London's Bicentennial (Snippet 29)

 Rail Travel - The Good Old Days

From Chicago to the Western Fair in London -1896

  It was easier 130 years ago to travel by train from London to Chicago.

Source: Chicago Daily Tribune, Sept. 8, 1896.
   The St. Thomas Public Library published a "Railway History Chronology".
For more about the Wabash Railroad see "History of the Wabash Railroad" from which the following was borrowed:

For a related railroad post in MM see, "Slow-Speed Rail." 

London's Bicentennial (Snippet 28)

Royal Interest High Even During the Depression Decade 

Source: Globe & Mail, May 4, 1937

London's Bicentennial (Snippet 27)

 Mayday!  Mayday! - 1920

The source is The Ogden Standard-Examiner, May 1, 1920.

This is what the front page looks like:

To assess May Day activities in 2026 see the Wikipedia entry for, "2026 May Day Protests".

Private Library Photos

  About these two personal libraries, I know little. It is simply the case that the pictures of the books show up in essays about the individuals, both of whom produced books you may have among your own.

ErIc Hobsbawm

  This photograph is from “The Century of Eric Hobsbawm”, by Enzo Traverso, The Ideas Letter, June 25, 2026. In it, it is mentioned that a new biography of Hobsbawm will soon be published by Belknap Press (Harvard University Press). The title: The Age of Hobsbawm; The Life of a Revolutionary Historian, by Emile Chabal.

  I often have rambled on about periodicals and Hobsbawm co-founded one in 1952 - Past & Present, which is still being published by Oxford.

A Bonus: (This is from the essay mentioned.)

 “Hobsbawm loved jazz—a passion he wrote about under the nickname of Francis Newton, becoming a reputed jazz critic for The New Statesman. But in this realm, too, his tastes favored the classics: In his eyes, Miles Davis and John Coltrane simply could not compete with Duke Ellington.”

William T. Vollmann

   I am sure I have read some of Vollmann's magazine pieces, but have none of his books. If you are unfamiliar with him, you should see the interesting Wikipedia entry and read Mr. Sorondo's essay.
   The pictures are from this substack: "We Always Leave Things Unfinished", by Alexander Sorondo, in Big Reader Bad Grades, June 30, 2026. Have a look.

   Mr. Vollmann lives in Sacramento and apparently these books are found in a former Mexican restaurant that Vollmann "bought in 2000 and converted into a studio. The building is closed-in with a tight perimeter of chainlink fence."
   Mr. Vollmann is not well.
If you think you might want to purchase some of his work for your library, leave ample room. In 2003 he produced a massive "seven-volume treatise on violence and his new novel is coming out in August. A Table for Fortune has over 3,000 pages.

London's Bicentennial (Snippet 26)

 Last Veteran of the Light Brigade -1923

Source: The Laramie Republican (Wyoming), Feb. 26, 1923.
  

This is from Tennyson:

III

Cannon to right of them,

Cannon to left of them,

Cannon in front of them

   Volleyed and thundered;

Stormed at with shot and shell,

Boldly they rode and well,

Into the jaws of Death,

Into the mouth of hell

   Rode the six hundred....

VI

When can their glory fade?

O the wild charge they made!

   All the world wondered.

Honour the charge they made!

Honour the Light Brigade,

   Noble six hundred!

NIL ----- NIL

 The Two Meanings of NIL
   
  Although the word "NIL" has been around since the sixteenth century, it usually was only noticeable every four years-or-so, when the World Cup rolled around. In the last five, however, readers frequently see "NIL", but that is another "NIL". Here is the distinction. 

 1.  "NIL"  - Means Nothing
 The old "NIL" means, nada, no amount or zero and it is the one that shows up often every four years when nothing much happens during football matches. What is really needed is a new word to replace "DIVING" ,  to describe much of the action which is displayed.

 2. "NIL"  - Means A Lot
  The new "NIL" stands for Name - Image - Likeness, and for those things a U.S. college athlete can now earn a large sum of money. This is the real "NIL" that you now see in the news. 
  Actually, you don't even have to be an actual athlete to be given a large sum. The manager (i.e., towel and water guy) of the McNeese State Cowboys basketball team provides an example, in that he apparently received a sum that was at least six figures. Quarterbacks can get millions.

  If you are now intrigued, see the Wikipedia entry for, "Student Athlete Compensation" or "NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) Explained."

The Bonus:
  Those who know about Title IX will wonder if women have benefitted. The answer is "Yes" and the athlete pictured above is Olivia Dunne, now known as "Livvy'. She has her own Wikipedia entry. 
   "On July 2, 2021, the NCAA changed its rule to allow its athletes to earn money from their name, image, and likeness (NIL). Dunne was projected to earn more than any other collegiate athlete due to her large social-media platform, which was a combined five million followers across both Instagram and TikTok at the time of the rule change.  In August, Dunne announced that she signed with WME Sports, becoming their first NIL athlete. A month later, she announced her first exclusive brand partnership with activewear brand Vuori."

Pictures Worth a Thousand Words

                                        Happy SEMIQUINCENTENNIAL !

A Happy Fourth of July For Some

Source: 
Miriam Gottfried, Wall Street Journal, June 30, 2026.

Source: Bloomberg News