General Books

TANFIELD ARCH, DURHAM. Tanfield is a considerable village, situated seven miles from Gateshead, in the county of Durham, and eight miles in a south-west direction from Newcastle-on-Tyne. The above arch is about a mile from the village, and crosses a deep dell, called Causey Burne, down which an insignificant streamlet finds its sinuous course. The site possesses some picturesque beauty, though its... more...

NOTES. ROBERD THE ROBBER. In the Vision of Piers Ploughman are two remarkable passages in which mention is made of "Roberd the robber," and of "Roberdes knaves." "Roberd the robbere, On Reddite loked, And for ther was noght wherof He wepte swithe soore." Wright's ed., vol. i. p. 105. "In glotonye, God woot, Go thei to bedde, And risen with ribaudie, The Roberdes... more...

ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS, REGENTS'S PARK.Emu EnclosurePelican EnclosureAviary for Small BirdsOur strolls to this scene of intellectual amusement, (or "the gardens with a long name," as Lord Mulgrave's new heroine naively calls them,) are neither few nor far between. The acquaintance is of some standing, since The Mirror was the first journal that contained any pictorial representation of... more...

AN ENCYCLOPÆDIA OF VENTILATION. "The House [of Commons] met to-day [27th April] after the Easter holidays—and honourable members, on entering, seemed highly to appreciate the unusual luxury of a little fresh air."—The Times, 28th April. The failure of some late attempts to ventilate public buildings invites me to set forth an Encyclopædia of ventilation—at a cheap rate, and in a... more...

HANSA, THE LITTLE LAPP MAIDEN.BY KATHARINE LEE. Once upon a time, in a very small village on the borders of one of the great pine forests of Norway, there lived a wood-cutter, named Peder Olsen. He had built himself a little log-house, in which he dwelt with his twin boys, Olaf and Erik, and their little sister Olga. Merry, happy children were these three, full of life and health, and always ready for... more...

THE STORY OF JOSIAH HENSON No one ever uttered a more forceful truth than Frederika Bremer when she said in speaking to Americans: "The fate of the Negro is the romance of your history." The sketches of heroes showing the life of those once exploited by Christian men must ever be interesting to those who would know the origin and the development of a civilization distinctly American. In no case... more...

NOTES. OLD SONGS. I heard, "in other days," a father singing a comic old song to one of his children, who was sitting on his knee. This was in Yorkshire: and yet it could hardly be a Yorkshire song, as the scene was laid in another county. It commenced with— "Randle O'Shay has sold his mare For nineteen groats at Warrin'ton fair," and goes on to show how the simpleton was... more...

E. FELICE FORESTI. Late in the autumn of 1836, an Austrian brig-of-war cast anchor in the harbor of New York; and seldom have voyagers disembarked with such exhilarating emotions as thrilled the hearts of some of the passengers who then and there exchanged ship for shore. Yet their delight was not the joy of reunion with home and friends, nor the cheerful expectancy of the adventurous upon reaching a... more...

ST. DUNSTAN'S, FLEET STREET. No church in London is perhaps better known than the above, which is distinctively called Saint Dunstan's in the West. External elegance has little to do with this celebrity, which has been acquired by the two wooden figures placed on a pediment in front, representing savages, who indicate the hours and quarters by striking a bell with their clubs: this has caused... more...

WALT WHITMAN IN EUROPE. With the death and burial of Walt Whitman passes away the most picturesque figure of contemporary literature. It is true that in England the name of the poet is more familiar than his poetry, and that students of literature are more conversant with the nature of his writings than are the mass of general readers; yet the character of the man and the spirit of his compositions... more...