Stories illustrating noble deeds in matters both great and small, such as the noble gesture of Sir Philip Sidney, and the determination of Benjamin Disraeli.
Social niceties are essential for the smooth operation of
society, but neither boxing a man’s ears nor calling in the lawyers will bring them back.
38
Peace with Dignity
ByWilliam Ewart Gladstone
Amid the Don Pacifico Affair, William Gladstone told Lord Palmerston that
pride in his own country did not excuse bossing others about like a global schoolmaster.
39
A Stout Answer
FromHolinshed’s Chronicles
A few weeks after a large French raiding party had been driven away from
the Isle of Wight, another flotilla arrived from across the Channel demanding money with menaces.
40
A War of Words
FromHolinshed’s Chronicles
A few years before the Battle of Agincourt, the Duke of Orléans
challenged King Henry IV to meet him in Bordeaux for a winner-takes-all joust.
41
The Making of Tommy Atkins
ByMajor-General Sir George John Younghusband
In all his years of soldiering at home and abroad, Major-General George Younghusband had never heard British soldiers talk like those in Kipling’s tales.
42
David and Goliath
ByCharlotte Yonge
Goliath, a giant of a man from Philistia, has challenged Israel’s warrior-heroes to meet him in single combat, but only a shepherd boy is brave enough to step up.
