| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Polity of Athenians and Lacedaemonians by Xenophon: present the polemarchs and captains, the lieutenants and sub-
lieutenants, with the commandants of the baggage train, and any
general of the states[7] who may care to assist. There, too, are to be
seen two of the ephors, who neither meddle nor make, save only at the
summons of the king, yet have they their eyes fixed on the proceedings
of each one there and keep all in order,[8] as may well be guessed.
When the sacrifices are accomplished the king summons all and issues
his orders[9] as to what has to be done. And all with such method
that, to witness the proceedings, you might fairly suppose the rest of
the world to be but bungling experimenters,[10] and the Lacedaemonians
alone true handicraftsmen in the art of soldiering.
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Figure in the Carpet by Henry James: now given him he would doubtless be prepared to speak of it himself
he admitted freely that before doing this there was more he must
understand. What he would have said, had he reviewed the new book,
was that there was evidently in the writer's inmost art something
to BE understood. I hadn't so much as hinted at that: no wonder
the writer hadn't been flattered! I asked Corvick what he really
considered he meant by his own supersubtlety, and, unmistakeably
kindled, he replied: "It isn't for the vulgar - it isn't for the
vulgar!" He had hold of the tail of something; he would pull hard,
pull it right out. He pumped me dry on Vereker's strange
confidence and, pronouncing me the luckiest of mortals, mentioned
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Damnation of Theron Ware by Harold Frederic: comfort to have it here and look at it, and imagine
how a great master might make it speak.
"Would it be too much to beg you to look in at Thurston's,
say at eleven this forenoon, and give me the inestimable
benefit of your judgment in selecting an instrument?
"Do not trouble to answer this, for I am leaving home now,
but shall call at Thurston's at eleven, and wait.
"Thanking you in anticipation,
"I am--"
Here Theron's fluency came to a sharp halt. There were adverbs
enough and to spare on the point of his pen, but the right
The Damnation of Theron Ware |
