Considers that the
Mirror of
LiteratureMirror of Literature, Amusement, and
Instruction
(1822–47)
Mirror Monthly Magazine
(1847–49)
Waterloo Directory
CloseView the register entry >> has succeeded primarily through the 'economy' of
its plan and its encouragement of 'the spirit of curiosity' (iii). Observes:
'The arrangement of the present Volume, generally accords with those of its
successful predecessors. Fact and fancy; sentiment, poetry, and popular
science; anecdote and art; love of nature and knowledge of the
world—alternate in its columns' (iv).
Bakewell 1828Bakewell,
Robert 1828. An Introduction to Geology: Comprising the Elements
of the Science in its Present Advanced State, and all the Recent Discoveries:
With an Outline of the Geology of England and Wales, 3rd edn, London:
Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green
CloseView the register entry >>
Bailey 1810, Bailey, John
1810. General View of the Agriculture of the County of Durham, with
Observations on the Means of its Improvement: Drawn up for the Consideration of
the Board of Agriculture and Internal Improvement, London: R.
Phillips
CloseView the register entry >>Annals of
PhilosophyAnnals of Philosophy
(1813–26)
Waterloo
Directory CloseView the register entry >>Holmes 1816Holmes, J. H. H.
1816. A Treatise on the Coal Mines of Durham and Northumberland: With
Information Relative to the Stratifications of the Two Counties: and Containing
Accounts of the Explosions from Fire-Damp which have Occurred Therein for the
Last Twenty Years, Their Causes, and the Means Proposed for their Remedy, and
for the General Improvements of the Mining System, by New Methods of
Ventilation, &c., London: Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy
CloseView the register entry >>
The editor includes some of the extracts sent in by the correspondent,
noting that they are 'written in a popular style and appear to be equally
applicable to the welfare of all classes'. He continues: 'We are not friendly
to the introduction of purely professional matters into the pages of the
MIRRORMirror of Literature, Amusement, and
Instruction
(1822–47)
Mirror Monthly Magazine
(1847–49)
Waterloo Directory
CloseView the register entry >>, but the
following extracts are so far divested of technicality as to render their
utility and importance obvious to every reader'. (7)
'Dine with a march-of-intellect man, and only observe the downcast eyes of
his pale-faced, trembling wife—the knit brows of his sullen
sons—the sulky sorrows of his joy-denied daughters. All that comes of
your hard-hearted, hard-headed, music-painting-and-poetry-despising,
utilitarian, intellectual, all-in-all educationists, who know nothing so
admirable as a steam-engine, and would wish to see the whole world worked by
machinery'.
Popanilla, the narrator of the novel, is the native of an Indian isle called
the Isle of Fantaisie. A ship being wrecked off the coast, Popanilla finds 'a
chest [...] filled with "Useful Knowledge Tracts," books on "the Hamiltonian
system," [a system of language learning designed by
James
HamiltonHamilton, James
(1769–1829)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>] &c.' He falls asleep, and when he awakes, finds that a
troop of monkeys 'had taken the opportunity of his slumber to become acquainted
with some of the first principles of science'. Some of the monkeys have since
been seen with their tails cut off, 'passing themselves for human beings among
those people who do not read novels, and are consequently unacquainted with
mankind'. Popanilla reads a treatise on hydrostatics, and incessantly
speculates on the cause of all incidents involving the action of water. He
'soon becomes a man of science: his wit flies off in tangents, and he tries to
prove his sovereign a lantern, and himself a sun, by undertaking to re-shape
all the institutions of Fantaisie'. He dogmatises about utility and 'man being
a developing animal'. After offending the king he 'consoles himself for
having nobody to speak to, by reading some very amusing
"Conversations on Political
Economy"[Marcet, Jane]
1816. Conversations on Political Economy: In Which the Elements of That
Science are Familiarly Explained, London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and
Brown
CloseView the register entry >>'. He takes on many pupils, who, as soon as they have 'mastered
the first principles of science' begin 'lecturing upon every lecturable topic'.
Becoming a favourite at court, Popanilla 'is overpowered with promotion,
told that "with the aid of a treatise or two," he will make "a consummate naval
commander," although he has "never been at sea in the whole course of his
life"'. He is sent out in a canoe, and arrives at a 'magnificent city'
['Hubbabub'—i.e. London], where, thanks to the Hamiltonian system, he is
'more loquacious than could have been
Capt. ParryParry, Sir William Edward
(1790–1855)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>'.
(25) He exchanges his gold for 'the banker's pink shells', and there follow
'some quips on the shell question (currency), and Mr. Secretary Perriwinkle,
the most eminent conchologist', and on the national debt. Popanilla publishes
an account of his three-day voyage in a quarto volume, the eminent bookseller
having assured him that 'it was by no means difficult for a man to publish his
travels without writing a line'. 'Then we have a shower of squibs on
converzazioni—as dukes imbibing a new theory of gas [...] a
field-marshal intent on essence of hellebore'. Popanilla is most delighted by
'hearing a lecture from the most eminent lawyer and statesman [i.e.
Henry P
BroughamBrougham, Henry Peter, 1st Baron Brougham and
Vaux
(1778–1868)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>] in Vraibleusia [i.e. Britain], on his first and favourite
study of hydrostatics'. (26) 'In one morning's lionizing [...] he acquires "a
general knowledge of the chief arts and sciences, eats three hundred
sandwiches, and tastes as many bottles of sherry' (26–27). Describes 'the
establishment of a "Society for the Diffusion of Fashionable
Knowledge"—its first treatise, Nonchalance—dissertations "on
leaving cards," "cutting friends," "on bores", &c.'.
Popanilla becomes ill, 'like all other great foreigners who visit England',
and his treatment and recovery is described. Arrested for high treason during a
financial crisis, he is imprisoned in great luxury, and is daily attended by
'the most eminent physician, and the most celebrated practitioner in Hubbabub';
he is informed that 'the rest of the prisoners were treated in a manner equally
indulgent'. (27) A 'public instructor, Flummery Flam, [...] ascribes all the
debt and distress to "a slight overtrading," chatters about demand, supply,
rent, wages, profit, and, as a temporary relief, suggests "emigration."
"Flummery-Flammism triumphs, and every person, from the managers to the
chalk-chewing mechanics, attends lectures on that enlightening science"'
(27–28). After being acquitted, Popanilla sees the words 'Emigration
Committee' on the blind of a house, and joins 'the last Emigration squadron',
which is about to sail.
Library of Useful KnowledgeLibrary of Useful Knowledge:
Library of Useful Knowledge. Published Under the Superintendence of the
Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, London: Baldwin and Cradock,
1827–46
CloseView the register entry >>
Subjects:
Meteorology, Electricity, History of Science, Instruments, Heroism,
Experiment, Accidents
The narrator describes himself as a 'medical practitioner', and continues:
'My income, too—which seldom or never encumbers a surgeon who has not yet
done walking the hospitals—is limited' (43).
Chemistry, Medical Practitioners, Museums, Monstrosities
Refers to 'Nantz' (Brandy) as being 'By Arabia's chemic skill, / Sublimed,
condensed, in trickling still'. Directs the removal of the skins of thirty
oranges and lemons, continuing: 'Then, as doctors wise preserve / Things from
nature's course that swerve, / Insects of portentous shape—worms, /
Wreathed serpents, asps, and tape-worms, / Ill-fashioned fishes, dead and
swimming, / And untimely fruits of women; / All the thirty skins infuse / In
Alcohol's Phlogistic dews'. (46)
[Berkeley 1744], [Berkeley,
George] 1744. Siris: A Chain of Philosophical Reflexions and
Inquiries Concerning the Virtues of Tar Water and Divers Other Subjects
Connected Together and Arising One from Another, Dublin: R. Gunne
CloseView the register entry >>Walton 1653Walton, Isaak
1653. The Compleat Angler; or, The Contemplative Man's Recreation. Being a
Discourse of Fish and Fishing, Not Unworthy the Perusal of Most Anglers
[...] London: Richard Marriot
CloseView the register entry >>
Observes that an ex-president of the
Royal SocietyRoyal Society of London
CloseView the register entry >>
(i.e.
Humphry DavyDavy, Sir Humphry, Baronet
(1778–1829)
DSB
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>)
writing a book on 'field sports' might 'at first sight appear rather
unphilosophical', and recounts some similarly incongruous instances,
such as 'a Scotch minister inventing a safety gun'. Considers that this is
nevertheless a very pleasant volume. Remarks that it is 'less practical than it
might have been', but that 'this defect is more than atoned for in the author's
felicitous mode of intermingling with the main subject, some of the most
curious facts and phenomena in natural history and philosophy so as to
familiarize the angler with many causes and effects which altogether belong to
a higher class of reading than that of mere amusement'. (51) Gives two lengthy
extracts: a vindication of fly-fishing and an account of flies on the River
Wandle (Surrey) and elsewhere.
'Science and literature are "the nourishment of youth, the delight of age,
the ornaments of prosperous life, the refuge and consolation of adversity, the
companions of our weary travels, of our rural solitudes, of our sleepless
nights"'.
Supernaturalism, Mental Illness, Medical Treatment
The narrator having been overcome by the apparently phantom appearance of a
tailor to whom he is indebted, he recovers consciousness to find 'a physician
and two apothecaries' beside him and that he has been delirious for two days.
He describes his slow recovery.
Narcotics, Cultural Geography, Phrenology, Political Economy,
Universities
The female figure 'Dulness' has a 'poppy-crown'd head'. She tours the
British Isles, starting in London. From zealous Dublin 'sped she to the Land of
Cakes [Scotland], / The land she loves and its possessors; / She loves its
Craniologists, / Political Economists, / And all Scotch mists and Scotch
Professors. / And Chiefly she on
M'CullochMcCulloch, John Ramsay
(1789–1864)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>
smiled, / As a mother smiles on her darling child, / Or a lady on her
lover'.
Rails against the different forms of cannibalism found in great cities.
Observes: 'The town is occasionally very indignant and very noisy against the
gouls of
Surgeons' HallRoyal College of Surgeons
CloseView the register entry >>, because they live
upon the dead carcasses of their fellow-creatures; while, strange to say, it
takes but little account of the hordes of wretches who openly, and in the face
of day, hunt down living men in their nefarious dealings as porter brewers,
quack doctors, [...] manufacturers of bean flour, alum, and Portland stone; and
torture their subjects like so many barbecued pigs, in the complicated
processes of their cookery'.
Begins: 'CAVEAT EMPTOR! This is the age of
fraud, imposture, substitution, transmutation, adulteration, abomination,
contamination, and many others of the same sinister ending, always excepting
purification'. Relates the 'increase of bilious and dyspeptic patients', 'the
number of new books upon stomach complaints', and 'the rapid fortunes made by
practitioners who undertake [...] to cure indigestion' to adulteration. (61)
Also observes that 'even the water supplied to us by our companies is any thing
rather than the real Simon Pure it professes to be', and 'our quack doctors
implore us to beware of spurious articles' (62).
P T W, pseud.
[Peter T Westcott]
Westcott, Peter Thomas
(1782/3–1845)
Gentleman's Magazine, n.s. 23 (1845), 328
CloseView the register entry >>Timbs, John
1871.'My Autobiography: Incidental Notes and Personal Recollections',
Leisure Hour (1871), 20–23, 85–88, 181–84,
212–15, 266–69, 293–95, 347–51, 394–98,
420–24, 469–72, 500–03, 596–600, 612–15,
644–48, 685–88, 692–96, 730–33, and 794–99
CloseView the register entry >>
Genre:
Miscellaneous
Subjects:
Meteorology, Astrology
Reports that an old English proverb, 'It rains by Planets', signifies
that 'the showers are governed by planets, which being erratic in their own
motions, cause such uncertain wandering of clouds and falls of rain'.
Reports that the 'first dissection on record, is one in which
Democritus of ObderaDemocritus
(late 5th century BC)
DSB CloseView the register entry >>,
was engaged, in order to ascertain the sources and course of the bile' (66)
Human Species, Zoology, Reason, Language, Race, Menageries
Discusses, somewhat drolly, the similarity of monkeys and humans. Rebuts the
arguments of those, from
AristotleAristotle
(384–322 BC)
DSB CloseView the register entry >> to
William
SmellieSmellie, William
(1740–95)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>, who sought to distinguish them on the basis of speech and
reason. Argues that monkeys exercise reason, and that they have a language
superior to 'Hottentottish' and Gaelic. Leaves open the question whether humans
and monkeys are 'one and the same animal'. (75) Observes that it is unjust to
judge monkeys on the basis of the specimens kept in menageries.
Discusses some of the sights that might be taken in by a young English
traveller. Observes that, 'To the agriculturalist [...] England offers much
that is remarkable. [...] we doubt whether agriculture, as an art, has anywhere
(except in Flanders and Tuscany alone) reached the same perfection as in the
less fertile soils of the Lothians, Northumberland, and Norfolk'.
'CHRISTOVAL
ACOSTAAcosta, Cristóbal
(c. 1525–c. 1594)
DSB CloseView the register entry >>, speaking of the pine-apple, says
that "no medicinal virtues have been discovered in it, and it is good for
nothing but to eat"'.
'JOSHUAH
SILVESTERSylvester, Josuah
(1562/3–1618)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >> questioned whether the devil had done
more harm in latter ages by means of fire and smoke, through the invention of
guns, or of tobacco-pipes [...]'.
Bowles 1828Bowles, William
Lisle 1828. The Parochial History of Bremhill, in the County of
Wilts: Containing a Particular Account, from Authentic and Unpublished
Documents, of the Cistercian Abbey of Stanley in that Parish; with Observations
and Reflections on the Origin and Establishment of Parochial Clergy, and other
Circumstances of General Parochial Interest, Including Illustrations of the
Origin and Designation of the Stupendous Monuments of Antiquity in the
Neighbourhood, Avebury, Silbury, and Wansdike, London: John Murray
CloseView the register entry >>
The narrator is 'utterly sick of this hateful alliance / Which the ladies
have form'd with impractical Science!'. The poem details the many derelictions
of domestic duty resulting from the scientific interests of women. Each failing
relates to the scientific subject under study, as, for example, 'They put out
their washing to learn hydrostatics'.
Human Species, Natural History, Anatomy, Physiology
The article urges: 'Man is naturally the most awkward animal that inhales
the breath of life' (91). Describes drolly the physical awkwardness of the
human species when involved in different activities.
Observes: 'In these days of "hobgoblin lore," it may not be incurious to
add, that Woodstock is distinguished in
Dr. Plot'sPlot, Robert
(1640–96)
DSB CloseView the register entry >>Natural History of
OxfordshireP[lot], R[obert]
1677. The Natural History of Oxford-shire: Being an Essay Toward the Natural
History of England, Oxford: at the Theatre; London: Mr. S. Millers
CloseView the register entry >> [...] as the scene of a series of hoax and disturbance'.
Relates
Walter Scott'sScott, Sir Walter, 1st Baronet
(1771–1832)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >> view
that it is '"highly probable" that this "piece of phantasmagoria was conducted
by means of the secret passages and recesses in the Labyrinth of Rosamond"'.
(98) Refers the interested reader to Plot's account and to
Glanvill 1667G[lanvill],
J[oseph] 1667. Some Philosophical Considerations Touching the
Being of Witches and Witchcraft: Written in a Letter to the Much Honour'd
Robert Hunt Esq, London: James Collins
CloseView the register entry >>. Concludes:
'This is an age of inquiry, and we do not see why such follies should be left
unturned—from Priam's shade to the murderous dreams and omens of our own
times' (99).
Relates the details of a visit to 'the
Bazaar in
Oxford-street CloseView the register entry >>' to view a three-year-old child on whose irises are
inscribed the words 'Napoleon' and 'Empereur'. Reports that this has been
accounted for 'by the child's mother earnestly looking at a franc-piece of
Napoleon's, which was given to her by her brother previous to a long absence;
and this operating during her pregnancy has produced the appearance in
question'.
Discusses the deleterious effects on the British poor of Irish immigration.
Observes: 'The facilities of conveyance afforded by steam-navigation are such,
that the merest beggar, provided he can command a sixpence, may get himself
carried from Ireland to England'. Considers that 'what may almost without a
metaphor be termed floating bridges, have been established between Belfast and
Glasgow, and Dublin and Liverpool'.
'Bishop
WatsonWatson, Richard
(1737–1816)
DSB CloseView the register entry >> compares a geologist to a gnat mounted on an elephant, and
laying down theories as to the whole internal structure of the vast animal,
from the phenomena of the hide'.
States that it is in 'the harmony of strong contrasts in which greatness of
character truly dwells'. Observes: 'As it rises, its variety and rich profusion
only remind us of those southern mountains, whose majestic ascent combines the
fruits of every latitude, and the temperature of every clime'.
Mirror of Literature, 12 (1828), 107.
Battle of the Heads. Phrenologists—Anti-Phrenologists
Gives two brief claims: by the phrenologists that their subject is now a
giant who cannot be smothered, and by the anti-phrenologists that the 'giant is
a butterfly; to-day he roams on gilded wings, to-morrow he will show his
hideousness and be forgotten'.
Denies that exact resemblance is the measure of quality in a portrait. The
painter should not contemplate his subject 'through a powerful microscope, and
transfer to the canvass the pores of the skin, the blood-vessels of the eye,
and all the other beauties which Gulliver discovered in the Brobdignagian maids
of honour'. Moreover, if he did, 'a microscope of greater power than that which
he had employed, would convict him of innumerable omissions'. (108)
The spoof publication being advertised is to appear periodically, listing
'all genuine and undoubted heiresses in the metropolis, and within ten miles
around it, and of those ladies whose fortune depends on contingencies'. One of
the specimen entries describes a woman as 'Weak in understanding [...] Fond of
bull-finches and canary-birds. [...] Attends lectures on chemistry. Sits with
her mouth open'. (108)
Scientific Practitioners, Acclimatization, Surgery
Warns: 'Shun technicals in each extreme; / Exclusive talk, whate'er the
theme, / The proper boundary passes'. Observes: 'Jokes are like trees; their
place of birth / Best suits them; stuck in foreign earth, / They perish in the
process'. Apostrophizes 'Merriment' with the observation: 'when men entrap /
Thy bells, and women steal thy cap, / They think they have trepann'd thee'.
(110)
Ledyard 1783Ledyard, John
1783. A Journal of Captain Cook's Last Voyage to the Pacific Ocean, and in
Quest of a North-West Passage, Between Asia & America: Performed in the
Years 1776, 1777, 1778 and 1779; Illustrated with a Chart, Shewing the Tracts
of the Ships Employed in this Expedition, Hartford: Nathaniel Patten
CloseView the register entry >>
Describes Ledyard's involvement in
James Cook'sCook, James
(1728–79)
DSB CloseView the register entry >> last
voyage, and his interest in undertaking the office of historiographer of the
expedition.
The writer of the introduction observes that the 'cat mania has
hitherto been more popular in France than in England'. Lists a few instances of
English interest in cats, including 'the newspaper story of tortoiseshell male
cats'. Relates that in France cats 'are associated with better names', giving
as an example the fact that 'M. L'Abbe de FontenuFontenu, Louis François de
(1667–1759)
WBI CloseView the register entry >> was in
the habit of experimenting on these animals, one of which he found could exist
twenty-six months without drinking! which fact is recorded in the
History of the Royal
Academy of Sciences at Paris, 1753Histoire de l'Académie Royale des
Sciences
(1699–1790)
BUCOP CloseView the register entry >>'. (115) The translated extract
drolly eulogizes the supposed perfections of the cat. In balancing on roofs,
falling on its feet, narrowing its eyes, jumping agilely, and eating grasses,
the cat shows itself to 'understand the laws of gravity', to be 'an
excellent natural philosopher', a 'perfect optician', a 'skilful
geometrician', and an 'excellent botanist'. Any man possessing as
many kinds of knowledge as the cat would be 'a living cyclopædia,
or concentration of human wisdom'. (116)
The writer is prompted to contribute another article on angling by the
editor's reference to him in giving extracts from
Humphry Davy'sDavy, Sir Humphry, Baronet
(1778–1829)
DSB
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>Salmonia[Davy, Humphry]
1828. Salmonia; or, Days of Fly Fishing, in a Series of Conversations: With
Some Account of the Habits of Fishes Belonging to the Genus Salmo, London:
John Murray
CloseView the register entry >>.
The narrator observes that if a 'lank-and-leather-jawed gentleman' at an
imagined literary dinner does not 'commit suicide before September' then
'LavaterLavater, Johann Kaspar
(1741–1801)
CBD CloseView the register entry >>
must have been as great a goose as
GallGall, Franz Joseph
(1758–1828)
DSB CloseView the register entry >>' (124).
Ledyard 1783, Ledyard, John
1783. A Journal of Captain Cook's Last Voyage to the Pacific Ocean, and in
Quest of a North-West Passage, Between Asia & America: Performed in the
Years 1776, 1777, 1778 and 1779; Illustrated with a Chart, Shewing the Tracts
of the Ships Employed in this Expedition, Hartford: Nathaniel Patten
CloseView the register entry >>Sparks 1828Sparks, Jared
1828. Memoirs of the Life and Travels of John Ledyard, from his Journals and
Correspondence, London: Henry Colburn
CloseView the register entry >>
Introduces as a 'castle-building jeu d'esprit rather than as a
serious matter' a letter from an 'old Subscriber' raising questions concerning
the improvement of the metropolis (131). The letter enquires: 'Is not the
Borough a very improper place for the
king'sKing's College, London CloseView the register entry >>, or any other,
college?—Is it not the very mart of trade, and consequently every noisy
and in confusion?—And what a magnificent improvement would its erection
near
Westminster
AbbeyWestminster Abbey
CloseView the register entry >> be to that ancient and very sumptuous pile.' Suggests that it
should be built in Gothic style to correspond with the abbey, and notes: 'The
seat of learning and wisdom is in that neighbourhood (Westminster
SchoolWestminster School
CloseView the register entry >>,
Houses of
ParliamentHouses of Parliament
CloseView the register entry >>, Courts of Justice, &c.); therefore it is the place
best adapted for the erection of a college'. (132)
One of the novel's characters, Lord Spoonbill, is described in an extract as
not being 'one of those foolish people who go to university and study hard to
acquire languages which they never use, and sciences which they never apply in
after-life. His lordship had sense enough to conclude that [...] as hereditary
legislators have nothing to do with the exact sciences, it would be a piece of
idle impertinence in him to study mathematics'. His 'organ of exclusiveness was
strongly developed' as shown in his sense of the dignity of his rank. (139)
Another extract describes the humorous interchanges of Peter Kipperson, 'a
"march of intellect" man' (139), and Sir George Aimwell, who 'could not see the
use of reading' and 'thought it a great piece of affectation for country
gentlemen to have libraries' (140). Kipperson, 'when sitting at the table of
the worthy baronet, assailed the magistrate with various scientific subjects,
but all to no purpose; there was no response from his worthy host' (140). He
concluded that 'baronets and magistrates were the most ignorant creatures on
the face of the earth, and he congratulated himself that neither he nor
Sir Isaac NewtonNewton, Sir Isaac
(1642–1727)
DSB CloseView the register entry >>
were baronets' (140–41).
The essay begins: 'Astronomy, music, and architecture, are the floating
topics of the day'. Discusses the second of these, regretting that 'nothing is
done in England towards the advancement of music as a science'. Enquires: 'Why
should we, who are marching in every other direction, stand still in this? But
no; what Orpehus did with music, we are striving to accomplish by
steam; what he effected by quietly touching his lyre, we study with the
atmospheres and condensers of high and low pressure engines'. (146) Observes
that if an Englishman were to play like Orpheus 'the disposal of
Mr. Cross's
menagerieCross's Menagerie, King's Mews, Charing Cross CloseView the register entry >> [might] be no longer a question, since the animals might
be allowed to ramble about the Strand' (147).
The letter relates an anecdote concerning
James Watson'sWatson, James
(fl. 1771–1824)
Clifton 1993 CloseView the register entry >>
intention of building a telescope superior to Herschel's 'great telescope',
until countermanded by the crown (150). The editorial afterword reflects
further on the paucity of patronage for astronomy in Britain, relating that
'one of the most able and enterprising astronomers of the present day [a
reference to
James SouthSouth, James
(1785–1867)
DSB CloseView the register entry >>]
relinquished a lucrative profession, that he might be more at leisure to
indulge his philosophical pursuits' (151).
'Prussic acid has been obtained from the leaves of green tea, in so
concentrated a state, that one drop killed a dog almost instantaneously. A
strong infusion of Souchong tea, sweetened with sugar, is as effectual in
poisoning flies as the solution of arsenic, generally sold for that
purpose'.
Offers observations on 'the several causes to which the diversities in men
have been referred, not pretending to any decided opinion on so nice a point,
as whether these causes are wholly of a physical or of a moral kind' (162).
Dismisses as 'fanciful' suggestions that 'the monkey is but another species of
the human race'. Reviews instances of 'men in a savage state' and observes that
the idea of 'a race of men [...] having ever existed without the possession of
reason, is now deemed wholly fallacious'. Reports
Friedrich
von Schlegel'sSchlegel, Friedrich (Karl Wilhelm
Friedrich) von
(1772–1829)
CBD CloseView the register entry >> belief that 'the civilized state is the primitive
one, and that savage life is a degeneracy from it', and describes his theory
that civilization spread from the East. Argues that it is difficult 'to imagine
by what gradation language could have proceeded, from the howl of savages, and
the cries of nature, till it reached the eloquent music, the heart-stirring
oratory of the Greek'. Seeks to relate the early history of civilization to the
narrative of the early chapters of Genesis. Follows
William
LawrenceLawrence, Sir William, 1st Baronet
(1783–1867)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >> in suggesting that 'the general divisions of human beings'
represent 'different species' of one genus. Argues for their descent from 'one
common stock'. (163) Describes
Johann F
Blumenbach'sBlumenbach, Johann Friedrich
(1752–1840)
DSB CloseView the register entry >> characterization of the varieties of humans. Considers
the possible causes, natural and moral, for the differences between human
races, dismissing the potency of climate as a cause of change in human
culture.
Introduces the narrative by observing that the authors of some theories seek
to account for apparitions by reference to the 'physical laws of matter'.
Inclines to the view held by others 'that the origin of such marvels must be
looked for in the mind of the seers', although does not 'go the length of their
scepticism, and deny the actual existence of the ghostly show, as a real and
visible spectacle, before the eyes' (171). Presents the ghost story in
illustration of these observations.
Observes that many who retire from active trades to live in the country find
themselves longing once more for the city. Relates: 'Sir Astley Cooper, cloy'd
with wealth, / Sick of luxurious ease and health, / And rural meditation, /
Sighs for his useful London life, / The restless night—the saw and knife
/ Of daily amputation'. Observes that they are fortunate who escape from
'Mammon's yoke while yet unwrung / Or spoilt for nobler duty:— / Who
still can gaze on Nature's face / With all a lover's zeal, and trace / In every
change a beauty'.
Considers wet weather is 'a floating topic', and discusses the manner
in which it permeates conversation and the newspapers. Suggests that the
English predeliction for meteorological talk may arise from England's being an
island nation. Avers that 'water is one the most popular subjects in
this age of enquiry', recalling that 'the first treatises of the
Useful Knowledge SocietySociety for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge
CloseView the register entry >>'
were on hydrostatics and hydraulics. Observes that the taste for water is
carried into financial speculations, although the 'Thames TunnelThames Tunnel
CloseView the register entry >> is too
amphibious an affair to be included in the number'. (184) Refers the reader to
a recent paper on the nervous system in the
Edinburgh
ReviewEdinburgh Review
(1802–1900+)
Waterloo
Directory CloseView the register entry >> (i.e.
Conolly 1828[Conolly,
John] 1828. '[Nervous System]', Edinburgh Review, 47,
441–81
CloseView the register entry >>), in
evidence that 'much of our predeliction for hanging and drowning is to be
attributed to this "insular situation"'. Observes: 'Every man and woman of us
is indeed a self pluviometer, or rain-gauge; or, in plain terms, our
nerves are like so many musical strings, affected by every change of the
atmosphere'. Reflects on the metaphorical difficulty 'of keeping above water'.
Reports, from 'a grave, philosophical work', that some river-dwelling children
in China 'have a hollow ball of some light material attached constantly
to their necks' as lifesavers. Observes that, 'As the great secret in swimming
is to keep the chest as full of air as possible, perhaps the great art of
living is to keep the head a vacuum, a state "adapted to the meanest
capacity"'. Had 'kind Nature supplied us with an air-bladder at the neck' the
Humane
SocietyRoyal Humane Society
CloseView the register entry >> need not have been troubled. (185) Speculates that a
coachman waiting in the rain, 'whose inside porosity is well indicated by his
bundle of coats, as
Dr.
KitchenerKitchiner, William
(1778–1827)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >> says, is labouring under "the unwholesome effervescence of
the hot and rebellious liquors which have been taken to revive the flagging
spirits," and like a sponge, absorbs liquids, owing to the pressure of the
surrounding air'. Describes the misery of wet weather in the country, giving an
instance of having been 'overtaken by such weather in a pedestrian tour through
the Isle of Wight, when just then about to leave Niton for a geological
excursion to the Needles'. (186)
Cobbett 1829Cobbett,
William 1829. The English Gardener; or, A Treatise on the
Situation, Soil, Enclosing and Laying-Out of Kitchen Gardens, on the Making of
Hot-Beds and Green Houses, and on the Propagation and Cultivation of all Sorts
of Kitchen-Garden Plants, and of Fruit Trees Whether of the Garden or the
Orchard: And also on the Formation of Shrubberies and Flower Gardens, and on
the Propagation and Cultivation of the Several Sorts of Shrubs and Flowers,
Concluding with a Kalendar, Giving Instructions Relative to the Sowings,
Plantings, Prunings and other Labours, to be Performed in the Gardens, in Each
Month of the Year, London: printed for the author
CloseView the register entry >>
Subjects:
Botany, Aesthetics
'It is curious enough that people decorate their chimney-pieces with
imitations of beautiful fruits, while they seem to think nothing at all of the
originals hanging upon the trees, with all the elegant accompaniments of
flourishing branches, buds, and leaves'.
Granville 1828Granville,
Augustus Bozzi 1828. St Petersburgh: A Journal of Travels to and
from That Capital, through Flanders, the Rhenish Provinces, Prussia, Russia,
Poland, Silesia, Saxony, the Federated States of Germany, and France ,
London: H. Colburn
CloseView the register entry >>
'The most important principle perhaps in life is to have a pursuit—a
useful one if possible, and at all events an innocent one. The unripe fruit
tree of knowledge is, I believe, always bitter or sour; and scepticism and
discontent—sickness of the mind—are often the results of devouring
it'.
Granville 1828Granville,
Augustus Bozzi 1828. St Petersburgh: A Journal of Travels to and
from That Capital, through Flanders, the Rhenish Provinces, Prussia, Russia,
Poland, Silesia, Saxony, the Federated States of Germany, and France ,
London: H. Colburn
CloseView the register entry >>
Subjects:
Race, Human Development
Notes the remarkable consistency of Jewish racial characteristics in widely
different localities.
Illustrates, using the example of a watch, the aphorism that 'To attain
complex and difficult ends by simple means, whether in physics or politics,
falls not to the lot of man'.
Asserts the difficulty of establishing a rule 'which would define the
variations of national manners as having any reference to climate' (213).
Surveys nations and characteristics in relation to this topic. Drawing on
George
BerkeleyBerkeley, George
(1685–1753)
DSB CloseView the register entry >>, considers the relative merits of southern and northern
European climates in regard to the development of the intellect. Argues that
the narrower diffusion of learning among the peoples of northern countries
provides a greater incentive for individuals to excel, 'which is one way of
accounting for the giants of science that have appeared in the north'
(214–15). Argues that 'the northern nations have a stronger apprehension
of abstract propositions, and a greater fondness for generalizing'. Considers
climate to have little effect even on bodily characteristics of the human
races. Concludes that 'the capacities for improvement of races, as of
individuals, [...] have been differently bestowed by nature; but that none are
actually incapable of culture'. Argues that 'the Negroes', 'American Indians',
and 'the Esquimaux' are particularly difficult races to improve, but that even
here education will have beneficial effects. (215)
Heber 1828Heber, Reginald
1828. Narrative of a Journey Through the Upper Provinces of India from
Calcutta to Bombay 1824–25 (With Notes upon Ceylon): An Account of a
Journey to Madras and the Southern Provinces, 1826, and Letters Written in
India, 2 vols, London: John Murray
CloseView the register entry >>
Cobbett 1829Cobbett,
William 1829. The English Gardener; or, A Treatise on the
Situation, Soil, Enclosing and Laying-Out of Kitchen Gardens, on the Making of
Hot-Beds and Green Houses, and on the Propagation and Cultivation of all Sorts
of Kitchen-Garden Plants, and of Fruit Trees Whether of the Garden or the
Orchard: And also on the Formation of Shrubberies and Flower Gardens, and on
the Propagation and Cultivation of the Several Sorts of Shrubs and Flowers,
Concluding with a Kalendar, Giving Instructions Relative to the Sowings,
Plantings, Prunings and other Labours, to be Performed in the Gardens, in Each
Month of the Year, London: printed for the author
CloseView the register entry >>
The introduction observes that whilst the 'opinions' of the work extracted
'are as popularly examined as is consistent with philosophical inquiry' they
are 'still not just calculated for the majority of the readers of the
MIRRORMirror of Literature, Amusement, and
Instruction
(1822–47)
Mirror Monthly Magazine
(1847–49)
Waterloo Directory
CloseView the register entry >>'.
Domestic Economy, Medical Treatment, Mental Illness, Digestion,
Natural History
Includes an extract on the 'medicinal effects' of coffee, which contrasts
the beneficial effects of coffee in the case of 'a fit of spleen' with the
'unavailing' art of the 'faculty'.
Mirror of Literature, 12 (1828), 235–39.
Perils of the War of Independence in South America
Disease, Medical Treatment, Meteorology, Electricity
Part of a lengthy extract describes the 'difficulty of respiration'
experienced in regions of the Andes, which is attributed to 'occasional
exhalations of metalliferous vapour', and details its treatment by 'opening the
temporal artery' (238).
Reviews the various animals brought to the
Zoological Society
GardensZoological Society of London —Gardens
CloseView the register entry >> by the
Zoological SocietyZoological Society of London
CloseView the register entry >>, suggesting
that the
Regent's ParkRegent's Park
CloseView the register entry >>
will grow to be a fashionable place with birds and beasts as well as humans.
The last stanza reads: 'Would a mammoth could be found / And made across the
sea to swim! / But now, alas! upon the ground / The bones alone are left of
him: / I fear a hungry mammoth too, / (So monstrous and unquiet he,) / By
hunger urged might eat the Zo- / Ological Society!' (255).
Cobbett 1829Cobbett,
William 1829. The English Gardener; or, A Treatise on the
Situation, Soil, Enclosing and Laying-Out of Kitchen Gardens, on the Making of
Hot-Beds and Green Houses, and on the Propagation and Cultivation of all Sorts
of Kitchen-Garden Plants, and of Fruit Trees Whether of the Garden or the
Orchard: And also on the Formation of Shrubberies and Flower Gardens, and on
the Propagation and Cultivation of the Several Sorts of Shrubs and Flowers,
Concluding with a Kalendar, Giving Instructions Relative to the Sowings,
Plantings, Prunings and other Labours, to be Performed in the Gardens, in Each
Month of the Year, London: printed for the author
CloseView the register entry >>
Cobbett 1829Cobbett,
William 1829. The English Gardener; or, A Treatise on the
Situation, Soil, Enclosing and Laying-Out of Kitchen Gardens, on the Making of
Hot-Beds and Green Houses, and on the Propagation and Cultivation of all Sorts
of Kitchen-Garden Plants, and of Fruit Trees Whether of the Garden or the
Orchard: And also on the Formation of Shrubberies and Flower Gardens, and on
the Propagation and Cultivation of the Several Sorts of Shrubs and Flowers,
Concluding with a Kalendar, Giving Instructions Relative to the Sowings,
Plantings, Prunings and other Labours, to be Performed in the Gardens, in Each
Month of the Year, London: printed for the author
CloseView the register entry >>
Depicts and discusses a bizarre rock outcrop in Cornwall called the Cheese
Wring. Observes that geologists 'are inclined to consider it as a natural
production', but also describes the pagan significance of such rocks (257).
The narrator describes how as a child he always had a 'superabundance of
time'. He observes; 'a naturalist-taste for bird-nesting, which, in maturer
years would have made me one of the wonders of the
Linnæan SocietyLinnean Society
CloseView the register entry >>; a passion
for investigating the inside of every thing, from a Catherine-wheel to a
China-closet, which would yet have entitled me to the honours of an F. R. S.
[...] were nature's helps to get rid of this oppressive bounty'. (260)
In a wide-ranging appreciation of flowers, observes that books are more
enjoyed in 'the flower-garden alcove' and the 'library ornamented with flowers'
than elsewhere. Asserts: 'To enjoy reading under such circumstances most, works
of imagination are preferable to abstract subjects. Poetry and romance [...]
ligher history [...] or natural history—these are best adapted to peruse
amidst sweets and flowers: in short, any species of writing that does not keep
the mind too intently fixed to allow the senses to wander occasionally over the
scene around, and to catch the beauty of the rich vegetation'. (269)
In an extract from the 'Noctes Ambrosianæ', the Ettrick Shepherd
[James HoggHogg, James ('the Ettrick Shepherd')
(1770–1835)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>] charges
Christopher North [John
WilsonWilson, John ('Christopher North')
(1785–1854)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>] with editing a magazine that has been 'deludin' and
distracktin' men and women folk, till it's impossible for them to ken [...] if
the Millennium be really close at haun'—or the present Solar System be
calculated to last to a' eternity'.
Reports: 'LavaterLavater, Johann Kaspar
(1741–1801)
CBD CloseView the register entry >> affirms, that no one whose person is
not well formed can become a good physiognomist'.
Relates an anecdote concerning the inventor of the game of chess having
claimed a colossal reward from the Chinese emperor, using a subterfuge
depending on the surprising rate of exponential increase.
Describes the book as 'a holiday book, stuck as full of woodcuts as a cake
is of currants'. The book 'professes to be a complete encyclopædia of the
sports and pastimes of youth' including 'Birds, and other boy fancies' and
'Scientific Recreations'. Its pages, 'like every sheet of the
MIRRORMirror of Literature, Amusement, and
Instruction
(1822–47)
Mirror Monthly Magazine
(1847–49)
Waterloo Directory
CloseView the register entry >>, are as full as
an egg. The vignettes and tail-pieces are the prettiest things we have ever
seen, and some are very picturesque'.
Illustrates 'the inutility of scence, written in a merely technical form'
from the example of
Marcus Tullius CiceroCicero, Marcus Tullius
(106–43BC)
CBD CloseView the register entry >>, whose
intention to write in Latin rather than Greek was opposed by his friends, but
who 'persevered in the popular style, and led the fashion'.
Harwood 1828Harwood,
William 1828. On the Curative Influence of the Southern Coast of
England; Especially that of Hastings: with Observations on Diseases in which a
Residence on the Coast is most Beneficial, London: Henry Colburn
CloseView the register entry >>
Encyclopédie
méthodique, Encyclopédie méthodique:
Encyclopédie méthodique, ou, par ordre de matieères;
précédée d'un vocabulaire universel, servant de table pour
tout l'ouvrage, ornée des portraits de MM. Diderot & d'Alembert,
premiers éditeurs de l'Encyclopédie, 200 vols, Paris:
Panckoucke, 1782–1832
CloseView the register entry >>Smedley, Rose, and Rose
[1817–]45Smedley,
Edward,
Rose, Hugh James, and
Rose, Henry John, eds. [1817–]45.
Encyclopædia Metropolitana; or, Universal Dictionary of Knowledge, on
an Original Plan, Comprising the Twofold Advantage of a Philosophical and an
Alphabetical Arrangement, with Appropriate Engravings, 26 vols, 59 parts,
London, B. Fellowes
CloseView the register entry >>
Wilson
18[28–]31Wilson,
James 18[28–]31. Illustrations of Zoology: Being
Representations of New, Rare, or Remarkable Subjects of the Animal Kingdom,
Drawn and Coloured After Nature, with Historical and Descriptive Details,
Edinburgh: W. Blackwood; and London: T. Cadell
CloseView the register entry >>
Relates that Abernethy thought of sending his son to
Eton
CollegeEton College, Berkshire CloseView the register entry >> to learn manners, and was told by his wife that it would
have been as well had he gone there too.
Reports on the 'stupendous act of national generosity' of the English which
averted the 'plague of hunger' caused by the failure of the potato crop in
Ireland in 1821 and 1822.
Provides an account, apparently fictional, or in any case fictionalized, of
the conquest of Vicenza by the French in 1796. The French general is
represented as taking the city by stealth, having arrived in the guise of a
magician. The magical effect is redoubled by his arrival in a steamboat and its
unplanned explosion.
Provides an account, apparently fictional, or in any case fictionalized, of
the adventures of a captured French sailor, Laonce, following his shipwreck in
the Society Islands.
Begins: 'We think it next to impossible for a candid unbeliever to read the
Evidences of Paley, in their proper order, unshaken. His
Natural TheologyPaley, William
1802. Natural Theology; or, Evidences of the Existence and Attributes of the
Deity: Collected from the Appearances of Nature, [London]: R.
Faulder
CloseView the register entry >> will open the
heart that it may understand, or at least receive the Scriptures, if any thing
can'. Commends at some length the quotidian nature of Paley's expository prose.
For example, Paley refers the increased thickness of animal fur in winter to
the authority of 'any dealer in rabbit skins', but 'in these days, such an
assertion would be backed by an appeal to some learned Rabbi of a Zoological
Society, who had written a deep pamphlet, upon what he would probably call the
Theory of Hair'. (329)
The letter-writer corrects the author of an earlier extract concerning the
effects of plant respiration on human health when flowers are kept in a bedroom
at night. In an afterword, the editor thanks 'S S T' and avers: 'Our pages are
always open to the correction of our readers', while also observing 'we think
he has misconceived some portion of the [original] article on "Flowers"'.
See also:
Anon, 'Flowers', Mirror of Literature, 12 (1828), 268–69
Reflects that, while the stranger in London during the 'season' might think
that no-one in the 'busy and enormous multitude' would care if he should have
an accident, he would be wrong. There would be two who would 'evince the
greatest sympathy in his fate': the newspaper reporter and 'the surgeon's
apprentice, who, with anxious care, would bear him off to his hospital,
that he might "try his 'prentice hand" to doctor him while living, and dissect
him when dead'.
Amory 1756Amory, Thomas
1756. The Life of John Buncle, Esq., Containing Various Observations and
Reflections, Made in Several Parts of the World; and Many Extraordinary
Relations, London: J. Noon
CloseView the register entry >>
On the death of Sir Theodore De Lacy, the narrator observes: 'with the march
of mind comes trouble and vexation. A man has now-a-days no certainty of
quietness in his coffin—unless it be a patent one. He is laid down in the
grave, and the next morning finds himself called upon to demonstrate an
interesting fact!' (347). De Lacy had asked Larry Sweeney to watch over his
grave for three days and nights to ensure it was not robbed, particularly by
the local surgeon, Dr Dickenson. The story concerns Larry Sweeney's
superstitiously troubled dream as he attempts to fulfil his promise.
Medical Practitioners, Medical Treatment, Controversy
Depicts
François RabelaisRabelais, François
(1494?–1553?)
CBD CloseView the register entry >> finding
during an illness that a large number of medical practitioners are noisily
disputing the appropriate treatment around his bed. He requests them to be
quiet, and concludes: 'if, perforce, I must resign my breath, / For heav'n's
sake let me die a NATURAL death'.
Relates the prosperity of the society, as revealed by its interesting annual
report. Observes: 'Some of the lectures, especially those on Geology, or
Mineralogy, are very attractive; and in the curator's report, we notice that
the Museum, previously rich in fossil organic remains, has been enriched by
numerous donations in this department, during the past session. The entire
number of specimens in the Museum is upwards of 9,000'.
Anon 1828bAnon. 1828b. Conversations on Geology: Comprising a
Familiar Explanation of the Huttonian and Wernerian systems, the Mosaic geology
as Explained by Granville Penn, and the Late Discoveries of Professor Buckland,
Humboldt, Dr. MacCulloch and Others, London: S. Maunder
CloseView the register entry >>
An extract from the 'MS. Journal of the Bristol Nursery Library' reports on
the observations of 'Mr.
MackintoshMackintosh, Mr (contractor for the
government works at Stonehouse Point, Devon)
(fl. 1826)
ML1/8/217b/9, ML1/12/343b/10 CloseView the register entry >>, contractor for the government works at Stonehouse Point,
Devon' relative to the burning strength of the sun's rays when concentrated by
the circular windows of a diving bell, even when deep under water.
Sanitation, Public Health, Microscopy, Microbiology
Observes: 'If the unhappy victims of mud-juice had constant access to the
solar microscope, and there was occasionally in London a little sunshiene to
set off the animated bedevilments which are crowded into the composition, and
could see thousands of animals, generated in filth, and living in the highest
spirits and the greatest abundance in the stuff destined for their stomachs,
they would go mad'.
'The Wreath contains 132 pieces or flowers, some of them perennials
[....] One of the perennials is a Journey up the Missisippi, by
AudubonAudubon, John James
(1785–1851)
DSB CloseView the register entry >>, the
American naturalist. [...] The introduction of the paper on Popular Education,
in what the editor himself calls "a work of elegant amusement like the
present," is somewhat objectionable, and the writer's sentiments will be very
unpalatable to a certain party' (380).
Observes: 'The Visit to the
Zoological GardensZoological Society of London —Gardens
CloseView the register entry >> is not
just what we expected; still it is attractive'. Reports that the illustrations
'are from the pencil of our "right trustye" friend and excellent artist,
Mr. W. H.
BrookeBrooke, William Henry
(1772–1860)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>, whose horses, coaches, and dogs excite so much mirth among
the young friends of the
MIRRORMirror of Literature, Amusement, and
Instruction
(1822–47)
Mirror Monthly Magazine
(1847–49)
Waterloo Directory
CloseView the register entry >>—for, in
truth, Mr. Brooke is an A.M.—an associate of the MIRROR,
and enables us to jump from Whitehall to Constantine's Arch at Rome, shake
hands with the Bears of the
Zoological
SocietyZoological Society of London
CloseView the register entry >>, and Peg in the Ring at Abury.'
'Here our motley-minded sheet finishes, and we leave our readers in
possession of its sweet fancies. Its little compartments of poetry and prose
remind us of mosaic work, and its sentimentalities have all the varieties of
the kaleidoscope. To gladden the eye, study the taste, and improve the heart,
of each reader has been our aim—feelings which we hope pervade this and
every other Number of the
MIRRORMirror of Literature, Amusement, and
Instruction
(1822–47)
Mirror Monthly Magazine
(1847–49)
Waterloo Directory
CloseView the register entry >>.'
Refers in passing to the phenomenon of dancing with pain 'or when, as
Lord BaconBacon, Francis, 1st Viscount St Alban
(1561–1626)
DSB
ODNB CloseView the register entry >> says,
"in pestilences, the malignity of the infecting vapour danceth the principal
spirits"' (388). Briefly discusses St Vitus's Dance. Also reviews the history
of dancing animals.
The rat-narrator observes: 'When I was in the
House of
LordsHouse of Lords
CloseView the register entry >>, a companion whispered to me, that he had heard an act read,
offering a reward of 10,000l. for a male tortoise-shell cat. This
I believe, indeed, is a very safe offer, for such a thing was never heard of'
(398). Also records that he 'studied astronomy with the celebrated
M.
OlbersOlbers, Heinrich Wilhelm Matthias
(1758–1840)
DSB CloseView the register entry >> of Bremen, and assisted him in making many useful
observations and discoveries', particularly concerning the likelihood of the
earth being destroyed by a collision with a comet (399).
The narrator gives a sample of the 'Babel' talk at the fancy ball: '"The
Giraffe"—"plays the fiddle"— / "Macadam'sMcAdam, John Loudon
(1756–1836)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >> roads"—"I hate this chalk"'
(400).
Gall and Spurzheim 1810–19Gall, Franz
Josef and
Spurzheim, Johann Caspar
1810–19. Anatomie et physiologie du systême nerveux en
général, et du cerveau en particulier: avec des observations sur
la possibilité de reconnoitre plusieurs dispositions intellectuelles et
morales de l'homme et des animaux, par la configuration de leurs
têtes, 4 vols, Paris: F. Schoell
CloseView the register entry >>
An appreciative account of Gall's life and work, which urges a liberal
examination of his doctrines. Observes: 'The test for the science of
phrenology [...] consists in an induction of facts and observations; and by
this mode it is that the disciples of Gall and Spurzheim challenge their
antagonists' (405). Provides details of the dissection of Gall's body, his
funeral, and the eulogy of
François J V BroussaisBroussais, François Joseph
Victor
(1772–1838)
DSB CloseView the register entry >>.
Gives an account of changes at the gardens since the
Mirror'sMirror of Literature, Amusement, and
Instruction
(1822–47)
Mirror Monthly Magazine
(1847–49)
Waterloo Directory
CloseView the register entry >> last visit. Observes:
'The three bears exhibited as much good-breeding as the visiters [sic]
encouraged,—climbing to the top of the pole when there was any thing to
climb after, and an
AdmiraltyAdmiralty
CloseView the register entry >> expedition
could do no more.'
Dilating on the value of short-hand, observes: 'What would all
Mr.
Applegath'sApplegath, Augustus
(1788–1871)
CBD CloseView the register entry >> machinery do toward producing the newspaper without the
aid of short-hand, which makes its expedition second only to thought'.
Anon 1828cAnon. 1828c. The Voice of Humanity: Observations on
Instances of Cruelty to Animals, which Can Be Efficiently Restrained by the
Legislature Alone; on the Present Law Available to this Subject and on the
Formation and Regulation of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals,
to which is Added an Appendix Containing a Summary of the Evidence Given Before
the Select Committee of the House of Commons on the State of Smithfield Market
and the Slaughterhouses London: Sherwood and Co.
CloseView the register entry >>
The essay begins with commendatory comments on recent parliamentary action
against cruelty to animals, before exploring the reasons why flies should be
excluded from such humanitarian concerns. Describes the behaviour of a sleeping
gentleman disturbed by flies: 'we remark with surprise sundry violent twitches
and contortions of the limbs, as though the sleeper were under the operation of
galvanism' (413). Observes of flies: 'Having little other occupation than that
of propagating their species, the natural consequence, as we may learn from
Mr. MalthusMalthus, Thomas Robert
(1766–1834)
DSB CloseView the register entry >>,
is that their numbers increase in a frightfully progressive ratio from year to
year' (414). Suggests: 'let the
Society of
ArtsRoyal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce
CloseView the register entry >> offer their next large gold medal to the person who shall
invent the most ingenious and destructive fly-trap' (414–15). Proposes
that a 'certain quantity of quassia might be distributed gratis at
Apothecaries' HallWorshipful Society of Apothecaries of London—Apothecaries' Hall
CloseView the register entry >>, as
vaccinatory matter is at the
Cow-pox HospitalSmallpox and Inoculation Hospital
CloseView the register entry >>, with very
considerable effect' (415).
'It would be a very pleasant thing, if literary productions could be
submitted to something like chemical analysis,—if we could separate the
merit of a book, as we can the magnesia of Epsom salts, by a simple practical
application of the doctrine of affinities.'
Two members of a literary society asked to define 'a good fellow' replied:
'Mr. Le Blanc.—A good fellow is one who studies deep, reads
trigonometry, and burns love songs; has a most cordial aversion for dancing
[...] and would rather encounter a cannon than a fancy ball. Hon. G.
Montgomery.—A good fellow is one who abhors moralists and
mathematics, and adores the classics'.
Observes: 'the contemplative philospher may read in the volcanic remains,
and other phenomena on its shores, many inspiring lessons in the broad volume
of Nature' (418).
'A HALF-PINT of wine for young men in perfect health is
enough, and you will be able to take your exercise better, and feel better for
this abstinence'.
Section: The Selector; and Literary Notices of New Works
The introduction discusses the attractions of books involving 'hair-breadth
escapes', and observes: 'People with macadamized minds, and their
histories [...] are mere nonentities, and food for the trunk-maker' (426).
Relates how
Benjamin
FranklinFranklin, Benjamin
(1706–90)
DSB CloseView the register entry >> was moved to give money to one of Whitefield's charitable
causes against his previous resolution, having been swayed by Whitfield's
preaching.
Observes: 'Those versed in the lore of
Francis MooreMoore, Francis
(1657–1714?)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>,
physician, which must doubtless include most of our readers, are aware that our
veteran friend, eighteen hundred and twenty-eight, has been for some time in
what is called a "galloping" consumption'. Describing predictions of impending
war in the
True
Prophetic MessengerProphetic Messenger
(1821–39)
Raphael's Prophetic Almanac
(1840–1900+)
BUCOP CloseView the register entry >> of 'Raphael' (Robert C SmithSmith, Robert Cross ('Raphael')
(1795–1832)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>), relates:
'we have had comets and "rumours" of comets for many months past, while the red
and glaring appearance of the planet, Mars, is as we have elsewhere observed,
considered by the many a forerunner, and sign of long wars and much bloodshed'.
(434) Comments on the progress of the 'march of mind'. Observes: 'We regret
that we cannot chronicle a "Narrative of a first attempt to reach the cities of
Bath and Bristol, in the year 1828, in an extra patent steam-coach, by Messrs.
Burstall, or Gurney." The newspapers, however, still continue to inform us that
such vehicles are about to start, so we may reasonably expect that Time
will accomplish the long talked of event.' Also reports on the rumoured advent
of steamers able to travel at 150 miles per hour, and apostrophises 'Oh, steam!
steam! but this is well ploughed ground.' Comments on the progress of 'Art,
science, and literature', wondering whether it will soon be a puzzle 'where to
stow the books'.
The two letters concern a custom (stanging), prevalent in Westmorland and
Lanarkshire, for the public humiliation of abusive husbands. The second writer
compares the custom to 'the analogous practice among the Negroes of Africa,
mentioned by
Mungo ParkPark, Mungo
(1771–1806)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >>, under the
denomination of the mysteries of Mumbo Jumbo' (442).
Quotes a speech of Moore's in which he stated of
CrabbeCrabbe, George
(1754–1832)
ODNB CloseView the register entry >> that he
'has shown what the more than galvanic power of talent can effect, by giving
not only motion, but life and soul to subjects that seem incapable of it'
(ii).