With Edged Tools

Merriman, Henry Seton, 1862-1903Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.3

Word count: 592K words
Chapters: 60

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.With Edged Tools by Henry Seton MerrimanAuthor: Merriman, Henry Seton, 1862-1903,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Sep 1, 2005

Editor's review

With Edged Tools is an English novel by Henry Seton Merriman, belonging to the adventure and colonial-era narrative type common in his work. The public-domain electronic edition provided by Project Gutenberg preserves the original language, making it a suitable sample for understanding the character of late nineteenth-century British popular fiction. Merriman's works typically emphasize plot momentum, characters' circumstances, and exotic settings; they read with the tension of adventure stories and also carry the limitations of their era's perspective. For readers studying the popular tradition in English literature, colonial narrative, or simply looking for a brisk old novel for entertainment, this ebook is easy to obtain and manageable in length. As you read, note how the narrator shapes foreign spaces and moral judgments of characters, and keep the story's pleasure separate from its historical context; you can then enjoy the adventure thread while maintaining a critical distance.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy late nineteenth-century British adventure fiction and popular narrative
Literary scholars studying the popular tradition in English literature or colonial narrative
Readers with a foundation in English reading who want a public-domain old novel for leisure reading

Not a good fit for

Readers who prefer contemporary pacing and lack patience for old-fashioned narrative
Readers hoping for diverse, decolonial perspectives
Those who find English reading difficult and need extensive annotations

Reading tips

First read it as an adventure story; do not rush to verify every historical detail.
When you encounter exotic descriptions and character judgments, mark viewpoints worth questioning and reflect on them after finishing.
Compare it with contemporary British adventure novels to observe similarities in plot patterns and character types.
If used for a course, pair it with discussion materials on colonial narrative rather than staying only at the story level.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book similar in style to Merriman's other novels?

Available information only confirms the author and public-domain source; specific styles cannot be compared book by book. Generally, Merriman's popular novels are known for adventure, exotic settings, and plot momentum, and this book can be read with such expectations. If you are familiar with his other works, note whether character setups and narrative pacing share common ground, but do not infer specific plot details from that.

What should I keep in mind when reading a public-domain electronic edition?

The public-domain ebook is released by Project Gutenberg; its main value is free access to the original text, usually without a modern introduction or detailed annotations. Keep a dictionary at hand and do not agonize over every historical place name or old-fashioned expression. For research, verify edition information and cite reliable sources; for leisure reading, simply proceed chapter by chapter.

Do the era's limited perspectives affect reading?

They do, but they do not prevent reading it as a historical text. Late nineteenth-century British adventure novels often carry colonial-era perspectives, and descriptions of foreign characters and spaces may discomfort modern readers. Keep the story's pleasure separate from its value judgments: enjoy the narrative tension while remaining critically aware, and consult relevant historical discussion materials when necessary to understand the context.

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About the author

Merriman, Henry Seton, 1862-1903 Author

Henry Seton Merriman (1862–1903) was a British novelist of the late nineteenth century. His real name was Hugh Stowell Scott, and he wrote under the pen name "Merriman." Public information about him is limited, and many details of his life remain uncertain. Sixteen of his works are held in this collection, including From One Generation to Another, The Slave of the Lamp, Roden's Corner, The Isle of Unrest, The Vultures, The Last Hope, Barlasch of the Guard, and Dross. These novels often draw on continental European political intrigue, diplomacy, and adventure, with tightly constructed plots in which characters are caught between moral and fatal tensions, giving the books a fin-de-siècle melancholy. Merriman was popular with readers in his lifetime, and his narrative skill and evocation of exotic settings exerted some influence on later popular historical adventure fiction.