Kirjahaku

America's Fourteen Unknown Presidents explores the lives and careers of the fourteen men who served as President before the adoption of the United States Constitution. These largely unknown men served collectively from September 5, 1774 to April 30, 1789. They were sometimes referred to as "President of the Confederacy," "President of Congress," or "President of the United States in Congress Assembled." We can better call them the "Unknown Presidents." History has largely forgotten the acts preformed by these men while they were President. However, their accomplishments were (sometimes) spectacular. During the time these men served, America built a military force from scratch, declared its independence, and successfully conducted a war against the greatest military power on earth. In addition, during this time, America formed an unsuccessful "Perpetual Union" and replaced it with "a more perfect Union" that has withstood the test of time. Readers may recognize the names of a few of the Presidents included here for their accomplishments before or after they became President. Other of the unknown Presidents may be mysteries to readers in any regard. Regardless, these early Presidents do not receive the credit due them for their contributions to the formation of the United States. This book provides brief biographical data of each of the fourteen Presidents before George Washington. It is the hope of the author that readers will become interested and seek out more information about these men. In addition to the biographical data about the unknown Presidents individually, the author has included a small chapter of comparative data relating to the unknown Presidents. This will give the reader a better understanding of these men. The author also includes several indexes containing founding documents that the reader should find useful and illuminating.

I am a sucker for a good story and I was born into a family of great storytellers. Though I am a professional author, I am by no means the best storyteller in my family. I am not even close to the best. I also married into a family of storytellers. This makes me doubly blessed. In addition, Macon County, Tennessee is a place blessed with great stories to tell and great people willing to tell them. I lean on some of these people and their stories to provide me with entertainment and inspiration.The stories in this book, all of them bizarre in their own way, come to me from family members and other citizens of Macon County. In addition, I draw some of these stories from my own recollections. Though I remember most of the "family" stories, my sister, Wanda Clark, filled in important details of a good many of them. I could never have written this book without her help. I have made no effort to separate fact from embellishment and I have made no effort to prove or disprove any of these stories. In addition, I am sure that there are several versions of some of these stories floating around. That's okay by me. Great stories should have many versions. After all, each of the thousands of retellings of a great story is a version in itself.These tales come from memories and memories are unreliable. That's okay too. Again, I have made no effort to prove that any of these stories are in any way accurate. It's all about the stories - nothing else.Some of these stories are very old. Others are from the Twenty-first Century. Some have endured the test of time. Others will be around for many, many years. Some of the stories have a disturbing element. Others are just fun.Not all of these stories are set in Macon County, but all of them came to me from individuals with Macon County roots. I have written what I hope are entertaining narratives and I present these stories for entertainment purposes only. Readers should accept them for what they are intended to be -fun little stories - and nothing more. Beyond the stories, at the end of the book I have included some local history resources I use and a list of my other local history titles. I hope you find those sections useful.

According to the American Academy of Poets, "An epic is a long, often book-length, narrative in verse form that retells the heroic journey of a single person, or group of persons. Elements that typically distinguish epics include superhuman deeds, fabulous adventures, highly stylized language, and a blending of lyrical and dramatic traditions."The Road from Bohemia to Westphalia does not meet all the criteria of an epic based upon the definition listed above. It is a long, book-length poem and it does tell the story of a journey. However, the reader will strain to find much heroism in it. There is also nothing particularly "superhuman" or "fabulous" in it at first blush. The "hero" of the tale is a quite average young man on a journey to fulfill his dreams. At least that is how he appears. However, a deeper look into this epic will reveal that this simple everyman is indeed a hero and that his feats are indeed superhuman in their own way.The story of the young man's adventure, related in fifty parts, is (hopefully) entertaining and it points out some obvious (and not so obvious) facets of the human condition. His story is both unique and universal. In it fifty parts, The Road from Bohemia to Westphalia employs several different forms of verse including traditional rhyming verse, blank verse, free verse, a few haikus, and even a limerick. These varying styles of verse tell a single, multi-layered story of one man's adventure.I recommend the reader to take The Road from Bohemia to Westphalia for what it is - the story on one man's adventure in a world he does not quite understand.I recommend the reader not rush through The Road from Bohemia to Westphalia. I meant it for slow reading. Pretend it is a sweet decadent dessert. Enjoy it deliberately.

Most of the 67 love potions, spells, and charms presented in this book are variants of much older potions, etc. Most of the items needed for these love spells, etc. are readily available and easy to find. You won