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peddler

(Encyclopedia)peddler or hawker, itinerant vendor of small goods. In rural America peddlers carried their packs or drove a horse and cart from door to door. While the importance of peddlers to the small American co...

Porson, Richard

(Encyclopedia)Porson, Richard, 1759–1808, English classical scholar, b. Norfolk. A poor boy, he showed such astonishing powers of memory that patrons sent him through Eton and Cambridge. He was appointed regius p...

Peabody, George Foster

(Encyclopedia)Peabody, George Foster pēˈbädē [key], 1852–1938, American banker and philanthropist, b. Columbus, Ga. Successful early in life as a banker and organizer of railroads and utility companies, he re...

Van Der Zee, James

(Encyclopedia)Van Der Zee, James, 1886–1983, American photographer, b. Lenox, Mass. The son of Ulysses S. Grant's maid and butler, Van Der Zee opened his first studio in Harlem, New York City, in 1915. For 60 yea...

Branner, Hans Christian

(Encyclopedia)Branner, Hans Christian, 1903–66, Danish writer. Branner's early novels, often concerned with the irrational fears of childhood, include The Child Playing on the Shore (1937). With The Riding Master...

Taylor, Bert Leston

(Encyclopedia)Taylor, Bert Leston, 1866–1921, American newspaper columnist, b. Goshen, Mass. He worked for a number of newspapers before establishing his column, “A Line o' Type or Two,” signed B. L. T., ...

Stirling, William Alexander, earl of

(Encyclopedia)Stirling, William Alexander, earl of, 1567?–1640, Scottish poet. He was tutor of Prince Henry of Scotland and went to England on the accession of James I. The holder of various government offices, h...

Bliss, Philip Paul

(Encyclopedia)Bliss, Philip Paul, 1838–76, American evangelist and writer of gospel songs, b. Clearfield co., Pa. A fine baritone voice and a handsome presence aided him in his work, and his songs became tremendo...

Larkin, Philip

(Encyclopedia)Larkin, Philip, 1922–85, English poet. He graduated from St. John's College, Oxford (B.A., 1943; M.A., 1947) and was for many years librarian at the Univ. of Hull. With an eye for the ordinary and a...

Lewis, C. S.

(Encyclopedia)Lewis, C. S. (Clive Staples Lewis), 1898–1963, English author, b. Belfast, Ireland. A fellow and tutor of English at Magdalen College, Oxford, from 1925 to 1954, C. S. Lewis was noted equally for hi...