y separately published work icon The Victorian Reading-Books : Eighth Book anthology   poetry   prose   children's fiction   essay  
Alternative title: Victorian Readers : Eighth Book
Issue Details: First known date: 1928... 1928 The Victorian Reading-Books : Eighth Book
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Notes

  • Epigraph: If I were to pray for a taste that should stand me in stead under every variety of circumstance and be a source of happiness to me through life, it would be a taste for reading (John Herschel).
  • Epigraph: Extract from the poem 'What I Live For', by George Linnaeus Banks.
  • Frontispiece: From a picture by F. McCubbin (q.v.), 'The Pioneers'.
  • Illustrations provided by G. C. Benson, F. R. Crozier, Harold B. Herbert, Charles Nuttall, M. Napier Waller (qq.v.), and Agnes Ryan, Queenie Cox and J. C. White.

Contents

* Contents derived from the Melbourne, Victoria,:Victoria Education Department , 1928 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
Sunrise in Victoria The Australian Sunrisei"The Morning Star paled slowly, the Cross hung low to the sea,", James Lister Cuthbertson , single work poetry (p. 1)
Victoria First Glimpsed by White Men, James Cook , extract diary (p. 2-3)
On Pyramid Hill, Victoria, 1836, Thomas Livingstone Mitchell , extract prose travel (p. 4-5)
An Australian Symphonyi"Not as the songs of other lands", George Essex Evans , single work extract poetry (p. 5-7)
The Old Inhabitants, C. E. W. Bean , single work extract prose (p. 7-11)
Note: Illustrations from R. Brough Smythe's The Aborigines of Victoria.
The Last of His Tribei"He crouches, and buries his face on his knees,", Henry Kendall , single work poetry (p. 11-13)
Note: Illustration: 'He dreams of the hunts of yore' by G. C. Benson (q.v.), 10.
From a Western Hill-Top, Donald MacDonald , single work prose (p. 13-19)
Note: Abridged. Illustrations from R. Brough Smythe's The Aborigines of Victoria.
A Dedicationi"They are rhymes rudely strung with intent less", Adam Lindsay Gordon , single work poetry (p. 20-22)
Note: Portrait of author.
The Year Around in Timber-Land, C. J. Dennis , single work short story (p. 22-27)
Note: Abridged. Illustration: 'His great whip aloft, the driver plods beside his beasts' by F. R. Crozier, 23.
The Magpie's Songi"Oh, I love to be by Bindi, where the fragrant pastures are,", Frank Samuel Williamson , extract poetry (p. 27-28)
Bogong the Mighty : A Rhapsody, R. H. Croll , single work prose (p. 28-34)
Note: Photographs: 'Mt. Bogong, snow-capped, from the Kiewa Valley', from the Railways Department Victoria, 29; and 'Mt. Feathertop under snow, with snow gums in the foreground' by F. Foxcroft, 33.
Resurgenti"O'er every field a lark;", Bernard O'Dowd , single work poetry (p. 35)
O Heart of Spring! Blossoms of Thought "O heart of Spring!" Heart of Spring!i"Oh Heart of Spring", John Shaw Neilson , single work poetry (p. 36)
Springtime in Southern Australia, William Sutherland , single work prose (p. 37-39)
Note: Abridged from the Age, Melbourne. Photograph: 'Wattle-gold, a springtime view', 37.
September in Australiai"Grey Winter hath gone, like a wearisome guest,", Henry Kendall , extract poetry (p. 40-41)
Note: Portrait of the author, 40.
Autumn Jewels, Amy Eleanor Mack , single work prose (p. 41-43)
The Home of the Lyre-Bird, H. Stuart Dove , single work prose (p. 43-46)
Note: Photographs: 'Lyre-bird's nest and young', 'Female lyre-bird and nest', and 'The Haunt of the Lyre-bird' by T. Tregellas.
Black Swansi"As I lie at rest on a patch of clover", A. B. Paterson , single work poetry (p. 47-48)
Sam's Ride on Widderin, Henry Kingsley , extract novel (p. 49-55)
Note: Illustration: 'Here they are, close to us' by Agnes Ryan, 54. Prefaced by an extract from 'Widderin', a poem by John Farrell (q.v.).
The Gum-Treei"Brave tree Australian, that in time's despite", J. B. O'Hara , single work poetry (p. 56)
Note: Illustration by Harold Herbert (q.v.).
VIEW ENTIRE CONTENTS ( works)
* Contents derived from the Melbourne, Victoria,:Victoria Education Department , 1940 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
Sunrise in Victoria The Australian Sunrisei"The Morning Star paled slowly, the Cross hung low to the sea,", James Lister Cuthbertson , single work poetry (p. 1)
Note: Illustration by G. C. Benson.
On Pyramid Hill, Victoria, 1836, Thomas Livingstone Mitchell , extract prose travel (p. 2-3)
An Australian Symphonyi"Not as the songs of other lands", George Essex Evans , single work extract poetry (p. 3-5)
Note: Illustration: 'The grey gums by the lonely creek', by Harold Herbert, 4.
The Old Inhabitants, C. E. W. Bean , single work extract prose (p. 5-9)
Note: Illustrations from R. Brough Smythe's The Aborigines of Victoria.
The Last of His Tribei"He crouches, and buries his face on his knees,", Henry Kendall , single work poetry (p. 10-11)
Note: Illustration: 'He dreams of the hunts of yore' by G. C. Benson (q.v.), 12.
The Outlaw, Frank Dalby Davison , extract children's fiction (p. 12-16)
A Dedicationi"They are rhymes rudely strung with intent less", Adam Lindsay Gordon , single work poetry (p. 17-20)
Note: Photograph: 'Gordon's Statue: Spring street, Melbourne', 18.
The Year Around in Timber-Land, C. J. Dennis , single work short story (p. 20-25)
Note: Abridged. Illustration: 'His great whip aloft, the driver plods beside his beasts' by F. R. Crozier, 21.
The Magpie's Songi"Where the dreaming Tiber wanders by the haunted Appian Way,", Frank Samuel Williamson , extract poetry (p. 25-26)
Springtime in Southern Australia, William Sutherland , single work prose (p. 27-29)
Note: Abridged from the Age, Melbourne. Photograph: 'Wattle-gold, a springtime view', 37.
September in Australiai"Grey Winter hath gone, like a wearisome guest,", Henry Kendall , extract poetry (p. 30-31)
Autumn Jewels, Amy Eleanor Mack , single work prose (p. 31-33)
The Home of the Lyre-Bird, H. Stuart Dove , single work prose (p. 33-36)
Note: Photographs: 'Lyre-bird's nest and young' and 'Female lyre-bird and nest' by T. Tregellas; 'A Song at Dawn' by F. Lewis.
Black Swansi"As I lie at rest on a patch of clover", A. B. Paterson , single work poetry (p. 37-38)
Sam's Ride on Widderin, Henry Kingsley , extract novel (p. 39-45)
Note: Illustration: 'Here they are, close to us' by Agnes Ryan, 44. Prefaced by an extract from 'Widderin', a poem by John Farrell (q.v.).
The Travelling Post Officei"The roving breezes come and go, the reed beds sweep and sway", A. B. Paterson , single work poetry humour (p. 46-47)
The Sick Stockrider, Adam Lindsay Gordon , extract poetry (p. 48-50)
Note: Illustration: 'Wheel the wild scrub cattle at the yard' by Allan T. Bernaldo (q.v.), 51.
In a Queensland Jungle, Price Fletcher , single work extract prose (p. 52-55)
Note: Illustration: 'Palms in a Queensland Jungle', 54.
The Bush, Bernard O'Dowd , single work extract poetry (p. 55)
The Nation Buildersi"A handful of workers seeking the star of a strong intent-", George Essex Evans , single work poetry (p. 56-58)
VIEW ENTIRE CONTENTS ( works)

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

    • Melbourne, Victoria,: Victoria Education Department , 1928 .
      Printed by H. J. Green
      Extent: ix, 260p.p.
      Edition info: First edition.
      Note/s:
      • Preface: 'To the Teacher', pp.v-vi.

      • Only literary material by Australian authors individually indexed in contents list below.

        Other material in this reader includes:

      • Prose: 'True Greatness in Men and Nations' by William Gillies (q.v.) 71-73; 'True Liberty' by English preacher F. W. Robertson, 73; 'Athenian Characteristics', illustrated extract from The Funeral Oration of Pericles, translated by T. G. Tucker (q.v.) 76-79; 'The Departure of the ANZACs from Mudros', extract from Gallipoli, by English author John Masefield (q.v.), illustrated with photographs from the Australian War Museum, and map by T. H. Robinson, 80-84; 'The Legacy', comprised of extracts from In Your Hands, Australians, by C. E. W. Bean (q.v.) 87-88; 'What is War?' by English manufacturer John Bright (1854-1856) 88; 'Lincoln's Gettysburg Speech' by Abraham Lincoln, 91-92; 'Unlimited War', from the preface to The Book of the Long Trail by Sir Henry Newbolt (q.v.), illustrated with portraits of three explorers of Victoria, 92-95; 'Europe, North and South', extract from The Stones of Venice by English art critic John Ruskin (1819-1900); 'Through the Cloud Ocean', from Fourteen-Thousand Miles through the Air, by South Australian pioneer aviator Sir Ross Smith, 100-107; 'A Night Among the Pines', extract from Travels with a Donkey in the Cevennes by English author Robert Louis Stevenson, prefaced by an extract from 'Among the Pines', a poem by Thomas Bailey Aldrich, 110-114; 'The Dignity of Labour' by English author Newman Hall (1816-1902), prefaced by an extract by American poetess Frances S. Osgood (1811-1850), illustrated by a tessellated tile design by C. H. Dancey which contains a prose extract from Scottish essayist Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881) 178-181; 'Honest Work' (unattributed), prefaced by an extract from English poet Ronald A. Hopwood's The Laws of the Navy, 181-182; 'Isaac Newton', biographical sketch by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) 183-188; 'Elizabethan Seamen: Pioneers of Empire', illustrated extract from England's Forgotten Worthies by English historian James Anthony Froude (1818-1894) 191-193; 'The Founding of New England' by Robert Shelton Mackenzie (1809-1880), a journalist who lived in both England and America, prefaced by an extract from 'Robinson of Leyden' by American poet Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809-1894), illustration by C. W. Cope, 193-196; 'A Gentleman of Canada' by Canadian journalist Peter McArthur (1866-1924), from an article in The Globe, Toronto, 199-201; 'How I Landed in New Zealand', extract from Old New Zealand by New Zealand settler 'Pakeha Maori' (Frederick Edward Maning) (1812-1883), illustration from John Rutherford, the White Chief, 203-208; 'The British Empire' by American lecturer Joseph Cook (1838-1901), prefaced by an extract from 'Hands All Round' by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, illustrated with map and photograph, 215-220; 'King Shakespeare', illustrated extract from 'The Hero as Poet' from On Heroes, Hero Worship, and the Heroic in History by Scottish author Thomas Carlyle (1798-1881), prefaced by an extract from the lines by English playwright Ben Jonson in the 1623 collection of Shakespeare's plays, 220-223.

      • Poetry: 'British Freedom' by English poet William Wordsworth (1770-1850) (original title, 'It Is Not to be Thought of') 79-80; 'Greater than We Knew' by Mildred Huxley, from the Contemporary Review, London, 85; 'The Arsenal at Springfield' by American author Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882) 89-91; 'A Vision', from Alfred Lord Tennyson's poem 'Locksley Hall', 95-96; 'Hymn Before Sunrise in the Vale of Chamouni by English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834) 98-100; 'The Solitary Reaper', by William Wordsworth, illustration by G. C. Benson (q.v.), 108-109; 'Nature's Privilege', extract from Wordsworth's 'Lines Composed a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey', 108; 'The Pine Forest', extract from 'To Jane - the Recollection', by Percy Bysshe Shelley, 114-115; ' The Coliseum', extract from Childe Harold's Pilgrimage by English poet Lord Byron (1788-1824) 121-123; 'The Skylark', extract from a poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley; 'Ode to a Nightingale', extract from a poem by English poet John Keats (1795-1821) 134-135; 'Each and All' by American poet Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) 139-140; 'King Arthur's Passing' from Morte d'Arthur by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 146-147; 'Content, or, The Happy Heart' by English dramatist Thomas Dekker (1570-1640) 154; 'The Village Preacher', extract from The Deserted Village, a long poem by Oliver Goldsmith, 158-160; 'On First Looking into Chapman's Homer' by John Keats, 169; 'The Ocean', extract from Childe Harold's Pilgrimage by Lord Byron, illustration by J. C. White, 173-175; 'Daily Work' by Scottish poet Charles Mackay (q.v.) 177-178; 'On His Blindness' by English poet John Milton (1608-1674) 182; 'Ulysses', extract from a poem by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 189-190; 'The Pilgrim Fathers', extract from 'The Landing of the Pilgrim Fathers in New England' by English poet Felicia Dorothea Hemans (1793-1835) 197; 'The Briton's Home: An American View, 1859', from The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table by American author Oliver Wendall Holmes (1809-1894), 198-199; 'Home-Thoughts from Abroad' by English poet Robert Browning (1812-1889) 201-202; 'Home-Thoughts from the Sea' by Robert Browning, 202; 'The Pioneers', extract from 'The Grey Company' by New Zealand poet Jessie MacKay (q.v.) 208; 'The Whare' by New Zealand poet H. L. Twisleton (q.v.) 209-210; 'In Praise of England', from King Richard II by William Shakespeare, 223-224.

      • Fiction: 'The Destruction of Pompeii', illustrated extract from The Last Days of Pompeii by English Novelist Edward Bulwer-Lytton (1803-1873) 115-121; 'The Last Fight in the Coliseum', illustrated extract from A Book of Golden Deeds by English author Charlotte Yonge (1823-1901) 124-127; 'The Origin of Roast Pig', extract from 'A Dissertation on Roast Pig' by English writer Charles Lamb (1775-1834), illustrated by Charles Nuttall (q.v.), prefaced with an unnattributed aphorism, 141-145; 'The Vision of Mirza', allegorical story by English poet and essayist Joseph Addison (1672-1719) 148-154; 'Riding to Church', extract from The Vicar of Wakefield by English author Oliver Goldsmith (1728-1774) 155-158; 'The Hen', from Fifty-One Tales by English author and playwright Lord Dunsany (Edward Plunkett) (1878-1957) 160-161; 'On the Way to Manor Farm', extract from The Pickwick Papers, by English author Charles Dickens, illustration by English artist H. K. Browne, 162-169; 'Jason and Hera', from The Heroes by Englist novelist Charles Kingsley (1819-1875), illustration by M. Napier Wallace, 170-173; 'A Wild Night at Sea', extract from Martin Chuzzlewit by Charles Dickens, prefaced by an extract from 'The Sea' by English poet Barry Cornwall (1787-1874), 175-176; 'The Grand Trunk Road of India', extract from Kim by English author Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936), illustration by Charles Nuttall (q.v.), 210-214.

      • Aphorisms: 'Two Principles of Action' by Adam Lindsay Gordon, 145; 'A Rule of Life', extract from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's 'Oenone', 190.

      Series: y separately published work icon Victorian Readers The Victorian Reading-Books Charles R. Long (editor), Victorian Department of Education (publisher), Melbourne : Victorian Department of Education , 1928-1930 Z1417172 1928-1930 series - publisher anthology

      Preface to Victorian Readers: Eighth Book (1929):

      As the need for a Primer and First Book of modern type and for the provision of more space in The School Paper for articles of current interest had been felt for some time, it was decided last year [1927] to proceed with the preparation of a series of reading books (eight in number) to be published by the Government Printer. The selection of matter and the obtaining of drawings from local artists to illustrate it were entrusted to committees of inspectors and teachers, with Mr. J. C. Lowry, B.A. (a senior inspector of schools), as chairman, and Mr. C. R. Long, M.A., as editor.

      This book - the most advanced of the projected series - is the first to be issued. The main aim of the committee that made the selections for it was to obtain such as possessed literary merit, were informative, were likely to arouse interest, and were suitable as regards the average standard of attainment of the grade or forms for which the book was intended. The young readers were to begin at home, to be taken in imagination to various parts of the Empire, to Europe, and to the United States of America, and thus to gain knowledge of their rich heritage and acquire a well-founded pride of race. The inculcation of sound morality was always to be kept in view, and support given to the creation of a feeling against international strife and to the implanting of a desire for world-wide toleration. The grouping of the selections (story, essay, poem etc.) in order to secure continuity of thought - one selection serving to reveal and support another - was to be aimed at throughout, so that the contents of the book might not be a mere collection of unrelated items, but approach as nearly as possible to a unity.

      The committee was of the opinion that notes and explanations to aid in the securing of intelligent reading would be advantageous, but that they should not be unduly elaborate or very numerous, and that they should form a section at the end of the book. It is hoped that those which have been provided will not only prove helpful in themselves, but will also suggest interesting lines of study (critical, etymological, biographical, historical, geographical, etc) that may be followed up to advantage by some of the young readers, if not by all.

      Though it was recognized that the local production of a series of reading-books to compare favourably with those issued by leading British publishers would not be easy of accomplishment, yet it was believed that the effect of the use of such a series in the schools and in the pupils' homes would make the effort well worth while.

             Number in series: 8
    • Melbourne, Victoria,: Victoria Education Department , 1929 .
      Printed by H. J. Green
      Extent: ix, 260p.p.
      Edition info: Marked as second edition - in fact a facsimile of the 1928 first edition.
      Description: illus.
      Note/s:
      • Preface: 'To the Teacher', pp.v-vi.
      Series: y separately published work icon Victorian Readers The Victorian Reading-Books Charles R. Long (editor), Victorian Department of Education (publisher), Melbourne : Victorian Department of Education , 1928-1930 Z1417172 1928-1930 series - publisher anthology

      Preface to Victorian Readers: Eighth Book (1929):

      As the need for a Primer and First Book of modern type and for the provision of more space in The School Paper for articles of current interest had been felt for some time, it was decided last year [1927] to proceed with the preparation of a series of reading books (eight in number) to be published by the Government Printer. The selection of matter and the obtaining of drawings from local artists to illustrate it were entrusted to committees of inspectors and teachers, with Mr. J. C. Lowry, B.A. (a senior inspector of schools), as chairman, and Mr. C. R. Long, M.A., as editor.

      This book - the most advanced of the projected series - is the first to be issued. The main aim of the committee that made the selections for it was to obtain such as possessed literary merit, were informative, were likely to arouse interest, and were suitable as regards the average standard of attainment of the grade or forms for which the book was intended. The young readers were to begin at home, to be taken in imagination to various parts of the Empire, to Europe, and to the United States of America, and thus to gain knowledge of their rich heritage and acquire a well-founded pride of race. The inculcation of sound morality was always to be kept in view, and support given to the creation of a feeling against international strife and to the implanting of a desire for world-wide toleration. The grouping of the selections (story, essay, poem etc.) in order to secure continuity of thought - one selection serving to reveal and support another - was to be aimed at throughout, so that the contents of the book might not be a mere collection of unrelated items, but approach as nearly as possible to a unity.

      The committee was of the opinion that notes and explanations to aid in the securing of intelligent reading would be advantageous, but that they should not be unduly elaborate or very numerous, and that they should form a section at the end of the book. It is hoped that those which have been provided will not only prove helpful in themselves, but will also suggest interesting lines of study (critical, etymological, biographical, historical, geographical, etc) that may be followed up to advantage by some of the young readers, if not by all.

      Though it was recognized that the local production of a series of reading-books to compare favourably with those issued by leading British publishers would not be easy of accomplishment, yet it was believed that the effect of the use of such a series in the schools and in the pupils' homes would make the effort well worth while.

             Number in series: 8
    • Melbourne, Victoria,: Victoria Education Department , 1940 .
      Printed by H. J. Green
      Alternative title: Victorian Readers : Eighth Book
      Extent: ix, 260p.p.
      Edition info: Second edition.
      Description: illus.
      Note/s:
      • Contents substantially different from the first edition.

      • Only literary material by Australian authors individually indexed in contents list below.

        Other material in this reader includes:

      • Prose: 'The Departure of the ANZACs from Mudros', extract from Gallipoli, by English author John Masefield (q.v.), illustrated with photographs from the Australian War Museum, and map by T. H. Robinson, 68-72; 'Lincoln's Gettysburg Speech' by Abraham Lincoln, illustrated, 76-78; 'Unlimited War', from the preface to The Book of the Long Trail by Sir Henry Newbolt (q.v.), illustrated with portraits of three explorers of Victoria, 78-91; 'Through the Cloud Ocean', from Fourteen-Thousand Miles through the Air, by South Australian pioneer aviator Sir Ross Smith, illustrated, 82-89; 'A Night Among the Pines', extract from Travels with a Donkey in the Cevennes by English author Robert Louis Stevenson, prefaced by an extract from 'Among the Pines', a poem by Thomas Bailey Aldrich, illustration by R. C. Fricke, 92-95; 'The Origin of Roast Pig', extract from 'A Dissertation on Roast Pig' by English writer Charles Lamb (1775-1834), illustrated by Charles Nuttall (q.v.), prefaced with an unnattributed aphorism, 132-136; 'The Desert', extract from Eothen by English historian and traveller Alexander William Kingslake (1809-1891) 139-141; 'The Dignity of Labour' by English author Newman Hall (1816-1902), prefaced by an extract by American poetess Frances S. Osgood (1811-1850), illustrated by a tessellated tile design by C. H. Dancey which contains a prose extract from Scottish essayist Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881) 174-177; 'Honest Work' (unattributed), prefaced by an extract from English poet Ronald A. Hopwood's The Laws of the Navy, 177-178; 'Isaac Newton', illustrated biographical sketch by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) 179-184; 'The Founding of New England' by Robert Shelton Mackenzie (1809-1880), a journalist who lived in both England and America, prefaced by an extract from 'Robinson of Leyden' by American poet Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809-1894), illustration by English painter C. W. Cope, 189-193; 'A Gentleman of Canada' by Canadian journalist Peter McArthur (1866-1924), from an article in The Globe, Toronto, 194-195; 'How I Landed in New Zealand', extract from Old New Zealand by New Zealand settler 'Pakeha Maori' (Frederick Edward Maning) (1812-1883), illustration from John Rutherford, the White Chief, 198-203; 'The British Empire' by American lecturer Joseph Cook (1838-1901), prefaced by an extract from 'Hands All Round' by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, illustrated with photograph, 210-214.

      • Poetry: 'Greater than We Knew' by Mildred Huxley, from the Contemporary Review, London, 73; 'The Arsenal at Springfield' by American author Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882) 75-76; 'A Vision', extract from 'Locksley Hall' by Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809-1892) 81-82; 'The Solitary Reaper', by William Wordsworth, illustration by G. C. Benson (q.v.), 90-91; 'Nature's Privilege', extract from Wordsworth's 'Lines Composed a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey', 91; 'The Pine Forest', extract from 'To Jane - the Recollection', by Percy Bysshe Shelley, 96-97; 'The Listeners' by English poet Walter de la Mare (1873-1956) 97-98; 'Cargoes' by John Masefield (q.v.) 104-105; 'The Skylark', extract from a poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley, 113-114; 'The Song of Birds', extract from 'The Ancient Mariner' by English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834), 120; 'The Poet's Songs', extract from 'The Poet and His Songs' by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 124; 'The Lady of Shalott' by Alfred, Lord Tennyson (illustrated) 125-131; 'King Arthur's Passing' from Morte d'Arthur by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 137-138; 'Content, or, The Happy Heart' by English dramatist Thomas Dekker (1570-1640) 141; 'The Village Preacher', extract from The Deserted Village, a long poem by Oliver Goldsmith, 145-147; 'He Fell Among Thieves' by Sir Henry Newbolt, 161-163; 'On First Looking into Chapman's Homer' by John Keats, 163; 'The Ocean', extract from Childe Harold's Pilgrimage by Lord Byron, illustration by J. C. White, 167-169; 'Flannan Isle' by English poet Wilfrid Wilson Gibson (1878-1962) 171-174; 'On His Blindness' by English poet John Milton (1608-1674) 178; 'How They Brought the Good News from Ghent to Aix' by English poet Robert Browning (1812-1889) 185-187; 'Ulysses', extract from a poem by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 187-188; 'The Pilgrim Fathers', extract from 'The Landing of the Pilgrim Fathers in New England' by English poet Felicia Dorothea Hemans (1793-1835) 193; 'Home-Thoughts from Abroad' by Robert Browning, 196; 'Home-Thoughts from the Sea' by Robert Browning, illustrated, 196-197; 'The Pioneers', extract from 'The Grey Company' by New Zealand poet Jessie MacKay (q.v.) 203; 'Speeches from Shakepeare's Plays', includes extracts from King Richard II, King Henry IV, Henry V, and The Merchant of Venice, 214-219; 'The Golden Journey to Samarkand', by English poet James Elroy Flecker (1884-1915) 227-229.

      • Fiction: 'The Destruction of Pompeii', illustrated extract from The Last Days of Pompeii by English Novelist Edward Bulwer-Lytton (1803-1873) 98-104; 'The Last Fight in the Coliseum', illustrated extract from A Book of Golden Deeds by English author Charlotte Yonge (1823-1901) 105-108; 'The Chariot Race', extract from Ben Hur by American author Lewis Wallace (1827-1905), 109-112; 'Riding to Church', illustrated extract from The Vicar of Wakefield by English author Oliver Goldsmith (1728-1774) 142-145; 'The Hen', from Fifty-One Tales by English author and playwright Lord Dunsany (Edward Plunkett) (1878-1957) 147-148; 'On the Way to Manor Farm', extract from The Pickwick Papers by English author Charles Dickens, illustration by English artist H. K. Browne, 149-156; 'Sam Weller in Court', extract from The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens, 156-161; 'Jason and Hera', from The Heroes by Englist novelist Charles Kingsley (1819-1875), illustration by M. Napier Wallace, 164-167; 'A Wild Night at Sea', extract from Martin Chuzzlewit by Charles Dickens, prefaced by an extract from 'The Sea' by English poet Barry Cornwall (1787-1874) 169-170; 'The Grand Trunk Road of India', extract from Kim by English author Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936), illustration by Charles Nuttall (q.v.), 205-210; 'Kannitversan', adapted from a piece by the German poet Johann Peter Hebel (1760-1826) 219-221; 'The Bishop's Candlesticks', extract from Les Miserables by French author Victor Hugo (1802-1885) 221-227.

      • Aphorisms: 'Two Principles of Action' by Adam Lindsay Gordon, 50; 'A Rule of Life', extract from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's 'Oenone', 190.

      Series: y separately published work icon Victorian Readers The Victorian Reading-Books Charles R. Long (editor), Victorian Department of Education (publisher), Melbourne : Victorian Department of Education , 1928-1930 Z1417172 1928-1930 series - publisher anthology

      Preface to Victorian Readers: Eighth Book (1929):

      As the need for a Primer and First Book of modern type and for the provision of more space in The School Paper for articles of current interest had been felt for some time, it was decided last year [1927] to proceed with the preparation of a series of reading books (eight in number) to be published by the Government Printer. The selection of matter and the obtaining of drawings from local artists to illustrate it were entrusted to committees of inspectors and teachers, with Mr. J. C. Lowry, B.A. (a senior inspector of schools), as chairman, and Mr. C. R. Long, M.A., as editor.

      This book - the most advanced of the projected series - is the first to be issued. The main aim of the committee that made the selections for it was to obtain such as possessed literary merit, were informative, were likely to arouse interest, and were suitable as regards the average standard of attainment of the grade or forms for which the book was intended. The young readers were to begin at home, to be taken in imagination to various parts of the Empire, to Europe, and to the United States of America, and thus to gain knowledge of their rich heritage and acquire a well-founded pride of race. The inculcation of sound morality was always to be kept in view, and support given to the creation of a feeling against international strife and to the implanting of a desire for world-wide toleration. The grouping of the selections (story, essay, poem etc.) in order to secure continuity of thought - one selection serving to reveal and support another - was to be aimed at throughout, so that the contents of the book might not be a mere collection of unrelated items, but approach as nearly as possible to a unity.

      The committee was of the opinion that notes and explanations to aid in the securing of intelligent reading would be advantageous, but that they should not be unduly elaborate or very numerous, and that they should form a section at the end of the book. It is hoped that those which have been provided will not only prove helpful in themselves, but will also suggest interesting lines of study (critical, etymological, biographical, historical, geographical, etc) that may be followed up to advantage by some of the young readers, if not by all.

      Though it was recognized that the local production of a series of reading-books to compare favourably with those issued by leading British publishers would not be easy of accomplishment, yet it was believed that the effect of the use of such a series in the schools and in the pupils' homes would make the effort well worth while.

             Number in series: 8
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Related Works

y separately published work icon A Key to the Eighth Book of the Victorian Readers : A Treatment of Poems A Senior English Master , A. L. Maher (editor), Melbourne : Ruskin Press , 1934 Z1433233 1934 selected work criticism

Contains critical and teaching notes on all the poems (and extracts of poems) included in The Victorian Reading Books: Eighth Book, as well as biographical summaries of the poets. Topics discussed include the themes, metre, subject-matter, vocabulary and figures of speech.
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