General Books

The Christmas ChildBYMrs. G. de Horne VaizeyA happy thought, a cross-country journey, a strange discovery, another happy thought, and many still happier thoughts hereafter!Jack said: "Nonsense! We are all grown up now. Let Christmas alone. Take no notice of it; treat it as if it were an ordinary day." Margaret said: "The servants have all begged for leave. Most of their mothers are dying,... more...

NOTES. ILLUSTRATIONS OF SCOTTISH BALLADS. In the ballad of "Annan Water" (Border Minstrelsy, vol. iii.) is the following verse:— "O he has pour'd aff his dapperpy coat, The silver buttons glanced bonny; The waistcoat bursted aff his breast, He was sae full of melancholy." A very unexpected effect of sorrow, but one that does not seem to be unprecedented. "A plague of sighing... more...

CHARLES LAMB'S UNCOLLECTED WRITINGS. SECOND PAPER. Readers of Lamb's "Life and Letters" remember that before "Mr. H." was written, before Kemble had rejected "John Woodvil," Godwin's tragedy of "Antonio" had been produced at Drury-Lane Theatre, and that Elia was present at the performance thereof. But perhaps they do not know (at least, not many of them)... more...

KOSSUTH. On the preceding page is the best portrait we have seen of the illustrious Hungarian, whose presence in America is destined to mark one of the brightest pages in the history of Liberty. Of his personal appearance we transcribe the description in the Tribune. He is taller than had generally been supposed, and his face has an expression of penetrating intellect which is not indicated in any... more...

DIVISION OF INTELLECTUAL LABOUR. Every one confesses, I believe, the correctness of the principle called "Division of labour." But if any one would form an adequate estimate of the ratio of the effect produced, in this way, to the labour which is expended, let him consult Dr. Adam Smith. I think he states, as an example, that a single labourer cannot make more than ten pins in a day; but if... more...

CHAPTER IX. AT "THE GOLDEN GRIFFIN." Captain Edmund Ducie was one of the first to emerge from the wreck. He crept out of the broken window of the crushed-up carriage, and shook himself as a dog might have done. "Once more a narrow squeak for life," he said, half aloud. "If I had been worth ten thousand a-year, I should infallibly have been smashed. Not being worth ten brass... more...

WHAT SHALL BE THE END? If we look to the development of slavery the past thirty years, we shall see that the ideas of Calhoun respecting State Sovereignty have had a mighty influence in gradually preparing the slave States for the course which they have taken. Slavery, in its political power, has steadily become more aggressive in its demands. A morbid jealousy of Northern enterprise and thrift, with... more...

CHAPTER VII. THE DAY AT THE CONVENT. The Mother Theresa sat in a sort of withdrawing-room, the roof of which rose in arches, starred with blue and gold like that of the cloister, and the sides were frescoed with scenes from the life of the Virgin. Over every door, and in convenient places between the paintings, tests of Holy Writ were illuminated in blue and scarlet and gold, with a richness and... more...

LAW INSTITUTION. This handsome portico is situate on the west side of Chancery Lane. It represents, however, but a portion of the building, which extends thence into Bell Yard, where there is a similar entrance. The whole has been erected by Messrs. Lee and Sons, the builders of the new Post Office and the London University; whose contract for the present work is stated at 9,214l. The portion in our... more...

The twenty-seven respectable citizens of New York who, in 1792, met under a buttonwood tree in front of the premises now known as Number 60 Wall Street, and formed an association for the purchase and sale of public stocks at a fixed and unvarying commission, with a proviso of mutual help and preference, committed themselves to an enterprise of whose moment and influence in the future they could have... more...