The Copybook

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

79

© Auckland Museum, Wikimedia COmmons. CC BY-SA 4.0.

Picking on Cotton William Lecky

The politicians of Georgian England went to surprising lengths to shield domestic businesses from overseas competition.

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80

By Sir John Everett Millais (?-1896), via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.

Who Are We to Criticise? Thomas Carlyle

Thomas Carlyle felt that English criticism of Goethe revealed more about his critics than his poems.

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81

By Edvard Munch (1863–1944), via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.

A Ministering Angel Sir Walter Scott

As Lord Marmion lies dying on Flodden Field, there is no one near to tend him but the woman he has wronged.

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82

By John Ruskin, via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.

The Court of the Past John Ruskin

We should not force ourselves and ‘our values’ onto the writers of the past.

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83

By George Goodwin Kilburne (1839-1924), via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.

Arthur’s Prayers Thomas Hughes

On his first night in a school dorm, Arthur dared not do anything without seeking approval — with one exception.

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84

By Thomas Hudson (1701-1779), Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.

Robbery With Respect Charles Greville

A thief was reluctantly obliged to relieve King George II of his valuables.

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