Science in the 19th Century Periodical

Punch, Or the London Charivari [1st]

Introductory Essay
Volume 18  (January to June 1850)
Punch,  18 (1850), [x].

Punch's Almanac for 1850

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Anon

Genre:

Notes, Drollery; Illustration, Drollery

Relevant illustrations:

wdct.

Illustrators:

J Leech Leech, John (1817–64) ODNB
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Spielmann, Marion Harry Alexander 1895. The History of "Punch", London: Cassell
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Solar Phenomena

Subjects:

Astronomy


Domestic Sanitary Regulations

Subjects:

Public Health, Invention, Domestic Economy


    Shows a family preparing to enter the new shower-bath invention.




Punch,  18 (1850), [xii].

Punch's Almanac for 1850

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Anon

Genre:

Notes, Drollery



Questions Arising Under the Health of Towns' Act

Subjects:

Sanitation, Public Health



Punch,  18 (1850), [xiv].

Punch's Almanac for 1850

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Anon

Genre:

Notes, Drollery



The Lions in May

Subjects:

Menageries


New Theory of Saturn and his Belt

Subjects:

Astronomy



Punch,  18 (1850), [xviii].

Sanitary and Insanitary Measures

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Anon

Genre:

Illustration, Drollery

Relevant illustrations:

wdct.

Illustrators:

R D, pseud.  [Richard Doyle] Doyle, Richard (1824–83) ODNB
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Spielmann, Marion Harry Alexander 1895. The History of "Punch", London: Cassell
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[Pictorial Border]

Subjects:

Sanitation, Pollution, Disease, Public Health, Government


    Shows various aspects of London's burgeoning sanitation problems: Father Thames pouring dirty water into his river, smoke-belching factories lining the river, Thames vessel passengers holding their noses, sewer inspectors gauging the filth, and the dead cats and other animals floating in the depths of the river.




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Punch,  18 (1850), 1.

Our Female Supernumaries. In a Series of Views

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Drollery

Subjects:

Natural History, Ornithology


    Points out that the 'Cockney's Sportsman's game-list' includes a bird called the 'chaffinch' which Carl Linnaeus Linnaeus (or von Linné), Carl (1707–78) DSB
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called the 'Fingilla cœlebs' because in Swedish winters, 'the females migrate, and leave the males bachelors'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 3.

Roman Walls have Ears

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Relevant illustrations:

wdct. [2]

Subjects:

Archaeology

People mentioned:

Thomas J Pettigrew Pettigrew, Thomas Joseph (1791–1865) ODNB
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    Challenges the claim of 'archaeologians' to have determined the Roman provenance of a wall. Describes other events in what was evidently a meeting of archaeologists. These include the presentation of 'some fragments of coarse pottery [...] which somebody turned into a handle for a long argument'. The illustrations show the supposed Roman remains—broken pieces of pottery.



Punch,  18 (1850), 4.

[Accidents by Railway]

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J L, pseud.  [John Leech] Leech, John (1817–64) ODNB
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Genre:

Illustration, Drollery

Relevant illustrations:

wdct.

Illustrators:

J L, pseud.  [John Leech] Leech, John (1817–64) ODNB
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Spielmann, Marion Harry Alexander 1895. The History of "Punch", London: Cassell
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Subjects:

Railways, Transport, Travel, Gender, Accidents


    Shows a corpulent 'Old Lady' standing in a railway station, reading a notice about insurance against railway accidents. She is so shocked to read the costs for insuring against injuries to limbs, that she throws her parasol and other belongings in the air. The caption explains that she had just decided to 'travel, just for once, by one "of those new fangled railways", and the first thing she beholds on arriving at the station' was the notice about accidents.



Punch,  18 (1850), 10.

The Butcher

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Anon

Genre:

Poetry

Subjects:

Electricity, Telegraphy


    Observes that the poet's mind is 'As quick as the electric spark' which 'Runs o'er the telegraph wires'.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 13.

Chit-chat by Telegraph

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Drollery

Subjects:

Telegraphy, Technology, Internationalism


    Reports that the right to connect England and France by a submarine telegraph has been conceded and anticipates the rapid exchange of gossip between the countries. Gives examples of the kinds of conversations expected on the telegraph.



Punch,  18 (1850), 14.

The Wires of Brotherhood

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Telegraphy, Technology, Internationalism


    Reflecting on reports of the telegraph between England and France, hopes 'international good feeling' results from this 'entente électrique '.



Punch,  18 (1850), 19.

The Light of all Nations

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Light, Invention, Politics


    Notes that the statesman Henry P Brougham (1st Baron Brougham and Vaux) Brougham, Henry Peter, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux (1778–1868) ODNB
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illuminated Cannes with an electric light late one evening. Hopes that he will 'enlighten London with some of those powerful rays'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 19.

The High-Tides Hoax

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Anon

Genre:

Reportage, Drollery

Subjects:

Astronomy, Pollution, Sanitation, Public Health


    Reports on astronomers' 'abortive attempt [...] to create a panic, by predicting a run upon the Banks of the Thames'. Adds that the Thames kept its 'dead and deadly level'.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 22.

Hampton Court Hospital

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Anon

Genre:

Essay

Subjects:

Hospitals, Patronage, Class


    Describes the Hampton Court Hospital Hampton Court Hospital
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as an institution, funded by involuntary contributions, for 'decayed members' of the aristocracy. Reports allegations that the Hospital could admit patients who have 'done the state some service'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 28.

London Milk and London Water

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Anon

Genre:

Reportage, Drollery

Subjects:

Analytical Chemistry, Adulteration, Nutrition


    Reports that London's milk and water have been carefully analysed and that the difference between them is that London water is at the bottom of chalk, while chalk is at the bottom of London milk.



Punch,  18 (1850), 30.

Making Very Light of it

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Physics, Light, Invention, Philosophy


    Reporting a lecture by Mr Dart Dart, Mr (fl. 1850) PU1/18/3/3
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on 'the philosophy of a candle', urges that this subject, though ancient, will 'bring to light some curious phenomena, as to how many times one pound of candles, which, by the ordinary rules of duration, will not fit into two candlesticks, may be found to go easily into one grease-pot'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 30.

Shameful Libel

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Zoological Gardens, Monstrosities, Amusement


    Responding to a report of an alleged monstrosity, 'a vain player' in the theatre, urges William Tyler Tyler, William (1799–1864) WBI
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of the Surrey Zoological Gardens Surrey Literary, Scientific and Zoological Institution—Gardens
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to capture the creature.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 39.

Frightful Case of Stitch in the Side

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Anon

Genre:

Reportage, Drollery

Subjects:

Medical Practitioners, Charlatanry


    Reports that following an attack of 'stitch in the side' suffered by the 'MARQUESS OF FOUR-HUNDRED-THOUSAND', 'medical assistance was summoned' and the 'intelligence of the physician–intelligence, it must be confessed, extra-professional' discovered that the cause lay in the patient's coat.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 43.

The Universal Luminary

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Anon

Genre:

Reportage, Drollery

Subjects:

Physics, Light, Technology, Display, Lecturing


    Reports on a lecture delivered at the Academie des Sciences, Paris Académie des Sciences, Paris
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, by the statesman Henry P Brougham (1st Baron Brougham and Vaux) Brougham, Henry Peter, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux (1778–1868) ODNB
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, the substance of which was later published in Brougham 1850 Brougham, Henry Peter 1850. 'Recherches Expérimentales et Analytiques sur la Lumière', Comptes Rendus Hebdomadaires des Séances de l'Académie des Sciences, 30, 43–47
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. Adds that Brougham used apparatus made by Jean-Baptiste-François Soleil Soleil, Jean-Baptiste-François (1798–1878) DSB
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, and was thus able to 'make his theory as clear as noon-day'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 47.

Teeth Warranted to Bite

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Anon

Genre:

Notes, Drollery

Subjects:

Surgery, Commerce


    Advises visiting an advertising dentist rather than a 'regular practitioner' for replacing lost teeth because this will 'bite—the purchaser'.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 57.

Very Strange, but Very True

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Anon

Genre:

Essay

Subjects:

Telegraphy, Progress, Government


    Observes that the electric telegraph, though it advances civilisation, rules the world 'with rods of iron'.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 61.

Curiosities of Medical Experience

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Anon

Genre:

Illustration, Drollery

Relevant illustrations:

wdct.

Subjects:

Medical Practitioners, Surgery


    Depicts a 'medical student' and a 'Consulting Surgeon' in the latter's office. The student accepts the surgeon's praise for his examination success but complains that he does not get much practice and is at home to take calls.



Punch,  18 (1850), 63.

Thames Water in the Nursery and the Garden

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Simon Pure Pure, Simon
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Genre:

Letter, Spoof

Subjects:

Horticulture, Pollution, Gas Chemistry, Animal Development, Human Development, Nutrition


    Communicating his observations on the comparative effect of Thames water on animal and vegetable life, wonders why Thames water stunts the human frame, but is 'highly nutritious' to vegetables.



Punch,  18 (1850), 64.

The Exchange Clock

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Time, Instruments


    Reports on an article in The Times The Times (1777–1900+) Waterloo Directory
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by Edward J Dent Dent, Edward John (1790–1853) ODNB
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describing the damaging effects of dirt on the 'Exchange Clock'. Punch adds its own report of the clock's recovery.



Punch,  18 (1850), 69.

Railway Signals

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Anon

Genre:

Reportage, Drollery

Subjects:

Railways, Invention, Transport


    Challenges the railway authorities' decision to reject ingenious ideas regarding railway signalling and declare, 'that a break is a sufficient means of communication between the guard and the engine driver'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 70.

Nothing like Grog

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Anon

Genre:

Poetry, Drollery

Subjects:

Medical Practitioners, Medical Treatment


    Lamenting the Royal Navy's Royal Navy
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abolition of grog, the subject of the poem, Jack, is 'blister'd and bled', fed 'washy slops', and treated with physic', but complains that drinking physic is 'nothing like grog'.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 73.

The Lamentable Ballad of the Foundling of Shoreditch

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X, pseud.  [William M Thackeray] Thackeray, William Makepeace (1811–63) ODNB
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Spielmann, Marion Harry Alexander 1899. The Hitherto Unidentified Contributions of W. M. Thackeray to "Punch": With a Complete and Authoritative Bibliography from 1843 to 1848, London: Harper & Brothers
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Genre:

Ballad

Subjects:

Medical Practitioners, Railways, Class, Human Development


    Written in a style to represent an inferior literary skill, relates the story of a doctor and his friend and their meeting with a woman who gave them her child and subsequently vanished. Later in the story the doctor is ordered by its mother to return the baby to Devon. The doctor goes to a judge to decide what to do with the child, but leaves refusing to deposit the child in the workhouse. Contrasts the cruelty of the mother to the kindness of the doctor.



Punch,  18 (1850), 77.

French and English Policemen

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Drollery

Subjects:

Telegraphy, Cultural Geography


    Compares the Englishman, who is 'as laconic as an electric telegraph's message' to the more verbose Frenchman.



Punch,  18 (1850), 78.

Strange Bird in England

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Natural History, Ornithology, Politics, Animal Behaviour


    Descriptions of some alleged new birds that turn out to be political types. These include the 'Colymbus Arcticus', a 'disagreeable bird' whose 'blackness of the throat is attributed by political naturalists to a sort of black slimy matter generated in the bird itself, and discharged from the mouth'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 80.

Hint to Water Companies

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Adulteration, Nutrition

People mentioned:

William Buckland Buckland, William (1784–1856) DSB
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    Responding to a proposal to supply London with water filtered from milk, notes that 'a pretty abundant source of water-supply exists in the chalk-formation'.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 87.

Climbing up the North Pole

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Drollery

Subjects:

Display, Amusement, Meteorology, Exploration, Physical Geography


    Prefers leaving the conquest of the North Pole 'in the hands of others' and is content with the Arctic display at Burford's Panorama Burford's Panorama, Leicester Square
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. Speculates on how Robert Burford Burford, Robert (1791–1861) ODNB
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depicted the aurora borealis in his Panorama, but adds that observing the actual phenomenon means sustaining very cold temperatures and is boring. Describes the 'streets, and lanes, and courts, and squares' of the Arctic and the dangers associated with the geography of this region. Praises the authenticity of Burford's depiction of the Arctic landscapes and expects the Panorama to be a 'Magnetic Pole' in the summer.



Punch,  18 (1850), 87.

Puff Paste

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Drollery

Subjects:

Natural History, Political Economy, Nutrition


    Referring to 'A FREE-TRADE PIE', asks 'the whole of the natural historians now living', and in particular, Alexander von Humboldt Humboldt, Alexander von (Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von) (1769–1859) DSB
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and 'TIDE-MAN' Tiedemann, Friedrich (1781–1861) DSB
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, why pigeon pies are made from pigeons that have four legs.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 108.

Time out of Mind

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Time, Invention, Disease


    Discussing the 'epidemic' which has infected London's clocks in past years, reports the absence of hands and movement in the 'Asylum Clock' in the Westminster Road.



Punch,  18 (1850), 109.

The Advantage of Lodging under a Mechanical Genius

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William Newman Newman, William (fl. 1842) Spielmann 1895
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Genre:

Illustration, Drollery

Relevant illustrations:

wdct.

Illustrators:

N, pseud.  [William Newman] Newman, William (fl. 1842) Spielmann 1895
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Spielmann, Marion Harry Alexander 1895. The History of "Punch", London: Cassell
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Subjects:

Engineers, Mechanics


    Shows two floors of a building: on the bottom floor, a man is woken by a counterweight crashing through his ceiling, an object which is attached to a clock in the room of the 'mechanical genius' above.



Punch,  18 (1850), 109.

Draining the Metropolis

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Pollution, Public Health, Engineering, Government


    Responding to an article in The Times The Times (1777–1900+) Waterloo Directory
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on the City of London Commissioners of Sewers City of London Commissioners of Sewers
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, points out that the commissioners have implemented a 'system of drainage' but 'drained the City's resources instead of its sewers'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 110.

Ploughing by Steam

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Steam-power, Agriculture


    Argues that farmers, who are already in 'hot water', should use the water for the new steam-powered ploughing process.



Punch,  18 (1850), 110.

Prospects of the Tunnel

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Anon

Genre:

Reportage

Subjects:

Engineering, Commerce, Disease


    Reports on the dire financial state of the Thames Tunnel Thames Tunnel
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and notes that the decline in tolls is due to cholera, which has 'acted as a sort of general accountant employed in balancing all matters of profit and loss'.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 113.

Benevolent Machines

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Military Technology


    Comments on a report in the Morning Post Morning Post and Daily Advertising Pamphlet (1772–1900+) Waterloo Directory
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about Mr Groves's Groves, Mr (fl. 1850) PU1/18/12/1
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shell that sets fire to clothes when 'burst among troops'. Doubts that the weapon would be effective against any troops but 'Amazonians' and 'Highlanders'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 117.

A Cambridge Lyric

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Anon

Genre:

Poetry, Drollery

Subjects:

Mathematics, Universities, Education


    Asks the 'Gods of Hades' to 'have mercy on a sinner' for having endured 'Six weeks of squares and triangles' and become 'but a beginner'. Complains that 'These cosine thetas to the nth / Will drive me crazy soon [...] And bring me home the Spoon'. Wishes he was 'a bold Bargee' with 'MILLER'S Miller, William Hallowes (1801–80) DSB
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hydrostatic lore', or a 'Gyp' [university servant] with no worries about mathematics.



Punch,  18 (1850), 118.

Hero Surgeons

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Anon

Genre:

Essay

Subjects:

Medical Practitioners, War, Scientific Practitioners, Engineers, Heroism, Status, Nationalism, Government, Politics


    Notes the heroic battlefield work of military surgeons but points out that they are no more honoured than London hospital surgeons. Argues that the English, 'in the serenity of our greatness, rarely vouchsafe to acknowledge the existence of people of science'. Describes the paucity of scientific practitioners in the Court and Government and the fact that military victors are honoured by the state more than Robert Stephenson Stephenson, Robert (1803–59) ODNB
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, whose Britannia Bridge Britannia Bridge, Menai Straits
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was of 'incalculable' utility. Continues to contrast the ways military warriors and surgeons are honoured.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 124.

Singular Optical Delusion

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Anon

Genre:

Illustration, Drollery

Relevant illustrations:

wdct.

Subjects:

Light, Instruments, Gender


    Shows a couple on a coast line looking out to the sea. The man points to the horizon and asks the woman if she can see a distant steamer. The woman, who looks at two seagulls on the sea with a telescope, replies, 'Oh, distinctly! There are two'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 128.

The Naval Assistant Surgeons' Mess

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Spoof

Subjects:

Medical Practitioners, Class, Education

Institutions mentioned:

Royal Navy Royal Navy
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    Anticipates the proceedings of an inquest into the death of a seaman at the hands of assistant surgeon, Cooper Slice M.D. Includes testimony of Slice's superior, Dr Slash, who produces evidence against Slice. Slice explains his incompetence by complaining that he could not develop his knowledge of anatomy while living in the midshipman's berth. The 'PRESIDENT of the COLLEGE of SURGEONS Royal College of Surgeons
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' upholds the importance of constant medical study and the jury decides that the seaman died of a haemorrhage and attributes Slice's ignorance to poor working conditions.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 132.

The Sights of London

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Goliah Muff, pseud.  [William M Thackeray] Thackeray, William Makepeace (1811–63) ODNB
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Spielmann, Marion Harry Alexander 1899. The Hitherto Unidentified Contributions of W. M. Thackeray to "Punch": With a Complete and Authoritative Bibliography from 1843 to 1848, London: Harper & Brothers
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Genre:

Letter, Spoof

Subjects:

Zoological Gardens, Animal Behaviour, Meteorology, Display, Amusement, Religion, Morality


    The narrator describes a visit to the Zoological Society Gardens Zoological Society of London —Gardens
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in which he and his family saw certain sights that offended his Christian sensibilities, including a giant elephant carrying a child on its back. Describes a visit to Burford's Panorama Burford's Panorama, Leicester Square
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where he and his family saw representations of the Arctic and the aurora.



Punch,  18 (1850), 137.

A-Bridgement of English Geography

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Physical Geography, Engineering


    Responds to some gross errors in Le Napoleon Napoleon, Le (1850) BUCOP
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concerning the location and purpose of Robert Stephenson's Stephenson, Robert (1803–59) ODNB
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tubular Britannia Bridge Britannia Bridge, Menai Straits
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across the Menai Straits.



Punch,  18 (1850), 139.

Antidote to Arsenic

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Anon

Genre:

Reportage, Spoof

Subjects:

Chemistry, Pharmaceuticals


    Reports the discovery by 'the distinguished chemist', Mr Punch, of 'an antidote to arsenic' in the form of a parliamentary bill 'limiting the operation of Burial Clubs to paying for the funerals of their deceased members'.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 143.

The London Pharmacopoeia

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Pollution, Public Health, Sanitation


    Denies that Napoleon's Napoleon I, Emperor of France (1769–1821) CBD
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identification of 'Water, Air, and Cleanliness' as medicines applies in the case of London's water and air.



Punch,  18 (1850), 144.

The Coming Animal

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Zoological Gardens, Animal Behaviour, Psychology


    Discusses the imminent arrival of a hippopotamus in the Zoological Society Gardens Zoological Society of London —Gardens
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. Reports on the rhinocerous's restlessness, a condition that is attributed to jealousy.



Punch,  18 (1850), 145.

Specimens from Mr Punch's Industrial Exhibition of 1850

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Anon

Genre:

Illustration, Drollery

Relevant illustrations:

wdct.

Subjects:

Exhibitions, Industry, Human Development, Class


    Shows Mr Punch and a moustached figure (possibly Prince Albert Albert [Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha], prince consort, consort of Queen Victoria (1819–61) ODNB
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) inspecting some grim images of industry: four large bell jars, each of which contains a figure in the midst of his or her trade. The figures are 'An Industrious Needlewoman', 'A Labourer Aged 75', 'A Distressed Shoemaker', and 'A Sweater'.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 152.

Parliamentary Natural Philosophy

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Anon

Genre:

Notes, Satire

Subjects:

Physics, Mechanics, Heat, Government


    Links common parliamentary events to processes explained by natural philosophy. For example, it notes the 'EVOLUTION OF HEAT' that follows when 'anybody comes into collision with [the statesman] Lord Brougham Brougham, Henry Peter, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux (1778–1868) ODNB
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'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 153.

Careless John, the State Coachman

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Anon

Genre:

Poetry

Subjects:

Medical Practitioners, Class, Government


    Attacks the Prime Minister Lord John Russell Russell, Lord John, 1st Earl Russell (1792–1878) ODNB
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for allowing the lords of the Admiralty Admiralty
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, Francis T Baring Baring, Sir Francis Thornhill (1st Baron Northbrook) (1796–1866) ODNB
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, James W D Dundas Dundas, Sir James Whitley Deans (1785–1862) ODNB
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, and Maurice F F Berkeley Berkeley, Maurice Frederick Fitzhardinge (1st Baron Fitzhardinge) (1788–1867) ODNB
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, to resist so '[u]nhandsomely, meanly, mendaciously' the claims of assistant surgeons in the Royal Navy Royal Navy
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.



Punch,  18 (1850), 153.

Homeopathic Stuffing

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Anon

Genre:

Reportage, Drollery

Subjects:

Homeopathy, Chemistry, Nutrition, Medical Treatment


    Responding to a Morning Chronicle Morning Chronicle (1769–1862) Waterloo Directory
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report on 'homeopathic hospital dinners', suggests that the portions of food served on these occasions were minute. Noting the medicinal qualities of trace substances found in meat, concludes that meals contain 'a deal of medicine'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 157.

Admiralty Admiralty
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v. Assistant-Surgeons

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Punch Punch
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Genre:

Letter, Spoof

Subjects:

Medical Practitioners, Surgery, Class


    Addressed to the statesman Charles L W Sibthorp Sibthorp, Charles de Laet Waldo (1783–1855) ODNB
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, asks why assistant surgeons in the Royal Navy Royal Navy
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, 'adult members of a liberal profession', are restricted 'to the berth of sea-schoolboys'. Disputes the claim put forward by a Lord of the Admiralty, James W D Dundas Dundas, Sir James Whitley Deans (1785–1862) ODNB
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, that the reason for this arrangement was due to lack of space, and condemns the claim of another Admiralty lord, Maurice F F Berkeley Berkeley, Maurice Frederick Fitzhardinge (1st Baron Fitzhardinge) (1788–1867) ODNB
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, that, owing to inferior birth and education, an assistant-surgeon should not mix with senior officers lest he damage 'the discipline of the service'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 158.

The Earth hath Bubbles

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Electricity, Metallurgy, Geology, Commerce


    Reports on gold-diggers' disappointment that gold is 'merely a crust over the soil' and their castigation of 'Nature, for having condescended to use the electrotype process, instead of making the ground one solid mass' of gold.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 167.

An Educational Novelty

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Drollery

Subjects:

Railways, Time, Mathematics, Education, Transport


    Believing that 'no one will ever understand a Railway Timetable, unless he has learnt it in his early youth', advises the teaching of railway arithmetic. Lists suitable questions for such an exercise, all of which poke fun at the lateness and danger of trains.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 177.

The End of the Sea-Serpent

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Anon

Genre:

Reportage, Drollery

Subjects:

Monstrosities, Natural History


    Reports on a 'party of the "Free and Independent"' on the Beaufort River in Carolina, who judged that the sea-serpent was three whales.



Punch,  18 (1850), 179.

The Representation as It Might be

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Disease, Government, Politics, Sanitation, Public Health, Commerce


    Imagines the existence of 'the MEMBER for HEALTH' who seeks to remove Smithfield Market Smithfield Market
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, and 'the MEMBER for FILTH' who would 'defend vested interests through thick and thin' and who would be supported by 'the MEMBER for PESTILENCE'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 179.

A Dangerous Doctor

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary

Subjects:

Medical Practitioners, Medical Treatment, Quackery, Pharmaceuticals


    Responds to an advertisement for the recipe for a medicine to treat 'a disease of great suffering' that has been 'laying dormant' owing to the 'death of the medical gentleman' who made a 'large practice' out of it. Taking this to imply that it is the disease and not the recipe that has been lying dormant, suggests that the disease will be revived by the successor to the 'medical gentleman'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 180.

Punch's Handbook to Her Majesty's Theatre

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Drollery

Subjects:

Analytical Chemistry, Laboratories, Alchemy, Electricity, Light, Machinery

Institutions mentioned:

Society of Apothecaries—Apothecaries' Hall Worshipful Society of Apothecaries of London—Apothecaries' Hall
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    Thinks that the 'analysation' of society into its component parts would be 'a process too vast for the resources of the chemist'. Using an implict comparison of humans and chemical substances, points out that 'combinations of various qualities and properties' which would normally be 'antagonistic', can 'amalgamate' in the opera house. Believes Her Majesty's Theatre Her Majesty's Theatre
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, where the 'laws of political chemistry are suspended', witnessed such eirenic chemical processes as the 'correction of Protectionist Acidity' and the fusion of 'Whig Oil with Radical Vinegar'. Regards opera boxes as 'little laboratories [...] for the formation of other unions of a still more delicate kind', including 'Maternal Alchemy, the art of match-making'. Gives a 'manual of maternal chemistry' for those wishing to practice this latter art, which includes advice on the best oils to use for 'capillary attraction' and the claim that the person to be selected for the union must be 'solvent', because an 'insolvent' cannot 'liquidate'. Advice also includes the discreet use of the retort in matrimonial 'as in other chemistry', and the study of 'the theory of refraction and reflection' to ensure that rays of light from the countenance do not fall on a dense body.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 182.

Something New Under the Sun

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Astronomy, Prognostication


    Responding to news of another comet, suggests that if all predicted comets actually arrive the sky would not be 'large enough to hold such a POSSE COMET-ATUS'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 182.

A Fine Neighbourhood for Medical Men

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Hospitals, Sanitation, Public Health


    Following Napoleon's Napoleon I, Emperor of France (1769–1821) CBD
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remark that 'the market-place [...] is the Louvre of the common people', suggests that 'Smithfield Market Smithfield Market
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is the hospital of the common people', a possible reason why St Bartholomew's Hospital St Bartholomew's Hospital
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was built near the market.



Punch,  18 (1850), 184.

Animal Machinery

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Exhibitions, Machinery, Industry, Human Species


    Following news that machinery will be displayed at the Great Exhibition Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations (1851)
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, suggests showing the British solider as an example of a 'rough-going machine'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 187.

Protection to British Sepulture

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Anon

Genre:

Introduction, Spoof; Proceedings, Spoof

Subjects:

Disease, Public Health, Sanitation


    Describes the activities of 'the first dinner of the United Undertakers' Protection Society' founded to oppose the Metropolitan Interments Bill. One participant, Mr Shrowdall, criticises the 'Report of the Board of Health on a general scheme for extramural sepulture' and for linking 'emanations from the dead' to disease.



Punch,  18 (1850), 188–89.

The Wonders of a London Water Drop

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Drollery; Illustration, Satire

Relevant illustrations:

wdct.

Subjects:

Pollution, Public Health, Sanitation, Microscopy, Mesmerism, Spiritualism

People mentioned:

Arthur H Hassall, Hassall, Arthur Hill (1817–94) ODNB
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Thomas Carlyle Carlyle, Thomas (1795–1881) ODNB
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    Describes the 'wonders [...] revealed in a drop of London water through the Molecular Magnifier, illuminated by the Intellectual Electric Light'. Likens the practice of preparing to view the drop to mesmerism and notes the 'whole universes instinct with life, or life in death' revealed by the 'Molecular Magnifier', an instrument whose powers stump the revelations of the American seer, Andrew J Davis Davis, Andrew Jackson (1826–1910) WBI
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(189). Text and illustration reveal some of the gruesome objects to be seen in the water drop, including 'aldermen', a 'water bailiff', an 'undertaker', 'Gorgon-lobsters', and 'dire chimeras of turtle' (188–89). The text reveals the fierce competition among these monstrosities for 'atomic garbage'. Noting the theory that 'all organisations are multiples of themselves' suggests that water from wells must contain such individuals as aldermen (189).



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Punch,  18 (1850), 194.

Thereby Hangs no Tail

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Astronomy


    Reports that one astronomer, a representative of the 'police of the skies', has announced the existence of a new comet. Explains the claim that the comet has no tail as the result of some 'violent [...] meteorological disturbances' and suggests calling the object 'Comet Spencer'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 198.

Pathological Exhibition at the Royal Academy

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Anon

Genre:

Essay

Subjects:

Anatomy, Pathology, Exhibitions, Natural Law, Representation

Institutions mentioned:

Orthopaedic Institution Orthopaedic Institution
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Publications cited:

Cooper 1809 Cooper, Samuel 1809. A Dictionary of Practical Surgery, London: John Murray
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    Reports on a picture at the Royal Academy of Arts Royal Academy of Arts
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showing 'illustrations of the scrofulous or strumous diathesis', a condition resulting in 'emaciated bodies', 'shrunken legs', and 'tumid ancles'. Praises the attention to the details of morbid anatomy exhibited in the painting and suggests that it is fit for the 'demonstration room'. Suggests that the artist might be employed when conventional forms of preserving specimens fail. Notes that the figures are 'revolting' to the 'non-professional beholder' and are 'examples of the consequences of transgressing the laws of health'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 199.

The Sanitary Reformer to His Executor

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Anon

Genre:

Poetry

Subjects:

Sanitation, Public Health, Disease, Physiological Chemistry


    Instructs his executor to bury him far from churchyards near 'a narrow and crowded site' and to let him decompose far from 'living men's habitations'. Wants none of his 'chemical emanations' to 'injure a soul or offend a nose', but requests 'freshly smelling' flowers to adorn his tomb.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 204.

The Thermometer of Loyalty

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Drollery

Subjects:

Heat, Instruments, Agriculture, Politics, Political Economy


    Describes the operation of a 'newly-invented Agricultural Pocket Thermometer' which indicates the extent of the 'loyalty of the agricultural Protectionist'. The instrument is calibrated in terms of the price of corn, fify-six degrees representing the point at which 'farmers' loyalty boils'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 207.

Fellowship Among Surgeons

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Probe Probe
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Genre:

Letter, Spoof; Polemic

Subjects:

Surgery, Professionalization, Morality, Ethics

Publications cited:

Lancet Lancet (1823–1900+) Waterloo Directory
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    Discusses the Royal College of Surgeons Royal College of Surgeons
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, which appointed some fellows by examination and others because they were favoured by the college's council. Reports on attacks made on the council for this apparently 'unjust and arbitrary conduct' and the council's attempt to gain a government charter for the appointment of fellows without examination. Reports opposition to this move from 'Fellows by Examination', Thomas Wakley Wakley, Thomas (1795–1862) ODNB
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, and others, but asks why 'young fellows submit to an examination, if the partial requisition of it was an injustice'. Seeks to console these fellows by reminding them of the security and dignity of their qualification.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 212.

Presents for the Pasha

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Drollery

Subjects:

Menageries, Imperialism, Internationalism, Imperialism


    Describes some of the animals in a 'domestic menagerie' sent to Alexandria 'as a present for the Pasha Abbas Pasha, Khedive of Egypt (1813–1854) CBD
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'. Hopes the Pasha does not send over animals in exchange because the Zoological Society Gardens Zoological Society of London —Gardens
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is already overcrowded and such animals would be too savage.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 229.

All up with the Reds

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Engineering, Transport, Politics, Radicalism


    Argues that John L McAdam McAdam, John Loudon (1756–1836) ODNB
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'is the great enemy of the barricades', since Parisian boulevards are being macadamised to stop stones being used to aid a future revolutionary movement.



Punch,  18 (1850), 231.

The Cheerful Mourn

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Astronomy, Religion, Superstition


    Notes the continued shining of the sun, moon, and stars despite the death of the Emperor of China, a figure believed to have a 'close relationship' with all celestial bodes. Expected that the constellations would have marked his death more sorrowfully.



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Punch,  18 (1850), 233.

A Tale of a Whale

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Anon

Genre:

Illustration, Drollery; Essay, Drollery

Relevant illustrations:

wdct.

Illustrators:

R, pseud.  [Richard Doyle] Doyle, Richard (1824–83) ODNB
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Spielmann, Marion Harry Alexander 1895. The History of "Punch", London: Cassell
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Subjects:

Hunting


    Reports on the attempt by Arthur Wellesley (1st Duke of Wellington) Wellesley, Arthur, 1st Duke of Wellington (1769–1852) ODNB
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and Margate boatmen to rescue a stranded whale. Notes the dispute between Wellington, the 'Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports [...] who refused to allow the captors to bone the whale for the sake of the whalebone', and Mr Waddington Waddington, Mr (fl. 1850) PU1/18/24/3
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, a Margate surgeon who represented the interests of the captors. The illustration shows a beached whale as the subject for a tug-of-war between Wellington and the boatmen.



Punch,  18 (1850), 241.

Punch's Birds

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Drollery

Subjects:

Ornithology, Animal Behaviour, Music

Publications cited:

Bechstein [1837] Bechstein, Johann Matthaus 1837. The Natural History of Cage Birds: Their Management, Habits, Food, Senses, Treatment, Breeding, and the Methods of Catching Them, London: Orr & Smith
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    Notes that 'Ornithology, has been running about for ages with a pinch of salt of research between its fingers, to place on the tails of the feathered community'. Upholds the interest of all parts of the bird and takes the bird 'in hand as if it were a member of our civilised community'. Begins its description of 'the whole race of social birds, from the hawk downwards to the duck', with an account of the nightingale, which is a thinly-veiled portrait of Jenny Lind Lind-Goldschmidt (née Lind), Johanna Maria ('Jenny') (1820–87) ODNB
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.



Punch,  18 (1850), 241.

The Strongest Thing in the World

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Anon

Genre:

Essay, Drollery

Subjects:

Animal Behaviour, Gender


    Compares the way camels weep when they are overloaded to ladies who resort to the same 'expedient' when they consider themselves 'too much put upon'.



Punch,  18 (1850), 242.

News for the Horse Marines

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Anon

Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Relevant illustrations:

wdct. [2]

Illustrators:

R D, pseud.  [Richard Doyle] Doyle, Richard (1824–83) ODNB
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Spielmann, Marion Harry Alexander 1895. The History of "Punch", London: Cassell
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Subjects:

Zoological Gardens, Nutrition, Adulteration, Natural History, Taxonomy, Animal Behaviour


    Describes arrival of the hippopotamus at the Zoological Society Zoological Society of London —Gardens
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Gardens Zoological Society of London —Gardens
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. Notes that its liquid intake consists of 'the usual wash of chalk, pump water, brains and other ingredients' that constitute London milk and that the animal displays 'extreme sensibility' and pines for its Arab keeper. Thinks that the animal, owing to its 'tendency to blubber', should be given the natural historical classification of 'Mammy-sick-alia'. The illustrations show people clamouring to see the hippopotamus.



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