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CHAMBERS’S JOURNAL
OF
POPULAR
LITERATURE, SCIENCE, AND ART.
CONTENTS
THE NEWSMONGER.
BY MEAD AND STREAM.
STAINED GLASS AS AN ACCESSORY TO DOMESTIC ARCHITECTURE.
SILAS MONK.
SEALS AND SEAL-HUNTING IN SHETLAND.
OVER-EDUCATING CHILDREN.
GAS COOKING-STOVES.
A BUTTERFLY IN THE CITY.
No. 23.—Vol. I.
Price 1½d.
SATURDAY, JUNE 7, 1884.
THE NEWSMONGER.
He is nothing if not omniscient; and, like Othello,his occupation’s gone if he be not the first tospread the news and carry the fiery cross ofscandal to the front. For the Newsmonger doesnot care to carry good news so much as bad; thelatter having a dash of spice in it, wanting tothe former—as red pepper titillates the palatemore than does either honey or sugar. The Newsmongerknows everything, and foresees as muchas he knows. When A’s sudden bankruptcytakes the world in general by surprise, he, onthe contrary, is not the least astonished. Heknew it weeks ago. He can put in black andwhite the exact sum for which he has failed—forall that the books are still in the safe, and theaccountant has not begun to score up the items;and he knows who is the largest creditor, whothe most implacable, and what is the bad debtwhich has caused all the mischief. He takescare, however, not to state plainly all these things.He only says he knows; and people are foundto believe him. When Mrs B runs off with MrC, and thus exposes the hollowness of thedomestic happiness of the B’s, which was consideredso complete; he knew all about that, too,long before it happened. Indeed, he had warnedC that he was going too far, and that harm wouldcome of it, Mrs B being but a feather-head at thebest; and he had even thrown out friendly hintsto B, advising him to be a little more strict inhis guard and watchful in his care. But no manis so deaf as he who will not hear, nor so blindas he who will not see; and B was bent on hisown destruction, and would not be enlightened.Whom the gods would destroy, they first madden;and what is the use of hammering your headagainst a stone wall? Again, when Edwin andAngelina come to an abrupt rupture, and theengagement which promised so well and lookedso satisfactory all round, is broken off in ahurry, to the open-mouthed amazement ofsociety—though the cause remains a profoundmystery to all the rest, Our Newsmonger winksknowingly when he gives you the story, andtells you that he is in