| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from On Revenues by Xenophon: distant, I take it, a good deal over sixty miles;[59] and the next
closest, Thebes, a good deal nearer seventy.[60] Supposing then an
enemy to advance from some such point to attack the mines, he cannot
avoid passing Athens; and presuming his force to be small, we may
expect him to be annihilated by our cavalry and frontier police.[61] I
say, presuming his force to be small, since to march with anything
like a large force, and thereby leave his own territory denuded of
troops, would be a startling achievement. Why, the fortified city of
Athens will be much closer the states of the attacking parties than
they themselves will be by the time they have got to the mines. But,
for the sake of argument, let us suppose an enemy to have arrived in
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from A Tramp Abroad by Mark Twain: as the fleshy one had been. I was glad to get a facsimile
of the letter written by this fine old German Robin Hood,
though I was not able to read it. He was a better artist
with his sword than with his pen.
We went down by the river and saw the Square Tower.
It was a very venerable structure, very strong,
and very ornamental. There was no opening near the ground.
They had to use a ladder to get into it, no doubt.
We visited the principal church, also--a curious
old structure, with a towerlike spire adorned with all
sorts of grotesque images. The inner walls of the church
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The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Essays of Francis Bacon by Francis Bacon: his trust, that if intelligence of the matter could
not otherwise have been had, but by him, advan-
tage be not taken of the note, but the party left to
his other means; and in some sort recompensed,
for his discovery. To be ignorant of the value of a
suit, is simplicity; as well as to be ignorant of the
right thereof, is want of conscience. Secrecy in
suits, is a great mean of obtaining; for voicing
them to be in forwardness, may discourage some
kind of suitors, but doth quicken and awake others.
But timing of the suit is the principal. Timing, I
Essays of Francis Bacon |
