Non-Classifiable Books

PREFACE TO THE ENGLISH EDITION CHOLARS have been good enough to notice this book; and the majority have treated it very kindly, doubtless because they have perceived that the author has observed all the established rules of historical research and accuracy. Their kindness has touched me. I am especially grateful to MM. Gabriel Monod, Solomon Reinach and Germain Lefèvre-Pontalis, who have discovered in... more...

CHAP. I. An Inquiry into the Nature of a Voice, and in what respect it differs from the Breath. Let no Man presume, that he shall ever attain to this noble Art, if he remain Ignorant in what it is that the nature of the Letters, as well in general, as special, doth consist; for it was this very thing which gave occasion to the composing of this small Treatise: Wherefore, before I treat of the manner of... more...

Hawarden Village and Manor. Hawarden, in Flintshire, lies 6 miles West of Chester, at a height of 250 feet, overlooking a large tract of Cheshire and the Estuary of the Dee.  It is now in direct communication with the Railway world by the opening of the Hawarden and Wirral lines.  It is also easily reached from Sandycroft Station, or from Queen’s Ferry, (1½ m.)—whence the Church is plainly... more...

TO MONSIEUR DELILLE. SIR, After reading with infinite pleasure your masterly translations of Virgil, I have been led into a train of reflection on the mechanism of words, and on the manners, the ideas, and pursuits of Nations in as much as they frequently give rise to the difference of character which we remark in their language. Few literary discussions would I think be more curious than an impartial... more...

SATANISM IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY If a short time ago that ultimate and universal source of reference, the person of average intelligence, had been asked concerning Modern Diabolism, or the Question of Lucifer,—What it is? Who are its disciples? Where is it practised? And why?—he would have replied, possibly with some asperity:—“The question of Lucifer! There is no question of Lucifer. Modern... more...

ON THE SUFFERINGS OF THE WORLD. Unless suffering is the direct and immediate object of life, our existence must entirely fail of its aim. It is absurd to look upon the enormous amount of pain that abounds everywhere in the world, and originates in needs and necessities inseparable from life itself, as serving no purpose at all and the result of mere chance. Each separate misfortune, as it comes, seems,... more...

HISTORY OF THE BUILDING. Long before any church stood on the site of the present cathedral, long before the time of Albanus, who is universally allowed to have been the first Christian martyr whose blood was shed in this island, events that have found a place in the early history of Britain occurred in the immediate neighbourhood of the city we call St. Albans. Here in all probability stood the oppidum... more...

COLLEGES IN AMERICA. I. THE RISE OF UNIVERSITIES IN THE OLD WORLD. The American college system is deeply rooted in the past. It will be better understood if we trace briefly its historic connection with the ancient and European seats of learning. Higher education has been promoted among all great nations. Flourishing colleges were founded among ancient people. In the kingdoms of Judah and Israel,... more...

CHAPTER I LLOYD MEETS HERO It was in Switzerland in the old town of Geneva. The windows of the big hotel dining-room looked out on the lake, and the Little Colonel, sitting at breakfast the morning after their arrival, could scarcely eat for watching the scene outside. Gay little pleasure boats flashed back and forth on the sparkling water. The quay and bridge were thronged with people. From open... more...

ROOSEVELT AS MAN OF LETTERS In a club corner, just after Roosevelt's death, the question was asked whether his memory would not fade away, when the living man, with his vivid personality, had gone. But no: that personality had stamped itself too deeply on the mind of his generation to be forgotten. Too many observers have recorded their impressions; and already a dozen biographies and memoirs have... more...