The Copybook

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

937

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

Wellington’s Cook by William Howitt

The hero of Waterloo needed all his men to believe in him that day, but none believed in him more than his cook.

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938

© Alessandro57, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0.

The Life-Giving Spring by Clay Lane

An obscure officer in the Roman Army gains a dizzying promotion after performing a simple act of kindness.

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939

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

Serjeant Munday by William Howitt

William Howitt had some advice for Victorian tourists hoping for an authentic experience at the battlefield of Waterloo.

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940

© jmc4 - Church Explorer, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.

The Consecration of Bishop Cuthbert by St Bede of Jarrow

Cuthbert would not go to King Ecgfrith, so King Ecgfrith and his entire court had to go to Cuthbert.

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941

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

Misreading Russia by Richard Cobden

Richard Cobden asked Parliament to make a better effort to understand the Russian mindset.

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942

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

Early Warning by Charles H. Ross

An Italian businessman and his family in 18th century Messina owed their lives to their pet cats.

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

© Nicholas Armitage / Clay Lane, 2025

May 2 NS

April 19 OS

She was a Phantom of Delight : Mary Wordsworth wasn’t pretty or bookish, but she was kind and vital, and William loved her.
Hardly : Tone down these bold assertions with ‘hardly’.
The Death of Julius Caesar : When Julius Caesar entered the Senate that day, a note warning him of treachery was clutched in his hand — unread.
Two Letters Home : A German soldier stopped the Great War so he could ask Captain Hulse to post a letter for him.
Smile : Choose adjectives of praise for these nouns, at about the 7/10 level.
The Making of Mark : St Mark wrote his Gospel as a summary of the preaching of St Peter.
Zheng He and the Rise of Malacca : Malacca became a refuge from the overbearing empires of the Far East, thanks to a celebrated Chinese admiral.
Confusables : Compose sentences to bring out the similarities and differences between these words.
Jill and I : Include yourself in these sentences about Jill.
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.
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