Falkby Joseph ConradA REMINISCENCESeveral of us, all more or less connected with thesea, were dining in a small river-hostelry not morethan thirty miles from London, and less than twentyfrom that shallow and dangerous puddle to whichour coasting men give the grandiose name of "Ger-man Ocean." And through the wide windows wehad a view of the Thames; an enfilading view downthe Lower Hope Reach. But the dinner was exe-crable, and all the feast was for the eyes.That flavour of salt-water which for so many ofus had been the very water of life permeated our...　

VOLUME ICHAPTER ILord Angelo is precise; Stands at a guard with envy; Scarce confesses That his blood flows, or that his appetite Is more to bread than stone. Measure for Measure.Scarcely had the Abbey Bell tolled for five minutes,and already was the Church of the Capuchins thronged with Auditors. Do not encourage the idea that the Crowd was assembled either from motives of piety or thirst of information. But very few were influenced by those reasons; and in a city where superstition reigns with such despotic sway as in Madrid, to seek for true devotion would be　

The Soul of Manby Oscar WildeThe chief advantage that would result from the establishment ofSocialism is, undoubtedly, the fact that Socialism would relieve usfrom that sordid necessity of living for others which, in thepresent condition of things, presses so hardly upon almosteverybody. In fact, scarcely anyone at all escapes.Now and then, in the course of the century, a great man of science,like Darwin; a great poet, like Keats; a fine critical spirit, likeM. Renan; a supreme artist, like Flaubert, has been able to isolatehimself, to keep himself out of reach of the clamorous claims of...　

Penguin Islandby Anatole FranceCONTENTSBOOK I. THE BEGINNINGSBOOK II. THE ANCIENT TIMESBOOK III. THE MIDDLE AGES AND THE RENAISSANCEBOOK IV. MODERN TIMES: TRINCOBOOK V. MODERN TIMES: CHATILLONBOOK VI. MODERN TIMESBOOK VII. MODERN TIMESBOOK VIII. FUTURE TIMESBOOK I. THE BEGINNINGSI. LIFE OF SAINT MAELMael, a scion of a royal family of Cambria, was sent in his ninth year to the Abbey of Yvern so that he might there study both sacred and profane learning. At the age of fourteen he renounced his patrimony and took a vow to serve the Lord. His time was divided, according to the rule, between the s　

"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 LONELY RIDEAs I stepped into the Slumgullion stage I saw that it was a darknight, a lonely road, and that I was the only passenger. Let meassure the reader that I have no ulterior design in making thisassertion. A long course of light reading has forewarned me whatevery experienced intelligence must confidently look for from sucha statement. The storyteller who willfully tempts Fate by suchobvious beginnings; who is to the expectant reader in danger ofbeing robbed or half-murdered, or frightened by an escaped lunatic,or introduced to his ladylove for the first time, deserves to be...　

BOOK II: OF THEIR TOWNS, PARTICULARLY OF AMAUROTHE that knows one of their towns knows them all, they are so likeone another, except w here the situation makes some difference. Ishall therefore describe one of them; and none is so proper asAmaurot; for as none is more eminent, all the rest yielding inprecedence to this, because it is the seat of their SupremeCouncil, so there was none of them better known to me, I havinglived five years altogether in it.It lies upon the side of a hill, or rather a rising ground: its...　

THE SKETCH BOOKA ROYAL POETby Washington IrvingThough your body be confined,And soft love a prisoner bound,Yet the beauty of your mindNeither check nor chain hath found.Look out nobly, then, and dareEven the fetters that you wear.FLETCHER.ON A soft sunny morning in the genial month of May, I made anexcursion to Windsor Castle. It is a place full of storied and...　

The Poor Clareby Elizabeth GaskellCHAPTER I.December 12th, 1747.My life has been strangely bound up with extraordinary incidents, some of which occurred before I had any connection with the principal actors in them, or indeed, before I even knew of their existence. I suppose, most old men are, like me, more given to looking back upon their own career with a kind of fond interest and affectionate remembrance, than to watching the events though these may have far more interest for the multitude immediately passing before their eyes. If this should be the case with the generality of old people　

POST-MORTEM POETRY [1]In Philadelphia they have a custom which it would be pleasantto see adopted throughout the land. It is that of appending topublished death-notices a little verse or two of comforting poetry.Any one who is in the habit of reading the daily PhiladelphiaLEDGER must frequently be touched by these plaintive tributesto extinguished worth. In Philadelphia, the departure of a childis a circumstance which is not more surely followed by a burialthan by the accustomed solacing poesy in the PUBLIC LEDGER.In that city death loses half its terror because the knowledge...　

ConclusionTo the sick the doctors wisely recommend a change of air andscenery. Thank Heaven, here is not all the world. The buckeye doesnot grow in New England, and the mockingbird is rarely heard here.The wild goose is more of a cosmopolite than we; he breaks his fastin Canada, takes a luncheon in the Ohio, and plumes himself for thenight in a southern bayou. Even the bison, to some extent, keepspace with the seasons cropping the pastures of the Colorado onlytill a greener and sweeter grass awaits him by the Yellowstone. Yet...　

360 BCSTATESMANby Platotranslated by Benjamin JowettSTATESMANPERSONS OF THE DIALOGUE: THEODORUS; SOCRATES; THE ELEATICSTRANGER; THE YOUNGER SOCRATESSocrates. I owe you many thanks, indeed, Theodorus, for theacquaintance both of Theaetetus and of the Stranger.Theodorus. And in a little while, Socrates, you will owe me threetimes as many, when they have completed for you thedelineation of theStatesman and of the Philosopher, as well as of the Sophist....　

LADY SUSANby Jane AustenILADY SUSAN VERNON TO MR. VERNONLangford, Dec.MY DEAR BROTHER,I can no longer refuse myself the pleasure ofprofiting by your kind invitation when we last parted of spending someweeks with you at Churchhill, and, therefore, if quite convenient to youand Mrs. Vernon to receive me at present, I shall hope within a few days tobe introduced to a sister whom I have so long desired to be acquaintedwith. My kind friends here are most affectionately urgent with me to...　

TIMOLEON411?-337 B.C.by Plutarchtranslated by John DrydenIT was for the sake of others that I first commenced writingbiographies; but I find myself proceeding and attaching myself to itfor my own; the virtues of these great men serving me as a sort oflooking-glass, in which I may see how to adjust and adorn my own life.Indeed, it can be compared to nothing but daily living and associatingtogether; we receive, as it were, in our inquiry, and entertain each...　

Greville Faneby Henry JamesComing in to dress for dinner, I found a telegram: "Mrs. Stormerdying; can you give us half a column for to-morrow evening? Let heroff easy, but not too easy." I was late; I was in a hurry; I hadvery little time to think, but at a venture I dispatched a reply:"Will do what I can." It was not till I had dressed and was rollingaway to dinner that, in the hansom, I bethought myself of thedifficulty of the condition attached. The difficulty was not ofcourse in letting her off easy but in qualifying that indulgence. "I...　

Undineby Friedrich de la Motte FouqueTranslated from the German by F. E. BunnettCONTENTS.DEDICATIONCHAPTERI. HOW THE KNIGHT CAME TO THE FISHERMANII. IN WHAT WAY UNDINE HAD COME TO THE FISHERMANIII. HOW THEY FOUND UNDINE AGAINIV. OF THAT WHICH THE KNIGHT ENCOUNTERED IN THE WOODV. HOW THE KNIGHT LIVED ON THE LITTLE PROMONTORYVI. OF A NUPTIAL CEREMONYVII. WHAT FURTHER HAPPENED ON THE EVENING OF THE WEDDINGVIII. THE DAY AFTER THE WEDDINGIX. HOW THE KNIGHT TOOK HIS YOUNG WIFE WITH HIM...