. KNO\VLEDGE 



[Arc. 14, 1885. 



.ntly 



supply thei 



especially in the (Jueei:, have been endeavoui 

 to explain. The health-value of woollen mate 

 appreciated, and it is desirable that not ouly t 

 clothes, but also those who make it their bui 



should be better informed on this point. In this connection I am 

 pleased to be able to say that my own tailor, Mr. T. W. Goodman, 

 of Albemarle-street, W., is as ardent a believer in wool as Mr. 

 Williams and myself, and the excellent tricycle dress for ladies 

 which he has invented is lined throughout with flannel. Besides 

 this, he lines both ladies' and gentlemen's clothes with woollen 

 materials when his customers will consent to this proceeding, to 

 which, however, he informs me many people ai-e opposed, as people 

 always are opposed to anything that is new to them, however good 

 it may be. Ada S. Ballin. 



A "CLEKICAL EBROE." 



[1870]— The Dean of Llandaff, preaching on the Pall Mall turned 

 Apostle, spoke of "a mercenary and murderous traflic, in com- 

 parison with which the old North-West Passage was but the ' light 

 affliction which is but for a moment.' " 



I started, as torpedo-struck.* My father spent four winters 

 without sun, helping to discover the N.W. Passage to India, — 

 reward, £20,000. What could the Dean mean ? There never was 

 any " traffic " by that glacial route. Oh! I have it ! " The horrors 

 of the Middle Passage " — i.e. slaves between Africa and America. 

 A "nice derangement of epitaphs," indeed. Let us hope the tomb- 

 stones of Llandaff are better ordered. Hallyaeds. 



THE EPITHALAMIUM. 



[1871]— Shall I again draw " H. A. P." on my knuckles if I 

 hazard a remark on the latest yoonafion of the Laureate ? 



Taking a reckless header from off this Third World (easy enough, 

 since an inital velocity of more than twelve miles per second would 

 carry one clear of its attraction — and tlioui/ht goes quicker than 



that)— Lord T , like *he proud Assyrian" of old (Is. xiv. 13, 14), 



has struck the stars. But either I misapprehend the details of 

 double-star system.s, or he does; or, at any rate, he gives a mis- 

 leading notion of them. 



I have always understood that a planet in such a system must 

 have one or other star for a primary. In that case the other would, 

 of course, cause a perturbation in the planet's orbit, but its in- 

 fluence would be insignificant as compared with the primary's (and 

 this is uncomplimentary to either the mother or the husband), for 

 the reason that, if not, the primary would cease to be its primary 

 altogether. 



" Sway'd by each Love, and swaying to each Love, 

 Like some conjectured planet in mid heaven 

 Between two Suns and drawing down from both 

 The light and genial warmth of double day." 



So far as language goes, this would give me the idea either of a 



revolution; or revolving round loth suns, which would be, I sup- 

 pose, the foci of its ellipse. But, given the distance necessary 

 between two such large bodies, what an improbably large planetary 

 orbit — if possible, even. 



Leaving, however, the dynamical question, I think that the 

 Oriental lines on " may your shadow never grow less" would be a 

 rather left-handed compliment if it implied life in a double-star 

 planet. Suppose our sun liad a primary large enough to appear, in 

 spite of distance, as large as himself — how could any sort of seed- 

 time and harvest-time go on ? If animal life were tolerable when 

 the two suns were in opposition, then it would be impossible when 

 they were not so— a double amount of heat being received. Con- 

 versely, if animal life were tolerable with both suns up, then it 

 would be intolerable from cold with only one. On the whole, bad 

 as our poor third world in many respects is, it may be better " to 

 bide wi' the diel ye knaw, than to gane to the deil ye dinna knaw." 

 "Sway'd by each Love, and swaying to each Love." 



I presume that these different participles express the, first, in- 

 voluntary attraction ; the second, voluntary motion towards. If 



5, the si 



.ile is 





pvill. 



" Mid-heaven" must, I think, mean, not the sky as seen by us, 

 but the region half-way between the two stars ; which again indi- 

 cates the impossible theory — 



" Which from her household orbit draws the child 

 To move in other spheres." 

 This seems to me imperfect. The expression "to move in a 



* I have found numbers of people quite ignorant of the real, 

 natural torpedo — now quite eclipsed by the craft, not so happily 

 named, after all — for the eel does not blow his victims into 

 smithereens. 



sphere" is neither scientific nor poetical, but rather vulgar. I 

 suppose it hails from the imaginary concentric spheres of the 

 Ptolemaic astronomy. Bodies, however, do not really move in 

 pheres ; and 1 guess that the Laureate never would have thought 

 if it if he had not been astronomically inclined, and so tempted to 

 ise an astronomical word, though in quite an improper relation. 



In conclusion, I have myself tried the double-star system of 

 matrimony, and am of opinion that a better metaphor would be a 

 shuttlecock between two battledores. Keep up the game long 

 igh, and all three are worn and misshapen. 



;st some one should suppose 1 am Vandal enough not to like 

 Tennyson, let me add that I think him far above Shakespeare as to 

 form, and not far behind him in substance. I abjure '' In Me- 

 am " as I do the telescope ; they both would keep me up at 

 night. If, therefore, I find the last song a little feeble and mawkish, 

 ■■ ■ Burely not from prejudice. Hallyaeds. 



THE RECENT COERESPONDEXCE OF " HALLYAEDS." 



[1872]— Your correspondent, " Hallyards," in his letters on 

 Evolution puzzled me somewhat until his letter 1767 confirmed 

 my previous suspicion that he had no clear idea of what " Evolu- 

 tion " really teaches. It was satisfactory to find that he wished 

 to investigate the matter, but it is to be regretted that the specu- 

 lative element in his nature had led him to criticise, and argue 

 the point with, your able writer. Miss Ballin, before having made 

 himself acquainted with the principles of Evolution. Ha also asks 

 you to publish articles giving all that has been estallishcd on this 

 subject. I do not think such a short cut would be of any use to 

 him. You can look at established conclusions without under- 

 standing them in the least ; the important thing is hoii: they have 

 been established. 



In letter 1763, he says he never conld sympathise with the 

 cock-sure. This is amusing in the light of the correspondence 

 with Mr. Proctor, in which he reasserts that Mr. P. did say that 

 which he disclaims ; also in letter 1SS2, in which he states that 

 Miss A. B. Edwards' chronology was totalbj imposi^iUe ; and again 

 in letter 1833, where he denies that George Eliot was one of the 

 very few having the right to reject Christianity, fur the simple 

 reason of her sex. Surely this is dogmatism extraordinary. (Oh! 

 for the power of seeing ourselves as others see us.) 



Women admit they do not reason but feel, he says. What has 

 that to do with individual women who do reason, or who are 

 capable of understanding reasons when they are put before them ? 

 Moreover, what is there to prevent a woman being convinced by 

 the reasons supplied to her by one of the " Lords of Creation," 

 and afterwards asserting that conviction ? In the postscript to 

 letter 1779, "Hallyards" thinks that "St. George Mivart has 

 admitted that special creation of man is not of the essence of 

 Christianity." And clearly if evolution be true, even to the 

 limited extent of man and the different orders of the quadrumana 

 having been evolved from the same primitive stock, there cannot 

 have been a special creation of man. In letter 1816 he says " the 

 standard of morals is always fixed by the laity," and, again, in 

 letter 1833, he harps upon the same string. " The sole standard 

 of conduct for individuals has always been the rale settled by 

 the society of which they form part." And then — he gives a 



it would have been for women to have utterly disregarded their 

 society's standard of morals. These illustrations altogether upset 

 his argument. According to his contention, the wife of Luther 

 must have done a very wrong thing in marrying him, or a Conti- 

 nental officer refusing to fight a duel with another officer must also 

 be doing a wrong thing. I utterly repudiate this absurd doctrine. 

 Some of " Hallyards' " letters are interesting, but I wish he would 

 abstain from Latin quotations, considering that Knowledge is sup- 

 posed to be plainly worded and exactly described. 



Robert Wood. 



[1873]— I wish to thank " W." for his (unless one of the other 

 genders be more correct) spontaneous offer to do what I was 

 wishing to do for myself, i.e., index my letters. I meant to suggest 

 to you, sir, that a double correspondence index would be a most 

 useful addition to K-N'owledge, (1) the correspondents in A B C 

 order ; (2) their subjects in ditto. Of all the faults that can be 

 found in a writer, I certainly think the charge of versatilitv is the 

 most extraordinary. Fancy an editor inscribing over the corre- 

 spondence columns :—"N.B. No Versailles need" apply." "Fear 

 the man of one book," said the schoolmen. "Insist on the man of 

 one book," says " W." 



Surely " W." has got the wrong walrus by the car. At least, if 

 I chanced on so well-bred and well informed a creature, I should 

 ith him far more gladly than with some others hailing 



from the S£ 



e litl 



