Excerpt from The Descendants of Nathaniel Clarke: And His Wife Elizabeth Somerby of Newbury, Massachusetts Doubtless many families and individuals do not receive the prominence to which they are entitled, but the writer has given all the information that he has been able to obtain. The proof has been compared with the original sources of information, as far as was practicable, including letters, family manuscripts and postal cards. The letters and postals were classified and mounted in books that they might be thus used; but this method, necessary if accuracy was to be realized, added greatly to the labor of proof reading. Data furnished by correspondents are often conflicting, and the records not as full as they should be. The present edition has been edited with the greatest care, and the compiler has had long experience, both in business and historical work, where exactness was essential; but it would be remarkable if no errors were found. The first edition was issued in 1882, and was intended as a pioneer work, but the second edition, which appeared in 1885, was evidently premature, as much important matter was then unknown to the writer. The arrangement of the present volume is influenced by considerations of convenience, and by the fact that it is a somewhat elaborate family history rather than a mere genealogy. Only a small edition has been printed, as the demand for such books is limited, but the writer hopes to perpetuate in these pages the records of an old New England family, and to interest future generations in their forefathers. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.