The Copybook

Short passages for reading, drawn from history, legend, poetry and fiction.

7

© Udimu, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0.

In This Sign Conquer by Eusebius of Caesarea

Eusebius remembers the banner that Emperor Constantine carried into battle on the day he won his crown.

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8

By Henry Bellagnome, Wikimedia COmmons. CC BY-SA 2.0 generic.

Time Is by Henry van Dyke

Henry van Dyke wrote this for the sundial at Katrina Trask’s community retreat at Yaddo, New York.

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9

By Johannes Moreelse (?1602-1634), Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.

Keep It Short by Plutarch

Plutarch argues that it when it comes to strong speech, less is always more.

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10

© Tim Felce, Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 2.0.

Go to the Ant from The Authorized Version

Solomon recommends taking lessons from one of God’s smallest but most hard-working creatures.

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11

By Clément Ader, photo © Roby, Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 2.0.

Chariots of Steam by Erasmus Darwin

Erasmus Darwin imagines how steam power will change the world.

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12

© Christine Matthews, Geograph. CC BY-SA 2.0.

The Moral Case for Family Farms by Richard Cobden

Richard Cobden called on Parliament to support small, family-owned farms.

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© Nicholas Armitage / Clay Lane, 2025

April 25 NS

April 12 OS

The Life-Giving Spring : An obscure officer in the Roman Army gains a dizzying promotion after performing a simple act of kindness.
The Gallipoli Landings : By 1915, the Allies were struggling to break through Germany’s Western Front, and so began looking for another line of attack.
The Avengers : John Buchan was moved by the way the nations of the British Empire volunteered for service in the Great War.
A Tax on Companionship : William Windham MP was appalled at the idea of levying a tax on man’s best friend.
Christ is Risen! : Felicia Skene recalls the Easter celebrations on one emotionally-charged night in Athens
Saddled : Use these words in sentences, and see if you can use one of them as a verb.
Russia’s Heroic Stand : In 1941, with much of the West subdued, Adolf Hitler bent the full force of his hatred on Moscow.
Approachable : Replace the verb ‘can’ with these alternatives, and explain how the meaning of the sentence has changed.
The First Easter : In a translation from the Authorized Version of the Bible, published in 1611, St Mark recounts the discovery of Christ’s empty tomb.
A Collect for Easter Day : A short prayer from the Book of Common Prayer, for the day of Christ’s resurrection.
The Gambler : Which well-known expression is Dr Johnson talking about here?
If I Had But Two Little Wings : Samuel Taylor Coleridge holds on to those precious moments when loneliness is a problem for tomorrow.
Red Eye : Reconstruct the speaker’s original words from these reports.
Responsible : Combine each group of ideas into a single sentence, in as many ways as you can.
Opposites : Suggest words that seem opposite in meaning to the words in this list.
Three of a Kind : For each of these things, think of three different varieties of it.
The Son of God Goes Forth to War : A hymn in praise of St Stephen, the first Christian martyr.
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