The Copybook

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

727

© nishad kaippally, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.

Peasie and Beansie Clay Lane

Peasie wants to visit her lonely father, but she can’t get her sister Beansie to come along with her.

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728

By JMW Turner (1775-1851), Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

The Zong Massacre

After a hundred and forty-two slaves were tossed overboard in an insurance scam, Granville Sharp wouldn’t let the matter rest.

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729

© 0x010C, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 4.0.

An Ever-Fixed Mark William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare in sombre mood clings to love as the only changeless thing in a world of decay.

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730

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

A Cavalier Attitude William King

Royalist soldier Sir Jacob Ashly exemplified a Christian gentleman in the heat of battle.

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731

From the British Museum, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

The Good Reign of Bad King John Thomas Babington Macaulay

Lord Macaulay believed that the disastrous reign of King John brought the country together.

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732

© Victuallers, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0.

The Spider and the King Sir Walter Scott

Sir Walter Scott tells of the tale of how a little spider inspired Robert the Bruce to win his country’s sovereignty.

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