| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from The Octopus by Frank Norris: land? By God, gentlemen, law or no law, railroad or no
railroad, I--WILL--NOT."
"Nor I."
"Nor I."
"Nor I."
"This is the last. Legal means first; if those fail--the
shotgun."
"They can kill me. They can shoot me down, but I'll die--die
fighting for my home--before I'll give in to this."
At length Annixter made himself heard:
"All out of the room but the ranch owners," he shouted. "Hooven,
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from War and the Future by H. G. Wells: English, the Russians, the Italians, nor the French, to name only
the bigger European allies, are concerned in setting up a legend,
as the Germans are concerned in setting up a legend of themselves
to impose upon mankind. They are reality dealers in this war,
and the Germans are effigy mongers. Practically the Allies are
saying each to one another, "Pray come to me and see for yourself
that I am very much the human stuff that you are. Come and see
that I am doing my best--and I think that is not so very bad a
best...." And with that is something else still more subtle,
something rather in the form of, "And please tell me what you
think of me--and all this."
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Christ in Flanders by Honore de Balzac: despair. The narrator believes in it, as all superstitious minds in
Flanders likewise believe; and is not a whit wiser nor more credulous
than his audience. But as it would be impossible to make a harmony of
all the different renderings, here are the outlines of the story;
stripped, it may be, of its picturesque quaintness, but with all its
bold disregard of historical truth, and its moral teachings approved
by religion--a myth, the blossom of imaginative fancy; an allegory
that the wise may interpret to suit themselves. To each his own
pasturage, and the task of separating the tares from the wheat.
The boat that served to carry passengers from the Island of Cadzand to
Ostend was upon the point of departure; but before the skipper loosed
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