About the Author
William Roscoe Thayer (1859–1923) was born in Boston. A writer and editor, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters, received honorary degrees from Harvard, Yale, Brown, and other universities, and was president of the American Historical Association. He wrote poetry and prose, including books on George Washington, Emerson, Longfellow, Harvard University, Venice, and Elizabethan theater.
