what is your duty better than you know it.

not what the people think.

you are a man

Their virtues are penances

manhood to withhold.

Then, again, do not tell me, as a good man did to-day, of my obligation to put all poor men in good situations. Are they my poor?

I shun father and mother and wife and brother, when my genius calls me.

rude truth

Good and bad are but names very readily transferable to that or this; the only right is what is after my constitution, the only wrong what is against it.

They do not seem to me to be such; but if I am the Devil’s child, I will live then from the Devil

man

Society is a joint-stock company, in which the members agree, for the better securing of his bread to each shareholder, to surrender the liberty and culture of the eater.

He would utter opinions on all passing affairs, which being seen to be not private, but necessary, would sink like darts into the ear of men, and put them in fear.

Lethe

eclat,

But the man is, as it were, clapped into jail by his consciousness.

A boy

Do not think the youth has no force, because he cannot speak to you and me. Hark! in the next room his voice is sufficiently clear and emphatic. It seems he knows how to speak to his contemporaries. Bashful or bold, then, he will know how to make us seniors very unnecessary.

Their mind being whole, their eye is as yet unconquered, and when we look in their faces, we are disconcerted. Infancy conforms to nobody: all conform to it,

advancing on Chaos and the Dark.

must accept

the absolutely trustworthy

iron string.

gay

God will not have his work made manifest by cowards

We but half express ourselves

bestowed on that plot of ground which is given to him to till.

that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide;

shame

abide by our spontaneous impression with good-humored inflexibility then most when the whole cry of voices is on the other side.

Yet he dismisses without notice his thought, because it is his. In every work of genius we recognize our own rejected thoughts: they come back to us with a certain alienated majesty.

To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart is true for all men, — that is genius. Speak your latent conviction, and it shall be the universal sense; for the inmost in due time becomes the outmost, — and our first thought is rendered back to us by the trumpets of the Last Judgment. Familiar as the voice of the mind is to each

original and not conventional.

that walk by us still.”

all influence

Ne te quaesiveris extra.”

A tory! a tory! a spy! a refugee! hustle him! away with him!”

why, he is dead and gone these eighteen years!

“Oh, Rip Van Winkle!” exclaimed two or three, “oh, to be sure! that’s Rip Van Winkle yonder, leaning against the tree.”

“I’m not myself—I’m somebody else—that’s me yonder—no—that’s somebody else got into my shoes—I was myself last night, but I fell asleep on the mountain, and they’ve changed my gun, and everything’s changed, and I’m changed, and I can’t tell what’s my name, or who I am!”

about securing the gun

“I am your father!”

had always been haunted by strange beings.

but showed an hereditary disposition to attend to anything else but his business.

without dreading the tyranny of Dame Van Winkle.

when life hangs heavy on their hands, that they might have a quieting draught out of Rip Van Winkle’s flagon.

bewildered Van Winkle.

drowsy tranquility

a tall, naked pole, with something on the top that looked like a red nightcap, and from it was fluttering a flag,

me!”

hooting after him

ountry round.

nd gun

passing away

but no traces of such opening remained

the joints

but no dog was to be seen.

that flagon! that wicked flagon

and he fell into a deep sleep.

He obeyed with fear and trembling;

and his knees smote together.

shapes and colors

presented themselves

nd his companion

thundershowers

shy and distrustful

any human

him;

Dame Van Winkle

rays of the setting sun

purple cloud,

highest parts

with all his heart.

hee.”

valternative

idleness.

he was observed to smoke his pipe vehemently, and to send forth short, frequent, and angry puffs; but, when pleased, he would inhale the smoke slowly and tranquilly, and emit it in light and placid clouds, and sometimes, taking the pipe from his mouth, and letting the fragrant vapor curl about his nose, would nod his head in approbation.

ncessantly.

dictionary!

profound discussions

g.

vrubicund

tation.

always provoked a fresh volley from his wife;

but his wife kept continually dinning in his ear about his idleness

His children

.

the women of the village, too, used to employ him to run their errands,

fowling piece

for he would sit on a wet rock, with a rod as long and heavy as a lance, and fish all day without a murmur, even though he should not be encouraged by a single nibble.

Certain it is that he was a great favorite among all the goodwives of the village, who took his part in all family squabbles; and never failed, whenever they talked those matters over in their evening gossipings, to lay all the blame on Dame Van Winkle. The children of the village, too, would shout with joy whenever he approached. He assisted at their sports, made their playthings, taught them to fly kites and shoot marbles, and told them long stories of ghosts, witches, and Indians. Whenever he went dodging about the village, he was surrounded by a troop of them, hanging on his skirts, clambering on his back, and playing a thousand tricks on him; and not a dog would bark at him throughout the neighborhood.

simple, good-natured man; he was, moreover, a kind neighbor and an obedient, henpecked husband.

I have observed

vchivalrous

ountry was yet a province of Great Britain

(may he rest in peace!)

great age,

melt away into the fresh green of the nearer landscape.

fairy mountains

goodwives,

magical hues

lording it over the surrounding country.

Catskill Mountains.

Finis.

And I hope I can say in some measure, as David did, “It is good for me that I have been afflicted.” The Lord hath showed me the vanity of these outward things. That they are the vanity of vanities, and vexation of spirit, that they are but a shadow, a blast, a bubble, and things of no continuance. That we must rely on God Himself, and our whole dependance must be upon Him.

Before I knew what affliction meant, I was ready sometimes to wish for it. When I lived in prosperity, having the comforts of the world about me, my relations by me, my heart cheerful, and taking little care for anything, and yet seeing many, whom I preferred before myself, under many trials and afflictions, in sickness, weakness, poverty, losses, crosses, and cares of the world, I should be sometimes jealous least I should have my portion in this life, and that Scripture would come to my mind

.

and nothing but death before me.

in carrying of us through so many difficulties

with me.

put all these curses

But now the Lord hath brought her in upon free-cost, and given her to me the second time.

having nothing to eat or drink but water

Blessed be the Lord for it, for great is His power, and He can do whatsoever seemeth Him good.

dangerous to go to her.

take care of her

received one of our children, we hastened toward the other.

thy Work shall be rewarded,

Now hath God fulfilled that precious Scripture which was such a comfort to me in my distressed condition

heathen

it

and yet we were not without secret hopes that we should see them again.

In that poor, and distressed, and beggarly condition I was received in

my dear husband

he had helped to bury her, and knew it not.

such a lovely sight,

carried us along

Mr. Hoar,

I took my leave of them, and in coming along my heart melted into tears, more than all the while I was with them

I have been in the midst of those roaring lions, and savage bears, that feared neither God, nor man, nor the devil, by night and day

ar.

.

e.

.

Now the heathen begins to think all is their own

to send them to Heaven so soon.

yet triumphed and rejoiced in their inhumane, and many times devilish cruelty to the English.

(with their black faces)

have so offended Him,

They would pick up old bones, and cut them to pieces at the joints, and if they were full of worms and maggots, they would scald them over the fire to make the vermine come out, and then boil them, and drink up the liquor, and then beat the great ends of them in a mortar, and so eat them. They would eat horse’s guts, and ears, and all sorts of wild birds which they could catch; also bear, venison, beaver, tortoise, frogs, squirrels, dogs, skunks, rattlesnakes; yea, the very bark of trees; besides all sorts of creatures, and provision which they plundered from the English. I can but stand in admiration to see the wonderful power of God in providing for such a vast number of our enemies in the wilderness, where there was nothing to be seen, but from hand to mouth.

that I know not.

hog or a dog would hardly touch

them for His holy ends, and the destruction of many still amongst the English!

if their corn were cut down, they would starve and die with hunger, and all their corn that could be found, was destroyed

God had an over-ruling hand in all those things.

I can but admire to see the wonderful providence of God in preserving the heathen for further affliction to our poor country. They could go in great numbers over, but the English must stop

and dullness of the English army

It is the Lord’s doing, and it should be marvelous in our eyes.

God seemed to leave his People to themselves, and order all things for His own holy ends.

our lambs to death.

like bears bereft of their whelps

whilst they were flying for their lives.

and in pursuit of the enemy,

providence

afflicted

I told them, they had as good knock me in head as starve me to death.

Thus the Lord made that pleasant refreshing, which another time would have been an abomination.

Then I took it of the child, and eat it myself, and savory it was to my taste.

horses feet

and one of them my own sister’s

where we stayed all night.

Englishman stripped naked, and lying dead upon the ground, but knew not who it was.

I had of it.

.

So like were these barbarous creatures to him who was a liar from the beginning.

he was well

They all gathered about the poor man, asking him many questions. I desired also to go and see him; and when I came, he was crying bitterly, supposing they would quickly kill him

yelping

the Lord brought to me some Scriptures, which did a little revive me

no comfort here neither

that I might get alone

I thought of the English army, and hoped for their coming, and being taken by them, but that failed.

departed from him.

and a company of barbarous heathens,

that by the morning I recovered my sight again

handful of ashes in mine eyes.

least conscience of speaking of truth.

and that he was very good meat.

I must go

which was that I desired

I told them the skin was off my back, but I had no other comforting answer from them than this: that it would be no matter if my head were off too.

I went with a good load at my back (for they when they went, though but a little way, would carry all their trumpery with them).

at last an old Indian bade me to come to him, and his squaw gave me some ground nuts; she gave me also something to lay under my head, and a good fire we had; and through the good providence of God, I had a comfortable lodging that night.

Friend Indian

Then was I fain to stoop to this rude fellow, and to go out in the night, I knew not whither.

and lie somewhere else,

six acorns, and two chestnuts, which were some refreshment to me.

who seemed to me the best friend that I had of an Indian

As soon as I had the opportunity, I took my Bible to read, and that quieting Scripture came to my hand, “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46.10). Which stilled my spirit for the present.

I thought I could as well have died as went back; I cannot declare the trouble that I was in about it; but yet back again I must go

said he would go on, and come to us again in three days.

sannup

But the thoughts of my going homeward (for so we bent our course) much cheered my spirit, and made my burden seem light, and almost nothing at all.

I complained it was too heavy, whereupon she gave me a slap in the face, and bade me go; I lifted up my heart to God, hoping the redemption was not far off; and the rather because their insolency grew worse and worse.

I ran out and catched it up, and put it into my pocket, and never let her see it afterward.

me sitting and reading in my Bible

This morning I asked my master whether he would sell me to my husband. He answered me “Nux,” which did much rejoice my spirit.

Sabbath-day-

I could hardly bear to think of the many weary steps I had taken, to come to this place.

I put it in my pocket to keep it safe. Yet notwithstanding, somebody stole it, but put five Indian corns in the room of it; which corns were the greatest provisions I had in my travel for one day.