Clay Lane

The Copy Book

A Library of History and Literature in English

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1585

Orpheus and Eurydice

Orpheus would lose his beloved wife Eurydice to death not once, but twice.

Orpheus was taught music, and given a marvellous lyre, by Apollo himself. He out-sang even the Sirens, and so brought Jason and the crew of the Argo to safety. But the love of his life was Eurydice, and he lost her - twice.

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Picture: By Underworld74, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Attribution only.. Source.

1586

The Partridge and the Cockerels

It’s hard when messed-up people treat you badly, but if you take it personally it only makes it worse.

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Picture: © FokusNatur, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 3.0.. Source.

1587

Peace By Free Trade

The blessing of trade free from political interference was one of most important insights in British, indeed world history.

In his day, Richard Cobden (1804-1865) was regarded as Britain’s answer to Karl Marx. Where Marxism stands for State control, bloody violence and political oppression, Cobden showed that the free market led to prosperity through peace, cooperation, and freedom.

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Picture: © Suzanne Knight, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.

1588

Perfection is no Trifle

Michelangelo had a message for all serious entrepreneurs.

In business as in life, little things can make a big difference, as this story about Renaissance sculptor Michelangelo (1475-1564) shows.

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Picture: © Marcus Obal, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 3.0.. Source.

1589

Perseus and Andromeda

Wielding the Gorgon’s head, Perseus saves a beautiful maiden from a ravening sea-monster.

Polydectes, King of Seriphos, has sent young Perseus to get the head of Medusa the Gorgon, the very sight of which will turn any man to stone. His hope is that the boy will never come back, clearing the way for him to marry Perseus’s mother, Danaë. But Perseus is on his way home even now...

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Picture: © Peter Trimming, Geograph. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.. Source.

1590

The Persistence of Thomas Clarkson

Today, the slave trade is a £150bn global business. Back in the late 18th century, it was making a lot of influential people very rich too, but some in England were determined to stop it.

Today, the slave trade is a £150bn global business. Back in the late 18th century, it was making a lot of influential people very rich too, but some in England were determined to stop it.

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Picture: From Wikimedia Commons.. Source.