A Greek Beauty

A Greek Beauty
A Lily Pond
Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder
American Day Dream
¡¡¡¡`One person begins a story, any nonsense you like, and tells as long as he pleases, only taking care to stop short at some exciting point, when the next takes it up and does the same. It's very funny when well done, and makes a perfect jumble of tragical comical stuff to laugh over. Please start it, Mr. Brooke,' said Kate with a commanding air, which surprised Meg, who treated the tutor with as much respect as any other gentleman. ¡¡¡¡Lying on the grass at the feet of the two young ladies, Mr. Brooke obediently began the story, with the handsome brown eyes steadily fixed
oil painting
upon the sunshiny river. ¡¡¡¡`Once upon a time a knight went out into the world to seek his fortune, for he had nothing but his sword and his shield. He travelled a long while, nearly eight-and-twenty years, and had a hard time of it, till he came to the palace of a good old king, who had offered a reward to any who would tame and train a fine but unbroken colt of which he was very fond. The knight agreed to try, and got on slowly but surely; for the colt was a gallant fellow, and soon learned to love his new master, though he was freakish and wild. Everyday, when he gave his lessons to this pet of the king's, the knight rode him through the city; and, as he rode, he looked everywhere

A Greek Beauty

A Greek Beauty
A Lily Pond
Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder
American Day Dream
¡¡¡¡ "Now we'll go back," said Arabella, who had attended to the sounds. ¡¡¡¡ Jude assented. So long as he was near her he minded little where he was. When they arrived at her house he said lingeringly: "I won't come in. Why are you in such a hurry to go in to-night? It is not near dark." ¡¡¡¡ "Wait a moment," said she. She tried the handle of the door and found it locked. ¡¡¡¡ "Ah--they are gone to church," she added. And searching behind the scraper she found the key and unlocked the door. "Now, you'll come in a moment?" she asked lightly. "We shall be all alone." ¡¡¡¡ "Certainly," said Jude with alacrity, the case being unexpectedly
oil paintingaltered. ¡¡¡¡ Indoors they went. Did he want any tea? No, it was too late: he would rather sit and talk to her. She took off her jacket and hat, and they sat down--naturally enough close together. ¡¡¡¡ "Don't touch me, please," she said softly. "I am part egg-shell. Or perhaps I had better put it in a safe place." She began unfastening the collar of her gown. ¡¡¡¡ "What is it?" said her lover. ¡¡¡¡ "An egg--a cochin's egg. I am hatching a very rare sort. I carry it about everywhere with me, and it will get hatched in less than three weeks." ¡¡¡¡ "Where do you carry it?"

A Greek Beauty

A Greek Beauty
A Lily Pond
Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder
American Day Dream
I do not find it easy to get sufficiently far away from this Book, in the first sensations of having finished it, to refer to it with the composure which this formal heading would seem to require. My interest in it, is so recent and strong; and my mind is so divided between pleasure and regret - pleasure in the achievement of a long design, regret in the separation from many companions - that I am in danger of wearying the reader whom I love, with personal confidences, and private emotions. ¡¡¡¡Besides which, all that I could say of the Story, to any purpose, I have endeavoured to say in it. ¡¡¡¡It would concern the reader little, perhaps, to know, how sorrowfully the pen is laid down at the close of a two-years' imaginative task; or how an Author feels as if he were dismissing some portion of himself into the shadowy world, when a crowd of the creatures of his brain are going from him for ever. Yet, I have nothing else to tell; unless, indeed, I were to confess (which might be of less moment still) that no one can ever believe this Narrative, in the reading, more than I have believed it in the writing.

A Greek Beauty

A Greek Beauty
Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder
American Day Dream
is wonderful," -- replied Wickham, -- "for almost all his actions may be traced to pride; -- and pride has often been his best friend. It has connected him nearer with virtue than any other feeling. But we are none of us consistent; and in his behaviour to me, there were stronger impulses even than pride." ¡¡¡¡"Can such abominable pride as his, have ever done him good?" ¡¡¡¡"Yes. It has often led him to be liberal and generous, -- to give his money freely, to display hospitality, to assist his tenants, and relieve the poor. Family pride, and filial pride, for he is very proud of what his father was, have done this. Not to appear to disgrace his family, to degenerate from the popular qualities, or lose the influence of the Pemberley House, is a powerful motive. He has also brotherly pride, which with some brotherly affection, makes him a very kind and careful guardian of his sister; and you will hear him generally cried up as the most attentive and best of brothers." ¡¡¡¡"What sort of a girl is Miss Darcy,?" ¡¡¡¡He shook his head. -- "I wish I could call her amiable. It gives me pain to speak ill of a Darcy. But she is too much like her brother, -- very, very proud. -- As a child, she was affectionate and pleasing, and extremely fond of me; and I have devoted hours and hours to her amusement. But she is nothing to me now. She is a handsome girl, about fifteen or sixteen, and, I understand, highly accomplished. Since her father's death, her home has been London, where a lady lives with her, and superintends her education."

A Greek Beauty

A Greek Beauty
A Lily Pond
Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder
American Day Dream
; so I was forc'd to give it over; and yet, though I gave over the Hopes of the Boat, my desire to venture over for the Main increased, rather than decreased, as the Means for it seem'd impossible.
This at length put me upon thinking, Whether it was not possible to make my self a Canoe, or Periagua, such as the Natives of those Climates make, even without Tools, or, as I might say, without Hands, viz. of the Trunk of a great Tree. This I not only thought possible, but easy, and pleas'd my self extreamly with the Thoughts of making it, and with my having much more Convenience for it than any of the Negroes or Indians; but not at all considering the particular Inconveniences which I lay under, more than the Indians did, viz.Want of Hands to move it, when it was made, into the Water, a Difficulty much harder for me to surmount, than all the Consequences of Want of Tools could be to them; for what was it to me, That when I had chosen a vast Tree in the Woods, I might with much Trouble cut it down, if after I might be able with my Tools to hew and dub the Out-side into the proper Shape of a Boat, and burn or cut out the In-side to make it hollow, so to make a Boat of it: If after all this, I must leave it just there where I found it, and was not able to launch it into the Water.

A Greek Beauty

A Greek Beauty
Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder
American Day Dream
¡¡¡¡`Dear me, how romantic!' exclaimed Meg. ¡¡¡¡`How silly!' said Jo. `Let him be a musician, if he wants to, and not plague his life out sending him to college, when he hates to go.' ¡¡¡¡ ¡¡¡¡`'That's why he has such handsome black eyes and pretty manners, I suppose. Italians are always nice,' said Meg, who was a little sentimental. ¡¡¡¡`What do you know about his eyes and his manners? You never spoke to him, hardly,' cried Jo, who was not sentimental. ¡¡¡¡`I saw him at the party, and what you tell shows that he knows how to behave. That was a nice little speech about the medicine Mother sent him.' ¡¡¡¡`He meant the blancmange, I suppose.' ¡¡¡¡`How stupid you are, child! He meant you, of course.' ¡¡¡¡`Did he?' and Jo opened her eyes as if it had never occurred to her before. ¡¡¡¡`I never saw such a girl! You don't know a compliment when you get it,' said Meg, with the air of a young lady who knew all about the matter. ¡¡¡¡`I think they are great nonsense, and I'll thank you not to be silly, and spoil my fun. Laurie's a nice boy, and I like him, and I won't have any sentimental stuff about compliments and such rubbish. We'll all be good to him, because he hasn't got any mother, and he may come over and see us, mayn't he, Marmee?' ¡¡¡¡`Yes, Jo, your little friend is very welcome, and I hope Meg will remember that children should be children as long as they can.' ¡¡¡¡`I don't call myself a child, and I'm not in my teens yet,' observed Amy. `What do you say, Beth?'

A Greek Beauty

A Greek Beauty
A Lily Pond
Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder
American Day Dream
Then she gave a slight shiver.
"One forgets," she said. "The boys have been having such fun that one almost thought of it all as a game. But it's not a game."
"No," said Miss Marple. "Murder isn't a game."
She was silent for a moment or two before she said:
"Don't the boys go back to school soon?"
"Yes, next week. They go tomorrow to James Stoddart-West's home for the last few days of the holidays."
"I'm glad of that," said Miss Marple gravely. "I shouldn't like anything to happen while they're there."
"You mean to old Mr. Crackenthorpe. Do you think he's going to be murdered next?"
"Oh, no," said Miss Marple. "He'll be all right. I meant to the boys."
"To the boys?"
"Well, to Alexander."
"But surely –"
"Hunting about, you know – looking for clues. Boys love that sort of things – but it might be very dangerous."
Craddock looked at her thoughtfully.
"You're not prepared to believe, are you, Miss Marple, that it's a case of an unknown woman murdered by an unknown man? You tie it up definitely connection, yes."
"I think there's a definite connection, yes."
"All we know about the murderer is that he's a tall dark man. That's what your friend says and all she can say. There are three tall dark men at Rutherford Hall. On the day of the inquest, you know, I came out to see the three brothers standing waiting on the pavement for the car to draw up. They had their backs to me and it was astonishing how, in their heavy overcoats, they looked all alike. Three tall dark men. And yet, actually, they're all three quite different types." He sighed. "It makes it very difficult."
"I wonder," murmured Miss Marple. "I have been wondering – whether it might perhaps be all much simpler than we suppose. Murders so often are quite simple - with an obvious rather sordid motive…."
"Do you believe in the mysterious Martine, Miss Marple?"
"I'm quite ready to believe that Edmund Crackenthorpe either married, or meant to marry, a girl called Martine. Emma Crackenthorpe showed you his letter, I understand, and from what I've seen of her and from what Lucy tells me, I should say Emma Crackenthorpe is quite incapable of making up a thing of that kind - indeed, why should she?"