Muratby Alexander Dumas, pereITOULONOn the 18th June, 1815, at the very moment when the destiny of Europewas being decided at Waterloo, a man dressed like a beggar wassilently following the road from Toulon to Marseilles.Arrived at the entrance of the Gorge of Ollioulles, he halted on alittle eminence from which he could see all the surrounding country;then either because he had reached the end of his journey, orbecause, before attempting that forbidding, sombre pass which iscalled the Thermopylae of Provence, he wished to enjoy themagnificent view which spread to the southern horizon a littl　

Round the Sofaby Elizabeth GaskellLong ago I was placed by my parents under the medical treatment of acertain Mr. Dawson, a surgeon in Edinburgh, who had obtained areputation for the cure of a particular class of diseases. I wassent with my governess into lodgings near his house, in the Old Town.I was to combine lessons from the excellent Edinburgh masters, withthe medicines and exercises needed for my indisposition. It was atfirst rather dreary to leave my brothers and sisters, and to give upour merry out-of-doors life with our country home, for dull lodgings,...　

The Religion of Babylonia and Assyriaby Theophilus G. PinchesCHAPTER IFOREWORDPosition, and Period.The religion of the Babylonians and Assyrians was the polytheistic faith professed by the peoples inhabiting the Tigris and Euphrates valleys from what may be regarded as the dawn of history until the Christian era began, or, at least, until the inhabitants were brought under the influence of Christianity. The chronological period covered may be roughly estimated at about 5000 years. The belief of the people, at the end of that time, being Babylonian heathenism leavened with Judaism, the country　

The Return Of Tarzanby Edgar Rice BurroughsCONTENTSCHAPTER1 The Affair on the Liner2 Forging Bonds of Hate and ?3 What Happened in the Rue Maule4 The Countess Explains5 The Plot That Failed6 A Duel7 The Dancing Girl of Sidi Aissa8 The Fight in the Desert9 Numa "El Adrea"10 Through the Valley of the Shadow11 John Caldwell, London12 Ships That Pass13 The Wreck of the "Lady Alice"14 Back to the Primitive15 From Ape to Savage16 The Ivory Raiders17 The White Chief of the Waziri...　

SHERLOCK HOLMESTHE ADVENTURE OF THE RETIRED COLOURMANby Sir Arthur Conan DoyleSherlock Holmes was in a melancholy and philosophic mood thatmorning. His alert practical nature was subject to such reactions."Did you see him?" he asked."You mean the old fellow who has just gone out?""Precisely.""Yes, I met him at the door.""What did you think of him?""A pathetic, futile, broken creature.""Exactly, Watson. Pathetic and futile. But is not all lifepathetic and futile? Is not his story a microcosm of the whole? We...　

　　　　 Red Nails　　 Jewels of Gwahlur　　 Beyond the Black River　　　　RED NAILS　　　　　　For some two years, as captain of the Wastrel, Conan continues a highly successful career as a freebooter. However, the other Zingaran pirates, jealous of the outlander in their midst, at last bring him down off the coast of Shem. Escaping inland and hearing that wars are in the offing along the borders of Stygia, Conan joins the Free panions, a band of condottieri under the mand of one Zarallo. Instead of rich plunder, however, he finds himself engaged in uneventful guard duty in the border post of Sukhmet, on the 　

　On a ridge above Texas Flat upon a rock shaped like flame, a hand moved upon the lava. The hand moved and then was still. In all that vast beige-gray silence there was no other movement and no sound.　A buzzard swinging in lazy circles above the serrated ridge had glimpsed that moving hand. Swinging lower, he saw a man who lay among the rocks atop the ridge. He was a long-bodied man in worn boots and jeans, a man with wide shoulders and a lean tough face.　It was the face of a hunter but now of a man hunted. A man who lay with his rifle beside him and who wore a belted gun; but the man still l　

Personal Memoirs of P.H.Sheridan V1 of 2by Philip Henry SheridanPREFACEWhen, yielding to the solicitations of my friends, I finally decidedto write these Memoirs, the greatest difficulty which confronted mewas that of recounting my share in the many notable events of thelast three decades, in which I played a part, without entering toofully into the history of these years, and at the same time withoutgiving to my own acts an unmerited prominence. To what extent I haveovercome this difficulty I must leave the reader to judge....　

PRINCE RING [30][30] From the Icelandic.Once upon a time there was a King and his Queen in their kingdom.They had one daughter, who was called Ingiborg, and one son,whose name was Ring. He was less fond of adventures than men ofrank usually were in those days, and was not famous for strengthor feats of arms. When he was twelve years old, one fine winterday he rode into the forest along with his men to enjoy himself.They went on a long way, until they caught sight of a hind with agold ring on its horns. The Prince was eager to catch it, if...　

Inhabitants of the Alhambra.I HAVE often observed that the more proudly a mansion has beentenanted in the day of its prosperity, the humbler are its inhabitantsin the day of its decline, and that the palace of a king commonly endsin being the nestling-place of the beggar.The Alhambra is in a rapid state of similar transition. Whenever atower falls to decay, it is seized upon by some tatterdemalion family,who become joint-tenants, with the bats and owls, of its gilded halls,and hang their rags, those standards of poverty, out of its windows...　

"Rikki-Tikki-Tavi"At the hole where he went inRed-Eye called to Wrinkle-Skin.Hear what little Red-Eye saith:"Nag, come up and dance with death!"Eye to eye and head to head,(Keep the measure, Nag.)This shall end when one is dead;(At thy pleasure, Nag.)Turn for turn and twist for twist(Run and hide thee, Nag.)Hah! The hooded Death has missed!...　

A Woman of Thirtyby Honore de BalzacTranslated by Ellen MarriageDEDICATIONTo Louis Boulanger, Painter.A WOMAN OF THIRTYI.EARLY MISTAKESIt was a Sunday morning in the beginning of April 1813, a morning which gave promise of one of those bright days when Parisians, for the first time in the year, behold dry pavements underfoot and a cloudless sky overhead. It was not yet noon when a luxurious cabriolet, drawn by two spirited horses, turned out of the Rue de Castiglione into the Rue de Rivoli, and drew up behind a row of carriages standing before the newly opened barrier half-way down the Terras　

Of Interestby David HumeNothing is esteemed a more certain sign of the flourishingcondition of any nation than the lowness of interest: And with reason;though I believe the cause is somewhat different from what is commonlyapprehended. Lowness of interest is generally ascribed to plenty ofmoney. But money, however plentiful, has no other effect, if fixed,than to raise the price of labour. Silver is more common than gold;and therefore you receive a greater quantity of it for the samecommodities. But do you pay less interest for it? Interest in BATAVIAand JAMAICA is at 10 per cent. in PORTUGAL a　

Animal Heroesby Ernest Thompson SetonNote to ReaderA hero is an individual of unusual gifts and achievements.Whether it be man or animal, this definition applies; and it isthe histories of such that appeal to the imagination and to thehearts of those who hear them.In this volume every one of the stories, though more or lesscomposite, is founded on the actual life of a veritable animalhero. The most composite is the White Reindeer. This story Iwrote by Utrovand in Norway during the summer of 1900, while theReindeer herds grazed in sight on the near uplands....　

EconomyWhen I wrote the following pages, or rather the bulk of them, Ilived alone, in the woods, a mile from any neighbor, in a housewhich I had built myself, on the shore of Walden Pond, in Concord,Massachusetts, and earned my living by the labor of my hands only.I lived there two years and two months. At present I am a sojournerin civilized life again.I should not obtrude my affairs so much on the notice of myreaders if very particular inquiries had not been made by mytownsmen concerning my mode of life, which some would call...　

The Crowdby Gustave le BonTHE CROWD A STUDY OF THE POPULAR MINDBY GUSTAVE LE BONThe following work is devoted to an account of the characteristics of crowds.The whole of the common characteristics with which heredity endows the individuals of a race constitute the genius of the race. When, however, a certain number of these individuals are gathered together in a crowd for purposes of action, observation proves that, from the mere fact of their being assembled, there result certain new psychological characteristics, which are added to the racial characteristics and differ from them at times t