The Paths of Inland Commerce, A Chronicle of Trail, Road, and WaterwayBy Archer B. HulbertPREFACEIf the great American novel is ever written, I hazard the guess that its plot will be woven around the theme of American transportation, for that has been the vital factor in the national development of the United States. Every problem in the building of the Republic has been, in the last analysis, a problem in transportation. The author of such a novel will find a rich fund of material in the perpetual rivalries of pack-horseman and wagoner, of riverman and canal boatman, of steamboat promoter and railway capitalist. He will find at every point the old jostling and challenging the new pack-hors　

THE ADVENTURES OF REDDY FOXTHE ADVENTURES OFREDDY FOXBY THORNTON W. BURGESS1- Page 2-THE ADVENTURES OF REDDY FOXI. Granny Fox Gives Reddy a ScareReddy Fox lived with Granny Fox. You see, Reddy was one of a largefamily, so large that Mother Fox had hard work to feed so many hungrylittle mouths and so she had let Reddy go to live with old Granny Fox.Granny Fox was the wisest, slyest, smartest fox in all the country round,and now that Reddy had grown so big, she thought it about time that he...　

The Ancien Regimeby Charles KingsleyPREFACEThe rules of the Royal Institution forbid (and wisely) religious orpolitical controversy. It was therefore impossible for me in theseLectures, to say much which had to be said, in drawing a just andcomplete picture of the Ancien Regime in France. The passagesinserted between brackets, which bear on religious matters, wereaccordingly not spoken at the Royal Institution.But more. It was impossible for me in these Lectures, to bringforward as fully as I could have wished, the contrast between thecontinental nations and England, whether now, or during theeighteenth century. But that contrast cannot be too carefully...　

Tartuffe or the Hypocriteby 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 royalhousehold, he was educated at the Jesuit College de Clermont, and forsome time studied law, which he soon abandoned for the stage. His lifewas spent in Paris and in the provinces, acting, directingperformances, managing theaters, and writing plays. He had his shareof applause from the king and from the public; but the satire in hiscomedies made him many enemies, and he was the object of the mos　

Letters to His Son, 1752by The Earl of ChesterfieldLETTERS TO HIS SONBy the EARL OF CHESTERFIELDon the Fine Art of becoming aMAN OF THE WORLDand aGENTLEMANLETTER CLVLONDON, January 2, O. S. 1752.MY DEAR FRIEND: Laziness of mind, or inattention, are as great enemies to knowledge as incapacity; for, in truth, what difference is there between a man who will not, and a man who cannot be informed? This difference only, that the former is justly to be blamed, the latter to be pitied. And yet how many there are, very capable of receiving knowledge, who from laziness, inattention, and incuriousness, will not so much as ask for it, much less take the least pains to acquire it!...　

　　　　"He who makes a beast of himself gets rid of the pain of being a man."　　Dr. Johnson　　PART ONE　　　　We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold. I remember saying something like "I feel a bit lightheaded; maybe you should drive... ." And suddenly there was a terrible roar all around us and the sky was full of what looked like huge bats, all swooping and screeching and diving around the car, which was going about a hundred miles an hour with the top down to Las Vegas. And a voice was screaming: "Holy Jesus! What are these goddamn animals?" Then it was quiet again. My attorney had taken his shirt off and was pouring beer on his chest, to facil　

　　William Blake　　　　"Nature does not premeditate; she does not use mathematics; she does not deliberately produce whole patterns, she lets whole patterns produce themselves. Nature does what nature demands; she is beyond blame and responsibility."　　Peter S. StevensPatterns in NatureOne　　Sunday, November 23　　Paradise, Pennsylvania　　3:00 a.m.　　　　The thing Boonie loved most about dumping off Black Bridge was how altogether goddam convenient it was. Take, for example, the traveling time. Even with miniature minefields of ice booby-trapping the backroads of Hellam, he figured ten minutes tops in the old Dodge truck to hump a full load of barrels from there to here....　

BEASTS AND SUPER-BEASTSBEASTS AND SUPER-BEASTSH. H. MUNRO ("SAKI")1- Page 2-BEASTS AND SUPER-BEASTSTHE SHE-WOLFLEONARD BILSITER was one of those people who have failed tofind this world attractive or interesting, and who have soughtcompensation in an "unseen world" of their own experience orimagination - or invention. Children do that sort of thing successfully,...　

The Unbearable Bassingtonby "Saki" [H. H. Munro]CHAPTER IFRANCESCA BASSINGTON sat in the drawing-room of her house in BlueStreet, W., regaling herself and her estimable brother Henry withChina tea and small cress sandwiches. The meal was of that elegantproportion which, while ministering sympathetically to the desiresof the moment, is happily reminiscent of a satisfactory luncheonand blessedly expectant of an elaborate dinner to come.In her younger days Francesca had been known as the beautiful MissGreech; at forty, although much of the original beauty remained,she was just dear Francesca Bassington. No one would have dreamed...　

BruceBruceAlbert Payson Terhune1- Page 2-BruceWho are far wiser in their way and far better in every way, than I; andyet who have not the wisdom to know it Who do not merely think I amperfect, but who are calmly and permanently convinced of my perfection;--and this in spite of fifty disillusions a day Who are frantically happy atmy coming and bitterly woebegone in my absence Who never bore me andnever are bored by me Who never talk about themselves and who alwayslisten with rapturous interest to anything I may say Who, having no...　

　　Book One　　Chapter 01　　Behind every great fortune there is a crime.　BALZAC　Amerigo Bonasera sat in New York Criminal Court Number 3 and waited for justice; vengeance on the men who had so cruelly hurt his daughter, who had tried to dishonor her.　　The judge, a formidably heavy-featured man, rolled up the sleeves of his black robe as if to physically chastise the two young men standing before the bench. His face was cold with majestic contempt. But there was something false in all this that Amerigo Bonasera sensed but did not yet understand.　　"You acted like the worst kind of degenerates," the judge said harshly. Yes, yes, thought Amerigo Bonasera. Animals. Animals. The two young men, glossy　

OWL POSTHarry Potter was a highly unusual boy in many ways. For one thing, he hated the summer holidays more than any other time of year. For another, he really wanted to do his homework but was forced to do it in secret, in the dead of night. And he also happened to be a wizard.It was nearly midnight, and he was lying on his stomach in bed, the blankets drawn right over his head like a tent, a flashlight in one hand and a large leather-bound book (A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot) propped open against the pillow. Harry moved the tip of his eagle-feather quill down the page, frowning as he looked for something that would help him write his essay, "Witch Burning in the Fourteenth Ce