DOI Heft:
January 5, 1856
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.16617#0018
10
PUNCH, OR THE LONDON CHARIVARI.
[January 5, 1856
SHORT-SIGHTED PRIDE.
Lady with glasses. " Well, 7'm sure/ the impertinence of the Lower Classes is
astonishing I It will be quite time to leave off our Round Nats, if they are to be
worn by creatures like these."
HEROES AT A DISCOUNT.
We liave seen in the shop windows a large engraving repre-
senting a number of military officers, and labelled with the
words, " Waterloo Heroes, One Guinea; Sold at Four
Guineas." We do not see why the Waterloo Heroes should
have undergone such a terrible reduction as to have fallen no
less than seventy-five per cent.; and, indeed, we cannot help
thinking that seme of the Crimean Heroes—if we take into
account the treatment they have met with—are better adapted
to be regarded in the light of an alarming sacrifice. The
Waterloo Heroes have done nothing, and suffered nothing,
recently which can account for their suddenly falling in public
estimation to one-fourth of the price that was formerly set
upon them. Military heroes, we know, are at all times liable
to be " cleared off;" and there are many officers that " must
go," whether they find it agreeable or otherwise; but the
fame of the Waterloo Heroes might, we think, have sustained
them at the price at which it seems they have been "regularly
sold " up to the present period.
Cruel Kindness.
The Emperor op Russia's friends (if he has any) will
probably try and make a point in his favour by pointing to the
enfranchisement of the serfs. If we were not afraid of being
accused of barbarism almost as great as that of the Northern
Despot, we should be disposed to reply, that this assumed
liberality to the serfs is all on the surface.
Severity of the Season.
{Extremely Unromantic.)
Alfred, devotedly in love, asked Maria for her hand. " You
may have it, Alfred, dear," the artless girl replied; "but I
am afraid you will find it twice its usual size; for it's cohered
all over with chilblains."
POLICEMAN'S LOGIC.
A Policeman may be a very fair witness when he limits himself to a
mere matter of fact, but he is seldom to be relied upon when he
attempts to go through a process of reasoning, aud offers the result as
evidence. How can we reason but from what we know? is a very
natural question; but if the poet had asked, " What can we know, but
from what we reason ?" the query would never have been handed
down to us, except as an instance of gross absurdity. We find, how-
ever, from a recent police case at Marylebone, that the reasoning
powers of a metropolitan constable are occasionally used by himself to
supply a want of actual knowledge, as may be seen in the following
brief dialogue:—•
" Magistrate. Do you think the pork was stolen ? "
" Policeman. 1 have no doubt of'it, or she would not have let it drop."
Upon this principle it would appear that no one can be supposed " to
have" legally what he cannot ' hold," and that, therefore, if any
individual were to permit his watch, or his purse, or any other article to
drop, he may be presumed to have stolen it. This species of circum-
stantial evidence must be received with considerable caution, for there
are many articles that one might very innocently drop, such as a hot
plate, a tea-kettle not supplied with an efficient holder, and a variety of
other things which one would not like to be accused of stealing, unless
one was prepared to burn one's fingers. The policeman who pro-
nounced a leg of pork to be stolen because the accused " let it drop,"
should be careful to avoid such nonsense, and either " drop it" in the
vulgar sense, or not let it drop from his mouth on any future occasion.
Tory Nursery Song.
(Slightly explanatory of certain Peacemongering.)
Htjsh-a-by, Palmy, on the tree-top,
Palmy's in office the Russians to wop;
Patch up a peace, and old Palmy will fall,
And up will go Darby, and Dizzy, and all.
angi.o-prench.
Parlez-vous Franc;ais ?—Many to whom this question is put will
answer, " Tray beeang, ge voo remercy" and if they are further asked,
Comment vous portez-vous ? will reply " Ungpew."
THE KING OF PRUSSIA'S OWN.
Lieutenant Geneste, in his report of the Hango massacre, states
that—
" The soldiers who perpetrated this most barbarous outrage were not irregular troops
or militia, but belonged to one of the best Russian regiments, the grenadiers of
Frederick William of Prussia, as they are called; the King of Prussia being their
Colonel."
So the King op Prussia still retains his commission in the Prussian
army. It was stated, shortly after the commencement of the War, that
Nicholas had dismissed him summarily from the service. In fairness
it should be mentioned, that Frederick William's dismissal was not
ascribed at the time to any conduct unworthy of an officer and a gentle-
man. The Emperor, his late master, was supposed to have sent him
about his business, simply for having presumed to express somewhat
resembling an opinion of his own on the Eastern question. < Even this
supposition now appears to have been incorrect, Fritz having all along
"remained the same for Russia" — namely, a Colonel of Russian
grenadiers.
Now, considering whose men these soldiers were who fired on
Lieutenant Geneste and his flag of truce ; considering who their
Colonel was, and how potent is the force of example in high places,
there is something to be said for them which may at least divest that
act of the character of a cold-blooded murder. What that is it is
unnecessary more distinctly to specify. Of course it is no excuse for
such a deed in point of law; stLU we feel that a crime committed under
excitement, however occasioned, is a different thing from a deliberate
act. " A soldier's a man, and man's life's but a span," &c, as is unhap-
pily too strikingly instanced by our own soldiers in the Crimea; there-
fore we have no call to brag, as they say in the country : still, in what-
ever state our gallant fellows might be, we trust that they would always
know better what they were about than to fire—a whole regiment of
them at a time—upon a few unarmed and defenceless men bearing a
flag of truce. Drunk or sober, they never could, we are persuaded,
make such horrid beasts of themselves as to do that, like the Russian
grenadiers, whose Colonel is the King op Prussia.
Intelligence from Berlin.
The intoxication which has been so rife among the Briiish troops in
the Crimea has of late formed the principal subject here of general
conversation. The tide has turned again in a high quarter, and decided
sympathy has been expressed for our brave but bosky fellows.
PUNCH, OR THE LONDON CHARIVARI.
[January 5, 1856
SHORT-SIGHTED PRIDE.
Lady with glasses. " Well, 7'm sure/ the impertinence of the Lower Classes is
astonishing I It will be quite time to leave off our Round Nats, if they are to be
worn by creatures like these."
HEROES AT A DISCOUNT.
We liave seen in the shop windows a large engraving repre-
senting a number of military officers, and labelled with the
words, " Waterloo Heroes, One Guinea; Sold at Four
Guineas." We do not see why the Waterloo Heroes should
have undergone such a terrible reduction as to have fallen no
less than seventy-five per cent.; and, indeed, we cannot help
thinking that seme of the Crimean Heroes—if we take into
account the treatment they have met with—are better adapted
to be regarded in the light of an alarming sacrifice. The
Waterloo Heroes have done nothing, and suffered nothing,
recently which can account for their suddenly falling in public
estimation to one-fourth of the price that was formerly set
upon them. Military heroes, we know, are at all times liable
to be " cleared off;" and there are many officers that " must
go," whether they find it agreeable or otherwise; but the
fame of the Waterloo Heroes might, we think, have sustained
them at the price at which it seems they have been "regularly
sold " up to the present period.
Cruel Kindness.
The Emperor op Russia's friends (if he has any) will
probably try and make a point in his favour by pointing to the
enfranchisement of the serfs. If we were not afraid of being
accused of barbarism almost as great as that of the Northern
Despot, we should be disposed to reply, that this assumed
liberality to the serfs is all on the surface.
Severity of the Season.
{Extremely Unromantic.)
Alfred, devotedly in love, asked Maria for her hand. " You
may have it, Alfred, dear," the artless girl replied; "but I
am afraid you will find it twice its usual size; for it's cohered
all over with chilblains."
POLICEMAN'S LOGIC.
A Policeman may be a very fair witness when he limits himself to a
mere matter of fact, but he is seldom to be relied upon when he
attempts to go through a process of reasoning, aud offers the result as
evidence. How can we reason but from what we know? is a very
natural question; but if the poet had asked, " What can we know, but
from what we reason ?" the query would never have been handed
down to us, except as an instance of gross absurdity. We find, how-
ever, from a recent police case at Marylebone, that the reasoning
powers of a metropolitan constable are occasionally used by himself to
supply a want of actual knowledge, as may be seen in the following
brief dialogue:—•
" Magistrate. Do you think the pork was stolen ? "
" Policeman. 1 have no doubt of'it, or she would not have let it drop."
Upon this principle it would appear that no one can be supposed " to
have" legally what he cannot ' hold," and that, therefore, if any
individual were to permit his watch, or his purse, or any other article to
drop, he may be presumed to have stolen it. This species of circum-
stantial evidence must be received with considerable caution, for there
are many articles that one might very innocently drop, such as a hot
plate, a tea-kettle not supplied with an efficient holder, and a variety of
other things which one would not like to be accused of stealing, unless
one was prepared to burn one's fingers. The policeman who pro-
nounced a leg of pork to be stolen because the accused " let it drop,"
should be careful to avoid such nonsense, and either " drop it" in the
vulgar sense, or not let it drop from his mouth on any future occasion.
Tory Nursery Song.
(Slightly explanatory of certain Peacemongering.)
Htjsh-a-by, Palmy, on the tree-top,
Palmy's in office the Russians to wop;
Patch up a peace, and old Palmy will fall,
And up will go Darby, and Dizzy, and all.
angi.o-prench.
Parlez-vous Franc;ais ?—Many to whom this question is put will
answer, " Tray beeang, ge voo remercy" and if they are further asked,
Comment vous portez-vous ? will reply " Ungpew."
THE KING OF PRUSSIA'S OWN.
Lieutenant Geneste, in his report of the Hango massacre, states
that—
" The soldiers who perpetrated this most barbarous outrage were not irregular troops
or militia, but belonged to one of the best Russian regiments, the grenadiers of
Frederick William of Prussia, as they are called; the King of Prussia being their
Colonel."
So the King op Prussia still retains his commission in the Prussian
army. It was stated, shortly after the commencement of the War, that
Nicholas had dismissed him summarily from the service. In fairness
it should be mentioned, that Frederick William's dismissal was not
ascribed at the time to any conduct unworthy of an officer and a gentle-
man. The Emperor, his late master, was supposed to have sent him
about his business, simply for having presumed to express somewhat
resembling an opinion of his own on the Eastern question. < Even this
supposition now appears to have been incorrect, Fritz having all along
"remained the same for Russia" — namely, a Colonel of Russian
grenadiers.
Now, considering whose men these soldiers were who fired on
Lieutenant Geneste and his flag of truce ; considering who their
Colonel was, and how potent is the force of example in high places,
there is something to be said for them which may at least divest that
act of the character of a cold-blooded murder. What that is it is
unnecessary more distinctly to specify. Of course it is no excuse for
such a deed in point of law; stLU we feel that a crime committed under
excitement, however occasioned, is a different thing from a deliberate
act. " A soldier's a man, and man's life's but a span," &c, as is unhap-
pily too strikingly instanced by our own soldiers in the Crimea; there-
fore we have no call to brag, as they say in the country : still, in what-
ever state our gallant fellows might be, we trust that they would always
know better what they were about than to fire—a whole regiment of
them at a time—upon a few unarmed and defenceless men bearing a
flag of truce. Drunk or sober, they never could, we are persuaded,
make such horrid beasts of themselves as to do that, like the Russian
grenadiers, whose Colonel is the King op Prussia.
Intelligence from Berlin.
The intoxication which has been so rife among the Briiish troops in
the Crimea has of late formed the principal subject here of general
conversation. The tide has turned again in a high quarter, and decided
sympathy has been expressed for our brave but bosky fellows.