Non-Classifiable Books

CHAPTER I. Origin.—The native country of the Peanut (Arachis hypogæa) is not definitely ascertained. Like many other extensively cultivated plants, it has not been found in a truly wild state. Some botanists regard the plant as a native of Africa, and brought to the New World soon after its discovery. Sloane, in his history of Jamaica, states that peanuts formed a part of the provisions taken by the... more...

"It is but a step from Confucius to confusion," said I, in a brief discussion of the Chinese question. "Then let us take it by all means," replied the artist, who had been an indulgent listener for at least ten minutes. We were strolling upon the verge of the Chinese Quarter in San Francisco, and, turning aside from one of the chief thoroughfares of the city, we plunged into the busiest... more...

CHAPTER I. DEFOE'S YOUTH AND EARLY PURSUITS. The life of a man of letters is not as a rule eventful. It may be rich in spiritual experiences, but it seldom is rich in active adventure. We ask his biographer to tell us what were his habits of composition, how he talked, how he bore himself in the discharge of his duties to his family, his neighbors, and himself; what were his beliefs on the great... more...

THE ANTEROOM Fourteen years ago the writer of this volume entered the temple of Freemasonry, and that date stands out in memory as one of the most significant days in his life. There was a little spread on the night of his raising, and, as is the custom, the candidate was asked to give his impressions of the Order. Among other things, he made request to know if there was any little book which would... more...

This little opera, composed by Weber in his early youth and first represented at Dresden under the composer's own direction, for a time fell into utter oblivion, but has lately been reproduced. Though short and unpretending it really deserves to be heard, the music is so full of sweetness, so fresh and pretty. The text is taken from a tale of the Arabian Thousand and One Nights, and though full of... more...

Of Our Spiritual Strivings O water, voice of my heart, crying in the sand,All night long crying with a mournful cry,As I lie and listen, and cannot understandThe voice of my heart in my side or the voice of the sea,O water, crying for rest, is it I, is it I?All night long the water is crying to me. Unresting water, there shall never be restTill the last moon droop and the last tide fail,And the fire of... more...

CHAPTER I THE ESSENTIAL FALLACIES OF MALTHUSIAN TEACHING Section 1. MALTHUS AND THE NEO-MALTHUSIANS Birth control, in the sense of the prevention of pregnancy by chemical, mechanical, or other artificial means, is being widely advocated as a sure method of lessening poverty and of increasing the physical and mental health of the nation. It is, therefore, advisable to examine these claims and the... more...

The growing interest in the popular tales of Europe has led me to believe that a selection from those of Italy would be entertaining to the general reader, and valuable to the student of comparative folk-lore. The stories which, with but few exceptions, are here presented for the first time to the English reader, have been translated from recent Italian collections, and are given exactly as they were... more...

A FRIENDLY FEUD   EAN CABOT "lived around." She did not live around because nobody wanted her, however; on the contrary, she lived around because so many people wanted her. Both her father and mother had died when Jean was a baby and so until she was twelve years old she had been brought up by a cousin of her mother's. Then the cousin had married a missionary and had gone to teach the... more...

INTRODUCTION "WEDNESDAY 19 JANUARY [1763]. This was a day eagerly expected by Dempster, Erskine, and I, as it was fixed as the period of our gratifying a whim proposed by me: which was that on the first day of the new Tragedy called Elvira's being acted, we three should walk from the one end of London to the other, dine at Dolly's, & be in the Theatre at night; & as the Play would... more...