesque description of his three-month visit, traveling from Nova Scotia down to Virginia through several western states...The narrative is teeming with anecdotes about the blunt realities of life in North American...All in all, Sir James Fergusson's notes form a very surprising and stimulating volume."

Cercles: Revue Pluridisciplinaire du Monde Anglophone, 2010.

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