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

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79

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

Robbery With Respect by Charles Greville

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

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80

© Friedrich Böhringer, Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 3.0.

Unfair Competition by Anonymous

Mousetraps are proof of human ingenuity, but also human ingratitude — so Tom does something about it.

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81

By an unknown photographer, via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.

Invictus by W. E. Henley

A memorable poem about triumph over adversity.

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82

© Katie Thebeau, Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 2.0 generic.

Tree of Life by Edith Louise Marsh

Jacques Cartier made history and made friends along the St Lawrence, but then threw all that goodwill away.

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83

© Tapas Kumar Halder, Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 4.0.

The Dilemma by Francis William Bain

Francis Bain’s alternative Adam and Eve story left its own question unanswered.

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84

© Dunstan, Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 4.0.

The Departure of Bede by Cuthbert, Abbot of Wearmouth and Jarrow

Bede died as he had lived, freely sharing all he had, and singing praises to God.

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Clay Lane The Copybook
About Clay Lane nicholas@claylane.uk

© Nicholas Armitage / Clay Lane, 2025

May 23 NS

May 10 OS

The War of the Spanish Succession : After Louis XIV’s grandson Philip inherited the throne of Spain, the ‘Sun King’ began to entertain dreams of Europe-wide dominion.
Pirate : For each of these words, suggest others that seem to go with it, and use them to bring a scene to life.
Tilting at Windmills : Don Quixote seizes his chance to capture a giant for his lady-love, Dulcinea.
Kim’s Game : Test your memory with this mental agility game from the pages of Rudyard Kipling.
A Mechanical Miracle : The father of computing believed his machine held the key to some of life’s greatest mysteries.
Essential Nouns : Suggest nouns of essence, such as leadership or supremacy.
The Follies of Youth : RL Stevenson was of the opinion that wrongthink was better than groupthink.
Thick and Thin : Express each of these ideas as a single word.
Break : Explain what each of these common expressions means, and give examples.
Blind Guide : William Wirt recalls an overpowering sermon from a blind man in a little wooden chapel.
It’s All in the Delivery : Aeschines paid tribute to the oratory of his greatest rival — whether he meant to or not.
The Road to Ruin : George Berkeley warned that industry, not financial speculation, was the guarantee of a nation’s wealth.
Signs of Command : Suggest publicly-displayed commands, and say how many of them are sentences.
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