The Washington Irving Library

Tales of a Traveller Section 15 - Buckthorne, Part Two

In which a young poetical spirit, restless at school and newly unanchored by the loss of his mother, is drawn into the lively and curious world of a travelling fair and its itinerant theatre troupe. Enamoured by the spectacle and seeking escape from his constrained existence, he boldly assumes the role of a dancing buffoon, embracing this fleeting adventure with innocent enthusiasm and imaginative delight.

Tales of a Traveller Section 16 - Buckthorne, Part Three

In which a young, spirited wanderer recounts his adventures and trials upon joining a travelling pantomime troupe, embracing the vagabond life full of fleeting pleasures and heartfelt complexities. The narrative gently reveals the contrast between external gaiety and internal strife among players, as well as the stirring influence of youthful passion amid the bustling environs of metropolitan fairs.

Tales of a Traveller Section 14 - Buckthorne; or, the Young Man of Great Expectations, Part One

In which a young gentleman of modest means but lofty hopes recounts his early years marked by a stern education, tender maternal affection, and a heartfelt but ill-fated boyish romance. His visits to a miserly uncle’s desolate estate mingle with his poetic inclinations and solitary musings amidst the wildness of both nature and human eccentricity.

Tales of a Traveller Section 13 - Poor Devil Author, Part Two

In which a young literary aspirant, inspired by the rural charms near London and the heroic tales of ancient English rogues, embarks upon a poetic venture centred on the notorious rebel Jack Straw, only to find his romantic enthusiasm abruptly challenged by a most unwelcome encounter on a former highwayman’s haunt. As he recounts the humbling vicissitudes of an author’s life—the shifting fortunes from inspired dreams to humble writing for hire—the narrative gently reveals the sober realities beneath the romantic veneer of literary ambition.

Tales of a Traveller Section 12 - Poor Devil Author, Part One

In which a young aspiring poet, buoyed by the enthusiastic praise of his rustic literary circle, ventures to London with lofty expectations of publishing glory, only to find the book world indifferent and his fortunes dwindling. Seeking solace and inspiration, he retreats to historically poetic retreats near the city, only to be thwarted by the noisy realities of popular life and distracted by the pastoral scents of summer.