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'On
the folly and wickedness of war' and 'Nancy Collins', from
The Hive of Ancient and Modern Literature, first published
in 1799 by Solomon Hodgson in Newcastle
upon Tyne. This collection of ‘essays, narratives, allegories,
and instructive compositions’ was intended for use in
schools and was one of many similar volumes.
Drawn to The Hive by its illustrations – wood
engravings by Thomas Bewick and Luke Clennell – I published
one of the tales, ‘The distresses of a modest man’
as The Fall of Xenophon. While I was looking for a
sequel, these two essays caught my attention – they make
salient and worthwhile reading with which one can draw many
parallels.
The arguments and tenets of ‘On the folly and wickedness
of war’ convey an eighteenth-century view and while the
nature of war may have changed, it seems the causes, horrors
and consequences have not.
‘Nancy Collins’ is a sad tale, full of melodrama,
that tells of the misery that befalls the innocent victims of
war: the families of those involved in the conflict.
Many suffer because of war. Despite twenty-four-hour media coverage
and propaganda, the unspeakable horror and ramifications remain
unimaginable. |
