Reviews of Books

In a May 1792 letter to the governor of Canada, Levi Allen claimed that "All extensive settlements in America, have been made by a set of successive enterprising men (known in America by the appalation of Land-Jobers)." In his mind, it was only through the efforts of such men that America's "hard labouring peasants"—a people "intirely incapable of making the Proper application for the land, or Paying the necessary fees, surveying"—were able to acquire land. Private speculation was in the public interest. Governments intent on development, Allen lectured the governor, would "defeat their own Object; if they do not Allow some besides themselves to make a little in the business" (p. 399).	1
This desire "to make a little in the business" forms the central theme in the correspondence of Ethan Allen and His Kin. Ambition prompted Levi Allen and his brothers Ethan and Ira to migrate to the wilderness of the New Hampshire Grants (present-day Vermont) in the decade before the Revolution. Like so many other young men raised in an environment of scarcity, they were eager for the burgeoning economic opportunities on the frontiers of the new republic. But the Allen brothers stood out for the desperation with which they pursued the main chance. It is this very quality, this grim determination to get rich, that makes the letters in Ethan Allen and His Kin so valuable. They are a veritable treasure trove for scholars interested in the machinations of the thousands of petty entrepreneurs who flourished (and withered away) along America's various frontiers during the years of the early republic. No aspect of land dealing or any number of other speculative ventures in this period is absent from these letters.	2
Consequently, historians interested in the "new man" of the new republic—the aggressive, materialistic, liberal individual—will find a wealth of material in the Allen letters. Not so for students of Vermont's early years; those familiar with the recent work of Michael Bellesiles, J. Kevin Graffagnino, Aleine Austin, and this reviewer will find little new in the letters of Ethan and Ira Allen. Ethan's letters primarily concern public affairs; they deal first with his efforts to fend off New York authorities on the Grants and then with his support for the independent republic of Vermont. Ira's correspondence focuses almost exclusively on his frantic speculative ventures. Perhaps the most fascinating letters were written by Ira in 1813 to Spanish incendiaries who had come to Philadelphia to enlist aid in their plan to foment revolution in Mexico. Always willing to further the establishment of republics, Allen promised his full support. He also discerned opportunities for himself. Did the conspirators need any weapons to carry off their plan? He could "furnish all the Supplies that may be wanted for the army in Mexico." Just send "Such Sums of money as may be Conveniant" (pp. 770–71).	. . .