| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Polity of Athenians and Lacedaemonians by Xenophon: before the battle of Salamis, in the case of that one island.
[20] Or, "but mean the forfeiture of others."
Further, states oligarchically governed are forced to ratify their
alliances and solemn oaths, and if they fail to abide by their
contracts, the offence, by whomsoever committed,[21] lies nominally at
the door of the oligarchs who entered upon the contract. But in the
case of engagements entered into by a democracy it is open to the
People to throw the blame on the single individual who spoke in favour
of some measure, or put it to the vote, and to maintain to the rest of
the world, "I was not present, nor do I approve of the terms of the
agreement." Inquiries are made in a full meeting of the People, and
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Message by Honore de Balzac: less than frank, broke over her face. Then all at once a kind of
shudder ran through her, and she reddened, and she gave me a
wild, swift glance as she asked:
"Is he alive?"
Great God! What a terrible phrase! I was too young to bear that
tone in her voice; I made no reply, only looked at the unhappy
woman in helpless bewilderment.
"Monsieur, monsieur, give me an answer!" she cried.
"Yes, madame."
"Is it true? Oh! tell me the truth; I can hear the truth. Tell me
the truth! Any pain would be less keen than this suspense."
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Door in the Wall, et. al. by H. G. Wells: by--and of those he could see or tell nothing; and it was after the
failure of this attempt, and the ridicule they could not repress,
that he resorted to force. He thought of seizing a spade and
suddenly smiting one or two of them to earth, and so in fair combat
showing the advantage of eyes. He went so far with that resolution
as to seize his spade, and then he discovered a new thing about
himself, and that was that it was impossible for him to hit a blind
man in cold blood.
He hesitated, and found them all aware that he had snatched up
the spade. They stood all alert, with their heads on one side, and
bent ears towards him for what he would do next.
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