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Andrew Lang

THE SIX SWANS

The Yellow Fairy Book

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/640/640-h/640-h.htm#link2H_4_0004

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The King had already been married once and had by his first wife seven children, six boys, and one girl, whom he loved more than anything in the world. And now, because he was afraid that their stepmother might not treat them well and might do them harm, he put them in a lonely castle that stood in the middle of a wood. It lay so hidden, and the way to it was so hard to find, that he himself could not have found it out had not a wise-woman given him a reel of thread which possessed a marvelous property: when he threw it before him it unwound itself and showed him the way. But the King went so often to his dear children that the Queen was offended at his absence. She grew curious and wanted to know what he had to do quite alone in the wood. She gave his servants a great deal of money, and they betrayed the secret to her and also told her of the reel which alone could point out the way.

simple wiki

Smoke_detector

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoke_detector

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Technology

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CC BY-SA 3.0 and GFDL

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A smoke sensor or smoke detector is a device that can detect smoke, which may be an indicator of a fire. There are two basic systems: Simple, standalone sensors usually make a sound or flash a light when they detect smoke. More sophisticated sensors usually send a signal to a fire alarm panel, or system. Most smoke detectors use either an optical sensor, or they use a physical process called ionization. Many simple smoke sensors use batteries. Very often dead batteries are not replaced; when this happens, the smoke sensors stop working. But, the detector may "chirp" when the battery is low to try and stop this from happening. There are also systems which are directly connected to electrical power; these may use batteries just as a backup. Smoke detectors are housed in plastic enclosures, typically shaped like a disk about 150 millimeters (6 in) in diameter and 25 millimeters (1 in) thick, but shape and size vary. Smoke can be detected either optically (photoelectric) or by physical process (ionization); detectors may use either, or both, methods.

Mary MacGregor

LIZZIE LINDSAY

Stories from the Ballads Told to the Children

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/22175/22175-h/22175-h.htm#LIZZIE_LINDSAY

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The old woman drew Lizzie into the cottage, and spoke kindly to her, but the maiden's heart sank. For a peat fire smouldered on the hearth and the room was filled with smoke. There was no easy chair, no couch on which to rest her weary body, so Lizzie dropped down on to a heap of green turf. Her sadness did not seem to trouble Donald. He seemed happier, every moment. 'We are hungry, mother,' he said; 'make us a good supper of curds and whey, and then make us a bed of green rushes and cover us with yonder grey plaids.' The old woman moved about eagerly as though overjoyed to do all that she could for her son and his young bride. Curds and whey was a supper dainty enough for a queen, as Lizzie whispered to her shepherd lad with a little sigh. Even the bed of green rushes could not keep her awake. No sooner had she lain down than, worn out with her long journey, she fell fast asleep, nor did she awake until the sun was high in the sky.

Wikibooks

Wiki Jr Europe

https://freekidsbooks.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/WikijuniorEurope-FKB.pdf

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During the fifteenth century Albania enjoyed a brief period of independence under the legendary hero, Skanderbeg. Aside from this exception, the country did not enjoy independence until the twentieth century. After five hundred years of Ottoman rule, an independent Albania was proclaimed in 1912. The country adopted a republican form of government in 1920. In 1939 the Italians invaded the country. Because of this event Albania was one of the first countries occupied by the Axis Powers in World War II. After the war Albania became a communist state known as the Socialist People's Republic of Albania and was ruled by Enver Hoxha until 1985. Albania became a democratic country in 1991 but faced problems throughout the 1990s. In 1996 there were severe economic problems because of the failure of Ponzi schemes in the country. In 1997 there was an armed rebellion and hundreds of thousands of people emigrated to other parts of Europe and North America. In 1999 Albania faced an influx of refugees from Kosovo, Serbia during violence in that province.

Charlie's Mamma

THE CHILDREN'S VISIT TO THE LIGHTHOUSE

The Nursery, No. 106, October, 1875. Vol. XVIII. A Monthly Magazine for Youngest Readers

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/16522/16522-h/16522-h.htm#THE_CHILDRENS_VISIT_TO_THE_LIGHTHOUSE

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One warm, sunny morning, Charlie and Georgie, with their papa and mamma, and their two little friends, rowed across from Appledore, and landed on the pebbly beach of White Island. Here the children ran about, and picked up stones until they were tired; and then the whole party seated themselves on some shaded rocks, and ate their lunch of crackers and bananas. While they were eating, an old white dog, belonging to the lighthouse keeper, came up and made their acquaintance. Georgie shared his cake with him; and it was amusing to see the old dog watching with eager eyes every piece that went into any mouth but his own. When lunch was over, the two older children, Charlie and Anna, led the way; and all were soon climbing the winding stairs in the lighthouse tower. When they reached the top, they found themselves in a small room with windows on every side, and the great lamp in the centre. The lantern is made of red-and-white glass, and turns around, so that first a red, and then a white, light may be seen far out at sea.

wikipedia

Solar_wind

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_wind

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Science

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CC BY-SA 3.0

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The solar wind is a stream of charged particles released from the upper atmosphere of the Sun. This plasma consists of mostly electrons, protons and alpha particles with energies usually between 1.5 and 10 keV; embedded in the solar-wind plasma is the interplanetary magnetic field. The solar wind varies in density, temperature and speed over time and over solar longitude. Its particles can escape the Sun's gravity because of their high energy, from the high temperature of the corona and magnetic, electrical and electromagnetic phenomena in it. The solar winds flow outward supersonically at varying speeds depending on their origin reaching up to around one million miles per hour to great distances, filling a region known as the heliosphere, an enormous bubble-like volume surrounded by the interstellar medium. Other related phenomena include the aurora (northern and southern lights), the plasma tails of comets that always point away from the Sun, and geomagnetic storms that can change the direction of magnetic field lines.

Cousin Emily

LITTLE PEDRO

The Nursery, No. 107, November, 1875, Vol. XVIII. A Monthly Magazine for Youngest Readers

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/16524/16524-h/16524-h.htm#LITTLE_PEDRO

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He dreamed about his pleasant home far away in Italy. He thought he was with his little sisters, and he saw his dear mother smile as she gave him his supper; but, just as he was going to eat, some sudden noise awoke him. He was frightened to find it was daylight, and that the sun was high in the sky. In the doorway stood a kind gentleman looking at him. Pedro sprang up, and took his fiddle; but the gentleman stopped him as he was going out, and asked if that pile of shavings was all the bed he had. He spoke so kindly, that Pedro told him his story. The gentleman felt so sorry for him, and was so pleased with his sweet, sad face, that he took him to his own home, and gave him a nice warm breakfast; and, being in want of an errand-boy, he concluded to let Pedro have the place. Pedro has lived happily in his new home ever since; and, though he still likes to play on his fiddle, he has no wish to return to his old wandering mode of life.

Dora Burnside

THE THRUSH FEEDING THE CUCKOO

The Nursery, October 1877, Vol. XXII. No. 4 A Monthly Magazine for Youngest Readers

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/28138/28138-h/28138-h.htm#Page_120

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In its habits it is shy; and its voice may be often heard whilst the eye seeks in vain to find the bird itself. Its food consists of caterpillars and various insects. The female cuckoo makes no nest, and takes no care of her young. How do you suppose she does? Having a wide bill, she takes up in it one of her eggs, which she puts in the nest of some other bird that feeds on insects. The strange nurses to whom the cuckoo confides her young become not only good mothers to them, but neglect their own children to take care of the young cuckoos. As the young cuckoo thrives and grows strong, he thrusts the other birds out of the nest, so that he may have all the room to himself. For five weeks or more his adopted mother supplies him with food.

Talbot Baines Reed

My Friend Smith A Story of School and City Life

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/21036/21036-h/21036-h.htm

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Smith and I had a good deal more than dinner to discuss that morning as we rested for twenty minutes from our office labours. He was very much in earnest about his new work, I could see; and I felt, as I listened to him, that my own aspirations for success were not nearly as deep-seated as his. He didn't brag, or build absurd castles in the air; but he made no secret of the fact that now he was once in the business he meant to get on, and expected pretty confidently that he would do so. I wished I could feel half as sure of myself. At any rate, I was encouraged by Jack Smith's enthusiasm, and returned at the end of my twenty minutes to my desk with every intention of distinguishing myself at my work. But somehow everything was so novel, and I was so curiously disposed, that I could not prevent my thoughts wandering a good deal, or listening to the constant running fire of small talk that was going on among my fellow-clerks. And this was all the less to be wondered at, since I myself was a prominent topic of conversation.

Jesse C. Niebaum & Silvia A. Bunge

Your Brain is Like a Muscle: Use it and Make it Strong

https://kids.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/frym.2014.00005

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Before the 8 weeks of game playing, we measured how well the children in the two training programs performed on tests of mental ability. After the 8 weeks of training, we tested both groups again, to see whether they had gotten better on these tests. The children who had played games like SET improved a lot on the reasoning test and showed improvements in spatial working memory and one of the speed measures. The children who had played games like Blink showed a different pattern: they got a lot faster on the speed measures but were not any better at reasoning. These results show that playing different kinds of games can sharpen different mental skills. These are really exciting findings! However, our work is not done yet. For one thing, this study included only a small number of children. We would like to run this same experiment again with a larger group of children to make sure that we get the same findings. This is a process known as replication, and it is a really important part of scientific discovery.

Ida Fay

PLAYING COOK

The Nursery, March 1878, Vol. XXIII. No. 3 A Monthly Magazine for Youngest Readers

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/28142/28142-h/28142-h.htm#Page_81

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"You must be losing your eyesight," said the cook, taking a spoon. "Now, then, I will stir up the eggs; and now I will put in a little flour; and now I will grate in some nutmeg." "I think you had better put in some milk," said Jenny. "Of course, I shall," replied the cook. "Where's the basin of milk?" "You will find it on the floor," said Jenny. Albert looked, and cried out, "Go away, Snap!—See, Jenny, that greedy dog has lapped up all the milk!" "No matter," said Jenny. "You can get some more where you got the eggs." So Albert seized the little pitcher, went through the motion of emptying it, stirred the pudding once more, and then placed it on the little doll-stove. "Oh, what a fine cook you are!" said Jenny. "But, when I am very hungry, I think I shall not come to you for my dinner."

Jacob A Riis

The Story of a Fire

The Ontario Readers: Third Book

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/18561/18561-h/18561-h.htm#Fire

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Up from the street, while the crew of the truck company were labouring with the heavy extension ladder that at its longest stretch was many feet too short, crept four men upon long, slender poles with cross-bars, iron-hooked at the end. Standing in one window, they reached up and thrust the hook through the next one above, then mounted a story higher. Again the crash of glass, and again the dizzy ascent. Straight up the wall they crept, looking like human flies on the ceiling, and clinging as close, never resting, reaching one recess only to set out for the next; nearer and nearer in the race for life, until but a single span separated the foremost from the boy. And now the iron hook fell at his feet, and the fireman stood upon the step with the rescued lad in his arms, just as the pent-up flames burst lurid from the attic window, reaching with impotent fury for their prey. The next moment they were safe upon the great ladder waiting to receive them below. Then such a shout went up! Men fell on each other's necks, and cried and laughed at once.

James Anthony Froude

The Empire of the Cæsars

The Ontario Readers: The High School Reader, 1886

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/19923/19923-h/19923-h.htm#lxxxvi

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Of Cæsar, it may be said that he came into the world at a special time and for a special object. The old religions were dead, from the Pillars of Hercules to the Euphrates and the Nile, and the principles on which human society had been constructed were dead also. There remained of spiritual conviction only the common and human sense of justice and morality; and out of this sense some ordered system of government had to be constructed, under which quiet men could live, and labor, and eat the fruit of their industry. Under a rule of this material kind, there can be no enthusiasm, no chivalry, no saintly aspirations, no patriotism of the heroic type. It was not to last forever. A new life was about to dawn for mankind. Poetry, and faith, and devotion were to spring again out of the seeds which were sleeping in the heart of humanity.

?

THE FIRST VOYAGE

The Junior Classics, V5

http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/6328/pg6328-images.html

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We set sail, and steered our course toward the Indies, through the Persian Gulf. At first I was troubled with sea-sickness, but speedily recovered my health. In our voyage we touched at several islands, where we sold or exchanged our goods. One day we were becalmed near a small island, but little elevated above the level of the water, and resembling a green meadow. The captain ordered his sails to be furled, and permitted such persons as were so inclined to land. While we were enjoying ourselves eating and drinking, and recovering from the fatigue of the sea, the island of a sudden trembled and shook us terribly. The trembling of the island was noticed on board ship, and we were called upon to re-embark speedily, lest we should all be lost; for what we took for an island proved to be the back of a sea monster.

Charlotte M. Yonge

The Bravery of Regulus

Junior Classics Vol. 7

http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/6302/pg6302-images.html

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The first dispute between Rome and Carthage was about their possession in the island of Sicily; and the war thus begun had lasted eight years, when it was resolved to send an army to fight the Carthaginians on their own shores. The army and fleet were placed under the command of the two consuls, Lucius Manlius and Marcus Attilius Regulus. On the way, there was a great sea-fight with the Carthaginian fleet, and this was the first naval battle that the Romans ever gained. It made the way to Africa free; but the soldiers, who had never been so far from home before, murmured, for they expected to meet not only human enemies, but monstrous serpents, lions, elephants, asses with horns, and dog-headed monsters, to have a scorching sun overhead, and a noisome marsh under their feet. However, Regulus sternly put a stop to all murmurs, by making it known that disaffection would be punished by death, and the army safely landed, and set up a fortification at Clypea, and plundered the whole country round.

Chathurika Jayasooriya

Colourful Birds

https://www.digitallibrary.io/en/books/details/3809

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Once upon a time, all birds were white. "Make me beautiful, Grandfather Magic," said Woodpecker. "Come, I will paint you a beautiful color," said Grandfather Magic. Woodpecker was now red. A little bird looked at Woodpecker. She wanted to look beautiful, too. "This is my favourite flower," said the little bird to Grandfather Magic. "Will you paint me the same color as this flower?" Grandfather Magic painted the little bird a beautiful yellow. The yellow bird went to Woodpecker. "Look how beautiful I am, Woodpecker!" said the yellow bird. "No, no, I am more beautiful than you," argued Woodpecker. Oriole tried to calm them down by holding them apart. During the fight, the yellow color of the little bird mixed with the red color of Woodpecker. Oriole became… orange! "O-o-range, o-o-riole! O-o-range, o-o-riole!" The parrots teased Oriole. Oriole chased after them angrily.

By Edna Payson Brett.

A THANKSGIVING DINNER

Good Cheer Stories Every Child Should Know

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/19909/19909-h/19909-h.htm#A_THANKSGIVING_DINNER

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All was now quiet in the meeting-house save the calm, steady voice of the preacher. Pretty soon a wee creature dressed all in soft brown stole across the floor of a certain pew. She was a courageous little body indeed, but what mother would not venture a good deal for her hungry babies? Such a repast as this was certainly the opportunity of a lifetime. Looking cautiously around, then concluding that all was safe, she disappeared down a hole in a corner way under the seat. In a twinkling she was back again; this time, however, she was not alone. Four little ones pattered after Mamma Mouse, and eight bright eyes spied a dinner worth running for. Never mind what they did; but when Johnnie awoke at the strains of the closing hymn and tried to remember what had gone wrong, he saw nothing of the pink-frosted cakes save some scattered crumbs.

Nathaniel W. Stephenson

Abraham Lincoln and the Union A Chronicle of the Embattled North, Volume 29 In The Chronicles Of America Series

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/2836/2836-h/2836-h.htm#link2HCH0007

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There is historic significance in his very appearance. His huge, loose-knit figure, six feet four inches high, lean, muscular, ungainly, the evidence of his great physical strength, was a fit symbol of those hard workers, the children of the soil, from whom he sprang. His face was rugged like his figure, the complexion swarthy, cheek bones high, and bushy black hair crowning a great forehead beneath which the eyes were deep-set, gray, and dreaming. A sort of shambling powerfulness formed the main suggestion of face and figure, softened strangely by the mysterious expression of the eyes, and by the singular delicacy of the skin. The motions of this awkward giant lacked grace; the top hat and black frock coat, sometimes rusty, which had served him on the western circuit continued to serve him when he was virtually the dictator of his country. It was in such dress that he visited the army, where he towered above his generals.

Frederick Douglass

What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?

CLD

https://www.commonlit.org/texts/what-to-the-slave-is-the-fourth-of-july

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This, for the purpose of this celebration, is the 4th of July. It is the birthday of your National Independence, and of your political freedom. This, to you, is what the Passover was to the emancipated people of God. It carries your minds back to the day, and to the act of your great deliverance; and to the signs, and to the wonders, associated with that act, and that day. This celebration also marks the beginning of another year of your national life; and reminds you that the Republic of America is now 76 years old. I am glad, fellow-citizens, that your nation is so young. Seventy-six years, though a good old age for a man, is but a mere speck in the life of a nation. Three score years and ten is the allotted time for individual men; but nations number their years by thousands. According to this fact, you are, even now, only in the beginning of your national career, still lingering in the period of childhood. I repeat, I am glad this is so. There is hope in the thought, and hope is much needed, under the dark clouds which lower above the horizon.

simple wiki

Boycott

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boycott

Info

History

whole

CC BY-SA 3.0 and GFDL

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A boycott is a protest where the protesters do not buy a product or give money to a company. Instead of buying a certain product, they might also buy another very similar product from a different company. The word was made during the Irish Land War. It comes from the name of Captain Charles Boycott. Boycott was in charge of looking after the land of a landlord in County Mayo, Ireland. In 1880, the tenants (those who rented) wanted their rent lowered. Boycott refused and threw them out of the land they had rented. The Irish Land League then proposed that instead of becoming violent, everyone in the community should stop doing business with Captain Boycott. The captain was soon isolated. No one helped him with the harvest, no one worked in his stables or his house. Local businessmen no longer traded with him, the postman no longer delivered his post. To get his harvest done, he had to hire 50 people from other counties, the counties Cavan and Monaghan. They were escorted to and from their work by 1000 policemen. Of course, this cost far more than what the harvest was worth.

wikipedia

Headphones

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headphones

Info

Technology

start

CC BY-SA 3.0

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Headphones (or head-phones in the early days of telephony and radio) are a pair of small listening devices that are designed to be worn on or around the head over a user's ears. They are electroacoustic transducers, which convert an electrical signal to a corresponding sound in the user's ear. Headphones are designed to allow a single user to listen to an audio source privately, in contrast to a loudspeaker, which emits sound into the open air, for anyone nearby to hear. Headphones are also known as earspeakers, earphones or, colloquially, cans. Circumaural and supra-aural headphones use a band over the top of the head to hold the speakers in place. The other type, known as earbuds or earphones consist of individual units that plug into the user's ear canal. In the context of telecommunication, a headset is a combination of headphone and microphone. Headphones either connect directly to a signal source such as an audio amplifier, radio, CD player, portable media player, mobile phone, video game consoles, electronic musical instrument, or use wireless technology such as bluetooth or FM radio.

wikipedia

E-reader

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-reader

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Any device that can display text on a screen may act as an e-reader; however, specialized e-reader devices may optimize portability, readability, and battery life for this purpose. Their main advantages over printed books are portability, since an e-reader is capable of holding thousands of books while weighing less than one book, and the convenience provided due to add-on features. An e-reader is a device designed as a convenient way to read e-books. It is similar in form factor to a tablet computer, but features electronic paper rather than an LCD screen. This yields much longer battery life —the battery can last for several weeks— and better readability, similar to that of paper even in sunlight. Drawbacks of this kind of display include a slow refresh rate and (usually) a grayscale-only display, which makes it unsuitable for sophisticated interactive applications as those found on tablets. The absence of such apps may be perceived as an advantage, as the user may more easily focus on reading.

Edward Everett Hale

MY DOUBLE; AND HOW HE UNDID ME

The Best American Humorous Short Stories

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/10947/10947-h/10947-h.htm

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At first I had a feeling that I was going to be at great cost for clothing him. But it proved, of course, at once, that, whenever he was out, I should be at home. And I went, during the bright period of his success, to so few of those awful pageants which require a black dress-coat and what the ungodly call, after Mr. Dickens, a white choker, that in the happy retreat of my own dressing-gowns and jackets my days went by as happily and cheaply as those of another Thalaba. And Polly declares there was never a year when the tailoring cost so little. He lived (Dennis, not Thalaba) in his wife's room over the kitchen. He had orders never to show himself at that window. When he appeared in the front of the house, I retired to my sanctissimum and my dressing-gown. In short, the Dutchman and, his wife, in the old weather-box, had not less to do with, each other than he and I.

Clifford D. Simak

Message From Mars

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/62357/62357-h/62357-h.htm

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He was in space. Headed for the Moon and from there for Mars. But even the realization of this failed to rouse him from the lethargy of battered body and tortured brain. Taking off in a rocket was punishment. Severe, terrible punishment. Only men who were perfect physical specimens could attempt it. An imperfect heart would simply stop under the jarring impact of the blast-off. Someday rockets would be perfected. Someday rockets would rise gently from the Earth, shaking off Earth's gravity by gradual application of power rather than by tremendous thrusts that kicked steel and glass and men out into space. But not yet, not for many years. Perhaps not for many generations. For many years men would risk their lives in blasting projectiles that ripped loose from the Earth by the sheer savagery of exploding oxygen and gasoline. A moan came from the rear of the ship, a stifled pitiful moan that brought Scott upright in the chair, tearing with nervous hands at the buckles of his belt.

Jacob Reese

ELECTRICITY; WHAT IT IS, AND WHAT MAY BE EXPECTED OF IT.

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN SUPPLEMENT NO. 312

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/17817/17817-h/17817-h.htm

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It is now a well established fact that matter, per se, is inert, and that its energy is derived from the physical forces; therefore all chemical and physical phenomena observed in the universe are caused by and due to the operations of the physical forces, and matter, of whatever state or condition it may be in, is but the vehicle through or by which the physical forces operate to produce the phenomena. There are but two physical forces, i.e., the force of attraction and the force of caloric. The force of attraction is inherent in the matter, and tends to draw the particles together and hold them in a state of rest. The force of caloric accompanies the matter and tends to push the particles outward into a state of activity. The force of attraction being inherent, it abides in the matter continuously and can neither be increased nor diminished; it, however, is present in different elementary bodies in different degrees, and in compound bodies relative to the elements of which they are composed.

Rudyard Kipling

YOUNG MEN AT THE MANOR

PUCK OF POOK'S HILL

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/557/557-h/557-h.htm#weland

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Una nodded—most of her talk was by nods—and they crept from the gloom of the tunnels towards the tiny weir that turns the brook into the mill-stream. Here the banks are low and bare, and the glare of the afternoon sun on the Long Pool below the weir makes your eyes ache. When they were in the open they nearly fell down with astonishment. A huge grey horse, whose tail-hairs crinkled the glassy water, was drinking in the pool, and the ripples about his muzzle flashed like melted gold. On his back sat an old, white-haired man dressed in a loose glimmery gown of chainmail. He was bare-headed, and a nut-shaped iron helmet hung at his saddle-bow. His reins were of red leather five or six inches deep, scalloped at the edges, and his high padded saddle with its red girths was held fore and aft by a red leather breastband and crupper. 'Look!' said Una, as though Dan were not staring his very eyes out. 'It's like the picture in your room—"Sir Isumbras at the Ford".'

Ursula Nafula

Sakima's song

African Storybook Level 3

https://www.africanstorybook.org/

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One day his mother asked him, "Where do you learn these songs from, Sakima?" Sakima answered, "I just know them, mother. I hear them in my mind and then I sing." Sakima liked to sing for his little sister, especially, if she felt hungry. His sister would listen to him singing his favorite song. She would sway to the soothing tune. "Can you sing it again and again, Sakima," his sister would beg him. Sakima would accept and sing it over and over again. One evening when his parents returned home, they were very quiet. Sakima knew that there was something wrong. "What is wrong, mother, father?" Sakima asked. Sakima learned that the rich man's son was missing. The man was very sad and lonely. "I can sing for him. He might be happy again," Sakima told his parents. But his parents dismissed him. "He is very rich. You are only a blind boy. Do you think your song will help him?" However, Sakima did not give up. His little sister supported him. She said, "Sakima's songs soothe me when I am hungry. They will soothe the rich man too."

?

A CHARACTERISTIC MINING "RUSH."--THE PROSPECTIVE MINING CENTER OF SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO

Scientific American Supplement, Nos. 360

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/8559/8559-h/8559-h.htm#31

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On August 15 "Jack" Shedd, the original discoverer of the Robinson mine in Colorado, was prospecting on the south branch of the north fork of the Perche River, when he made the first great strike in the district. On the summit of a heavily timbered ridge he found some small pieces of native silver, and then a lump of ore containing very pure silver in the form of sulphides, weighing 150 pounds, and afterward proved to be worth on the average $11 a pound. All this was mere float, simply lying on the surface of the ground. Afterward another block was found, weighing 87 pounds, of horn silver, with specimens nearly 75 percent silver. The strike was kept a secret for a few days. Said a mining man: "I went up to help bring the big lump down. We took it by a camp of prospectors who were lying about entirely ignorant of any find. When they saw it they instantly saddled their horses, galloped off, and I believe they prospected all night." A like excitement was created when the news of this and one or two similar finds reached Lake Valley.

wikipedia

Oil_refinery

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_refinery

Info

Technology

mid

CC BY-SA 3.0

PG

The Chinese were among the first civilizations to refine oil. As early as the first century, the Chinese were refining crude oil for use as an energy source. Between 512 and 518, in the late Northern Wei Dynasty, the Chinese geographer, writer and politician Li Daoyuan introduced the process of refining oil into various lubricants in his famous work Commentary on the Water Classic. Crude oil was often distilled by Arab chemists, with clear descriptions given in Arabic handbooks such as those of Muhammad ibn Zakariya Razi (854–925). The streets of Baghdad were paved with tar, derived from petroleum that became accessible from natural fields in the region. In the 9th century, oil fields were exploited in the area around modern Baku, Azerbaijan. These fields were described by the Arab geographer Abu al-Hasan 'Ali al-Mas'udi in the 10th century, and by Marco Polo in the 13th century, who described the output of those wells as hundreds of shiploads. Arab and Persian chemists also distilled crude oil in order to produce flammable products for military purposes. Through Islamic Spain, distillation became available in Western Europe by the 12th century.

Arthur Quiller-Couch

A FIRE-FIGHTER'S RESCUE FROM THE FLAMES

The Junior Classics, Volume 7

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/6302

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Following the footsteps of the passers-by, he found himself in one of the side streets leading off Piccadilly, and there at the end of the street, a large house was blazing furiously. He worked his way vigorously through the spectators, now so densely gathered as to form a living wedge in the narrow street and block it against all traffic, and at length found himself in a position to see clearly the ruin that had already been wrought on the burning pile. As a matter of fact, all was pretty well over with the house. How far the upper stories were intact he had little means of judging; but he saw that the ceilings of the first and second floors had given way, and also that the fire was running along the rafters of the floor above. Flames were pouring from half a dozen windows. He turned to a man who stood next him in the concourse. "The house is nearly done for," he remarked.

Emile Souvestre

The Poet and the Peasant

Journeys Through Bookland, Vol 6

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/21864/21864-h/21864-h.htm#THE_POET_AND_THE_PEASANT

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The young man uttered an exclamation. He had left the château that morning and did not think that he had wandered so far; but he had been on the wrong path for hours, and in thinking to take the road to Sersberg he had continued to turn his back upon it. It was too late to make good such an error; so he was forced to accept the shelter offered by his new companion, whose farm was fortunately within gunshot. He accordingly regulated his pace to the carter's and attempted to enter into conversation with him; but Moser was not a talkative man and was apparently a complete stranger to the young man's usual sensations. When, on issuing from the forest, Arnold pointed to the magnificent horizon purpled by the last rays of the setting sun, the farmer contented himself with a grimace. "Bad weather for tomorrow," he muttered, drawing his cloak about his shoulders.

wikipedia

Seven_Years%27_War

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Years%27_War

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The Seven Years' War was a world war fought between 1754 and 1763, the main conflict occurring in the seven-year period from 1756 to 1763. It involved every European great power of the time except the Ottoman Empire, spanning five continents, and affected Europe, the Americas, West Africa, India, and the Philippines. The conflict split Europe into two coalitions, led by Great Britain on one side and France on the other. For the first time, aiming to curtail Britain and Prussia's ever-growing might, France formed a grand coalition of its own, which ended with failure as Britain rose as the world's predominant power, altering the European balance of power. In the historiography of some countries, the war is named after combatants in its respective theatres, e.g. the French and Indian War in the United States. In French-speaking Canada, it is known as the War of the Conquest, while it is called the Seven Years' War in English-speaking Canada (North America, 1754–1763), Pomeranian War (with Sweden and Prussia, 1757–1762), Third Carnatic War (on the Indian subcontinent, 1757–1763), and Third Silesian War (with Prussia and Austria, 1756–1763).

Jack London

White Fang

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/910/910-h/910-h.htm

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They travelled on without speech, saving their breath for the work of their bodies. On every side was the silence, pressing upon them with a tangible presence. It affected their minds as the many atmospheres of deep water affect the body of the diver. It crushed them with the weight of unending vastness and unalterable decree. It crushed them into the remotest recesses of their own minds, pressing out of them, like juices from the grape, all the false ardours and exaltations and undue self-values of the human soul, until they perceived themselves finite and small, specks and motes, moving with weak cunning and little wisdom amidst the play and inter-play of the great blind elements and forces. An hour went by, and a second hour. The pale light of the short sunless day was beginning to fade, when a faint far cry arose on the still air. It soared upward with a swift rush, till it reached its topmost note, where it persisted, palpitant and tense, and then slowly died away. It might have been a lost soul wailing, had it not been invested with a certain sad fierceness and hungry eagerness.

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Railway Turn-Table in the Time of Louis XIV

Scientific American Supplement, Nos. 286

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/8297/8297-h/8297-h.htm#7

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According to Alex. Guillaumot the apparatus consisted of a sort of railway on which the car was moved by manual labor. In the car, which was decorated with the royal colors, are seen seated the ladies and children of the king's household, while the king himself stands in the rear and seems to be directing operations. The remarkable peculiarity to which we would direct the attention of the reader is that this document shows that the car ran on rails very nearly like those used on the railways of the present time, and that a turn-table served for changing the direction to a right angle in order to place the car under the shelter of a small building. The picture which we reproduce, and the authenticity of which is certain, proves then that in the time of Louis XIV. our present railway turn-tables had been thought of and constructed--which is a historic fact worthy of being noted.

Sharpe London Magazine

The Little Hero of Haarlem

The Ontario Readers: Third Book

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/18561/18561-h/18561-h.htm#Haarlem

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The boy was about eight years old when, one day, he asked permission to take some cakes to a poor blind man, who lived at the other side of the dike. His father gave him leave, but charged him not to stay too late. The child promised, and set off on his little journey. The blind man thankfully partook of his young friend's cakes, and the boy, mindful of his father's orders, did not wait, as usual, to hear one of the old man's stories, but as soon as he had seen him eat one muffin, took leave of him to return home. As he went along by the canals, then quite full, for it was in October, and the autumn rains had swelled the waters,—the boy now stooped to pull the little blue flowers which his mother loved so well, now, in childish gaiety, hummed some merry song. The road gradually became more solitary, and soon neither the joyous shout of the villager returning to his cottage home, nor the rough voice of the carter grumbling at his lazy horses, was any longer to be heard.

Anna Livingston

THE HORSE THAT LOVES CHILDREN

The Nursery, April 1873, Vol. XIII. A Monthly Magazine for Youngest People

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/24477/24477-h/24477-h.htm#Page_119

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This is a picture of the horse that refuses to run over children. His name is Prince. Once his master was driving him along a narrow street, when Prince saw an infant creeping along across the street right in his way. Prince at once slackened his speed; and though his master, who did not know that the infant lay in the way, touched him with the whip, Prince knew better than to hurt the poor little infant. At last the good horse stopped short, and refused to move. His master got out of the buggy to see what was the matter; and there, close by the horse's fore-feet, was a baby on its knees. Was not Prince a good, wise horse to refuse to harm the baby? Another time, when a little boy came up behind him, when the flies were pestering him, Prince, instead of kicking him, just lifted up one of his hind-feet, and pushed him gently away.

Uncle Charles

THE LITTLE CARPENTER

The Nursery, April 1873, Vol. XIII. A Monthly Magazine for Youngest People

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/24477/24477-h/24477-h.htm#Page_112

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Rudolf, the eldest boy, learned to be a carpenter. But, when he was twenty-one years of age, he came into the possession of a large fortune. He married, and thought that he had so much money that he could never spend it all. But, before he was fifty years of age, the whole of his large possessions had melted away. Some of his stately houses had been burned down; and the insurance-offices had failed. Some men he had trusted had proved dishonest; and many schemes that he had entered upon had turned out badly. At the age of forty-six, Rudolf Reinhold took up the business of a carpenter, which he had learned between the ages of fourteen and eighteen. He soon became skillful, and turned his attention to building houses in the city of Berlin. So successful was he, that in ten years he was once more a rich man.

By Winthrop Packard.

THANKSGIVING AT TODD'S ASYLUM

Good Cheer Stories Every Child Should Know

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/19909/19909-h/19909-h.htm#THANKSGIVING_AT_TODDS_ASYLUM

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The new barn had exhausted the revenues completely, and there would be no more income until January 1st; but one must have a turkey for Thanksgiving, and there was Miltiades. To catch Miltiades became the household problem, and the heaven-born inventor set wonderful traps for him, which caught almost everything but Miltiades, who easily avoided them. Eph used to go out daily before breakfast and chase Miltiades, but he might as well have chased a government position. The turkey scorned him, and grew only wilder and tougher, till he had a lean and hungry look that would have shamed Cassius. The day before Thanksgiving it looked as if there would be no turkey dinner at Todd's, but here Fisherman Jones stepped into the breach. It was a beautiful summer day, and he hobbled out into the field for an afternoon's fishing. Here he sat on a log, and began to make casts in the open. Nearby, under a savin bush, lurked Miltiades, and viewed these actions with the scorn of long familiarity.

Letter signed by various authors

Russia in Literature

The European War, Vol. 1 - No. 5

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/18880/18880-h/18880-h.htm#Russia_in_Literature

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That task, we trust, will some day lie before us. When at last our victorious fleets and armies meet together, and the allied nations of East and West set themselves to restore the well-being of many millions of ruined homes, France and Great Britain will assuredly bring their large contributions of good-will and wisdom, but your country will have something to contribute which is all its own. It is not only because of your valor in war and your achievements in art, science, and letters that we rejoice to have you for allies and friends; it is for some quality in Russia herself, something both profound and humane, of which these achievements are the outcome and the expression. You, like us, entered upon this war to defend a weak and threatened nation, which trusted you, against the lawless aggression of a strong military power; you, like us, have continued it as a war of self-defense and self-emancipation.

Aunt Amy

HETTIE'S CHICKEN

The Nursery, July 1873, Vol. XIV. No. 1

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/24938/24938-h/24938-h.htm#Page_10

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One night Hettie went to bed, and forgot to put her pet in its cage. What do you think it did? It just flew up on her pillow; and there it sat with its head tucked under its wing. Hettie named it Posey, and called it her daughter. "What will you be, some day, when Posey lays eggs, and brings out a brood of little chickens?" asked mamma one day. That was a new idea to Hettie; and it puzzled her little brain for a minute: then she laughed out, "Shall I be their grandmother?" Papa looked up from his paper to see what amused his little girl so much; and, when she had told him, he said he would have a pair of spectacles ready for her; and mamma said she would make her a cap; and Hettie said her little arm-chair would be very nice for a grandmother's chair.

Kamaljit Moirangthem Gregory Tucker

How Do Fruits Ripen?

https://kids.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/frym.2018.00016

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As fruit-bearing plants grow, the fruits accumulate water and nutrients from the plant, and they use these nutrients to create their flesh and seeds. Most growing fruits initially provide protection to the developing seeds. At this stage, fruits are generally hard and unattractive to predators—including us! After seed development and fruit growth, the properties of the fruit change to make the fruit more attractive to potential consumers, such as animals, birds, and humans. These changes include the most common ways by which we judge whether a fruit is ripe or not, including external features, such as softness to the touch, and internal features, such as sweetness. Fruits also change color as they ripen. This happens because of the breakdown of a green pigment called chlorophyll, along with the creation and accumulation of other pigments responsible for red, purple, or blue hues (anthocyanin), or bright red, yellow, and orange hues (carotenoids), to name a few.

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RUTH

Journeys Through Bookland, vol 6

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/21864

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Now it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled in Judah that there was a famine in the land, and a certain man of Bethlehem-Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife and his two sons. Together they came into the land and continued there; but the man died, and the wife was left, and her two sons. And they took them wives of the women of Moab; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other was Ruth; and they dwelled there about ten years. Then the two sons died also both of them; and the woman, Naomi, their mother, alone was left of the family that came into Moab. Then she arose with her daughters-in-law, that she might return from the country of Moab; for she had heard in the country of Moab how that the Lord had visited his people in giving them bread. Wherefore she went forth out of the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return unto the land of Judah.

ALEXSANDR S. PUSHKIN

THE QUEEN OF SPADES

BEST RUSSIAN SHORT STORIES

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/13437/13437-h/13437-h.htm

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The old Countess A—— was seated in her dressing-room in front of her looking-glass. Three waiting maids stood around her. One held a small pot of rouge, another a box of hair-pins, and the third a tall can with bright red ribbons. The Countess had no longer the slightest pretensions to beauty, but she still preserved the habits of her youth, dressed in strict accordance with the fashion of seventy years before, and made as long and as careful a toilette as she would have done sixty years previously. Near the window, at an embroidery frame, sat a young lady, her ward. "Good morning, grandmamma," said a young officer, entering the room. "Bonjour, Mademoiselle Lise. Grandmamma, I want to ask you something." "What is it, Paul?" "I want you to let me introduce one of my friends to you, and to allow me to bring him to the ball on Friday." "Bring him direct to the ball and introduce him to me there. Were you at B——‘s yesterday?" "Yes; everything went off very pleasantly, and dancing was kept up until five o'clock. How charming Yeletzkaya was!"

Charles Dickens

The Schoolboy’s Story

Some Christmas Stories

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/1467/1467-h/1467-h.htm#page55

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In the Midsummer holidays, some of our fellows who lived within walking distance, used to come back and climb the trees outside the playground wall, on purpose to look at Old Cheeseman reading there by himself. He was always as mild as the tea—and that's pretty mild, I should hope!—so when they whistled to him, he looked up and nodded; and when they said, "Halloa, Old Cheeseman, what have you had for dinner?" he said, "Boiled mutton;" and when they said, "An't it solitary, Old Cheeseman?" he said, "It is a little dull sometimes:" and then they said, "Well good-bye, Old Cheeseman!" and climbed down again. Of course it was imposing on Old Cheeseman to give him nothing but boiled mutton through a whole vacation, but that was just like the system. When they didn't give him boiled mutton, they gave him rice pudding, pretending it was a treat. And saved the butcher.

wikipedia

Bureaucracy

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bureaucracy

Info

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start

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A bureaucracy is "a body of non-elective government officials" and/or "an administrative policy-making group". Historically, bureaucracy was government administration managed by departments staffed with non-elected officials. Today, bureaucracy is the administrative system governing any large institution. Since being coined, the word "bureaucracy" has developed negative connotations. Bureaucracies have been criticized as being too complex, inefficient, or too inflexible. The dehumanizing effects of excessive bureaucracy became a major theme in the work of Franz Kafka, and were central to his novels, The Castle and The Trial. The elimination of unnecessary bureaucracy is a key concept in modern managerial theory and has been an issue in some political campaigns. Others have noted the necessity of bureaucracies in modern life. The German sociologist Max Weber argued that bureaucracy constitutes the most efficient and rational way in which one can organize human activity, and that systematic processes and organized hierarchies were necessary to maintain order, maximize efficiency and eliminate favoritism.

Joseph A. Altsheler

The Sun of Quebec: A Story of a Great Crisis

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/18774/18774-h/18774-h.htm

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Robert paused a few moments in the hall. Sounds of voices came from the dining room, showing that the supper was still in progress. He thought of going back there to listen to the talk, but he reflected that the time for youth at the table had passed. They were in their secrets now, and he strolled toward the large room that contained the chest of drawers. A dim light from an unshuttered window shone into the apartment and it was in his mind to wait there for Tayoga, but he stopped suddenly at the door and stared in astonishment. A shadow was moving in the room, thin, impalpable and noiseless, but it had all the seeming of a man. Moreover, it had a height and shape that were familiar, and it reminded him of the spy, Garay. He was too much surprised to move, and so he merely stared. Garay knelt before the chest of drawers and began to work at it with a small sharp tool that he drew from his coat. Robert saw, too, that his attention was centered on the third drawer from the top.

JOHN TYNDALL, F.R.S.

CARBONIC ACID AND BISULPHIDE OF CARBON

Scientific American Supplement, No. 388

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/15417/15417-h/15417-h.htm

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Chemists are ever on the alert to notice analogies and resemblances in the atomic structure of different bodies. They long ago indicated points of resemblance between bisulphide of carbon and carbonic acid. In the case of the latter we have one atom of carbon united to two of oxygen, and in the case of the former one atom of carbon united to two of sulphur. Attempts have been made to push the analogy still further by the discovery of a compound of carbon and sulphur analogous to carbonic oxide, but hitherto, I believe, without success. I have now to note a resemblance of some interest to the physicist, and of a more settled character than any hitherto observed. When, by means of an electric current, a metal is volatilized and subjected to spectrum analysis, the "reversal" of the bright band of the incandescent vapor is commonly observed. This is known to be due to the absorption of the rays emitted by the vapor by the partially cooled envelope of its own substance which surrounds it. The effect is the same in kind as the absorption by cold carbonic acid of the heat emitted by a carbonic oxide flame.

Rudyard Kipling

Kim

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/2226/2226-h/2226-h.htm

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The lama, not so well used to trains as he had pretended, started as the 3.25 a.m. south-bound roared in. The sleepers sprang to life, and the station filled with clamour and shoutings, cries of water and sweetmeat vendors, shouts of native policemen, and shrill yells of women gathering up their baskets, their families, and their husbands. 'It is the train—only the te-rain. It will not come here. Wait!' Amazed at the lama's immense simplicity (he had handed him a small bag full of rupees), Kim asked and paid for a ticket to Umballa. A sleepy clerk grunted and flung out a ticket to the next station, just six miles distant. 'Nay,' said Kim, scanning it with a grin. 'This may serve for farmers, but I live in the city of Lahore. It was cleverly done, Babu. Now give the ticket to Umballa.' The Babu scowled and dealt the proper ticket.

Domen Novak, Roland Sigrist, & Robert Riener

Brain-Computer Interface Racing at the Cybathlon 2016

https://kids.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/frym.2019.00087

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What if you could control machines with your mind? It sounds like science fiction, but it is actually the focus of the scientific field called brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). BCIs measure electricity produced by the brain, then examine the electrical signals for patterns that might indicate the intention, or what the brain is trying to get the body to do. BCIs are useful tools for people who cannot move their limbs. These people can use BCIs to control wheelchairs or write messages. However, since the brain's electricity is weak and must be measured from the surface of the scalp (not inside the skull), it is hard for BCIs to accurately identify people's intentions from electrical measurements. So how do you evaluate a BCI to know if it is useful in the real world? Researchers usually collect brain measurements and store them on a computer, then use these measurements to compare different BCI software to identify the "best" software. However, this only lets researchers determine how a BCI reacts to pre-recorded data—it does tell them how quickly and accurately a person could perform a task with the BCI.

Tasnim Muradmia

Amara and the magic tree

African Storybook Level 3

https://www.africanstorybook.org/#

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Amara was walking through the park. The trees in the park were green and healthy. But, there was one tree that was brown and dry. "This tree needs water," said Amara to herself. She watered the tree and it came to life with new growth. It was a magnificent green tree. Then, the tree spoke! "You watered me and brought me back to life," said the tree. "I'm a magic tree, I shall grant you three wishes." Amara made her first wish. "I wish for a red bicycle," she said cautiously. Abracadabra! A red bicycle appeared. She made her second wish after thinking for a few moments. "I wish for a radio," said Amara. Abracadabra! A radio appeared. Amara made her third wish. "I wish for pink crystal earrings," she said happily. Abracadabra! Pink crystal earrings appeared. The magic tree said, "You have everything that you wanted." Amara smiled, "Yes I do, but those things were not for me." The magic tree looked confused. "The bicycle is for my older brother. He outgrew his bicycle. The radio is for Dad. His radio broke. The earrings are for Mum. She loves fancy earrings," explained Amara.

Edith

IN THE SWING

The Nursery, March 1878, Vol. XXIII. No. 3 A Monthly Magazine for Youngest Readers

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/28142/28142-h/28142-h.htm#Page_67

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Once, when I had swung her very high, Mabel had a fall, but it did not hurt her, for she fell among some tufts of soft grass; but, if her head had struck a stone, it might have done her great harm. After that we were both more careful. Five years have gone by since those days. We both go to school, and I do not think you would know us, from the likenesses in the picture. But next summer we hope to visit grandmother once more, and we shall revive old times in the swing under the old oak-tree. The sly squirrels will come out and look at us; the birds will twitter, and try to make us think that they have no nests in the trees and bushes thereabouts: but we shall say, "We shall do you no harm, birds, squirrels, beetles—no harm—for we love you all! So play on, and please let us play too."

Nicholas Gogol TRANSLATED BY CLAUD FIELD

MEMOIRS OF A MADMAN

The Mantle and Other Stories

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/36238/36238-h/36238-h.htm

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January in the same year, following after February.—I can never understand what kind of a country this Spain really is. The popular customs and rules of court etiquette are quite extraordinary. I do not understand them at all, at all. Today my head was shorn, although I exclaimed as loudly as I could, that I did not want to be a monk. What happened afterwards, when they began to let cold water trickle on my head, I do not know. I have never experienced such hellish torments. I nearly went mad, and they had difficulty in holding me. The significance of this strange custom is entirely hidden from me. It is a very foolish and unreasonable one. Nor can I understand the stupidity of the kings who have not done away with it before now. Judging by all the circumstances, it seems to me as though I had fallen into the hands of the Inquisition, and as though the man whom I took to be the Chancellor was the Grand Inquisitor. But yet I cannot understand how the king could fall into the hands of the Inquisition.

Philip K. Dick

Second Variety

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/32032/32032-h/32032-h.htm

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But that hadn't helped Washington. The American bloc governments moved to the Moon Base the first year. There was not much else to do. Europe was gone; a slag heap with dark weeds growing from the ashes and bones. Most of North America was useless; nothing could be planted, no one could live. A few million people kept going up in Canada and down in South America. But during the second-year Soviet parachutists began to drop, a few at first, then more and more. They wore the first really effective anti-radiation equipment; what was left of American production moved to the moon along with the governments. All but the troops. The remaining troops stayed behind as best they could, a few thousand here, a platoon there. No one knew exactly where they were; they stayed where they could, moving around at night, hiding in ruins, in sewers, cellars, with the rats and snakes. It looked as if the Soviet Union had the war almost won. Except for a handful of projectiles fired off from the moon daily, there was almost no weapon in use against them.

Joseph Conrad

The Secret Agent: A Simple Tale

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/974/974-h/974-h.htm

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A clear fire burned in a tall fireplace, and an elderly man standing with his back to it, in evening dress and with a chain round his neck, glanced up from the newspaper he was holding spread out in both hands before his calm and severe face. He didn't move; but another lackey, in brown trousers and claw-hammer coat edged with thin yellow cord, approaching Mr. Verloc listened to the murmur of his name, and turning round on his heel in silence, began to walk, without looking back once. Mr. Verloc, thus led along a ground-floor passage to the left of the great carpeted staircase, was suddenly motioned to enter a quite small room furnished with a heavy writing-table and a few chairs. The servant shut the door, and Mr. Verloc remained alone. He did not take a seat. With his hat and stick held in one hand he glanced about, passing his other podgy hand over his uncovered sleek head.

Henry James

The Turn of the Screw

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/209/209-h/209-h.htm

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There was a Sunday—to get on—when it rained with such force and for so many hours that there could be no procession to church; in consequence of which, as the day declined, I had arranged with Mrs. Grose that, should the evening show improvement, we would attend together the late service. The rain happily stopped, and I prepared for our walk, which, through the park and by the good road to the village, would be a matter of twenty minutes. Coming downstairs to meet my colleague in the hall, I remembered a pair of gloves that had required three stitches and that had received them—with a publicity perhaps not edifying—while I sat with the children at their tea, served on Sundays, by exception, in that cold, clean temple of mahogany and brass, the "grown-up" dining room. The gloves had been dropped there, and I turned in to recover them.

BARON VON DER GOLTZ

NOTICE POSTED AT BRUSSELS OCT. 5, 1914, AND PRESUMABLY IN MOST OF THE COMMUNES IN THE COUNTRY

The European War, Vol. 1 - No. 6

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/20521/20521-h/20521-h.htm#Why_Belgium_Was_Devastated

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On the evening of Sept. 25 the railway and telegraph lines were destroyed on the Lovenjoul-Vertryck line. Consequently the two above-mentioned places on the morning of Sept. 30 had to give an account and to furnish hostages. In the future the communities in the vicinity of a place where such things happen (no matter whether or not they are accomplices) will be punished without mercy. To this end hostages have been taken from all places in the vicinity of railroad lines menaced by such attacks, and at the first attempt to destroy the railroad tracks or the telegraph or telephone wires they will be immediately shot. Furthermore, all troops in charge of the protection of the railroad lines have received orders to shoot any person approaching in a suspicious manner the railroad tracks or the telegraph or telephone lines. The Governor General of Belgium, (Signed) BARON VON DER GOLTZ, Field Marshal.

UNCLE SAM.

THE YOUNG FISHERMAN

The Nursery, August 1881, Vol. XXX A Monthly Magazine for Youngest Readers

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/42157/42157-h/42157-h.htm#Page_225

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The little boy was greatly pleased. He had fished often in a tub of water with a pin-hook; but now, for the first time, he had a real fishing-line and pole, and was able to go a-fishing in earnest. The very first pleasant day, he got leave from his father to go to the pond and try his luck. "Be sure to bring home a good mess of fish, Charley," said his father. "Oh, yes! papa," said Charley, and with his fishing-pole on his shoulder out he went. What fun it was! First he dug some worms for bait; then he baited his hook nicely; then he took his stand on a little platform, made on purpose for the use of fishermen, and threw out his hook. There he stood, in the shade of the old willow-tree, and waited for the fish to bite. As he looked down into the calm, clear water, he saw a boy, just about his own size, looking up at him. He had no other company.

USHistory.org

Developing Civilization in Ancient Egypt

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https://www.commonlit.org/texts/developing-civilization-in-ancient-egypt

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In the late 1800s, Mexico was in big trouble. The treasury was nearly bankrupt after fifteen years of civil war and two years fighting the United States. The country owed money to many European countries. The new President of Mexico — a Zapotec man named Benito Juárez — had to halt the debt payments because there was no money to complete them. Angry with Juárez's decision, Britain, Spain, and France sent troops to Veracruz, Mexico. They demanded the money owed to them. Luckily, President Juárez was able to reach an agreement with Britain and Spain. But Emperor Napoleon III of France refused to talk and settle the debts. He saw this as an opportunity to grow his empire. He soon sent troops to claim Mexican land for France. This forced President Juárez into a war that Mexico was not prepared for: the Franco-Mexican War. President Juárez quickly rounded up a ragtag army of 2,000 men. They were led by Texas-born General Ignacio Zaragoza. The army moved to the small town of Puebla de Los Angeles in the Mexican state of Puebla.

By Harriet Beecher Stowe.

HOW WE KEPT THANKSGIVING AT OLDTOWN

Good Cheer Stories Every Child Should Know

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/19909/19909-h/19909-h.htm#HOW_WE_KEPT_THANKSGIVING_AT_OLDTOWN

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In those days there were none of the thousand ameliorations of the labors of housekeeping which have since arisen—no ground and prepared spices and sweet herbs; everything came into our hands in the rough, and in bulk, and the reducing of it into a state for use was deemed one of the appropriate labors of childhood. Even the very salt that we used in cooking was rock salt, which we were required to wash and dry and pound and sift before it became fit for use. At other times of the year we sometimes murmured at these labors, but those that were supposed to usher in the great Thanksgiving festival were always entered into with enthusiasm. There were signs of richness all around us—stoning of raisins, cutting of citron, slicing of candied orange peel. Yet all these were only dawnings and intimations of what was coming during the week of real preparation, after the Governor's proclamation had been read.

wikipedia

Electric_current

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_current

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An electric current is a flow of electric charge. In electric circuits this charge is often carried by moving electrons in a wire. It can also be carried by ions in an electrolyte, or by both ions and electrons such as in a plasma. The SI unit for measuring an electric current is the ampere, which is the flow of electric charge across a surface at the rate of one coulomb per second. Electric current is measured using a device called an ammeter. Electric currents cause Joule heating, which creates light in incandescent light bulbs. They also create magnetic fields, which are used in motors, inductors and generators. The particles that carry the charge in an electric current are called charge carriers. In metals, one or more electrons from each atom are loosely bound to the atom, and can move freely about within the metal. These conduction electrons are the charge carriers in metal conductors.

Captain Mayne Reid

The Boy Hunters

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/21236/21236-h/21236-h.htm

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Our subject is an odd-looking house that, many years ago, stood upon the western bank of the river, about a mile below the village. I say it stood there many years ago; but it is very likely that it is still standing, as it was a firm, well-built house, of hewn logs, carefully chinked, and plastered between the chinks with run-lime. It was roofed with cedar shingles that projected at the eaves, so as to cast off the rain, and keep the walls dry. It was what in that country is called a "double house,"—that is, a large passage ran across the middle of it, through which you might have driven a wagon loaded with hay. This passage was roofed and ceiled, like the rest of the house, and floored with strong planks. The flooring, elevated a foot above the surface of the ground, projected several feet in front of the passage, where carved uprights of cedar-wood supported a light roof, forming a porch or verandah. Around these uprights, and upon the railing that shut in the verandah, clung vines, rose-bushes, and convolvulus plants, that at certain seasons of the year were clustered over with beautiful flowers.

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Excerpt from 'On Drought Conditions'

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https://www.commonlit.org/texts/excerpt-from-on-drought-conditions

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First, let me talk for a minute about this autumn and the coming winter. We have the option, in the case of families who need actual subsistence, of putting them on the dole or putting them to work. They do not want to go on the dole, and they are one thousand percent right. We agree, therefore, that we must put them to work for a decent wage, and when we reach that decision we kill two birds with one stone, because these families will earn enough by working not only to subsist themselves, but to buy food for their stock, and seed for next year's planting. Into this scheme of things there fit of course the government lending agencies which next year, as in the past, will help with production loans. Every Governor with whom I have talked is in full accord with this program of doing work for these farm families, just as every Governor agrees that the individual states will take care of their unemployable but that the cost of employing those who are entirely able and willing to work must be borne by the Federal Government.

Sara Josephine Albright

Maggie’s Very Own Secret

Boys and Girls Bookshelf; a Practical Plan of Character Building, Volume I

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/25359/25359-h/25359-h.htm#Page_100

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All at once he heard some one talking, and he hid behind the broom and was as still as he could be. It was the little boy Johnnie, who lived up-stairs. He had a big hammer and a saw in his hand, and he was talking to his little sister. "I think that big, empty box down cellar would make a fine dolls' house, Maggie. I can fix a little porch on it, and make an up-stairs and a down-stairs," the little boy said. "Oh, Johnnie, that will be lovely," his little sister said. "I'll do something for you sometime. Maybe—maybe—I'll draw a whole slate full of el'phants, for you to look at!" Then they started down the cellar steps. Mr. Squeaky was so frightened that he almost tumbled down the stairs. "Oh, my dear," he whispered, "they are going to break up our house with a big hammer and a saw, and make a dolls' house out of it! Let's run as fast as we can!" Poor little Mrs. Squeaky began to cry.

Grace MacGowan Cooke

A CALL

The Best American Humorous Short Stories

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/10947/10947-h/10947-h.htm

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Abner sat hard on his cap and blushed silently. Ross twisted his hat into a three-cornered wreck. The two girls settled themselves noisily on the upper step. The old man read on and on. The sun sank lower. The hills were red in the west as though a brush fire flamed behind their crests. Abner stole a furtive glance at his companion in misery, and the dolor of Ross's countenance somewhat assuaged his anguish. The freckle-faced boy was thinking of the village over the hill, a certain pleasant white house set back in a green yard, past whose gate, the two-plank sidewalk ran. He knew lamps were beginning to wink in the windows of the neighbors about, as though the houses said, "Our boys are all at home—but Ross Pryor's out trying to call on the girls, and can't get anybody to understand it." Oh, that he were walking down those two planks, drawing a stick across the pickets, lifting high happy feet which could turn in at that gate! He wouldn't care what the lamps said then.

Nicholas Gogol TRANSLATED BY CLAUD FIELD

THE VIY

The Mantle and Other Stories

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/36238/36238-h/36238-h.htm

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Arrived at the seminary, the whole crowd of students dispersed into the low, large class-rooms with small windows, broad doors, and blackened benches. Suddenly they were filled with a many-toned murmur. The teachers heard the pupils' lessons repeated, some in shrill and others in deep voices which sounded like a distant booming. While the lessons were being said, the teachers kept a sharp eye open to see whether pieces of cake or other dainties were protruding from their pupils' pockets; if so, they were promptly confiscated. When this learned crowd arrived somewhat earlier than usual, or when it was known that the teachers would come somewhat late, a battle would ensue, as though planned by general agreement. In this battle all had to take part, even the monitors who were appointed to look after the order and morality of the whole school. Two theologians generally arranged the conditions of the battle: whether each class should split into two sides, or whether all the pupils should divide themselves into two halves.

Jessica Fries-Gaither

Sanderlings: Traveling Birds

Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears

http://static.ehe.osu.edu/sites/beyond/penguins/downloads/feature-stories/sanderlings-23-text.pdf

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One type of bird that lives on the beach is the sanderling. Sanderlings are special birds. They migrate, or travel from one place to live in another. They spend part of the year on warm, sunny beaches and part on the cold tundra. In the winter, the birds live in Florida and South America. They eat small crabs that live in the sand. In the spring, the sanderlings leave the beaches and fly north to the Arctic. They travel thousands of miles. When they reach the Arctic, it is still cold. Plants grow and flowers bloom in the Arctic summer. The birds feed on insects and butterflies. They use leaves to build nests. There are no trees in the Arctic, so the birds build their nests on the soft ground. Mother birds lay their eggs. The parents protect the eggs from the cold and from other animals. Chicks hatch after about 24 days. They leave the nest quickly and feed along the water’s edge. When they are two weeks old, they learn to fly.

The United States Government

Army Code Talkers

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https://www.commonlit.org/texts/army-code-talkers

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In France during World War I, the 142nd Infantry Regiment, 36th Division, had a company of Indians who spoke 26 languages and dialects. Two officers were selected to supervise a communications system staffed by 18 Choctaw individuals. The team transmitted messages relating to troop movements and their own tactical plans in their native tongue. Soldiers from other tribes, including the Cheyenne, Comanche, Cherokee, Osage, and Yankton Sioux also were enlisted to communicate as code talkers. Previous to their arrival in France, the Germans had broken every American code used, resulting in the deaths of many soldiers. However, the Germans never broke the American Indians' "code," and these soldiers became affectionately known as "code talkers." During World War II, the Army used American Indians in its signal communications operations in both the European and Pacific theaters of operations. Student code talkers were instructed in basic military communications techniques. The code talkers then developed their own words for military terms that never existed in their own native tongue. For instance, the word for "colonel" was translated to "silver eagle," "fighter plane" became "hummingbird," "minesweeper" became "beaver," "half-track" became "race track," and "pyrotechnic" became "fancy fire."

D. H. Montgomery

The Beginner's American History

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/18127/18127-h/18127-h.htm

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The very next day such certain signs of land were seen that the most faint-hearted took courage. The men had already noticed great flocks of land-birds flying toward the west, as if to guide them. Now some of the men on one vessel saw a branch of a thorn-bush float by. It was plain that it had not long been broken off from the bush, and it was full of red berries. But one of the crew on the other vessel found something better even than the thorn-branch; for he drew out of the water a carved walking-stick. Everyone saw that such a stick must have been cut and carved by human hands. These two signs could not be doubted. The men now felt sure that they were approaching the shore, and what was more, that there were people living in that strange country.

Percy Keese Fitzhugh

Roy Blakeley

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/10552/10552-h/10552-h.htm

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As long as there's any sign of a trail you can't get me rattled, but cracky, I don't like marshes. You can get lost in a marsh easier than in any other place. Pretty soon I was plodding around deeper than my knees and it gave me a strain every time I dragged my leg out of the swamp. Maybe you'll wonder why I didn't go back, but if you do, that's because you don't know much about marshes. All of a sudden I was right in the middle of it, as you might say, and there were no landmarks at all. Pretty soon I was in waist deep and then I was scared, you can bet. If there's one thing that gets me scared it's quicksand. As long as I could get my legs out I was all right, but when I began sinking as low as my waist and had to drag myself out by squirming and catching hold of bushes and things, then I lost my nerve—I have to admit it.

wikipedia

Environmental_technology

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_technology

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Renewable energy is the energy that can be replenished easily. For years we have been using sources such as wood, sun, water, etc. for means for producing energy. Energy that can be produced by natural objects like sun, wind, etc. is considered to be renewable. Technologies that have been in usage include wind power, hydropower, solar energy, geothermal energy, and biomass/bioenergy. Water purification: The whole idea/concept of having dirt/germ/pollution free water flowing throughout the environment. Many other phenomena lead from this concept of purification of water. Water pollution is the main enemy of this concept, and various campaigns and activists have been organized around the world to help purify water. Air purification: Basic and common green plants can be grown indoors to keep the air fresh because all plants remove CO2 and convert it into oxygen. The best examples are: Dypsis lutescens, Sansevieria trifasciata, and Epipremnum aureum. Besides using the plants themselves, some species of bacteria can also be added to the leaves of these plants to help remove toxic gases, such as toluene.

W. O. C.

BUNNY

The Nursery, February 1873, Vol. XIII. A Monthly Magazine for Youngest People

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/24475/24475-h/24475-h.htm#Page_52

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One day, when I was in the barn, I happened to look up, and there, on a beam, I saw a red squirrel with a great bushy tail. He was looking right at me. The next day I saw him in my yard, trying to jump from one tree to another. I thought he would fall; but he just saved himself by catching the end of a twig. Up in one of the chambers there was an old satchel hanging on a nail. Bunny climbed in at the window, and filled the satchel with nuts and apple-seeds. There was a basket of corn in the wood-house; and Bunny carried it almost all away. One day, as Bunny was going along in the grass, he heard a noise: so he sat up, and looked about. He saw a dog. Up went Bunny into a tree. The dog came under the tree, and barked. The saucy squirrel ran down, and said with his eyes, "Now catch me if you can," and then ran up to the top of the tree as quick as a wink.

CommonLit Staff

The 1972 Andes Flight Disaster

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https://www.commonlit.org/texts/the-1972-andes-flight-disaster

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Search parties from three countries looked for the missing plane. However, since the plane was white, it blended in with the snow, making it virtually invisible from the sky. The initial search was canceled after eight days. The survivors of the crash had found a small transistor radio on the plane and Roy Harley, one of the survivors, first heard the news that the search was canceled on their 11th day on the mountain. Upon hearing the news, the survivors began to sob and pray — all except Gustavo Nicolich, who looked calmly up the mountains which rose to the west. "Hey boys," he shouted, "there's some good news! We just heard on the radio. They've called off the search." Inside the crowded plane there was silence. As the hopelessness of their predicament enveloped them, they wept. "Why the hell is that good news?" another shouted angrily at Nicolich. "Because it means," Nicolich said, "that we're going to get out of here on our own." The courage of this one man prevented a barrage of total despair. The survivors had a small amount of food: a few chocolate bars, assorted snacks and several bottles of wine.

Angelo J. Lewis

Christmas with the Baron

In the Yule-Log Glow, Book 2: Christmas Tales from 'Round the World

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/19084/19084-h/19084-h.htm#Page_7

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Once upon a time—fairy tales always begin with once upon a time—once upon a time there lived in a fine old castle on the Rhine a certain Baron von Schrochslofsleschshoffinger. You will not find it an easy name to pronounce; in fact, the baron never tried it himself but once, and then he was laid up for two days afterwards; so in future we will merely call him "the baron," for shortness, particularly as he was rather a dumpy man. After having heard his name, you will not be surprised when I tell you that he was an exceedingly bad character. For a baron, he was considered enormously rich; a hundred and fifty pounds a year would not be thought much in this country; but still it will buy a good deal of sausage, which, with wine grown on the estate, formed the chief sustenance of the baron and his family.

H. Rider Haggard

She

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/3155/3155-h/3155-h.htm

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The child grew into the boy, and the boy into the young man, while one by one the remorseless years flew by, and as he grew and increased so did his beauty and the beauty of his mind grow with him. When he was about fifteen they used to call him Beauty about the College, and me they nicknamed the Beast. Beauty and the Beast was what they called us when we went out walking together, as we used to do every day. Once Leo attacked a great strapping butcher's man, twice his size, because he sang it out after us, and thrashed him, too—thrashed him fairly. I walked on and pretended not to see, till the combat got too exciting, when I turned round and cheered him on to victory. It was the chaff of the College at the time, but I could not help it. Then when he was a little older the undergraduates found fresh names for us. They called me Charon, and Leo the Greek god! I will pass over my own appellation with the humble remark that I was never handsome, and did not grow more so as I grew older

Ward Muir

The Reward of Enterprise

Twenty-Three Stories by Twenty and Three Authors by Dawson Scott and Rhys

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/62347/62347-h/62347-h.htm

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No need to narrate the history of that voyage nor dwell upon the trivial particulars of our life on board. Suffice it to say that in mid-Atlantic our engines had a breakdown. The Peterhof came to a standstill. If it has ever happened to you during a big voyage you will know that there is something portentous about the cessation of a steamer's machinery in mid-ocean. To be becalmed on a sailing ship may be boring: to be becalmed—if such an expression can be used on a steamer-is almost too odd to be boring. Day and night the engines have throbbed until their throbbing has penetrated into your very marrow, and when the throbbing abruptly dies you are sensible of a shock. When the Peterhof halted I ran up on deck as speedily as though we had had a collision. I saw, all round, nothing but sea, sea, sea, and it was far more amazing than if I had beheld an island or an iceberg or a raft of shipwrecked mariners, or any of the other picturesque phenomena which my fertile fancy had hastened to invent as an explanation for our stoppage.