Perilous Ride Across Blockade From Richmond to Baltimore
A Confederate officer’s wife recounts a daring private mission in August 1862 to cross Union lines. She travels from Richmond to Baltimore and back via Hanover Junction Port Royal and the Rappahannock, aided by Confederate sympathizers and hidden by night, with meals and supplies secured along the way. She reaches Baltimore then returns to Richmond after a perilous voyage and tense crossings.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Philadelphia Times
E. M. McGhee
Atlanta
Richmond
Baltimore
South Carolina
Hanover Junction
Bowling Green
Centreville
Seventeenth Virginia
Camain M
Changes in Baseball Rules Suppress the Pitcher in 1885
Peck's Sun reports the National Base Ball League approved key rule changes for 1885 including substituting a rubber base at home plate to reduce injuries and a ban on delayed, elaborate pitching rituals. The piece mocks pitchers habits and predicts automated pitching may arrive, reforming the sport's pace and spectacle.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
National Base Ball League
New York
Diamond
Keeley
Gynius
Waking at Will and Sleep Induced Awakening
A French businessman reports waking at a chosen time by mental intention and a pre sleep note of the wake time. He notes a slight external cue aids waking, such as a bird chirp or a seat flutter, and that precise timing depends on conscious timing and subtle stimuli.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
la Nature
Beauty and Beauties and the Ugly as Merit Across Ages
An 19th century Brooklyn Eagle piece surveys beauty ideals from ancient to medieval times, noting how rulers and notables safeguarded or flaunted looks. It cites Suetonius on Augustus, Alexander Severus’s hare diet, and diverse, ironic takes on ugliness, vanity, and the social power of appearance across civilizations.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Brooklyn Eagle
Tamerlane
Cicero
Venus
Minerva
Egypt
Dioscorides
Suetonius
Augustus
Alexander Severus
Is the Nose the Key to Greatness and Character
The essay argues that bears of eminence and animals alike are judged by the nose rather than the chin. It surveys classical thinkers and Grose classifications of noses, noting long, aquiline, straight, bulbous forms signaling power, will, or gentleness, while concave, snub noses imply meanness.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Julius Caesar
Aristotle
Baptista Porta
Grose
Napoleon Bonaparte
le Prun
Prince de Conde
Mirabeau
Madame de Stael
A Ram Wise in His Generation in Sandy Creek
The Henderson Gold Leaf reports an exceptionally sagacious ram owned by J. A. Adcock of Sandy Creek township. The animal distinguishes persimmon trees and knocks fruit down by butting, then eats the fruit before moving on. Previously he also raided apple trees in the same manner.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Henderson
North Carolina
J. A. Adcock
Sandy Creek
Lehling
Not Suitable Text From A Curious Tale
A fragmentary dialogue features Mrs Slinker, Matilda the servant, and a puzzled inquiry about scratching sounds in the kitchen. The exchange reveals a halting, dialect rich scene that suggests domestic intrigue and secrecy within a Kinderhook setting. The excerpt focuses on miscommunication and the humorous misinterpretation of a cook writing a letter to her beau.
The Rise of Elaborate Stage Scenery in 19th Century Theatre
The New York Commercial Advertiser notes how scenery and costumes evolved from basic green balze screens and wicker chairs to lavish sets. It cites costs for scenes, salaries, and landmark productions, detailing hundreds of thousands spent on single effects and the yearly burden on managers for traveling companies.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Edmund Kean
Garrick
Macbeth
Kembig
Othello
Monterey
Matt Morgan
Madison Square Theatre
Union Square Theatre
Palmer
Feehter
Lyceum Theatre
Union Square
Prince Ahmed
Grand Opera House
Excelsior
Esmeralda
Madison Square
Paris
Nankin Porcelain Tower a Glorious Yet Ruined Landmark
The Porcelain Tower of Nankin, built in the 15th century by Emperor Yung lo as a memorial to his mother, stood over 200 feet tall and faced with porcelain. Its bells and lantern openings lit the structure in grand display, but it was demolished by Taiping rebels in 1853, leaving the city largely in ruins.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Mme. de Bourignon
Aristophanes
Aulus Gellius
Metellus Numidiens
Clemens Alexandrius
Germany
Nankin
China
Pekin
Yung Loi
Vorcelain Tower
London
Tropics
India
Deceptive Flowers of Prey and the Giant Rafflesia
A Cornhill Magazine excerpt surveys colossal blooms and deceptive pollination tactics. It cites Rafflesia Arnolds, giant wasp flowers, and carrion smellers that lure insects with false honey. It compares these to wasp and grass species, explains trap-like petals, and notes tropical Nepenthes pitchers that drown prey.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Cornhill Magazine
Baron Munchausen
Bruce
Stanley
Mendez
Pinto
du Chailly
Stamford Raffles
Sumatra
Sir Stamford
England
Arnold
Britain
Parnassus
The Carnivorous Pitcher Plant and Allies Explored
The article explains how pitcher plants and related species evolved to trap insects for nutrients. It notes many developed carnivorous plants in boggy habitats such as sundews, butterworts, and bladderworts, with pitchers being modified leaves and often as striking as exotic orchids.
The Old Story of Sawsage and the Isothernal Argument
A humorous tale recalls four friends in a cross country trip with Mr. Sawsage who interrupts with learned but clumsy anecdotes. The group debates pronunciation and names, ends with a long, playful quarrel, then hears a final story about Adam and Eden as the train nears Salt Lake City.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Bill Nye
San Francisco
Ingleside
Gibbon
Gregg
Sansage
Colorado
Congress
Runane
Sawsage
Nye
Libu
Jimmy Terrial
Gibbor
Lansauge T
Adam
Garden of Eden
Salt Lake City
Gregg, Gibbon
Mr. Sawsage
E. Ptolemy Sawsege
When the Cows Come Home in GeorginaMilking King Described
A poet journalist portrays a Jersey herd led by Ludora in a Georgina meadow. Osceola, a dignified milker in charge, oversees fourteen years of trusted service as the herd yields 100 to 110 gallons daily.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Henry W. Grady
Atlanta Constitution
Ludora
Osceola
Theow
Let the Punster Read and Reflect
A Victorian-style admonition on punning urges readers to chew fetid resin to curb humor. It mocks constant puns as ancient and warns punsters will lose status, love, and marriage prospects, while advising restraint and self awareness.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Adam
Witch doctors thrive in Scotland criticizes belief and fraud
The London Truth contends that witchcraft persists in Scotland, especially Ross-shire, linking belief to religious self righteousness. It describes witch doctors claiming fishing luck, curing eye diseases, and performing nocturnal rites with cabalistic marks, while profiting from demonic incantations and fees.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
London
Scotland
Ross-shire
Bric a Brac and Verse Fragments From A Page
A collage of light verse andNotes from various sources including Waterloo Observer Philadelphia Call Harvard Lampoon and Lowell Citizen. The snippets feature humorous exchanges about home life poetry parodies and social quips, with playful lines about marriage youth and gifts.
Sitting on a Stile and other light verse sketches
A mosaic of eccentric vignettes and witticisms from a late nineteenth century humor column. It mixes flirtatious verse on a stile with quips about love and youth, childhood games, and playful anecdotes from newspapers and burlesque crowds. The snippets showcase social mores, regional slang, and comic observations.
Also Mentioned on This Page
Potomac
Port Royal
Rappahannock
Tus
Tullview
J. E. S. Stuart
Stuart
Dr. Stewart
Miss Stewart
Felmend
Nessary
Ra. Stevet
Blain
Por c
Washington City
Somerset
Maryland
Northamberland
Virginia
Tangler’s Sound
Penteman
Gui Borat
Peck
Beauty and Beauties
Henry IV
Kuta
Archangel
Milton
M. Bouchet
Italy
Judas
Rosalind
Martiel
St. Peter
Antioch
Plato
le Brun
New York Commercial Advertiser
Nankin’s Porcelain Tower
Mairs
Mr. Sausage
Alo
Georgina
Waterloo Observer
Vassar
Darling
Philadelphia
J. Edgar Russetl
Harvard Lampoon
Ladly
Newport
Celia
Alexander Pope
Celie
Washington Irving
Henry
Edmund W. Goose
Dora
Dresden
Lowell
Texas
New York Graphic
Emma Lazarus
Psyche
Detroit Post
Mamma
Docendo
Boston
Kennebunk port-by-the-Sea
Beacon Hill
Docendo Discimus
Burdette
Chicago Sun
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