The Rhetorical Reader was designed for the use of students at the high school level. It sets forth instructions for regulating the voice, along with rhetorical notations. Part II contains a large selection of reading exercises from American and British writers. The author notes in the Preface that this selection was based in part on the "moral sentiment" of the pieces. This rare 304 page reader was published in 1835. The title page contains the signature of owner Albert O’Boine. Both the front and rear covers are missing.
Ebenezer Porter (1772-1834) had a distinguished career as a pastor, author, and seminary professor. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1792, and became pastor of the Congregational church at Washington, Connecticut. In 1812, he was appointed professor of sacred rhetoric at Andover Theological Seminary, Massachusetts. Porter became its President in 1827 and served in that capacity until his death. The schoolbook publishing house founded by Mark H. Newman (1772-1859) was headquartered in Manhattan, New York. The company primarily published and sold books devoted to the teachings of Christianity.
Printers Allen, Merrill and Wardwell were based in Andover, Massachusetts.