1387
The Master and his brother Henry must decide which of them goes to fight for Bonnie Prince Charlie.
It is 1745, and James - the Master of Ballantrae - and his younger brother Henry both want to fight for Bonnie Prince Charlie. But one of them must stay at home and make peace with King George II, in case he wins, and James suggests a way of deciding who it shall be.
Picture: © Derek Harper, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 4.0.. Source.
Posted May 5 2016
1388
Parted from his beloved Julia, Proteus follows his friend Valentine to Milan, where he meets the bewitching Silvia.
Valentine and Proteus are the two gentlemen in question, from Verona in northern Italy. However, as Elizabeth Bennet might say, one had got all the gentlemanliness, and the other all the appearance of it...
Picture: © Jakub-Hałun, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 4.0.. Source.
Posted May 5 2016
1389
Making friends is, like playing music, not just a matter of natural talent.
Elizabeth Bennet and Colonel Fitzwilliam have been teasing the Colonel’s cousin, Mr Darcy, about his stiff and awkward behaviour in company. Mr Darcy claims he cannot help it, but Elizabeth is having none of that.
Picture: © David Dixon, Geograph. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.. Source.
Posted April 30 2016
1390
The role of government in a nation’s prosperity is important but limited.
Bentham argues that while laws are necessary to protect security and liberty, government action should stop there: politicians can never do as much for us as we can do for ourselves.
Picture: © Jim Barton, Geograph. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.. Source.
Posted April 28 2016
1391
Five young women cared enough about a man’s wedding-day to make the smallest of sacrifices, and received the best of rewards.
The Parable of the Ten Virgins was told as a caution to those who think that conscientious preparation for the Hereafter is unnecessary. Five young women hired as lamp-bearers for a Jewish wedding assumed they could beg, borrow or buy oil when the time came.
Picture: By James Tissot (1836-1902), from the Brooklyn Museum via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.
Posted April 26 2016
1392
One of the Emperor Galerius’s most trusted generals openly defied him.
At the end of the 3rd century, Christians of the pagan Roman Empire were comparatively free: they built churches, founded schools, and established networks of charity and goodwill that the authorities both envied and feared. One Emperor sent in the army to nip the flower in the bud, but George, one of his most senior military commanders, would have no part in it.
Picture: © OneArmedMan, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.
Posted April 24 2016