Classics Books

Forming the northeastern border of Mexico, Tamaulipas extends in an elongated, north-south direction from the Temperate into the Torrid Zone and contains faunal elements from both the Nearctic and Neotropical regions. The mammals are less known than those from some of the bordering states; for the most part collecting has been limited to a few localities, chiefly along the Pan-American Highway.... more...

CHAPTER I. THE TAPIS-FRANC. It was on a cold and rainy night, towards the end of October, 1838, that a tall and powerful man, with an old broad-brimmed straw hat upon his head, and clad in a blue cotton carter's frock, which hung loosely over trousers of the same material, crossed the Pont au Change, and darted with a hasty step into the Cité, that labyrinth of obscure, narrow, and winding... more...

CHAPTER I. Poor little girl! How sadly came her wailing tones on the frosty air, while the multitudes that hurried past were hidden from the chilling blasts by warm and furry garments! There were some humane ones who lifted her softly from the ground, and bore her carefully to the nearest apothecary's, to examine the extent of her injuries—and a slight figure clad in the deepest weeds, followed... more...

Extract No. 1 May 5th.—Left Bristol Pa., at eight o'clock, in the Steamboat Trenton, for New York. About ninety passengers were on the way-bill, not one of which I knew. Amongst our number was the celebrated Miss Clara Fisher—famed for her aptitude in personating variety of character, having wonderful powers of mimicry. She is certainly a very interesting girl, and attracted much attention;... more...

PREFACE. I have for several years devoted many of my leisure hours to the study of the language, history, traditions, customs and superstitions of the Dakotas. These Indians are now commonly called the "Sioux"—a name given them by the early French traders and voyageurs. "Dakota" signifies alliance or confederation. Many separate bands, all having a common origin and speaking a common... more...

CHAPTER IWINTER CAMP ON THE YUKON"To labour and to be content with that a man hath is a sweet life; but he that findeth a treasure is above them both."—Ecclesiasticus. Of course they were bound for the Klondyke. Every creature in the North-west was bound for the Klondyke. Men from the South too, and men from the East, had left their ploughs and their pens, their factories, pulpits,... more...

CHAPTER I All the materials used in the manufacture of clothing are called textiles and are made of either long or short fibers. These fibers can be made into a continuous thread. When two different sets of threads are interlaced, the resulting product is called cloth. The value of any fiber for textile purposes depends entirely upon the possession of such qualities as firmness, length, curl, softness,... more...

CHAPTER I A MAN AND A MAID The train drew to a halt at the Junction. There was a fine jolt that ran the length of the cars, followed by a clank of couplings and a half-intelligible call from the conductor. The passengers,—dusty, jaded, crossly annoyed at the need of changing cars,—gathered up their luggage and filed out onto the bare, roofless station platform. There, after a look down the long... more...

THE HUNGRY CAMP The mountain countries of all the earth have always been wonder-lands. The oldest and best known of them are to this day full of things that nobody has found out. That is the reason why people are always exploring them, but they keep their secrets remarkably well, particularly the great secret of how they happened to get there in that shape. The great western mountain country of the... more...

INTRODUCTION I Gerhart Hauptmann, the most distinguished of modern German dramatists, was born in the Silesian village of Obersalzbrunn on November 15, 1862. By descent he springs immediately from the common people of his native province to whose life he has so often given the graveness of tragedy and the permanence of literature. His grandfather, Ehrenfried, felt in his own person the bitter fate of... more...