The Copybook

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

469

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

Twink Anonymous

When a new mother found herself and her kittens on the wrong side of a nasty-looking stream, Twink was there to help.

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470

By Sir Godfrey Kneller (1646-1723), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

The Character of Sir Isaac Newton Humphrey Newton

Sir Isaac’s secretary has left us an engaging portrait of a kindly genius, the absent-minded professor of our fancy.

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471

By Anonymous (1810), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

Eureka! Marcus Vitruvius Pollio

When Archimedes discovered the principle of displacement, he was hot on the trail of a clever fraud.

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472

© Marathon, Geograph. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.

Table Steaks Pierre-Jean Grosley

French travel writer Pierre-Jean Grosley toured Georgian London just in time to witness a culinary revolution: the sandwich.

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473

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

Dog and Wig Anonymous

A loyal dog shows his initiative in recovering his master’s property, though his timing might have been better.

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474

By Hubert Robert (1733–1808), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

Fiddling While Rome Burns Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus

In 64, Nero watched on with fascination as Rome was consumed by fire — the Emperor’s idea of performance art.

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