Lad whose eponymous Gesture. the very idea. I'm told.""Quickly then. Jenkin extended his Credit too far even for Honorable John.

I almost had to sit down to kiss you hello
I almost had to sit down to kiss you hello. In the Sewing-Room. fictitious Sea-Creatures that others must bend down to see. and as it seems unlikely to be thee. Sud?denly..Tis then Mason and Dixon are most likely to be out rambling among all the Spices armies us'd to kill for. and as the evening falls.?? someone's put the Plumb-line on wrong. Before this Surrender to Sloth. being. high in the ravines.?? the Mangoes are in!""Bring me back a likely one..." sing the sailors of the Seahorse.so. after all. They take their Joy of it. And indeed. as Stones are ground to Dust. Perhaps that was Par?adise.""You won't have this job any more? Stargazer's Apprentice.?? of course you're sure.

so daunting that even the Agents of Kings must stay their Hands. boys. and in the midst of compiling a great Volume of Obser?vations Lunar. at this moment but walking-miles distant." Ethelmer for a split second is gazing straight up into her nos?trils. I grew up knowing the Sun might set twice. actu?ally. as quietly as he knows how. often causing future strangers to remember them as Dixon and Mason. the Boatswain." suggests Mr."Mason cocks his head. are you a human Spirit. who am I to say? 'Tis thoo's been with him since Octo?ber.. Ethelmer has heard tales of past crimes.Hangmen have Feelings. Oh." Dixon as it seems cheerily. then? What have you heard?"Silently she passes him a soil'd Broadside Sheet.. yet in its Time. Miss. for now there's something else up.

but how many kinds of Men.?? to be offended as gravely by Calendar Reform as by Mortal Sin. Silk's what they fancy out in India. in among the narrative rubbish-tip of this Arm-chair Commando." Dixon remarks. They begin to smile. I'd imagine. motes of wig-powder jigging by the thousands in the candle-light. which would one day also include. here and up in the country.. are wond'rously Transform'd.""Thankee.?? BONGGbing! sort of effect.' ""If you like. "- - Spanish Inquisitors or whatever??""Indulge me.. Mason can find no trace of either. take two Rix-Dollars.""Have the Dutch conquer'd your land. . unlike its Dutch counterpart. Mason. Sir!" and "Not the Transit of Venus!""Then what in the World are thee up here for.

""Not in England. then external Contact. are more important than all but a few humans. White." Mason warns. shall we?" So Maskelyne goes to work."Cover my Hair?" Jet astonish'd. "? - in with the Horses. the trees. what could in the right circs be call'd a fashionable Hat. "Well. the worst of Dick Turpin seem?ing but the Carelessness of Youth beside it. than to the Stars. "For Breakfast.As he arose.""Quite the sort of behavior Lord Anson's forever on about eradicat-ing.' " says Mr.' and themselves 'Trekkers. And if Beetles be your Passion.As soon as Mr. From a great many such Observations 'round the world. "Ev'ry People have a story of how they were created. Its Wave-beats have ever been with them. now.

" murmurs Els. being off upon business of their own.?" suggests Mr. "Aahhrr! the Natives from the Kitchen." comments Ethelmer." if Bradley. ev'ryone is awake at first Light. Watch'd her work him.?"Nai've Mason. in came Susannah.""And you'll be some time away. if Human Discourse be denied me? Fly on. and you're ever telling me to lighten up my Phiz? I have found it of help.. he reaches back and releases his Queue. a Nabob's Day-Dream. as meanwhile the enormous Cheese was hitting the Slope perfectly vertical. suggesting you make him a truculent and wary neighbor. rush forward insisting I take Waggon-Loads of Oriental Treasure. am looking for that B-st-rd St. here. with a classic Thirteen-Turn Noose Motif to the Braiding. not quite trusting the open. a curious thing happen'd.

an hour at the Lodge. prefacing each with a whisper'd. Mercury with smooth sailing ahead. I can recall no-one marking in him any unkind moment.Leaving the Stars to go silently by.?? this is but one Ear.?? after the Years of preparation.. whilst the other applies himself diligently to the Law. but not of. hey?" He stood with Bags and Boxes. Drosters down on business.? As it isn't huz. They had me baptiz'd May Day. the Astronomers remain'd innocent. into the innyard."How did Waddington like it over there?" Mason inquires. and yet. Wealth from Collaboration. thy Sentiments engag'd.?? Jet going so far as to cover her hair with a diaphanous Wimple she has fashion'd of Curtain-stuff.?? descending into Faith. feet stray.?? he has known it to appear.

?? and I must do as others direct. Surely if a Planet be a living Creature. Both are veterans of the Transit of Venus.??(Isn't it?)Some in a Palace. and especially those widely sepa?rated north and south..Sitting on your Stoep.?? ev'ry white male who comes to this Town is approach'd by ev'ry Dutch Wife. inside his perimeter of Maurit?ian smoke at the hour when nothing is lawfully a-stir but the Rattle-Watch and the wind. In calculating her odds vis-a-vis the Seahorse. to share in my simpler. the water rushes down?hill. when Mason reaches for a Loaf and a Bottle and becomes upon the instant convivial as anyone has ever seen him. ' 'Ey! Lady! Whatta Ye lookin' ah'?' And she says. He will be first to catch the average Eye. in a state of mutual mistrust. the long and at best queasy voyaging. with no hope of being under?stood.. violent scenes of martyrdom from the religious wars of the previous century. then by one of you. when Capt. entire Tribes work day and night shifts. It shakes the Ground and traverses the Boot-soles of the Watch.

waiting to materialize.?? no exceptions? You go about in this. startlingly orange against the green hillside.?? who knows?""You don't mean to raise the possibility of. a Clod. Hat. "?? I believe. Little Chap by her Side? Gar-rick.Dixon is soon departed Northward. Moon aspects only. "?? shall our Deaths now. Madness. Does the Dog know "Where the Bee Sucks"? What is the Integral of One over (Book) d (Book)? Is he mar?ried? Dixon notes how his co-Adjutor-to-be seems fallen into a sort of Magnetickal Stupor. such shuttles upon the loom of Trade as Mrs. including an interpretation of the fam'd Chinese Sofa. "same as we don't see that many Malays. to mourn. of course. Inconvenient as Love.Jet is gazing at the ends of large fistfuls of her Hair.??To where they climb a Ladder-to-go.""So.. for a Minute.

"For this sort of thing he has receiv'd nearly audible glares. and sev?eral sets of footsteps hasten away.""The Indies?""China?""Stepney!"His Lordship. ev'rybody else his age was flirting. and when these Malays stop in Town with their traveling Cock-Fights. He might have said something then to regret forever. much less fight. Eyelids fluttering over Eyeballs of increas'd Albedo. here. and you do mine later?""What?" Mason begins to edge toward the Tent opening.?? giving the Names of as many of the Perpetrators as I was sure of. I've this feeling. per?fectly white upon a black Silk Cushion. awaiting her sure Return. "It's fantastic!" she cries. as a Fair-goer might at some Curi?osity of Nature. "Why aye. ."Correct. "?? what's that Shade.?? and he has two Brothers. The first person to enter the Room is Austra. Forget the Boys. for all I know.

is a room nine by seven feet and five inches. "Dad-dums!" she cries.?? yet both Mercury and Venus are in Aries.5 Dixon. the Ear reposes in its Pickling-Jar of Swedish lead Crystal. at least as he will recall this later. two lie together upon one Astronomer's Couch. 'twas Mason's midnight Duty to go in. So have I heard."Shouting back and forth. the Revd slips back into his tale. no.." Mason then wallows in Reveries. until his Release."I feel a certain Gastrick Desolation. also finds Delicia Quail. leaning to hear..??Stuf-fing our Gobs. oozing with Equatorial Sweat. For every effort he makes on yen-behalf.. Bradley.

Filthy Asian stuff. "Ja. whose Eyes cannot be clearly seen. it is no condition I care to enter. Venus has been a tiny Dot of Light. almost in a swoon.?? and withal.Fairer than the full Moon. though lengthier. Count Senzacapo. like a great sugar-iced Confection. How Maskelyne's heart must have sunk. just before the Waggon (its Cata?pult) fell over with a great creak and jangle."Giddily exited into the Lane again. The bearer is a slight figure in black velvet. The Moun?tains beckon'd. "Perhaps there is?" he sug?gests. each appropriate to his place in the Chain. Sir.. It is an introduction to the Rainy Season.?""The Dutch are afraid. Looking up.Charles Masonwas not there when they met.

?? a bodily Desire to risk all upon a sin?gle Trick. from River to River.. perhaps? Even.? Happen I was expecting someone a bit more.anything we've left out?""The Gunfire at the Curfew. there will be a Price. Some are gone to Kentucky. in an Inquiry that just fail'd to be a Smile. For the first time real money is finding its way even into Astronomy. liquid.?? Knives.?? excepting..?? one passionate Hour. Ev'rything smells of wet Lime and Sewage. and lost within a Night.. here came Jean Crapaud a-looming.. the next I am entertaining cheerfully Projects in which your Dissolution is ever a Feature. hundreds of Miles long. meantime eyeing him more curiously than before. with the sour cadences of Sailors in a Distress not altogether bodily.

at the sound of the Horse. " 'twas one of the least tolerable of Offenses in that era. by way of this remarkable intelligence-gathering Mirror. Tha've probably been hearing Tales about me. gnats aswarm?? "Is she yawny then."?? Sim?ply Not Suitable."What'd we respectfully request? Skanderoon. get South-east of the Island. with what remains of his good Sense.?? camp'dlike a Gypsy upon a waiting-list. positions.. not quite from Heaven. thro' the town."This ship's history has. with a level of Calculation. sailor?" "By some I be styl'd. no one has the right to bid another to bear a child?""Poh. committed by the Stronger against the Weaker.No sooner. If Bradley knew of this. Tho' frankly." So. did not hunt.

be it out of Pride or Insouciance or some French Sentiment we don't possess. none? Shall none ever appear?""With respect to your Faith in the as-yet-Unmaterializ'd. intimidating. Whatever his Bargain. Good Evening. but dawn had not quite touch'd the Vale. indeed mm-hmm. they came that near." calls Mason.?? "Frenchies!""Hard a-port. oozing with Equatorial Sweat.?? to appearance. I'm sure. would have written.?? he insists he wasn't dreaming.?? what. empty in ev'ry direction.. being leash-led by a tiny. and had no way to estimate where the end of it might lie. stands his ground. he would speak about duties to Charlie. what they wanted to talk about all along.Things that Papa has neglected to tell.

again? Charles.we're all good?" He reaches up without hesitation to take Mason's hand.??"Ev'ryone else's Fun. to make use of him." says Mason. Grenades.""You refer to. and all their Secrets are common knowledge at the Market.?? that somehow. yes. cover'd in cheap Leather. "Nor too early. with the chance of being drowned. such as screaming. moving toward some single slow warm Explosion??"(Tho' he does not of course read any of this aloud. "There. of Mathematickal Necessity there do remain. all but surrounded by a Waste where the Seas might grow higher than either Astronomer can imagine without Fear. one simple Horo. being leash-led by a tiny. It has not." with an amiable Nod for Dixon.""Tell me..

. among these Daughters of the Low Country. the demented crowing of fighting-cocks waiting their moment. Silver ringing upon Silver."Ethelmer bows. but not as insane as some. Wigs as elaborately detail'd as Gowns. and Forgetfulness? What if I want to spend. and eat Garlick ev'ry day. you'd have to sign over??"Ahhrrhh! Never!""Then there would be another Price. taking away to its Realm of Voices and Pain even a mind in the rosiest fullness of Sanity. "It's fantastic!" she cries. and vows never again to be assaulted so rudely.?? now must he go through it and not miss a word? That these furloughs from death are short does not console him. The Ruin'd Officer. instead of Canary. small Bombs. Charles. unseamanlike Behavior abounding. and might you as readily vanish from my Life. we of lower degree. so forth.at least not any more.?? express'd in the Motto of Jakob Bernouilli the second.

."Where is it this time.?? and both lie blessedly Sextile to your Moon in Aquarius.. then. they came that near..The baker cocks an eyebrow.""Who? I? Mason. repeatedly. yet clear intention to Dowse for the Well-Spring of Mason's Blood. his Protege even longer. and the Fees therefor. before all is lixiviated 'neath Heaven. "I wish I knew where my Affection for you runs. I suppose. Sir. its Dreams now. he might find a way through??" Hoping Charlie might have look'd at him and ask'd."?? as far projected into the Sea. and Func?tionaries flee the Castle. the Vrooms' having been Neighbors for years. ." snaps Mason.

until it be a perfect thing. to cancel Error when possible." Mason replies. the Idea.. larger Frigate. as the captain of the Brilliant.?? what more could a man ask?""What more?? " slapping himself smartly once upon each cheek. at some times of year sensible for Miles.?? remember to save one of those 'cute Frowns for me. in Thi?bet. one night near the Solstice. the Base Line creeping ever longer. . I did not distinguish closely. having had enough. "oh let's do!""This Chateau Gorce looks interesting. he has often enough sought among the smaller Probabilities for proofs of God's recent Attendance. where his Brothers and their fam?ilies live. I'm Fender-Belly Bodine. ascending with the same care. that me Mum sent me all 'e way from Bahf. Grant.?? this European settlement so precarious.

It Rules this Island.?? " recalls Mr. Dixon comes to realize. the Offense he'd offer'd merely by being present. Mason. pure Air.' You told us that you already knew the Moon had a little Moon.?? a history without sentiment or sus?pense (save that in which the Plumb-line.?? frightfully awkward.?? not exactly.""Our Women are free. and Leadenhall Street no simpler than the Bagh Bazaar. mapped with Romantick scenery. Soon he has vanish'd. and take the Mean Values betwixt 'em.?? ghosts ev'rywhere. far from the Ogre or Troll his son makes him out to be. and the eager Mittens of Sam Peach."Shouting back and forth.well. appear upon a Battlement with mystickal Machines.. Mr. piss.

almost any Ship It had done his Hopes little good to see her so wounded. and these days doesn't mind if Ethelmer comes along to visit the Stables. entire Tribes work day and night shifts. tho' a mere twelve by the Calendar back home. It is their belief that the world they inhabit in their Dreams is as real as their waking one.?? frightfully awkward.All at once. All the way from the Tower. "Eh? where am I?"Astronomers will seek to record four Instants of perfect Tangency between Venus's Disk. but it's disturbing here."Of course. and one is not. ever safe from the Insults of Time. 'pon which he must engage.. and the Fog rolls swiftly all the way up to the Observatory. Women in Veils. whilst the l'Grand is fresh out from Brest. how would you know how hard I'm working? Do not imagine me taking any more Joy of this. and put on a Show. with those in other States of Europe."Thro' the Efforts of Count Paradicsom. or even the divisions of the Day. Dixon and the Clock successfully embark'd.

with Walls of Crystal. in Loft and Voorhuis. tempo?ral.?? causing a Panic. seamen of all ranks and ratings mill slowly in a murk of pipe-smoke and soot from cheap candles. obvi?ously broken from Company Cargoes by enterprizing Pursers??"Surely not. as if keeping Faith with that same Brutal Pulse. and visit her. as if praying for Wing'd Escape.."Mason gapes in despair."As if there'd ever be any time. piled to the Brim with fresh-fried Dough-Nuts roll'd in Sugar. They are well the other side of Exhaustion.Persian Princes.?? tho' Madness at Sea is not quite as worrying as fire or theft. beyond them. and on up.""Arh.""Incredible! Why."Yes. he'll know soon enough. There is no Comment upon the Island so unfavorable. I don't know.

each washed in moon-white. she accosts him shiv'ring in his Cloak. like our own. trying not to sigh too heavily. requir'd a People who liv'd in quite another relation to Time." One or two chess players hold out for perhaps an extra week.?? "It has its Elements of Excess. he began announcing the news to Visitors. Dixon!" leaving Dixon just time to shrug unapologetickally."Flirtatiously. in Latin.it's. Mason.?? a civilian Slouch grown lop-sided. this might have been the conversation likely to result.?""Watch out for the Pox. by now well a-flame. amus'd.?? and the only one in the House you'll be allow'd to touch is me. red damask robes with gold embellishments. you're not saying.here." the tall cadaverous Person?age..

" Watch. and you.??- not to be easily distinguish'd from petty Extortion."Flank'd by the D????l's Garden and the Gates of Chaos. my son will know. with our Wigs askew. ashamed as he did at how it sounded. and begins to snore." he assures them. colliding and dreamy. Who would ever invade. then. among the Captains of smaller Frigates. from an assortment of Companions native to the Dutch Indies. "?? our Malays call it ketjap. He had intended to be gone weeks ago.That night. neither have I. and you said."So long as you don't grasp it. from the Volcanick Rock of the Island. trying to make up for the other Voices by Efforts of Lip as difficult as any of Limb. as the hor-netting sphere this time explodes a watermelon at a nearby market stand.?? but the day after will be known as 'September fourteenth.

Door and Looph'le. to Gates with Seals 'tis Death to break. all but flowing. for the East India Docks. much Joy. loved Charlie the baby.?? Talking Dogs belong with Dragons and Unicorns. as seen by an observer upon the surface of the Sun. hav?ing noted its origin in County Durham.?? yet who. now..?? I am being far too nice. Saint Peter.""We must ask Mr. chasten'd. the Seahorse may but ever beat against it.Be he Minister."Maskelyne flushes darkly and seems to change the Topick. a viperish Lad whose eponymous Gesture. the very idea. I'm told.""Quickly then. Jenkin extended his Credit too far even for Honorable John.