Nuts to crack; or Quips, quirks, anecdote and facete of Oxford and Cambridge ScholarsGooch, Richard
History
Nuts to crack; or Quips, quirks, anecdote and facete of Oxford and Cambridge Scholars
Gooch, Richard
University of Cambridge -- Anecdotes; University of Oxford -- Anecdotes
(As Wood says, in his annals, the famous Archbishop Bancroft did, on
being raised to the dignity of Chancellor of Oxford in 1608,) "By the
students in their halls and colleges, whereby," said his Grace, "the
young as well as the old may be inured to a ready and familiar
delivery of their minds in that language, whereof there was now so
much use both in studies and common conversation; for it was now
observed (and so it may in these present times, adds Wood,) that it
was a great blemish to the learned men of this nation, that they being
complete in all good knowledge, yet they were not able promptly and
aptly to express themselves in Latin, but with hesitation and
circumlocution, which ariseth only from disuse."
EFFECT OF HABIT.
Dr. Fothergill, when Provost of Queen's College, Oxford, was a
singular as well as a learned man, and would not have been seen abroad
minus his wig and gown for a dukedom. One night a fire broke out in
the lodge, which spread with such rapidity, that it was with
difficulty Mrs. F. and family escaped the fury of the flames; and this
she no sooner did than, naturally enough, the question was, "Where is
the Doctor?" No Doctor was to be found; and the cry was he had
probably perished in the flames. All was bustle, and consternation,
and tears, till suddenly, to the delight of all, he emerged from the
burning pile, full-dressed, as usual, his wig something the worse for
being nearly 'done to a turn;' but he deemed it indecorous for him to
appear otherwise, though he stayed to _robe_ at the risk of his life.
* * * * *
THE CONCUSSION.
The living Cambridge worthy, William Sydney Walker, M.A. (who at the
age of sixteen wrote the successful tragedy of Wallace, and recently
vacated his fellowship at Trinity College "for conscience-sake,")
walking hastily round the corner of a street in Cambridge, in his
peculiarly near-sighted _sidling_ hasty manner, he suddenly came in
contact with the _blind_ muffin-man who daily perambulates the town.
The concussion threw both upon their haunches. "Don't you _see_ I'm
blind?" exclaimed the muffin-man, in great wrath. "How should I,"
rejoined the learned wag, "when I'm blind too."
* * * * *
COMIC PICTURE OF THE ELECTION OF A PROVOST OF KING'S COLLEGE,
CAMBRIDGE.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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