Roundabout Papers - Penn State University

Thackeraychildren,* and wonder whether the book will have the Sighs” was his Corunna, his Heights of Abraham—sickly,same interest for others and for younger people, as for weak, wounded, he fell in the full blaze and fame ofpersons of my own age and calling. Books of travel to that great victory.any country become interesting to us who have been What manner of man was the genius who penned thatthere. Men revisit the old school, though hateful to them, famous song? What like was Wolfe, who climbed andwith ever so much kindliness and sentimental affection.There was the tree under which the bully licked want to know details regarding men who have achievedconquered on those famous Heights of Abraham? We allyou: here the ground where you had to fag out on holidays,and so forth. In a word, my dear sir, you are the endurance, or knowledge. His one or two happy andfamous feats, whether of war, or wit, or eloquence, ormost interesting subject to yourself, of any that can heroic actions take a man’s name and memory out of aoccupy your worship’s thoughts. I have no doubt, a crowd of names and memories. Henceforth he standsCrimean soldier, reading a history of that siege, and eminent. We scan him: we want to know all about him;how Jones and the gallant 99th were ordered to charge we walk round and examine him, are curious, perhaps,or what not, thinks, “Ah, yes, we of the 100th were and think are we not as strong and tall and capable asplaced so and so, I perfectly remember.” So with this yonder champion; were we not bred as well, and couldmemorial of poor Hood, it may have, no doubt, a greater we not endure the winter’s cold as well as he? Or weinterest for me than for others, for I was fighting, so to look up with all our eyes of admiration; will find nospeak, in a different part of the field, and engaged, a fault in our hero: declare his beauty and proportionsyoung subaltern, in the Battle of Life, in which Hood perfect; his critics envious detractors, and so forth. Yesterday,before he performed his feat, he was nobody.fell, young still, and covered with glory. “The Bridge ofWho cared about his birthplace, his parentage, or the* This refers to an illustrated edition of the work.79