The Life of James Cumberlidge

 The reality of 18th and 19th-century race relations was far from the fantasy of Bridgerton. From ArtNet:

The 1739 family portrait was recently included in “Picturing Childhood,” an exhibition at the historic Chatsworth House in England. It depicts the prominent British architect Lord Burlington with his wife Dorothy, the countess, and their two daughters, Dorothy and Charlotte. Their names are written on a piece of paper on the floor in the painting.

Absent from this list is the identity of the third child in the painting, who stands to the far-right behind the countess’s chair. The boy carries a bundle of paintbrushes to pass her, having already provided the palette she holds in her left hand, marking her out as a keen amateur painter.

In 2004, the boy was wrongly identified by historian Richard Hewlings as James Cambridge because his name had been mistranscribed in a tailor’s bill from 1739 detailing clothes ordered by Countess of Burlington for her liveried servants, including James Cambridge “the black.” (Read more.)

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Kamala Harris, PLAGIARIST?!

 

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Why Are Extremist Progressives ANGRY All The Time?

 From The Easton Gazette:

A couple of weeks ago our local Moms for Liberty chapter hosted a candidate's forum for local school candidates. We invited ALL the candidates to participate. In Maryland, school board candidates are designated as "non-partisan" even though most of them personally ascribe to one of the major parties.

It's not different in Talbot County where two incumbents are running against challengers and there is one open seat being contested between two first time candidates. We invited all of them, even the incumbents, starting in June so they could put the date of the forum on their calendar. Four candidates accepted the invitation, the two incumbents didn't RSVP, even though they were repeatedly asked.

The format was simple, all candidates were given the same questions ahead of time and were given the same amount of time to answer those questions in a round robin fashion. There was a moderator who asked the questions. There were no "gotcha" questions.

As we got set up and the crowd started to come in the door, we posted a sign in sheet so they could see who was in attendance. Attendees were greeted with a friendly "Welcome and good evening." Most of them responded in the same way.

But, there were those who were angry from the moment they set foot in the hall until they left.

Many couldn't even respond to the greeting. Others angrily grumbled something under their breath that sounded more like a bear coming out of a long hibernation than a human response.

And they scowled. The entire time. Even when one of the candidates, who probably was on their side, gave her answers. It was as though someone had urinated on their granola bars that day or had used the wrong pronouns. (Actually, no one asked for their pronouns nor did anyone urinate on their granola bars.)

But it didn't matter.

You see they hate us and conservative groups like Moms for Liberty. Why, you ask? (Read more.)

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Snow White and Rose Red

A short time afterwards the mother sent her children into the forest to get firewood. There they found a big tree which lay felled on the ground, and close by the trunk something was jumping backwards and forwards in the grass, but they could not make out what it was. When they came nearer they saw a dwarf with an old withered face and a snow-white beard a yard long. The end of the beard was caught in a crevice of the tree, and the little fellow was jumping about like a dog tied to a rope, and did not know what to do. ~from "Snow White and Rose Red" by the Brothers Grimm

One of my favorite fairy tales as a child was "Snow White and Rose Red," one of the many stories collected by William and Jacob Grimm from the peasants of Germany in the early nineteenth century. According to SurLaLune:

Snow White and Rose Red is of German origin with no known oral antecedents. The Grimms included the mostly original story in their collection and consequently popularized it. According to Stith Thompson, Wilhelm adapted the tale from a story, titled "The Ungrateful Dwarf,"by Caroline Stahl published in her own collection of German stories in 1818.

The elements of the story beyond the broad theme of the Animal Bridegroom is uniquely German. Aarne and Thompson have classifed the tale as type 426: The Two Girls, The Bear, and The Dwarf. In this tale, as well as Grimm's The Lion and the Frog, the Animal Bridegroom is a kind and gentle beast whom the heroines do not find threatening. The girls are not required to "tame" the bear; they must deal with the wicked dwarf instead.

The tale has not appeared outside of a small geographic region in central Europe. Thompson considers the tale to be part of the animal bridegroom themes, including Beauty and the Beast, that are all related to the Cupid and Psyche myth (Thompson 1945).

Another tale that is related to the myth of Cupid and Psyche is "East of the Sun, West of the Moon" which will be the topic of a future post. There are many elements of "Snow White and Rose Red" which always charmed me, such as the roses, the angel, and living in solitude in a cottage in the woods. As explained by SurLaLune, the rose trees symbolize beauty and perfection, the angel's appearance indicates that the girls are pure of heart. It is one of the few tales in which the birth mother is alive but the father has died; widowhood sets the stage for poverty, but in spite of their dire straits, the family is happy and harmonious. The girls' fidelity and kindness are rewarded at the end, and the bear to whom they showed compassion ends up being a prince in disguise.

"Snow White and Rose Red" has a contemporary interpretation in Regina Doman's novel Shadow of the Bear. I cannot recommend highly enough Regina's books based upon the classic fairy tales as being especially wonderful for teenagers and young adults, although there are plenty of mature adults who enjoy them as well. It is fascinating how the tales which meant so much to our ancestors can still resonate so deeply with us today, especially when in the hands of a master story-teller.

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Racial Reparations

 From The Daily Wire:

Vice President Kamala Harris signaled during an interview on Tuesday that she was open to spending taxpayer money on racial reparations, which studies show would cost trillions of dollars.

“It has to be studied. There’s no question about that,” Harris said when asked about reparations, which numerous estimates pin well into the trillions of dollars. “And I’ve been very clear about that position.”

Harris made the remarks during a radio interview with Charlamagne tha God where she fielded questions about her agenda.

She quickly pivoted to the rest of her economic agenda, uttering her common refrain that she “grew up in the middle class.”

Harris said during her failed presidential campaign in 2019 that she supported “some form” of reparations, and voted in support of reparations legislation in Congress. She has not taken a position on the issue since joining the presidential ticket with Joe Biden in 2020.

Harris’ remarks come as recent polling, including from CNN this week, has found that Trump is in position to have more support from the black community, including from black women, than any Republican since 1960. (Read more.)

 

More HERE.

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Your Black Plastic Cooking Utensils

 From Eating Well:

Like anything else, there are many kinds of fire retardants. Brominated flame retardants (BFRs) are one of the more concerning types. This is because they are considered toxic and are known to accumulate in the body’s tissues. BFRs have been linked to cancer, hormone disruptions, and nerve, reproductive and developmental toxicity.1 BFRs are often found in electrical and electronic devices’ plastic housing cases and printed circuit boards.

There are also different types of BFRs, two of which have been banned in the U.S. and European Union since 2007 and 2006, respectively.1 These include decabromodiphenyl ether (deca-BDE) and tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA). A host of other flame retardants replaced the two banned BFRs and are currently considered safer, including a type of flame retardant called organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs). While OPFRs are considered safer than BFRs, there is some question regarding the aquatic toxicity of OPFRs—meaning, how they affect organisms, like fish, that live in water.  (Read more.)

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Death of Marie-Thérèse de France

The daughter of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette died just three days after the anniversary of her mother's execution. Here is a quote from her Will: 

Following the example of my parents, I forgive, with all my soul, and without exceptions, all those who may have harmed or offended me; sincerely asking God to extend to them His mercy, as well as to me, and supplicating Him to accord me pardon for my faults.

I thank all the FRENCHMEN who have remained attached to my family and to me for the proofs of devotion that they have given us, for the sufferings and pains they suffered because of us.

I pray God to pour out His blessings on France, which I have always loved, even in the midst of my bitterest afflictions.

Having always considered my nephew HENRI and my niece LOUISE as my children, I give them my maternal blessing. They have had the happiness to have been raised in our holy religion, may they always remain faithful to it, may they always be worthy descendants of SAINT LOUIS! May my nephew consecrate his happy faculties to the accomplishment of the great duties which his position imposes upon him! May he never depart from the ways of moderation, justice and truth!

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Onslaught of Schemes

 From Fox News:

The 2024 presidential election has been touted as the "most important" election in U.S. history by both campaigns, as former President Trump works to reclaim the Oval Office and Vice President Harris pitches herself to voters as the next leader of the U.S. 

As the high-stakes election comes down to its final weeks, Fox News Digital compiled the top political and legal tactics that critics, most notably on the right, have slammed as efforts by the Democratic Party to undermine democracy in the run-up to the big day on Nov. 5. (Read more.)

 

From The Hill:

Democrats’ voter registration advantage has dropped in three key battleground states — Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Nevada — raising a red flag for Vice President Harris as experts cite a lack of enthusiasm for the Biden administration brand and the Democratic Party, generally, as problems.

In Arizona, another key battleground state, Republicans have seen their voter registration advantage increase substantially, which could make it tougher for Harris to carry a state President Biden narrowly won in 2020. (Read more.)

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