The Algerine spy in Pennsylvania : or, Letters written by a native of Algiers on the affairs of the United States in America, from the close of the year 1783 to the meeting of the Convention / Peter Markoe ; edited by Timothy Marr.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Markoe, Peter, 1752?-1792.

Contributor:

Marr, Timothy, 1960-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

United States--Politics and government--1783-1789.

United States.

Politics and government.

Pennsylvania--Politics and government--1775-1865.

Pennsylvania.

Physical Description:

xxxiv, 130 pages : illustrations, facsimile ; 22 cm

Other Title:

Letters written by a native of Algiers on the affairs of the United States in America

Place of Publication:

Yardley, Pa. : Westholme, [2008]

Summary:

In 1787, while American sailors languished in a Barbary prison, delegates debated the Constitution in Philadelphia. Despite America's desire to respond to the crisis, without a central government, the new republic had no means to create a naval force. Enter an anonymously published book, The Algerine Spy in Pennsylvania: or, Letters Written by a Native of Algiers on the Affairs of the United States in America, which began circulating among the delegates. Consisting of a series of letters ostensibly written by an Algerian agent "Mehmet" back to his leader, the spy predicted that the former colonies would never be able to resolve their differences and be "ruined by disunion." The book created a sensation and it helped tip the balance for those in favor of adopting the new Constitution. Following the Constitution's final ratification in 1789, the United States created a navy and began asserting its power overseas. With its commentary about men and women, business and pleasure, and historical and religious comparisons between nations, The Algerine Spy in Pennsylvania provides both a contemporary snapshot of early American life and the political ideas of the period. Never before reprinted, and recently rated one of the five best works in the history of America's encounter with the Arab world, this new edition is edited by historian Timothy Marr, who reconsiders the importance of this early work in the political and literary history of the United States.

Contents:

Letter from the Translator 5

Letter I Mehemet to Solyman from Gibraltar 7

Letter II Mehemet to Solyman from Gibraltar 12

Letter III Mehemet to Solyman from Gibraltar 17

Letter IV Mehemet to Solyman from Gibraltar 22

Letter V Mehemet to Solyman from Gibraltar 27

Letter VI Mehemet to Solyman from Gibraltar 32

Letter VII Mehemet to Solyman from Gibraltar 37

Letter VIII Mehemet to Solyman from Lisbon 47

Letter IX Mehemet to Solyman from Lisbon 52

Letter X Mehemet to Solyman from Lisbon 57

Letter XI Mehemet to Solyman from Philadelphia 62

Letter XII Mehemet to Solyman from Philadelphia 68

Letter XIII Mehemet to Solyman from Philadelphia 73

Letter XIV Mehemet to Solyman from Philadelphia 76

Letter XV Mehemet to Fatima from Philadelphia 82

Letter XVI Mehemet to - from Philadelphia 87

Letter XVII Mehemet to - from Philadelphia 91

Letter XVIII Mehemet to - from Philadelphia 97

Letter XIX Mehemet to - from Philadelphia 103

Letter XX Mehemet to - from Philadelphia 108

Letter XXI Solomon Mendez to Mehemet from Gibraltar 112

Letter XXII Solomon to Mehemet from Algiers 115

Letter XXIII Alvarez to Solyman from Malaga 119

Letter XXIV Mehemet to Solomon Mendez from Philadelphia 122.

Notes:

Originally printed and sold by Prichard & Hall, Philadelphia, in 1787.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781594160639

1594160635

OCLC:

184822191