BEAUTY AND THE BLOSSOMS Every one of the field people in Pleasant Valley, and the forest folk as well, was different from his neighbors. For instance, there was Jasper Jay. He was the noisiest chap for miles around. And there was Peter Mink. Without doubt he was the rudest and most rascally fellow in the whole district. Then there was Freddie Firefly, who was the brightest youngster on the farm—at... more...

HARRY'S HORN-BOOK. BOY CAT. DOG. JUG. COW. PIG. BED. FOX. COCK. DUCK. MILL. GOAT. STAG. ROSE. HARE. BEAR. LAMP. HOUSE. CLOCK. PEARS. GOOSE. HORSE. SHEEP. CHAIR. KNIFE. FORK. SPOON. RAKE, HOE, AND SPADE. GRAPES. BRIDGE. CHURCH. LION. SOFA. APPLE. BASIN. TABLE. PANSY. ROBIN. CAMEL. DONKEY. PIGEON. MONKEY. TURKEY. RABBIT. WAGGON. TEAPOT. SPARROW. FUSCHIA. PHEASANT. FILBERTS. WOODCOCK. COFFEE POT.... more...

NOBLE SOCIETY OFCOLLEDGE-YOUTHS. Gentlemen, I have seen a Treatise intituled, de Tintinnabulis—that is, of little Bells, the Language Latin, but pen'd by a Dutchman, being a Discourse of striking tunes on little Bells with traps under the feet, with several Books on several Instruments of Music, and Tunes prick't for the same; Then considering that the Well-wishers to either of them, took... more...

While "The Choir Invisible" was primarily a love story, the setting in which its action moved was historical. Apart from the masterly handling of human passion and the harmony of thought and expression with which he has treated the larger and deeper movements of life, it is probably Mr. Allen's ability to picture forth the early settlement of Kentucky that has given his writings so solid a... more...

CHAPTER I ON WAGNER CRITICISM A new work on Wagner requires some justification. It might be urged that, since the Meister has been dead for some decades and the violence of party feeling may be assumed to have somewhat abated, we are now in a position to form a sober estimate of his work, to review his aims, and judge of his measure of success. Such, however, is not my purpose in the following pages. I... more...

First, the Statement So bountiful hath been the earth and so securely have we drawn from it our substance, that we have taken it all for granted as if it were only a gift, and with little care or conscious thought of the consequences of our use of it; nor have we very much considered the essential relation that we bear to it as living parts in the vast creation. It is good to think of ourselves—of... more...

CHAPTER I. Mr. Ruskin has it that we are all kings and queens, possessing realms and treasuries. However this may be, it is certain that there are souls born to reign over the hearts of their fellows, kings walking about the world in broad-cloth and fustian, shooting-jackets, ulsters, and what not—swaying hearts at will, though it may be all unconscious of their power; and only the existence of some... more...

CHAPTER 1 — Pudd'nhead Wins His Name Tell the truth or trump—but get the trick.—Pudd'nheadWilson's Calendar The scene of this chronicle is the town of Dawson's Landing, on the Missouri side of the Mississippi, half a day's journey, per steamboat, below St. Louis. In 1830 it was a snug collection of modest one- and two-story frame... more...

CHAPTER I "Boy, come here!" Squire Walker was a very pompous man; one of the most notable persons in the little town of Redfield, which, the inquiring young reader will need to be informed, as it is not laid down on any map of Massachusetts that I am acquainted with, is situated thirty-one miles southwest of Boston. I am not aware that Redfield was noted for anything in particular, unless it... more...

CHAPTER I When Lilly Becker eked out with one hand that most indomitable of pianoforte selections, Rubinstein's "Melody in F," her young mind had a habit of transcending itself into some such illusory realm as this: Springtime seen lacily through a phantasmagoria of song. A very floral sward. Fountains that tossed up coloratura bubbles of sheerest aria and a sort of Greek frieze of youth... more...