William Cullen Bryant, an American journalist and poet, was born at
Cummington, Hampshire county, Massachusetts, November 3d, 1794. His
forefathers, for three generations, were medical men; but this family
_penchant_ for physic did not exist, apparently, in the case of our
poet, who changed the professional current by becoming a lawyer. For
ten years he followed the tortuous course of legal practice, but at
last gave it up for the more genial profession of literature. In 1808,
Mr. Bryant published a little collection of poems, written before he
had completed his fourteenth year, entitled, ‘The Embargo, and other
Poems.’ In 1821, he published at Cambridge, Massachusetts, the volume
entitled, ‘The Ages, and other Poems.’ In 1825, he came to New York,
when he became one of the editors of the ‘New York Review’ (which,
however, had but a short existence), and published several poems and
tales, which quickly became popular. From this point he went on
successfully, writing in the chief periodical publications, in
conjunction with some of the leading American authors of his day, and
becoming, moreover, the editor of a New York paper, the ‘Evening
Post.’ In 1834-35, and also in 1845, he traveled in Europe, writing
descriptions of what he saw for his journal in America. Mr. Bryant
again visited Europe in 1849, and on his return published his ‘Letters
of a Traveler,’ being a _resume_ of his tours in Europe and this
country. He has gained a high reputation by his poems; and his
political writings in favor of free trade and free discussion, against
monopolies of all kinds, are marked with clearness and vigor. He has
labored earnestly to diffuse a taste for the fine arts in this
country, and was president of the Apollo Association, prior to its
incorporation as the American Art Union.