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Then, cautiously, and with many misgivings as to whether it was not a
mad act that I was attempting, I climbed slowly down, using the rope as
a support, until I reached the hole. Here, still holding on to the rope,
I stood, and peered in. All was perfectly dark, and not a sound came to
me. Yet, a moment later, it seem... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
All this time, the water in the Pit had been creeping slowly up, and
now stood but a little below the opening. At the rate at which it was
rising, it would be level with the floor in less than another week; and
I realized that, unless I carried out my investigations soon, I should
probably never do so at all; as the w... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
For the first minute, I could hear the melancholy sound of Pepper's
howling, coming down to me. Gradually, as I penetrated further into the
darkness, it grew fainter; until, in a little while, I could hear
nothing. The path tended downward somewhat, and to the left. Thence it
kept on, still running to the left, until ... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
For some minutes we went slowly along; the path still leading straight
toward the house. Soon, I concluded, we should be standing right beneath
it, did the path but carry far enough. I led the way, cautiously, for
another fifty yards, or so. Then, I stopped, and held the light high;
and reason enough I had to be thank... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
I knew, then, that the depth of the hole must be immense; for the
stone, had it struck anything, was large enough to have set the echoes
of that weird place, whispering for an indefinite period. Even as it
was, the cavern had given back the sounds of my footfalls,
multitudinously. The place was awesome, and I would wi... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Again, Pepper gave vent to that deep-drawn howl, and, running at me,
seized my coat, and attempted to drag me up the path toward the
entrance. With a nervous gesture, I shook him off, and crossed quickly
over to the left-hand wall. If anything were coming, I was going to have
the wall at my back.
Then, as I stared anx... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Of Pepper, I knew nothing at first. I had all I could do to keep on my
legs; and was overjoyed, when he appeared beside me. He was wading
manfully along. He is a big dog, with longish thin legs, and I suppose
the water had less grasp on them, than upon mine. Anyway, he managed a
great deal better than I did; going ahe... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Perhaps a minute passed, during which it was touch and go with me;
then, gradually I re-commenced my tortuous way up the passage. And so
began the grimmest fight with death, from which ever I hope to emerge
victorious. Slowly, furiously, almost hopelessly, I strove; and that
faithful Pepper led me, dragged me, upward ... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
It had stopped raining, but the trees still dripped, dismally. From the
Pit, came a continuous murmur of running water. I felt cold and shivery.
My clothes were sodden, and I ached all over. Very slowly, the life came
back into my numbed leg, and, after a little, I essayed to stand up.
This, I managed, at the second a... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Strange--in the knowledge of that underground hell-hole--how apposite
has been the naming of the Pit. One wonders how it originated, and when.
Naturally, one concludes that the shape and depth of the ravine would
suggest the name 'Pit.' Yet, is it not possible that it has, all along,
held a deeper significance, a hint... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Seeing that it was useless to expect to make out anything, with the
light so high, I felt in my pockets for a piece of twine, with which to
lower it further into the opening. Even as I fumbled, the lantern
slipped from my fingers, and hurtled down into the darkness. For a brief
instant, I watched its fall, and saw the... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
This idea of some intangible force being exerted, may seem reasonless.
Yet, my instinct warns me, that it is not so. In these things, reason
seems to me less to be trusted than instinct.
One thought there is, in closing, that impresses itself upon me, with
ever growing insistence. It is, that I live in a very strange ... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Gradually, the mistiness increased; growing, as it were, out of
nothing. Then, slowly, a soft, white light began to glow in the room.
The flames of the candles shone through it, palely. I looked from side
to side, and found that I could still see each piece of furniture; but
in a strangely unreal way, more as though t... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
"At her perverseness, I grew desperate, and essayed to wade out to her;
yet, though I would, I could not. Something, some invisible barrier,
held me back, and I was fain to stay where I was, and cry out to her in
the fullness of my soul, 'O, my Darling, my Darling--' but could say no
more, for very intensity. And, at ... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
The speed of the planets, appeared to increase; and, presently, I was
watching the sun, all ringed about with hair-like circles of different
colored fire--the paths of the planets, hurtling at mighty speed, about
the central flame....
"... the sun grew vast, as though it leapt to meet me.... And now I was
within the c... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Gradually, the whirring noise decreased, and there came a long silence.
All at once, a glow lit up the end window, which protrudes far out from
the side of the house, so that, from it, one may look both East and
West. I felt puzzled, and, after a moment's hesitation, walked across
the room, and pulled aside the blind.... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
About this time, the buzzing in the corner ceased; telling me that the
clock had run down. A few minutes passed, and I saw the Eastward sky
lighten. A grey, sullen morning spread through all the darkness, and hid
the march of the stars. Overhead, there moved, with a heavy, everlasting
rolling, a vast, seamless sky of ... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
And, in the midst of this storm, the night came; and then, within the
space of another minute, the storm had passed, and there was only the
constant 'blur' of the world-noise on my hearing. Overhead, the stars
were sliding quickly Westward; and something, mayhaps the particular
speed to which they had attained, brough... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
The last three passages of the sun had shown me a snow-covered earth,
which, at night, had seemed, for a few seconds, incredibly weird under
the fast-shifting light of the soaring and falling moon. Now, however,
for a little space, the sky was hidden, by a sea of swaying,
leaden-white clouds, which lightened and black... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
For the space of, perhaps a minute, I stared down at the shapeless
heap, that had once been Pepper. I stood, feeling stunned. What can have
happened? I asked myself; not at once grasping the grim significance of
that little hill of ash. Then, as I stirred the heap with my foot, it
occurred to me that this could only h... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
For a little while, I paced, tremulously, between the window and the
table; my gaze wandering hither and thither, uneasily. How dilapidated
the room was. Everywhere lay the thick dust--thick, sleepy, and black.
The fender was a shape of rust. The chains that held the brass
clock-weights, had rusted through long ago, a... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Quicker, and ever quicker, ran the flicker of day and night; and,
suddenly it seemed, I was aware that the flicker had died out, and,
instead, there reigned a comparatively steady light, which was shed upon
all the world, from an eternal river of flame that swung up and down,
North and South, in stupendous, mighty swi... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Everything about me appeared to be growing dim. It was all so strange
and unthought of. Last night, I was a comparatively strong, though
elderly man; and now, only a few hours later--! I looked at the little
dust-heap that had once been Pepper. Hours! and I laughed, a feeble,
bitter laugh; a shrill, cackling laugh, th... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Suddenly, it struck me, with a sort of grotesque seriousness, that I
was still alive. I thought of Pepper, and wondered how it was that I had
not followed his fate. He had reached the time of his dying, and had
passed, probably through sheer length of years. And here was I, alive,
hundreds of thousands of centuries af... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
As these thoughts wandered through my brain, I glanced again, casually,
to where the chair had stood. Then, for the first time, I noticed that
there were no marks, in the dust, of my footprints, between it and the
window. But then, ages of years had passed, since I had awaked--tens of
thousands of years!
My look reste... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Presently, I began a survey of the room. Now, I saw that time was
beginning its destructive work, even on this strange old building. That
it had stood through all the years was, it seemed to me, proof that it
was something different from any other house. I do not think, somehow,
that I had thought of its decaying. Tho... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
And so, by millions of years, time winged onward through eternity, to
the end--the end, of which, in the old-earth days, I had thought
remotely, and in hazily speculative fashion. And now, it was approaching
in a manner of which none had ever dreamed.
I recollect that, about this time, I began to have a lively, though... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Then, for the first time, there flashed across me, the memory that the
sun, with its system of planets, was, and had been, traveling through
space at an incredible speed. Abruptly, the question rose--_Where?_ For
a very great time, I pondered this matter; but, finally, with a certain
sense of the futility of my puzzli... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
An indefinite period passed, and it seemed that the arc of fire became
less sharply defined. It appeared to me to grow more attenuated, and I
thought blackish streaks showed, occasionally. Presently, as I watched,
the smooth onward-flow ceased; and I was able to perceive that there
came a momentary, but regular, darke... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Gradually, the days and nights lengthened out, until they equaled a
space somewhat less than one of the old-earth hours; the sun rising and
setting like a great, ruddy bronze disk, crossed with ink-black bars.
About this time, I found myself, able once more, to see the gardens,
with clearness. For the world had now gr... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
About this time, there happened a fresh thing. The sun, earth, and sky
were suddenly darkened, and, apparently, blotted out for a brief space.
I had a sense, a certain awareness (I could learn little by sight), that
the earth was enduring a very great fall of snow. Then, in an instant,
the veil that had obscured every... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
It was evident that the earth's rotatory movement was departing,
steadily.
The end came, all at once. The night had been the longest yet; and
when the dying sun showed, at last, above the world's edge, I had grown
so wearied of the dark, that I greeted it as a friend. It rose steadily,
until about twenty degrees above... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Another idea there was, that suggested itself to me. It was, that one
of the inner planets had fallen into the sun--becoming incandescent,
under that impact. This theory appealed to me, as being more plausible,
and accounting more satisfactorily for the extraordinary size and
brilliance of the blaze, that had lit up t... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
From time to time, the noise of dropping particles, behind in the room,
came dully to my ears. Once, I heard a loud crash, and turned,
instinctively, to look; forgetting, for the moment, the impenetrable
night in which every detail was submerged. In a while, my gaze sought
the heavens; turning, unconsciously, toward t... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
For a while, vague thoughts and speculations occupied me, during which
my gaze dwelt insatiably upon that one spot of light, in the otherwise
pitlike darkness. Hope grew up within me, banishing the oppression of
despair, that had seemed to stifle me. Wherever the earth was traveling,
it was, at least, going once more ... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
It was a little later, that my attention was drawn to the fact, that
the great star of green flame, was slowly sinking out of the North,
toward the East. At first, I could scarcely believe that I saw aright;
but soon there could be no doubt that it was so. Gradually, it sank,
and, as it fell, the vast crescent of glow... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
How long I waited, it is impossible to say--certainly for a very great
period. Then, all at once, I saw a loom of light shine out ahead.
Gradually, it became more distinct. Suddenly, a ray of vivid green,
flashed across the darkness. At the same moment, I saw a thin line of
livid flame, far in the night. An instant, i... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Gradually, as the world moved on, the Star shone upon the front of the
house, once more; while the sun showed, only as a great bow of green
fire. An instant, it seemed, and the sun had vanished. The Star was
still fully visible. Then the earth moved into the black shadow of the
sun, and all was night--Night, black, st... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Years appeared to pass, slowly. The earth had almost reached the center
of the sun's disk. The light from the Green _Sun_--as now it must be
called--shone through the interstices, that gapped the mouldered walls
of the old house, giving them the appearance of being wrapped in green
flames. The Swine-creatures still cr... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
The sun was very close to me, now. Presently, I found that I was rising
higher; until, at last, I rode above it, in the emptiness. The Green Sun
was now so huge that its breadth seemed to fill up all the sky, ahead. I
looked down, and noted that the sun was passing directly beneath me.
A year may have gone by--or a ce... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
_XX_
THE CELESTIAL GLOBES
For a while, many thoughts crowded my mind, so that I was unable to do
aught, save stare, blindly, before me. I seemed whelmed in a sea of
doubt and wonder and sorrowful remembrance.
It was later, that I came out of my bewilderment. I looked about,
dazedly. Thus, I saw so extraordinary a sigh... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
The enormous stream of luminous spheres continued to pass me, at an
unvarying rate--countless millions; and still they came, showing no
signs of ending, nor even diminishing.
Then, as I was borne, silently, upon the unbuoying ether, I felt a
sudden, irresistible, forward movement, toward one of the passing
globes. An ... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
My thoughts came back with a leap. I was conscious that something had
touched me. I turned quickly. God, Thou wert indeed gracious--it was
She! She looked up into my eyes, with an eager longing, and I looked
down to her, with all my soul. I should like to have held her; but the
glorious purity of her face, kept me afa... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Already, quite half of the immense globe was shrouded. A feeling of
desperation seized me. Was she about to leave me? Would she have to go,
as she had gone before? I questioned her, anxiously, frightenedly; and
she, nestling closer, explained, in that strange, faraway voice, that it
was imperative she should leave me,... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
A feeling of fierce resentment filled me, and miserable questionings.
Why could I not have gone with my Love? What reason to keep us apart?
Why had I to wait alone, while she slumbered through the years, on the
still bosom of the Sea of Sleep? The Sea of Sleep! My thoughts turned,
inconsequently, out of their channel ... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Gradually, as I looked, I became aware that fine points of intensely
brilliant light, traversed the rays. Many of them seemed to travel from
the Green Sun, into distance. Others came out of the void, toward the
Sun; but one and all, each kept strictly to the ray in which it
traveled. Their speed was inconceivably grea... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
'The thing I had expected, came at last--suddenly, awfully. A vast
flare of dazzling light. A streaming burst of white flame across the
dark void. For an indefinite while, it soared outward--a gigantic
mushroom of fire. It ceased to grow. Then, as time went by, it began to
sink backward, slowly. I saw, now, that it ca... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
They floated past me, continually. Gradually, a peculiar uneasiness
seized me. I became aware of a growing feeling of repugnance and dread.
It was directed against those passing orbs, and seemed born of intuitive
knowledge, rather than of any real cause or reason.
Some of the passing globes were brighter than others; ... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Though I could see the crests of the mountain-amphitheatre, yet it was
a great while before their lower portions became visible. Possibly, this
was due to the strange, ruddy haze, that seemed to cling to the surface
of the Plain. However, be this as it may, I saw them at last.
In a still further space of time, I had c... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Suddenly, as I stared, a great feeling of amazement filled me. I had
come opposite to that part, where the outer door, leading into the
study, is situated. There, lying right across the threshold, lay a great
length of coping stone, identical--save in size and color--with the
piece I had dislodged in my fight with the... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
For a while, I seemed to hang, motionless; suspended amid the darkness.
Then, I became conscious that I was moving again; where, I could not
tell. Suddenly, far down beneath me, I seemed to hear a murmurous noise
of Swine-laughter. It sank away, and the succeeding silence appeared
clogged with horror.
Then a door open... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
I must have remained, in that half-stooped position, for some minutes.
I was dazed--stunned. Pepper had really passed into the land of shadows.
_XXIV_
THE FOOTSTEPS IN THE GARDEN
Pepper is dead! Even now, at times, I seem scarcely able to realize
that this is so. It is many weeks, since I came back from that strange
a... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Last night, I was sitting here in my study, writing. The door, leading
into the garden, was half open. At times, the metallic rattle of a dog's
chain, sounded faintly. It belongs to the dog I have bought, since
Pepper's death. I will not have him in the house--not after Pepper.
Still, I have felt it better to have a d... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Frightened, and puzzled, I seized a stick from the corner, and went
toward the door, silently; taking one of the candles with me. I had come
to within a few paces of it, when, suddenly, a peculiar sense of fear
thrilled through me--a fear, palpitant and real; whence, I knew not, nor
why. So great was the feeling of te... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Slowly, my life came back into me, and I made my way, shakily,
up-stairs to bed.
That is all.
_XXV_
THE THING FROM THE ARENA
This morning, early, I went through the gardens; but found everything
as usual. Near the door, I examined the path, for footprints; yet, here
again, there was nothing to tell me whether, or not,... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
It is now two o'clock. Since eight, I have watched the kennel, from the
small, side window in my study. Yet, nothing has occurred, and I am too
tired to watch longer. I will go to bed....
During the night, I was restless. This is unusual for me; but, toward
morning, I obtained a few hours' sleep.
I rose early, and, af... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Outside, the gardens are silent, once more, and I listen, fearfully. A
minute passes, and another; then I hear the padding sound, again. It is
quite close, and appears to be coming down the graveled path. The noise
is curiously measured and deliberate. It ceases outside the door; and I
rise to my feet, and stand motio... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Through the side window, I note the somber blackness of the night. My
glance wanders away, and 'round the room; resting on one shadowy object
and another. Suddenly, I turn, and look at the window on my right; as I
do so, I breathe quickly, and bend forward, with a frightened gaze at
something outside the window, but c... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
For, perhaps a minute, I stand, with my arms hanging slackly, by my
sides. The influence to meddle with the fastenings of the door, seems to
have gone. All at once, there comes the sudden rattle of iron, at my
feet. I glance down, quickly, and realize, with an unspeakable terror,
that my foot is pushing back the lower... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Reaching my bedroom, I clamber into bed, all clothed as I am, and pull
the bedclothes over me. There, after awhile, I begin to regain a little
confidence. It is impossible to sleep; but I am grateful for the added
warmth of the bedclothes. Presently, I try to think over the happenings
of the past night; but, though I ... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
In a little the poor beast rises, and shambles out lurching queerly. In
the daylight he stands swaying from side to side, and blinking stupidly.
I look and note that the horrid wound is larger, much larger, and seems
to have a whitish, fungoid appearance. My sister moves to fondle him;
but I detain her, and explain th... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
'Fancy!' I mutter, with a half sigh of relief. Then the match burns my
finger, and I drop it, quickly. As I fumble for another, the thing
shines out again. I know, now, that it is no fancy. This time, I light
the candle, and examine the place, more closely. There is a slight,
greenish discoloration 'round the scratch.... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
I think I must have been dozing. I am very weak, and oh! so miserable,
so miserable and tired--tired. The rustle of the paper, tries my brain.
My hearing seems preternaturally sharp. I will sit awhile and think....
"Hush! I hear something, down--down in the cellars. It is a creaking
sound. My God, it is the opening of... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Tonnison was grumpy, and I felt out of sorts. It was a somewhat dismal
day, and there was a touch of chilliness in the air. There was no
mention of going out fishing on either of our parts. We got dinner, and,
after that, just sat and smoked in silence.
Presently, Tonnison asked for the Manuscript: I handed it to him,... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
No, he did not, and had not; yet, stay, he had heard a rumor, once upon
a time, of a great, old house standing alone out in the wilderness; but,
if he remembered rightly it was a place given over to the fairies; or,
if that had not been so, he was certain that there had been something
"quare" about it; and, anyway, he... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
And then, one day, a man, a stranger, had ridden through the village,
and turned off down the river, in the direction of the House, as it was
always termed by the villagers. Some hours afterward, he had ridden
back, taking the track by which he had come, toward Ardrahan. Then, for
three months or so, nothing was heard... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
Grief[17]
Fierce hunger reigns within my breast,
I had not dreamt that this whole world,
Crushed in the hand of God, could yield
Such bitter essence of unrest,
Such pain as Sorrow now hath hurled
Out of its dreadful heart, unsealed!
Each sobbing breath is but a cry,
My heart-strokes knells of agony,
... | The House on the Borderland | Hodgson, William Hope | 1877 | 1918 | ['en'] | 824 | {'Science fiction'} | PG10002 | |
This file was produced from images generously made available by the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF/Gallica) at http://gallica.bnf.fr., carlo traverso, Charlie Kirschner and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team.
MY FIRST YEARS AS A
FRENCHWOMAN
[Illustration: Madame Waddington.
From a photograph tak... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
[Footnote 1: "W.," here and throughout this book, refers to Madame
Waddington's husband, M. William Waddington.]
[Illustration: Monsieur Theirs.]
The position of the German Embassy in Paris was very difficult, and
unfortunately their first ambassador after the war, Count Arnim, didn't
understand (perhaps didn't care t... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
Every year there is a great review of the Paris garrison (thirty
thousand men) by the President of the Republic, at Longchamp, on the
14th of July, the national fête--the day of the storming of the Bastile.
It is a great day in Paris--one of the sights of the year--and falling
in midsummer the day is generally beautif... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
I didn't see much of W. in the daytime. We usually rode in the morning
in the Bois and immediately after breakfast he started for Versailles in
the parliamentary train. Dinner was always a doubtful meal. Sometimes he
came home very late for nine-o'clock dinner; sometimes he dined at
Versailles and only got home at ten... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
I often asked W. in what way France had gained by being a republic. I
personally was quite impartial, being born an American and never having
lived in France until after the Franco-Prussian War. I had no particular
ties nor traditions, had no grandfather killed on the scaffold, nor
frozen to death in the retreat of "L... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
II
IMPRESSIONS OF THE ASSEMBLY AT VERSAILLES
The sittings of the assembly were very interesting in that wonderful
year when everything was being discussed. All public interest of course
was centred in Versailles, where the National Assembly was trying to
establish some sort of stable government. There were endless d... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
[Illustration: Sitting of the National Assembly at the palace of
Versailles. From _l'Illustration_, March 11, 1876]
I went often to Versailles, driving out when the weather was fine. I
liked the stormy sittings best. Some orator would say something that
displeased the public, and in a moment there would be the greates... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
Léon Say was a delightful speaker, so easy, always finding exactly the
word he wanted. It hardly seemed a speech when he was at the tribune,
more like a causerie, though he told very plain truths sometimes to the
peuple souverain. He was essentially French, or rather Parisian, knew
everybody, and was au courant of all... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
It was rather sad, as we drove through the stately alleys of the Park of
St. Cloud, with the setting sun shining through the fine old trees, to
hear of all the fêtes that used to take place there,--and one could
quite well fancy the beautiful Empress appearing at the end of one of
the long avenues, followed by a brill... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
I felt very strange--an outsider--all the first months, but my husband's
friends were very nice to me and after a certain time I was astonished
to find how much politics interested me. I learned a great deal from
merely listening while the men talked at dinner. I suppose I should have
understood much more if I had rea... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
The privilege of sending packages abroad by the valise of the foreign
affairs was greatly abused when W. became Minister of Foreign Affairs.
He made various changes, one of which was that the valise should be
absolutely restricted to official papers and documents, which really was
perhaps well observed.
The Countess d... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
I found the first winter in Paris as the wife of a French deputy rather
trying, so different from the easy, pleasant life in Rome. That has
changed, too, of course, with United Italy and Rome the capital, but it
was a small Rome in our days, most informal. I don't ever remember
having written an invitation all the yea... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
What W. liked best was the Théâtre Français. We hadn't a box there, but
as so many of our friends had, we went very often. Tuesday was the
fashionable night and the Salle was almost as interesting as the stage,
particularly if it happened to be a première, and all the critics and
journalists were there. Sarah Bernhard... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
[Footnote 1: My brother-in-law, Richard Waddington, senator, died in
June, 1913, some time after these notes were written.]
W. at once convoked all the officials and staff of the ministry. He made
very few changes, merely taking the young Count de Lasteyrie, now
Marquis de Lasteyrie, grandnephew of the Marquis de Lafa... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
It is very difficult at first for any woman who marries a foreigner to
make her life in her new country. There must be so many things that are
different--better perhaps sometimes--but not what one has been
accustomed to,--and I think more difficult in France than in any other
country. French people are set in their wa... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
I liked our dinners and receptions at the ministry. All the intelligence
of France passed through our rooms. People generally came early--by ten
o'clock the rooms were quite full. Every one was announced, and it was
most interesting to hear the names of all the celebrities in every
branch of art and science. It was on... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
I went very regularly to the Sunday afternoon concerts at the
Conservatoire, where all classical music was splendidly given. They
confined themselves generally to the strictly classic, but were
beginning to play a little Schumann that year. Some of the faces of the
regular habitués became most familiar to me. There we... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
I think on the whole the arranged marriages turn out as well as any
others. They are generally made by people of the same monde, accustomed
to the same way of living, and the fortunes as nearly alike as possible.
Everything is calculated. The young couple usually spend the summer with
parents or parents-in-law, in the... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
W. was very happy at the Ministry of Public Instruction,--all the
educational questions interested him so much and the tournées en
province and visits to the big schools and universities,--some of them,
in the south of France particularly, singularly wanting in the most
elementary details of hygiene and cleanliness, a... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
All the winter of 1876, which saw the end of the National Assembly and
the beginning of a new régime, was an eventful one in parliamentary
circles. I don't know if the country generally was very much excited
about a new constitution and a change of government. I don't think the
country in France (the small farmers and... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
[Illustration: Meeting of officers of the National Assembly, and of
delegates of the new Chambers, in the salon of Hercules, palace of
Versailles. From _L'Illustration_, March 11. 1876.]
IV
THE SOCIAL SIDE OF A MINISTER'S WIFE
My first big dinner at the Ministry of Public Instruction rather
intimidated me. We were f... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
When it was decided that we should ask the Orléans princes to our party,
I thought I would go to see the Duc Décazes, the foreign minister, a
charming man and charming colleague, to get some precise information
about my part of the entertainment. He couldn't think what I wanted when
I invaded his cabinet, and was much... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
Our party was very brilliant, all sorts of notabilities of all kinds,
and the leading Paris artists from the Grand Opera, Opéra Comique, and
the Français. As soon as the performance was over W. told me I must go
and thank the artists; he could not leave his princes. I started off to
the last of the long suite of salon... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
We often had political breakfasts at home (more breakfasts than
dinners). Our Aisne deputies and senators were not very mondains, didn't
care much to dine out. They were pleasant enough when they talked about
subjects that interested them. Henri Martin, senator of the Aisne, was
an old-fashioned Republican, absolutely... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
My friends were quite amused. One of them, Marquise de T., knew the
Maréchale quite well, and said she was going to ask her if she was
obliged to make visites de condoléance to the wives of all the fallen
ministers. W. was rather astonished when I told him who had come to tea
with me, and thought the conversation must... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
Another rumour, from the extreme Left this time, was that a large armed
force under the command of a well-known general, very high up in his
career, was to assemble in the north at Lille, a strong contingent of
Republicans were to join them to be ready to act. I remember quite well
two of W.'s friends coming in one mo... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
In September we went down to Bourneville and settled ourselves there for
the autumn. W. was standing for the Senate with the Count de St. Vallier
and Henri Martin. They all preferred being named in their department,
where everybody knew them and their personal influence could make itself
more easily felt. W.'s campaig... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
The Republicans (for once) were marvellously disciplined and kept
together. It was really wonderful when one thought of all the different
elements that were represented in the party. There was quite as much
difference between the quiet moderate men of the Left Centre and the
extreme Left as there was between the Legit... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
The new Chambers assembled at Versailles in November. The Broglie
cabinet was out, but a new ministry of the Right faced the new
Parliament. Their life was very short and stormy; they were really dead
before they began to exist and in December the marshal sent for M.
Dufaure and charged him to form a Ministère de Gauc... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
Freycinet was a great strength. He was absolutely Republican, but
moderate--very clever and energetic, a great friend of Gambetta's--and
a beautiful speaker. I have heard men say who didn't care about him
particularly, and who were not at all of his way of thinking, that they
would rather not discuss with him. He was ... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
We had much more receiving and entertaining to do at the Quai d'Orsay
than at any other ministry, and were obliged to go out much more
ourselves. The season in the official world begins with a reception at
the President's on New Year's day. The diplomatic corps and presidents
of the Senate and Chamber go in state to t... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
The marshal received at the Elysée every Thursday evening--he and his
staff in uniform, also all the officers who came, which made a brilliant
gathering. Their big dinners and receptions were always extremely well
done. Except a few of their personal friends, not many people of society
were present--the diplomatic cor... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 | |
We sometimes had informal music in my little blue salon. Baron de
Zuylen, Dutch minister, was an excellent musician, also Comte de Beust,
the Austrian ambassador. He was a composer. I remember his playing me
one day a wedding march he had composed for the marriage of one of the
archdukes. It was very descriptive, with... | My First Years as a Frenchwoman, 1876-1879 | Waddington, Mary King | 1833 | 1923 | ['en'] | 13 | {'France -- History -- Third Republic, 1870-1940', 'France -- Social life and customs'} | PG10003 |
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