A Precious Gift, by John Baron

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“BROTHER! [the Iroquois replied, to Dr Jenner]

“Our Father has delivered to us the book you sent to instruct us how to use the discovery which the Great Spirit made to you, whereby the small-pox, that fatal enemy of our tribes, may be driven from the earth. We have deposited your book in the hands of the man of skill whom our great Father employs to attend us when sick or wounded. We shall not fail to teach our children to speak the name of Jenner; and to thank the Great Spirit for bestowing upon him so much wisdom and so much benevolence.

“We send with this a belt and string of Wampum,* in token of our acceptance of your precious gift; and we beseech the Great Spirit to take care of you in this world and in the land of spirits.”

(Signed by two representatives of each of the Five Nations — Mohawks, Onondagas, Senecas, Oneidas, and Cayougas.)

by John Baron 1786-1851

From ‘The Life of Edward Jenner’ Volume 2 (1838) by John Baron (1786-1851).

* A belt strung with coloured beads, serving as a testament to a treaty. See ‘Wampum belt - Museum of Ontario Archaeology’ and ‘The Canadian Encyclopedia’.

Questions for Critics

1. What is the author aiming to achieve in writing this?

2. Note any words, devices or turns of phrase that strike you. How do they help the author communicate his ideas more effectively?

3. What impression does this passage make on you? How might you put that impression into words?

Based on The English Critic (1939) by NL Clay, drawing on The New Criticism: A Lecture Delivered at Columbia University, March 9, 1910, by J. E. Spingarn, Professor of Comparative Literature in Columbia University, USA.

Questions for Critics

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