| The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from When a Man Marries by Mary Roberts Rinehart: and Aunt Selina sat on a stiff-backed chair and took aromatic
spirits of ammonia. As for Jim, he had collapsed on the lowest
step of the stairs, and sat there with his head in his hands.
When he did look up, he didn't dare to look at me.
The Harbison man was arguing with the impassive individual on the
top step outside, and I saw him get out his pocketbook and offer
a crisp bundle of bills. But the man from the board of health
only smiled and tacked at his offensive sign. After a while Mr.
Harbison came in and closed the door, and we stared at one
another.
"I know what I'm going to do," I said, swallowing a lump in my
|
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from End of the Tether by Joseph Conrad: that had passed through the Sofala for years and years
back. He remembered the names of men that had died,
that had gone home, that had gone to America: he
remembered in his cups the names of men whose con-
nection with the ship had been so short that Massy had
almost forgotten its circumstances and could barely re-
call their faces. The inebriated voice on the other side
of the bulkhead commented upon them all with an ex-
traordinary and ingenious venom of scandalous inven-
tions. It seems they had all offended him in some way,
and in return he had found them all out. He muttered
End of the Tether |
