darklantern , #historicalfiction , #policelantern , #bullseyelantern , #victorian , #detectivethriller , #mystery The term "lantern" can be used more generically to mean a light source, or the enclosure for a light source, even if it is not portable. Decorative lanterns exist in a wide range of designs. Some hang from buildings, such as street lights enclosed in glass panes. Others are placed on or just above the ground; low-light varieties can function as decoration or landscape lighting and can be a variety of colours and sizes. The housing for the top lamp and lens section of a lighthouse may be called a lantern. [14] Etymology [ edit ]

Various battery types are used in portable light sources. They are more convenient, safer, and produce less heat than combustion lights. Solar-powered lanterns have become popular in developing countries, where they provide a safer and cheaper alternative to kerosene lamps. [27] Could have done without the sex scenes. The fact that they were mostly easily skipped over tells me they really weren't essential to the plot.offered as a magazine premium in 1894. Very large, 9 inches tall, brass Dark Lantern. It is unmarked, but the latch and the position of the door resemble the Adams & Westlake lantern. https://darklanterntales.wordpress.com/ Her father almost literally throws him out – for Thomas Turney is a rich man, a symbol of the urban juggernaut, and a domestic bully. They can’t elope for Richard would lose his job; he has not reached the salary [necessary by bank rules] for marriage. And after all, when they have braved the storm and anguish, there is no haven. . . . His wife, the sentimentalist . . . learns to shrink at his returning step. However, there is no hint that they were real-life neighbours in the novel! The author arranges his fictional tale very cleverly. Richard Maddison and Hetty Turney (HW used the surname of his mother’s mother here) do not know each other prior to a chance meeting on the Hill as Richard is returning home from his mother’s funeral (at the family’s home in the West Country). They are then introduced properly by Richard’s sister Theodora (Dora), who is a friend of the Turneys, when she asks her brother to join their little musical group, which includes Hetty’s brother Hugh, who is in love with Dora – but has tragically contracted syphilis. The story was interesting enough that I did read it straight through, but was very happy when it ended. The one thing I did very much appreciate was that the author tied up the details as to what happened to most of the characters at the end. This book portrayed Victorian England well. The relationships between the servants themselves and their interactions with their employers conveyed what daily household life may have been like in Victorian England. Jane, the main narrator/point of view of the story is newly arrived to London from the country. She is the second house maid and therefore responsible for most of the scutwork "upstairs", such as cleaning and lighting the fireplaces, and the majority of the cleaning. Unfortunately, she is also taken advantage of quite often.

Battery technology evolved and in the mid 1890s the first portable electric lanterns were offered for sale. However, the simple and reliable oil lanterns continued to be used for many years. Dietz in particular continued to make oil-burning dark lanterns until at least the late 1920s. In London, the Metropolitan Police converted to electric lanterns, reportedly with some reluctance, in the 1920s. But rural America was still not fully electrified and in small communities, a simple lantern fueled by easily found oil might have engendered more confidence in a policeman than a lantern powered by a battery. Beadles New York Dime Library, 1890. A dark lantern in use. It is described in the story as a bullseye lantern, but is the same as a police lantern, or dark lantern. https://darklanterntales.wordpress.com/ Pasted in the front of HW's own copy of The Dark Lantern is this charming sketch made by his son RichardIn 1886 a design was patented for operating the shutter with the thumb of the hand that held the lantern. The implications for one-handed operation meant that the other hand could open doors or hold a weapon. Dietz, an American maker of high quality lanterns, began selling this design in 1888 and marked them “Police Flashlight.” 1886 Dark Lantern patent drawing, the design which was sold from 1888 as the Dietz Police Flashlight. https://darklanterntales.wordpress.com/ Nevertheless it is a novel which is not in the ordinary run. One looks forward with mixed feelings of hope and apprehension to the remainder of the saga. A fascinating portrayal of a vanished England as well as an unconventional mystery, The Dark Lantern exposes the grand “upstairs” of a Victorian home and the darker underbelly of its servants’ quarters. The clash between the classes makes for a suspenseful novel of mistaken identities, intriguing women, and dangerous deceptions.

Perhaps the most satisfying feature is the emergence of the old Williamson sincerity that characterised so much of his [earlier] writings. Theodora is based upon William Leopold’s real sister, Henry’s aunt, Mary Leopoldina Williamson. This lady was very intelligent and wrote two quite extraordinarily visionary short books published in 1910 (reprinted in HWSJ 31, September 1995, and HWSJ 37, September 2001). She was a great influence on Henry Williamson, and encouraged him in every way. As Theodora Maddison she is a major character throughout the Chronicle. In this opening volume she is seen as a very kind and sensitive clever young lady, sympathetic and intuitive, attractive and gay – yet shy and serious. It is a masterly portrait in words, and the development of her character as the Chronicleprogresses is somewhat tragic.

Browse reviews by Publisher

Mr. Williamson reveals the perplexities and intimacies of their domestic life with candour, tenderness, and a deep insight into the complex emotions that sway the human heart. Infused throughout by a passionate sincerity this novel has all the quality of greatness in it, and as an interpretation of life rings true in every line. Ever since 1919 Mr. Henry Williamson has nurtured an ambition to write a saga of English family life in several volumes. . . . Mr. Williamson has allowed himself plenty of room and time in which to settle down to his great task . . . He does not overcrowd his canvas . . . yet he knows where he is going. His landscapes are excellent, whether of the low hills south of London . . . or the City itself. . . .