SKOPEO CHRONICLES #32
July 2006
(A bimonthly-and sometimes monthly, newspaper from the Skopeo Literary Society)
Serious Injury! Paper Delayed!
Paxton Lucas Pembrooke, the most amusing member of our humble society, has suffered a severe injury. While playing a game of Frisbee last week, he took a fall off a rocky shelf and broke several bones! Due to this catastrophe, this paper has been postponed. We hope you will accept our sincere apologies for this inconvenience.
-R.C.
Feature Story
The Story of Hannibal
In the city of Carthage in Africa, a young boy named Hannibal was born. We do not know many details about the event but we do know that one night, one of his family members led him to the altar of one of the greatest of the Carthaginian gods and made him swear that all of his life he would fight the Romans. Hannibal swore a sacred oath and grew up hating his enemies even more than he loved his country.
At the time that Hannibal became general of Carthage, the Carthaginians were already involved in a war with Rome and had been for many years. It is said that Fabius, one of the consuls of Rome, stood before the Carthaginian army with his arms inside his cloak as though something were concealed inside it and then said "I offer you peace or war. Which will you take? Choose!"
The Carthaginians paid no attention to his dignified manner and only replied insolently "Choose yourself!" as a little child might do when in a quarrel with his or her playmate.
"Very well," said Fabius, "Then it is war!" And so the wars with Carthage continued in earnest.
Hannibal was a daring young general although very wise. He decided to take all of his men, along with the elephants in the army, of which there were over a hundred across the alps and thus into Rome in a way that no one would have guessed.. It was mid-winter and Hannibal lost many men and several elephants in the cold, bitter weather but he did make it across and surprised the whole Roman army who had little suspected that the Carthaginian general would have undertaken so risky a venture.
R.C.
The Saga of the War of Queen Helen of Sparta
Part 1
Once upon a time the gods held a feast in the heavens to which all were invited but Eris, otherwise known as Discord, who seems to have been forgotten. In her anger, she came to the feast unbidden, and, perhaps solely for the reason to stir trouble among the heavenly beings, she cast upon the table at which the gods and goddesses reposed at the banquet, a golden apple. This excited the attention of the immortals, and, failing even to converse with the bearer, rushed to it and found upon its surface the words, to the fairest.
Even Minerva, goddess of wisdom, found the temptation for ownership of the apple, greater than her wisdom for which she was praised.
Minerva, Venus, and Juno each claimed the apple and the most beauty. They brought their quarrel to Jupiter, who, thinking the matter to delicate a one for his decision, conveyed the goddesses to Mount Ida. There a shepherd, by the name of Paris, guarded his flocks on the mountainside. Jupiter gave the choice to Paris, to decide which was the fairest. The goddesses each contrived a plan to win the favor of the shepherd and win the contest.
Juno promised him power and riches, if he would but acknowledge her as the fairest of beings. Minerva assured him of glory and renown in war if he would declare her the most beautiful individual that walked the face of the earth, and Venus pledged the fairest of mortals for his wife. Paris weighed the rewards in his mind, and deciding that he would rather have the most handsome lady for his own than the other choices, he proclaimed Venus the most beautiful of the three, and she rose in triumph above the rest.
Then under her protection, he sailed to Greece, the residence of Helen, wife of Menelaus, king of Sparta.
To Be Continued. . . by C. V.
Round robin serial story…
This entry will end our community serial! Due to the sad accident which befell P.L.P, he has been unable to contribute his part to the serial. R.C. has finished it off for us…
(read our previous three papers to learn the beginning of this tale, each installment written by a different society member.)
"Agathorn did not wait for the enchanter to speak. Summoning all of his courage, he stepped forward. "I am Agathorn, son of Earlimorn and I know of your treachery."
Gorian started at the sound of Agathorn's name but then smiled. "Come, come, what treachery do you speak of, pray tell?"
"I have been told many things", responded Agathorn, "concerning your villainy and cruelty but I do not trust everything I hear and it was not a story or a prophecy that brought me here. Nor was it any desire of my own. No. I will tell you what brings me here. I am here for the sake of Jerathon, murdered by your own guards just outside the door. You know of his death."
"Indeed I do," responded Gorian coolly. "I myself ordered it."
With fury in his face, Agathorn drew his sword to strike Gorian but was stopped by the enchanter's slow, methodic, soothing voice.
"So, Agathorn, son of Earlimorn, you think that you have some power I do not possess, which will enable you to defeat me?"
"I do indeed," responded Agathorn angrily. "I have the power of justice and truth on my side. You know that the rights to this kingdom are not yours!"
Gorian cowered back against the wall. His smooth tongue seemed to have lost its capabilities and he was no longer the menacing enchanter he had been but a few minutes before. Suddenly there was a strong voice from behind Agathorn. "Agathorn, son of Earlimorn, you have broken the curse." Agathorn turned around, alarmed, to find a boy of about fifteen standing in the doorway of the hall. I am Jedathon, son of Jerathon and the rights to this kingdom are mine, for Jerathon, my father, was the rightful king before his death.
"My liege, I come to your kingdom as a friend," said Agathorn respectfully. "I am also a prince but now you are a king."
"I thank you," responded Jedathon. "And you shall be a knight for as long as you tarry in my kingdom."
"But I do not understand," said Agathorn, puzzled. "What of him?" and he turned to look Gorian in the eye but, to his surprise, the enchanter had vanished.
"Jedathon smiled at his astonishment."That is part of the ancient prophecy," responded Jedathon. "Those Lords and Ladies under Stormy top are your cousins and great aunts and uncles. You see, as they told you, your grandfather alone escaped Gorian. Now they will all be free. "The prophecy was this: When he whose ancestral line was enchanted stands face to face with the enchanter and defies him in the name of what is right, then shall that enchanter's rule come to an end forever."
"So where now is Gorian?" asked Agathorn suspiciously.
"Gorian? You and I will never know while we draw breath in this life and, as for that matter, I don't care as long as he is not in my country!"
Agathorn smiled. "Jedathon", he said, "I think you will make a very good king!"
-R.C.
The End
Here we have a special treat from C.V: A summary of a story called "The White Doe" from The Orange Fairy Book by Andrew Lang.
10
Desiree was a beautiful young princess. At birth a curse had been placed upon the child, saying that if ever she saw a streak of light before she was fifteen she should have a catastrophe befall her.
In time, she was engaged to a handsome prince at the age of fourteen. In a few months she would be fifteen but the impatient prince could not wait so long. There seemed no resolution until the princess came up with the idea of traveling to the castle in a closed carriage with no window. This plan was carried out but when they had nearly arrived her jealous lady in waiting, Cerrisette, thought of a plan. In the thickest of the forest she cut a hole in the carriage and when they came from the forest a ray of sunlight hit Desiree and suddenly the door opened on its own accord and a white doe leaped out. Eglantine, Desiree’s maid of honor hurried out to follow her.
Finally Eglantine found her and they stayed in a woman’s hut with her for a few days. At night Desiree became herself again but in the daytime she remained a white doe. Meanwhile Cerrisette put on Desiree’s wedding dress and arrived at the castle in her name. The prince upon seeing her so unlike the portrait sent by the king, ran away with his closest servant. However, they were caught in a storm and took shelter in the same house Desiree and Eglantine were in. Hearing Desiree talk of himself to Eglantine, he bored a small hole in the room and looked. There he saw the exact portrait of his bride and the next evening entered the room and both stories were told. Then they went back to the castle and were married. Cerrisette and her mother were banished from the kingdom and everyone lived happily ever after.
- C.V.
DID YOU KNOW?
-That the famous general, Hannibal, died in Bithynia after suffering a great defeat at the hands of the Romans? He committed suicide by swallowing the poison that he kept in the hollow ring he wore on his hand at all times.
-R.C.
The Listeners By Walter de la Mare
"Is anybody there?" said the Traveler,
Knocking on the moonlit door;
And his horse in the silence chomped the grasses
Of the forest's ferny floor.
And a bird flew up out of the turret,
Above the traveler's head:
And he smote upon the door a second time;
"Is anybody there?" he said.
But no one descended to the Traveler;
No head from the leaf-fringed sill
Leaned over and looked into his gray eyes,
Where he stood perplexed and still.
But only a host of phantom listeners
That dwelt in the lone house then
Stood listening in the quiet of the moonlight
To that voice from the world of men:
Stood thronging the faint moonbeams on the dark stair
That goes down the empty hall,
Hearkening in an air stirred and shaken
By the lonely Traveler's call.
And he felt in his heart their strangeness,
Their stillness answering his cry,
While his horse moved, cropping the dark turf,
'Neath the starred and leafy sky;
For he suddenly smote the door, even
Louder, and lifted his head,
"Tell them I came, and no one answered,
That I kept my word," he said.
Though every word he spake
Fell echoing through the shadowiness of the still house
From the one man left awake:
Aye, they heard his foot upon the stirrup,
And the sound of iron on stone,
And how the silence surged softly backward,
When the plunging hoofs were gone.
Contributed by C.V.
In western lands beneath the Sun
the flowers may rise in Spring,
the trees may bud, the waters run,
the merry finches sing.
Or maybe there 'tis cloudless night
and swaying beeches bear
the Elven-stars as jewels white
amid their branching hair.
Though here at journey's end I lie
in darkness buried deep,
beyond all towers strong and high,
beyond all mountains steep,
above all shadows rides the Sun
the stars forever dwell:
I will not say the day is done,
nor bid the stars farewell.
- Samwise Gamgee
From The Return of the King
Contributed by C.V.
"The Deserted House"
There is a dark, deserted house,
On top of a lonely hill,
I feared it when I was little
And I shrink from it still.
It cowers in lonesome silence
The wind howls thro’ its cracks
It has been deserted for many a year
And it cannot be taken back.
The years will pass and vanish away
And the old house in the dust
Will slowly rot until, one day
We forget that it ever was.
Yes, we will forget the dark old house
When it no longer stands.
Its Owner in joy did leave it
To seek for other lands.
-R.C.
Requiem
Under the wide and starry sky
Dig the grave and let me die
Gladly did I live and gladly die
And I lay me down with a will.
This be the verse you grave for me:
“Here he lies he where he longed to be
Home is the sailor, home from the sea
And the hunter home from the hill.”
-Robert Louis Stevenson
CXXIII
There rolls the deep where grew the tree,
O earth, what changes thou hast seen!
There, where the long street roars hath been
The stillness of the central sea.
The hills are shadows and they flow
From form to form and nothing stands;
They melt like mist, the solid lands
Like clouds they shape themselves and go.
But in my spirit will I dwell,
And dream my dream, and hold it true;
For tho' my lips may breathe adieu,
I cannot think the thing farewell.
CXXIV
That which we dare invoke to bless;
Our dearest faith; our ghastliest doubt;
He, They, One, All, within, without;
The Power in darkness whom we guess;
I found Him not in world or sun,
Or eagle's wing, or insect's eye;
Nor thro' the questions men may try,
The petty cobwebs we have spun:
If ever when faith had fallen asleep,
I heard a voice 'believe no more'
And heard an ever-breaking shore
That tumbled in the Godless deep;
A warmth within the breeze would melt
The freezing reason's colder part,
And like a man in wrath the heart,
Stood up and answered ' I have felt.'
No, like a child in doubt and fear:
But that blind clamor made me wise;
Then was I as a child that cries,
But, crying, knows his father is near;
And what I am beheld again
What is and no man understands;
And out of darkness came the hands
That reach thro' nature, molding men.
- Tennyson
JOKES and RIDDLES ROOM
Knock- knock.
Who's there?
Celeste
Celeste
Celeste time I'll ever ask you to come out and play.
Knock- knock
Who's there?
Jamaica.
Jamaica who?
Jamaica hotdog for me if I asked you to?
-From "Clean Jokes for Kids", our constant supplier of jokes.
Advertisements
Artist
- Artist, S.L.J. and her partner will soon be establishing an art studio for sketches and paintings, especially illustrations for the famous-to-be "Last War," (a book in progress) and the J.R.R. Tolkien's bestselling trilogy, The Lord Of The Rings.
Music
- On May 25th, Enya had taken the month's most popular music award in our household but two days later, she was back where she belonged with the ROTK soundtracks leading again! Many think that this sudden leap on the part of the ROTK soundtracks was due to the successful showing of the ROTK movie on the 26th. It is exciting to watch the rivalry for mastery that these two musical opponents are going through.
Lost And Found
- Lost and Found: the two lost books of the week: "Never Give In" and the journal of one of the members have been finally found! Hurrah!
-"SNATCH! News": The society's favorite game, SNATCH is being played very frequently now. In fact, the three most adventurous rule-breakers of the society, stayed up until past twelve on the night of June the 7th, playing it. The old champion, P.L.P, has been defeated by a young and cocky upstart, C.V, not only once but four times in succession. Now, though, this new player has claimed equality with the master and the games are fiercer than ever. Rosemary Carastapasta has beaten both champions three times in the past few days as well. In all earnestness the games continue.
EVERYONE’S HELPFUL HINTS
Since we seem to be unable of late, to go two days without the breaking of a valuable dish or glass from our humble kitchen, and since we are but a poor, humble society without wealth to waste, the head cook has instated a new rule, being this- That henceforward if and when a dish is broken by any member of the society over the age of five years, they must reimburse head cook with a penalty fee of fifty cents.
Regretfully –A.H.
SPECIAL FEATURES
Who Am I?
1. People remember me today as a great general.
2 .I committed suicide.
3. I am famous for crossing the Alps with my elephants.
Answer: Hannibal
Who Am I?
1. I have been considered by the Roman people as a perfect example of bravery and love for one's country.
2. I thought that Rome most valued her young men.
3. Legend says that I saved Rome by leaping into a chasm that had opened up in the center of the city.
Answer: Curtius
- R.C.
Seeing Mice
Was very disturbed to find that there was no complaints column in the paper! I have had an encounter with a mouse (several in fact) and demand justice in this case. Such vermin should not be permitted to roam the stairs! Secondly, if they are, for some weird reason, then there should be signs alerting travelers! The fright that mouse gave me! My poor, poor nerves.
-An Anonymous Critic (sounds like Mrs. Bennet, what do you all say?)
So What Is Emphysema?
Ok, let's have some science. If you have ever wondered what emphysema is, let me tell you. Emphysema is a disease associated with the practice of cigarette smoking. Good. So what IS emphysema? Here is the way Dr. Jay L. Wile explains it.
"One of the most important diseases associated with cigarette smoking is emphysema (pronounced em' fuh zee' muh). In this disease, the alveoli become overlarge and merge with other alveoli. This causes the lungs to have a few large alveoli rather then many small alveoli at the end of each bronchiole. This results in significantly less efficient oxygen exchange with the blood. As a result, the blood cannot carry as much oxygen as the cells of the body need. This results in shortness of breath, wheezing and extreme difficulty in breathing. Severe emphysema is deadly."
Ok, ok, we all know that smoking cigarettes can be deadly so I won't lecture you but isn't it just amazing just how it happens!
Fairy Land of Science
Think of sounds in nature. How awesome is the thunder. But did you ever think of how it is formed? Some people have a vague idea that it is the sound of the thunderclouds hitting each other. How absurd! Clouds are only water dust, after all. The real answer is this. Light travels at a speed of over 900,000 miles per second. Sound travels a half a mile in five seconds. So the thunder is really just the noise that the hot lightning makes. However, it comes later as sound moves slower than light, for the lightning is hot and heat forces atoms apart and makes the sound waves go to our ears and play upon them.
Some people think that insects make the buzzing noise that you hear in summer with their wings beating against the air. That is not so. They really make the sound by rubbing their legs together.
- C.V.
Word Origins
Well, here we have another interesting topic to talk about. Where did our modern word "social" come from? It came from the Latin word, "socii" which means "allies." We can see a connection here (but it looks a little distant.) Did you know that Rome fought a civil war soon after the third Punic War, called the "Social War"? It was called the "social war" because it was fought with many allies on either side. What an appropriate name! Hence, from the word "socii" we get words like "society", and "social," both derived from the root word socii, meaning an ally. Here is an afterthought: why don't we call World Wars, "Social Wars."
Comments
Tuesday - Oh I love the poetry!
Posted by Jocelyndixon
I can't wait to have time to read more!
Nai haryuvalyë melwa rë (May you have a lovely day)
Sincerely,
Jocelyn
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