Hugo recalls Cadiz siege and a near execution
In a Louis Philippe era anecdote, Victor Hugo recounts a royal- marshal Soult exchange about Cadiz. The king reveals a planned trap and a threat to shoot Hugo, while Soult says he would have compromised the situation rather than harm him.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Louis Philippe
Victor Hugo
Tuileries
Marshal Soult
Marshal
Cadiz
Cortes
France
Cortadura
M. Marshal
Duc d’Orleans
Gallery Wit and Interrupters Spoofed by Theater Patrons
Amusing sketches from the English Illustrated Magazine recount witty exchanges between patrons and actors. A Bristol Stabbing scene prompts a pit insult and retort, and a Shrewsbury Richard III performance triggers a quip about a donkey versus a horse.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
English Illustrated Magazine
Cymon
Drury Lane
Vernon
Long Acre
Sancho Fpanza
Dufreni
Sancho
John Reeve
Bristol
Artixommus
Reeve
Barry Sullivan
Shrewsbury
Mr. Sullivan
How Red Herrings Came Monstrous Fishes In England's Past
The first red herring arose when a fisherman dried surplus herring in a smoky shed in England. He forgot them, later found the fish changed color, and the king allowed the exhibits to travel the country as curiosities.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
England
Nerve and Nonsense Clash at Lyceum Debate
A heated exchange unfolds as a committee member scolds a lecturer for failing to please the audience while the lecturer touts his strenuous effort and rarity of failure. The quarrel centers on fee payment and audience satisfaction at the lyceum event.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Lyceumite
Not Unlikely Quote From Schoolboy Essay
A schoolboy essay quotes a passage about England as a foreign country and its coal beds. It ponders using brains for fuel and notes coal scarcity. The line appears from the source London Pick-Me-Up in a reflective, whimsical tone.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
England
London
Gobelin Tapestry Weaving at the Haute Lisse Looms
The Gobelin tapestry uses vertical warps of wool and a haut lisse loom with two long horizontal cylinders. Weavers copy the colored design from a behind seating cartoon, using many spools of thread, while the warp is kept taut at about seven pounds per thread and spaced to about twenty five threads per inch.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Gobelin
Haute Lisse
Basse Lisse
Louis XIV
Scientific American
Origin of the Jury in English Legal History
The seed of trial by jury traces to Ethelred II. binding sheriffs and twelve thanes to swear against convicting the innocent. By 1176 jurors were mainly witnesses, and under Edward I witnesses joined the facts while jurors became judges of testimony, marking a split in roles. New York American.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Ethelred II
Edward I
New York American
The Cannon Ball Tree of Guinea
A Guinea plant tall as sixty feet displays crimson fragrant blossoms in large bunches. Its fruit resembles enormous cannon balls, giving the tree its name. Some say the bursting balls make the noise. Shells yield utensils, acids, sugar and gum for medicinal drinks.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Guinea
Origin of the yegg: nitroglycerin and safe cracking
The Pittsburg Gazette Times explains the origin of the term yegg and how nitroglycerin transformed safe blowing. It chronicles John Yegg and the rise of organized yegg gangs with leaders, kits, and itinerant crime spanning trains and towns.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Coldwater
Mich
Vegg
Yegg
Pittsburg
Ancient Highway: England's Great North Road Two Thousand Years Old
Frank Presbrey describes the Great North Road from London to Edinburgh as a 400 mile, well maintained route with thick macadam, light dust, and many speed traps. He notes pedestrian footpaths, high traffic of motors, and easy access to trap locations in villages like Biggleswade Buckden and Weston.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
England
Great North Road
Hatfield
London
North
Caesar
Rome
Edinburgh
Bigleswade
Buckden
Weston
Frank Presbrey
Outing Magazine
Sure Enough Hogs Radio Camp Tale
Mose the dorky cook of surveyors in eastern Texas was angrily surprised by a ravenous band of razorback hogs that raided the cook tent. He exclaimed that the hogs proved the land knew its business when it named hawes hawgs, and the animals surely are hogs.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Mose
Texas
Piny Woods
Waal
Everybody’s Magazine
Amenities of the Fair Sex sketch
Mrs A accuses Mrs C of hypocrisy after she tried to extract a mean remark about Mrs B. Mrs B questions the test, while Mrs A explains the ploy was to trap her into speaking ill. The brief exchange appears in the Chicago News.
Also Mentioned on This Page
WIT
John Yege
United States
Middle West
John Yegg
Yegz
Pinkerton
Shin Derk
Shoo
Shoop
Foley Shoney-“Tar
Bayfield County Plat Books
George H. Calder
WH. Doenitsz and
KH. Rittenhouse
Washburn, Wis
Bayfield County
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