| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Manon Lescaut by Abbe Prevost: where, for some reason, we were obliged to spend the following
day and night. Walking along the streets in the afternoon, I
fancied I saw the same young man whom I had formerly met at
Passy. He was miserably dressed, and much paler than when I
first saw him. He carried on his arm an old portmanteau, having
only just arrived in the town. However, there was an expression
in his countenance too amiable not to be easily recognised, and
which immediately brought his features to my recollection.
"Observe that young man,"said I to the Marquis; "we must
accost him."
His joy was beyond expression when, in his turn, he recognised
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Pierre Grassou by Honore de Balzac: utmost care. Three neighbours, also retired merchants, an old uncle
(from whom were expectations), an elderly Demoiselle Vervelle, and a
number of other guests invited to be present at this ovation to a
great artist followed Grassou into the picture gallery, all curious to
hear his opinion of the famous collection of pere Vervelle, who was
fond of oppressing them with the fabulous value of his paintings. The
bottle-merchant seemed to have the idea of competing with King Louis-
Philippe and the galleries of Versailles.
The pictures, magnificently framed, each bore labels on which was read
in black letters on a gold ground:
Rubens
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Lock and Key Library by Julian Hawthorne, Ed.: bedroom, and, indeed, the whole house, having been minutely
examined by the whole body, we allotted the various household
duties, as if we had been on a gipsy party, or a yachting party, or
a hunting party, or were shipwrecked. I then recounted the
floating rumors concerning the hooded lady, the owl, and Master B.:
with others, still more filmy, which had floated about during our
occupation, relative to some ridiculous old ghost of the female
gender who went up and down, carrying the ghost of a round table;
and also to an impalpable Jackass, whom nobody was ever able to
catch. Some of these ideas I really believe our people below had
communicated to one another in some diseased way, without conveying
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