THAISby ANATOLE FRANCETranslated by Robert B. DouglasCONTENTSPART I. THE LOTUSPART II. THE PAPYRUSTHE BANQUETTHE PAPYRUS (resumed)PART III. THE EUPHORBIATHAISPART THE FIRSTTHE LOTUSIn those days there were many hermits living in the desert. On bothbanks of the Nile numerous huts, built by these solitary dwellers, ofbranches held together by clay, were scattered at a little distancefrom each other, so that the inhabitants could live alone, and yethelp one another in case of need. Churches, each surmounted by a...　

ClocksClocksby Jerome K. Jerome1- Page 2-ClocksThere are two kinds of clocks. There is the clock that is alwayswrong, and that knows it is wrong, and glories in it; and there is the clockthat is always rightexcept when you rely upon it, and then it is morewrong than you would think a clock _could_ be in a civilized country.I remember a clock of this latter type, that we had in the house when I...　

Guy Manneringby Sir Walter ScottINTRODUCTION TO GUY MANNERING.The Novel or Romance of WAVERLEY made its way to the public slowly, of course, at first, but afterwards with such accumulating popularity as to encourage the author to a second attempt. He looked about for a name and a subject; and the manner in which the novels were composed cannot be better illustrated than by reciting the simple narrative on which Guy Mannering was originally founded; but to which, in the progress of the work, the production ceased to bear any, even the most distant resemblance. The tale was originally told me b　

DEDICATION OF PART IITO THE COUNT OF LEMOS:THESE days past, when sending Your Excellency my plays, that hadappeared in print before being shown on the stage, I said, if Iremember well, that Don Quixote was putting on his spurs to go andrender homage to Your Excellency. Now I say that "with his spurs, heis on his way." Should he reach destination methinks I shall haverendered some service to Your Excellency, as from many parts I amurged to send him off, so as to dispel the loathing and disgust causedby another Don Quixote who, under the name of Second Part, has run...　

Passages from an Old Volume of Lifeby Oliver W. HolmesPAGES FROM AN OLD VOLUME OF LIFE.A COLLECTION OF ESSAYSBY OLIVER WENDELL HOLMESCONTENTS:BREAD AND THE NEWSPAPERMY HUNT AFTER "THE CAPTAIN"THE INEVITABLE TRIALCINDERS FROM ASHESTHE PULPIT AND THE PEWBREAD AND THE NEWSPAPER.(September, 1861.)This is the new version of the Panem et Circenses of the Roman populace. It is our ultimatum, as that was theirs. They must have something to eat, and the circus-shows to look at. We must have something to eat, and the papers to read....　

The Patricianby John GalsworthyCHAPTER ILight, entering the vast rooma room so high that its carved ceilingrefused itself to exact scrutinytravelled, with the wistful, coldcuriosity of the dawn, over a fantastic storehouse of Time. Light,unaccompanied by the prejudice of human eyes, made strange revelationof incongruities, as though illuminating the dispassionate march ofhistory.For in this dining hallone of the finest in Englandthe Caradocfamily had for centuries assembled the trophies and records of theirexistence. Round about this dining hall they had built and pulled...　

Weir of HermistonWeir of HermistonRobert Louis Stevenson1- Page 2-Weir of HermistonTO MY WIFEI saw rain falling and the rainbow drawn On Lammermuir.Hearkening I heard again In my precipitous city beaten bells Winnow thekeen sea wind. And here afar, Intent on my own race and place, I wrote.Take thou the writing: thine it is. For who Burnished the sword, blew on...　

FAIRY TALES OF HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSENTHE BUTTERFLYby Hans Christian AndersenTHERE was once a butterfly who wished for a bride, and, as maybe supposed, he wanted to choose a very pretty one from among theflowers. He glanced, with a very critical eye, at all the flower-beds,and found that the flowers were seated quietly and demurely on theirstalks, just as maidens should sit before they are engaged; butthere was a great number of them, and it appeared as if his searchwould become very wearisome. The butterfly did not like to take too...　

The Way of the WorldThe Way of the WorldWilliam Congreve1- Page 2-The Way of the WorldTO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE RALPH, EARL OFMOUNTAGUE, ETC.My Lord,Whether the world will arraign me of vanity or not, that Ihave presumed to dedicate this comedy to your lordship, I am yet in doubt;though, it may be, it is some degree of vanity even to doubt of it. One who...　

MUGBY JUNCTIONMUGBY JUNCTIONBy Charles Dickens1- Page 2-MUGBY JUNCTIONCHAPTER IBARBOXBROTHERSI"Guard! What place is this?""Mugby Junction, sir.""A windy place!""Yes, it mostly is, sir.""And looks comfortless indeed!""Yes, it generally does, sir."...　

The Hunchbackby James Sheridan KnowlesINTRODUCTIONJames Sheridan Knowles was born at Cork in 1784, and died at Torquayin December, 1862, at the age of 78. His father was a teacher ofelocution, who compiled a dictionary, and who was related to theSheridans. He moved to London when his son was eight years old, andthere became acquainted with William Hazlitt and Charles Lamb. Theson, after his school education, obtained a commission in the army,but gave up everything for the stage, and made his first appearanceat the Crow Street Theatre, in Dublin. He did not become a great...　

The Soul of the Far EastThe Soul of the Far Eastby Percival Lowell1- Page 2-The Soul of the Far EastCHAPTER 1. Individuality.The boyish belief that on the other side of our globe all things are ofnecessity upside down is startlingly brought back to the man when he firstsets foot at Yokohama. If his initial glance does not, to be sure, disclose...　

TARTUFFE OR THE HYPOCRITETARTUFFE OR THEHYPOCRITEby JEAN BAPTISTE POQUELIN MOLIERETranslated By Curtis Hidden PageINTRODUCTORY NOTEJean Baptiste Poquelin, better known by his stage name of Moliere,stands without a rival at the head of French comedy. Born at Paris inJanuary, 1622, where his father held a position in the royal household, hewas educated at the Jesuit College de Clermont, and for some time studied...　

Sword Blades and Poppy Seedby Amy LowellPrefaceNo one expects a man to make a chair without first learning how,but there is a popular impression that the poet is born, not made,and that his verses burst from his overflowing heart of themselves.As a matter of fact, the poet must learn his trade in the same manner,and with the same painstaking care, as the cabinet-maker.His heart may overflow with high thoughts and sparkling fancies,but if he cannot convey them to his reader by means of the written wordhe has no claim to be considered a poet. A workman may be pardoned,...　

She Stoops to Conquerby Oliver GoldsmithSHE STOOPS TO CONQUER;OR,THE MISTAKES OF A NIGHT.A COMEDY.To SAMUEL JOHNSON, LL.D.Dear Sir,By inscribing this slight performance to you, I do not mean so much to compliment you as myself. It may do me some honour to inform the public, that I have lived many years in intimacy with you. It may serve the interests of mankind also to inform them, that the greatest wit may be found in a character, without impairing the most unaffected piety.I have, particularly, reason to thank you for your partiality to this performance. The undertaking a comedy not mere　

Madame BovaryBy Gustave FlaubertTranslated from the French by Eleanor Marx-AvelingTo Marie-Antoine-Jules SenardMember of the Paris Bar, Ex-President of the National Assembly,and Former Minister of the InteriorDear and Illustrious Friend,Permit me to inscribe your name at the head of this book, andabove its dedication; for it is to you, before all, that I oweits publication. Reading over your magnificent defence, my workhas acquired for myself, as it were, an unexpected authority.Accept, then, here, the homage of my gratitude, which, how greatsoever it is, will never attain the height of your