290
HISTORY OF ENGLAND [1837-1901
Carlyle, Cardinal Newman, and John Ruskin are masters
of prose, and certain to be remembered.
Among <he books of whose making there is no end, the
novel holds the most prominent place. Scott, Dickens,
Thackeray, and “George Eliot” have long been our best
known writers of fiction, four
authors who are so dissimilar
that the popularity of all is,
in itself, a proof that the novel
is enjoyed by all kinds of
people, But the object of the
novel of to-day is not merely
to give pleasure. Fiction is no
longer a source of amusement
and nothing more; it has. be-
come a useful servant. Perhaps
the most excellent feature ’of
this ascendency of the novel
is that we require our fiction
to be true to life. Adventures
must be probable, characters
must be consistent, and the historical novel, if it would
have more than a passing fame, must be the work of the
student as well as the teller of stories.
274. Jubilee years.— The fiftieth anniversary of Victoria’s
Accession to the throne was celebrated in 1887 by a brilliant
military parade at which representative troops from
all parts of the Empire were present. Ten years later,
in 1897, the sixtieth anniversary was celebrated by an
even more imposing military spectacle. The prime
ministers of all the colonies, accompanied by- detachments
of colonial troops, attended, and took part in the dem-
onstration. Both these jubilee parades were more than
mere show. They demonstrated the wealth, the extent,
the power, and the loyalty of a united and self-governing
people.
275. Influence of Queen Vietoria.—There were world-
stirring events during the life of Queen Victoria, but no one
of them held so steadily the interest and attention of the
CHARLES DIicCKENS