| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Malbone: An Oldport Romance by Thomas Wentworth Higginson: yet be toned down into perfect breeding, but the horses are. I
do not know what could ever break the gloom of this joyless
procession, were it not that youth and beauty are always in
fashion, and one sometimes meets an exceptional barouche full
of boys and girls, who could absolutely be no happier if they
were a thousand miles away from the best society. And such a
joyous company were our four youths and maidens when they went
to drive that day, Emilia being left at home to rest after the
fatigues of the voyage.
"What beautiful horses!" was Hope's first exclamation. "What
grave people!" was her second.
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Sophist by Plato: will be more worth having; for that which better men acknowledge has more
weight than that which is acknowledged by inferior men. Moreover we are no
respecters of persons, but seekers after truth.
THEAETETUS: Very good.
STRANGER: Then now, on the supposition that they are improved, let us ask
them to state their views, and do you interpret them.
THEAETETUS: Agreed.
STRANGER: Let them say whether they would admit that there is such a thing
as a mortal animal.
THEAETETUS: Of course they would.
STRANGER: And do they not acknowledge this to be a body having a soul?
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from American Notes by Rudyard Kipling: hope of filling it up. Consequently, the authorities are
fascinated with the idea of the sliding scale or concertina army.
This is an hereditary instinct, for you know that when we English
have got together two companies, one machine gun, a sick bullock,
forty generals, and a mass of W. O. forms, we say we possess "an
army corps capable of indefinite extension."
The American army is a beautiful little army. Some day, when all
the Indians are happily dead or drunk, it ought to make the
finest scientific and survey corps that the world has ever seen;
it does excellent work now, but there is this defect in its
nature: It is officered, as you know, from West Point.
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