Clay Lane

The Copy Book

A Library of History and Literature in English

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745

An Embarrassment of Heroes

John Buchan warned that the great figures of history are often beyond their biographers’ comprehension.

746

Sir William Keeps a Prior Engagement

Sir William Napier stopped to console an unhappy little girl, and made her a promise he did not find it easy to keep.

747

Fan Frenzy

Ardent opera buffs descend like locusts on Jenny Lind’s hotel, eager for a memento.

748

Press Agents

When Lord Salisbury asked the Russian Minister of the Interior how many agents the Tsar had in India, the reply came as a shock.

749

Playing with Fire

William Stead warned his fellow-journalists to take care that their bellicose rhetoric did not end in a real war with Russia.

750

Androcles and the Lion

Gaius Caesar is disappointed with the quality of the entertainment on offer in Rome’s Circus Maximus.