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the experience of reading in Britain, from 1450 to 1945...

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Record Number: 12757


Reading Experience:

Evidence:

'Then I have been turning lazily over the pages of a certain "magazine" called the "Saturday Magazine", which the worthy chaplain has lent me. There are six double volumes of this astounding rubbish; or more properly six strata - a huge deposit of pudding-stone, rubble, detritus and scoriae in six thick stratifications; containing great veins of fossil balderdash, and whole regions of what the Germans call "loss" and "trass"; amongst which, however, sometimes glances up a fragment of pure ore that has no business there, or a gleaming splinter of diamond illuminating the foul opacity. After an hour's digging and shovelling, I meet perhaps with an authentic piece of "noster" Thomas himself - there are two of those in the whole six beds - and once I turned up what made my heart leap - "The Forging of the Anchor" - which I straight away rolled forth till the tweak timbers rang. There are a great many not intolerable wood engravings in the volumes, and some readable topographical description: but on the whole the thing is of very base material - "Amusements in Science" - "Recreations in Religion" - no, but "Easy Lessons on Christian Evidences" - much apocryphol anecdotage of history, but, above all, abundant illustrations of British generosity, valour, humanity...'

Century:

1800-1849

Date:

Between 15 Jan 1849 and 1 Feb 1849

Country:

Bermuda

Time

n/a

Place:

other location: on board "Dromedary Hulk", at Bermuda

Type of Experience
(Reader):
 

silent aloud unknown
solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown

Type of Experience
(Listener):
 

solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown


Reader / Listener / Reading Group:

Reader:

John Mitchel

Age:

Adult (18-100+)

Gender:

Male

Date of Birth:

3 Nov 1815

Socio-Economic Group:

Professional / academic / merchant / farmer

Occupation:

author, Irish Nationalist, under arrest for Treason

Religion:

Presbyterian family

Country of Origin:

Ireland

Country of Experience:

Bermuda

Listeners present if any:
e.g family, servants, friends

n/a


Additional Comments:

n/a



Text Being Read:

Author:

[n/a]

Title:

Saturday Magazine

Genre:

Other religious, Miscellany / Anthology

Form of Text:

Print: Serial / periodical

Publication Details

six volumes

Provenance

borrowed (private library)
borrowed from the chaplain on the prison hulk


Source Information:

Record ID:

12757

Source:

Print

Author:

John Mitchel

Editor:

n/a

Title:

Jail Journal

Place of Publication:

Dublin

Date of Publication:

1913

Vol:

n/a

Page:

119-120

Additional Comments:

n/a

Citation:

John Mitchel, Jail Journal (Dublin, 1913), p. 119-120, http://can-red-lec.library.dal.ca/Arts/RED/record_details.php?id=12757, accessed: 29 March 2024


Additional Comments:

None

   
   
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