Classics Books

I CHILDREN i Anne Severn had come again to the Fieldings. This time it was because her mother was dead. She hadn't been in the house five minutes before she asked "Where'sJerrold?" "Fancy," they said, "her remembering." And Jerrold had put his head in at the door and gone out again when he saw her there in her black frock; and somehow she had known he was afraid to... more...

CHAPTER I THE AGORA The sun had risen in all its splendour, and was flooding the bay and mountains with silvery light. The river Cayster moved on its course, and mixed its waters with the blue of the Ægean Sea, and washed the shores of Samos, appearing like a purple vision on the ocean. Boats and ships of quaint form and gorgeous colouring, propelled by a gentle breeze, moved to and fro, and glided up... more...

THE BANKRUPT. Oft have you pray’d me, when in youth,Never to err from paths of truth;But youth to vice is much too prone,And mine by far too much, I own.Induced to riot, swear, and game,I thought in vice t’acquire a fame;But found the pois’ning scenes of riotSoon robb’d my mind of joy and quiet.The usual course of rakes I ran,The dupe of woman and of man.Careless of fortune’s smile or... more...

INTRODUCTION For eight years or more, since I first became acquainted with the novels and tales of John Trevena it has been my firm conviction that only Thomas Hardy and George Moore among contemporary novelists rival his art at its best. Like Meredith, he has written for twenty years in obscurity, and like Meredith also he has been content with a small discriminating audience. I suppose that in 1950... more...

The simplest formula for the new conception of morality, which is beginning to be opposed to moral dogma still esteemed by all society, but especially by women, might be summed up in these words: Love is moral even without legal marriage, but marriage is immoral without love. The customary objection to this tenet is that those who propose it forget all other ethical duties and legitimate feelings in... more...

THE DEPUTATION Has the age of miracle quite gone by, or is it still possible to the Voice of Faith calling aloud upon the earth to wring from the dumb heavens an audible answer to its prayer? Does the promise uttered by the Master of mankind upon the eve of the end—"Whoso that believeth in Me, the works that I do he shall do also . . . and whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, that will I... more...

THE RESCUE. If it were done, when 'tis done, then 'twere well It were done quickly.—Macbeth. "Quick, boys, and be careful that they don't see your heads." Four men were moving along under the bank of the Miami, with their bodies bent, at a gait that was almost rapid enough to be called a run. They were constantly raising their heads and peering over the bank, as though watching... more...

A WAIF OF THE SEA "It's goin' to be a nasty night," said Uncle Terry, coming in from the shed and dumping an armful of wood in the box behind the kitchen stove, "an' the combers is just a-humpin' over White Hoss Ledge, an' the spray's flyin' half way up the lighthouse." "The Lord-a-massy help any poor soul that goes ashore to-night," responded... more...

CHAPTER I. IN THE SUPERINTENDENT'S OFFICE.   The monster department store of Messrs. Denton, Day & Co. was thronged with shoppers, although the morning was still young. Scores of pale-faced women and narrow-chested men stood behind the counters, while "cash girls," with waxen cheeks and scrawny figures, darted here and there on their ceaseless errands. On the fifth floor of the... more...

INTRODUCTION.    "From each carved nook, and fretted bend,   Cornice and gallery, seem to send   Tones that with Seraph hymns might blend.    "Three solemn parts together twine,   In Harmony's mysterious line,   Three solemn aisles approach the shrine.    "Yet all are one, together all,   With thoughts that awe but not appal,   Teach the adoring heart to... more...