Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, Vol. 12, No. 32, November, 1873

In Short

This volume of Lippincott’s Magazine functions as a literary mosaic, featuring serialized narratives alongside non-fiction essays on European travel, social etiquette, and American history. It encapsulates the nineteenth-century tradition of the omnibus journal, where high-minded scientific curiosities sit comfortably beside romantic fiction and accounts of natural disasters. By weaving together the grandeur of the Rhine, the rigid social codes of London ballrooms, and the harrowing reality of the Great Chicago Fire, the collection remains a vital historical snapshot of the attitudes and anxieties defining the post-Civil War era.

The Story

The magazine leads the reader on a sprawling journey that shifts rapidly from the Old World to the New. It begins in Europe with a whimsical, descriptive tour through the Rhine region. The narrative voice, characterized by a playful irony, explores the intersection of legend and history, recounting the "magician-like" exploits of Louis XIV and the slow, deliberate pace of life in the German town of Carlsruhe. This European excursion soon pivots to a meticulous, almost anthropological study of London high society. The author dissects the "M.C.’s" (Masters of the Ceremonies) who choreograph public balls and the intricate, often exhausting social rituals required to navigate the season, where a misplaced "H" or a poorly timed visit can jeopardize one's standing.

The tone shifts dramatically when the magazine transitions into fiction and catastrophe. The serialized story of the "Lively" family provides a domestic focus that is abruptly shattered by the Great Chicago Fire. The account is visceral: the panic of the masses, the struggle to survive in the suffocating darkness of the Washington Street tunnel, and the desperate flight to the prairies. The narrative captures the horrifying transformation of the river into a "stream of molten metal," evoking a scene of apocalyptic suffering.

Following this, the magazine explores the life of Thomas Lovell Beddoes, a poet and physician who struggled to reconcile his scientific vocation with his literary ambitions. This intellectual biography is paired with the haunting, gothic tale of a mysterious "Mask" in Venice. This Venetian episode culminates in a supernatural confrontation on the water, where a phantom ship—the Bucentaur—emerges from the fog to demand an accounting of those who love or hate. The collection concludes by grounding itself in the hard soil of American history, examining the archaeological remains of early British military expeditions in the Northwest. It details the discovery of bayonets, surgeons' knives, and mass graves, reminding the reader of the forgotten sacrifices made by pioneers and soldiers. The volume ends with a pragmatic review of books and public affairs, reinforcing the magazine's role as both a storyteller and a chronicler of its time.

How It Unfolds

The Rhine legend The narrative opens with a journey through the Rhine, framing the French annexation of Strasbourg as a dark fairy tale involving a demonic "yellow man" in the service of Louis XIV. This establishes a tone of whimsical storytelling that lingers throughout the travelogue.

The social theater The focus shifts to the rigid choreography of London ballroom culture, where the author mocks the vanity of "professional" dancers and the exhausting, punctilious nature of upper-class social obligations.

The inferno strikes The narrative turns toward the chaotic reality of the Great Chicago Fire, following Dr. Lively as he leads a panicked crowd through the pitch-black, suffocating Washington Street tunnel toward safety.

The scientist-poet A shift in genre introduces the life of Thomas Lovell Beddoes, exploring the tension between the "pill-box" of the physician and the "lyre" of the poet, illustrating the Victorian struggle between scientific rigor and artistic expression.

The phantom of Venice A mysterious, mask-wearing figure terrorizes the Venetian authorities, leading to a supernatural maritime climax where a ghostly vessel emerges to claim its due, blending folklore with existential dread.

The legacy of the soil The magazine concludes with a stark examination of the American Northwest, where archaeological relics unearthed by storms provide a somber, tangible history of long-lost military struggles and frontier mortality.

The People

The figures in these pages serve as archetypes of their time. The "canal-digger" and the "placid" bath-house attendant represent the local color of the European countryside, often viewed through the slightly condescending lens of the traveling observer. Dr. Lively emerges as a stoic, practical hero in the face of the Chicago conflagration, providing a grounding force amidst the fire’s destruction. Thomas Lovell Beddoes stands as the introspective intellectual, a man torn between the cold, objective truth of anatomy and the elusive, subjective beauty of poetry. In the Venetian tale, the mysterious woman in the mask acts as an agent of fate, a cipher who navigates the divide between the living and the dead. Finally, the Kinzie family is presented as the quintessential American pioneer stock, their history woven directly into the rising geography of Chicago. Each character is defined by their relationship to their environment: some are victims of circumstance, while others, like the Kinzies or the steadfast Dr. Lively, are the architects of their own destiny.

In Its Own Voice

"The Alsatians will have it," said my canal-digger, "that the Grand Monarch was a bit of a magician." This introduction sets the tone for the magazine's interest in blending local folklore with historical fact during its tour of the Rhine.

"The fire had reached the river, which reflected the lurid horror above, and seemed a stream of molten metal, or a current of glowing lava poured from some wide rent in the earth." This description captures the nightmarish visual scale of the Chicago fire as the narrative moves from domestic life into a scene of total destruction.

"The more he knew of Truth, the nearer absolute perfection must that Beauty be which would compete with her for his heart." This reflection on the poet Thomas Lovell Beddoes encapsulates the internal conflict between scientific discovery and artistic creation that defines his life.

What It's Really About

This volume explores the tension between the romantic past and the industrializing present. It asks how we document our experiences, whether through the preservation of local legends, the meticulous recording of social etiquette, or the archaeological recovery of forgotten military failures. There is a persistent inquiry into the nature of "progress"—how a city like Chicago can be built on the bones of a massacre, or how an elegant European capital like Carlsruhe can be constructed with the haste of a modern factory. Ultimately, it questions the stability of human civilization, suggesting that whether one is navigating a London ballroom or a city in flames, the structures we build—both social and physical—are fragile against the encroaching forces of nature, fate, and time.

Why Read It Today

Readers who enjoy a "slow" reading experience—the kind where one wanders through disparate topics, from the trivial to the profound—will find much to appreciate here. It is an immersive look at the nineteenth-century mindset, capturing the specific cadence of Victorian prose and the era’s fascination with both the exotic and the scientific.

You will encounter the inevitable challenges of the period: its occasionally ornate sentence structures, its specific, class-conscious tone, and its unvarnished, often Eurocentric perspective on the world. However, the reward is a genuine, uncurated look at how people in the 1870s understood their rapidly changing world. The accounts of the Chicago Fire are particularly striking; they possess a raw, journalistic urgency that cuts through the distance of time. Reading this feels like finding a box of letters and clippings in an attic—it is a tactile, human connection to a century that is both recognizable and profoundly alien. You will walk away with an appreciation for the vast, mosaic nature of the human experience, where the smallest detail—a misplaced "H" or a button on a jacket—is held up with the same gravity as the rise and fall of great cities.