produced by David Widger .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 produced
1 produced 2 by
2 by 3 David
3 David 4 Widger
4 Widger 5 .

HTML version by Al Haines .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 HTML
1 HTML 2 version
2 version 3 by
3 by 4 Al
4 Al 5 Haines
5 Haines 6 .

TWICE TOLD TALES
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 TWICE
1 TWICE 2 TOLD
2 TOLD 3 TALES

THE VILLAGE UNCLE
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 THE
1 THE 2 VILLAGE
2 VILLAGE 3 UNCLE

AN IMAGINARY RETROSPECT
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 AN
1 AN 2 IMAGINARY
2 IMAGINARY 3 RETROSPECT

by Nathaniel Hawthorne
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 by
1 by 2 Nathaniel
2 Nathaniel 3 Hawthorne

come ! another log upon the hearth .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 come
1 come 2 !
2 ! 3 another
3 another 4 log
4 log 5 upon
5 upon 6 the
6 the 7 hearth
7 hearth 8 .

toss on an armful of those dry oak chips , the last relics of the Mermaid 's knee-timbers , the bones of your namesake , Susan .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 toss
1 toss 2 on
2 on 3 an
3 an 4 armful
4 armful 5 of
5 of 6 those
6 those 7 dry
7 dry 8 oak
8 oak 9 chips
9 chips 10 ,
10 , 11 the
11 the 12 last
12 last 13 relics
13 relics 14 of
14 of 15 the
15 the 16 Mermaid
16 Mermaid 17 's
17 's 18 knee-timbers
18 knee-timbers 19 ,
19 , 20 the
20 the 21 bones
21 bones 22 of
22 of 23 your
23 your 24 namesake
24 namesake 25 ,
25 , 26 Susan
26 Susan 27 .

and now , come , Susan , come , my children , draw your chairs round me , all of you .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 and
1 and 2 now
2 now 3 ,
3 , 4 come
4 come 5 ,
5 , 6 Susan
6 Susan 7 ,
7 , 8 come
8 come 9 ,
9 , 10 my
10 my 11 children
11 children 12 ,
12 , 13 draw
13 draw 14 your
14 your 15 chairs
15 chairs 16 round
16 round 17 me
17 me 18 ,
18 , 19 all
19 all 20 of
20 of 21 you
21 you 22 .

there is a dimness over your figures !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 there
1 there 2 is
2 is 3 a
3 a 4 dimness
4 dimness 5 over
5 over 6 your
6 your 7 figures
7 figures 8 !

hark ! let me listen for the swell of the surf ; it should be audible a mile inland , on a night like this .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 hark
1 hark 2 !
2 ! 3 let
3 let 4 me
4 me 5 listen
5 listen 6 for
6 for 7 the
7 the 8 swell
8 swell 9 of
9 of 10 the
10 the 11 surf
11 surf 12 ;
12 ; 13 it
13 it 14 should
14 should 15 be
15 be 16 audible
16 audible 17 a
17 a 18 mile
18 mile 19 inland
19 inland 20 ,
20 , 21 on
21 on 22 a
22 a 23 night
23 night 24 like
24 like 25 this
25 this 26 .

how strangely the Past is peeping over the shoulders of the Present !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 how
1 how 2 strangely
2 strangely 3 the
3 the 4 Past
4 Past 5 is
5 is 6 peeping
6 peeping 7 over
7 over 8 the
8 the 9 shoulders
9 shoulders 10 of
10 of 11 the
11 the 12 Present
12 Present 13 !

but it was paler than my rugged old self , and younger , too , by almost half a century .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 but
1 but 2 it
2 it 3 was
3 was 4 paler
4 paler 5 than
5 than 6 my
6 my 7 rugged
7 rugged 8 old
8 old 9 self
9 self 10 ,
10 , 11 and
11 and 12 younger
12 younger 13 ,
13 , 14 too
14 too 15 ,
15 , 16 by
16 by 17 almost
17 almost 18 half
18 half 19 a
19 a 20 century
20 century 21 .

thank Heaven , I am an old man now , and have done with all such vanities !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 thank
1 thank 2 Heaven
2 Heaven 3 ,
3 , 4 I
4 I 5 am
5 am 6 an
6 an 7 old
7 old 8 man
8 man 9 now
9 now 10 ,
10 , 11 and
11 and 12 have
12 have 13 done
13 done 14 with
14 with 15 all
15 all 16 such
16 such 17 vanities
17 vanities 18 !

still this dimness of mine eyes !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 still
1 still 2 this
2 this 3 dimness
3 dimness 4 of
4 of 5 mine
5 mine 6 eyes
6 eyes 7 !

come nearer , Susan , and stand before the fullest blaze of the hearth .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 come
1 come 2 nearer
2 nearer 3 ,
3 , 4 Susan
4 Susan 5 ,
5 , 6 and
6 and 7 stand
7 stand 8 before
8 before 9 the
9 the 10 fullest
10 fullest 11 blaze
11 blaze 12 of
12 of 13 the
13 the 14 hearth
14 hearth 15 .

there , you made me tremble again !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 there
1 there 2 ,
2 , 3 you
3 you 4 made
4 made 5 me
5 me 6 tremble
6 tremble 7 again
7 again 8 !

do you remember it ?
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 do
1 do 2 you
2 you 3 remember
3 remember 4 it
4 it 5 ?

you stood on the little bridge , over the brook , that runs across King 's Beach into the sea .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 you
1 you 2 stood
2 stood 3 on
3 on 4 the
4 the 5 little
5 little 6 bridge
6 bridge 7 ,
7 , 8 over
8 over 9 the
9 the 10 brook
10 brook 11 ,
11 , 12 that
12 that 13 runs
13 runs 14 across
14 across 15 King
15 King 16 's
16 's 17 Beach
17 Beach 18 into
18 into 19 the
19 the 20 sea
20 sea 21 .

now , Susan , for a sober picture of our village !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 now
1 now 2 ,
2 , 3 Susan
3 Susan 4 ,
4 , 5 for
5 for 6 a
6 a 7 sober
7 sober 8 picture
8 picture 9 of
9 of 10 our
10 our 11 village
11 village 12 !

the village was picturesque , in the variety of its edifices , though all were rude .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 the
1 the 2 village
2 village 3 was
3 was 4 picturesque
4 picturesque 5 ,
5 , 6 in
6 in 7 the
7 the 8 variety
8 variety 9 of
9 of 10 its
10 its 11 edifices
11 edifices 12 ,
12 , 13 though
13 though 14 all
14 all 15 were
15 were 16 rude
16 rude 17 .

two grocery-stores stand opposite each other , in the centre of the village .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 two
1 two 2 grocery-stores
2 grocery-stores 3 stand
3 stand 4 opposite
4 opposite 5 each
5 each 6 other
6 other 7 ,
7 , 8 in
8 in 9 the
9 the 10 centre
10 centre 11 of
11 of 12 the
12 the 13 village
13 village 14 .

you see , children , the village is but little changed , since your mother and I were young .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 you
1 you 2 see
2 see 3 ,
3 , 4 children
4 children 5 ,
5 , 6 the
6 the 7 village
7 village 8 is
8 is 9 but
9 but 10 little
10 little 11 changed
11 changed 12 ,
12 , 13 since
13 since 14 your
14 your 15 mother
15 mother 16 and
16 and 17 I
17 I 18 were
18 were 19 young
19 young 20 .

in the autumn , I trolled and caught those lovely fish , the mackerel .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 in
1 in 2 the
2 the 3 autumn
3 autumn 4 ,
4 , 5 I
5 I 6 trolled
6 trolled 7 and
7 and 8 caught
8 caught 9 those
9 those 10 lovely
10 lovely 11 fish
11 fish 12 ,
12 , 13 the
13 the 14 mackerel
14 mackerel 15 .

he looked like a harbinger of tempest , a shipmate of the Flying Dutchman .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 he
1 he 2 looked
2 looked 3 like
3 like 4 a
4 a 5 harbinger
5 harbinger 6 of
6 of 7 tempest
7 tempest 8 ,
8 , 9 a
9 a 10 shipmate
10 shipmate 11 of
11 of 12 the
12 the 13 Flying
13 Flying 14 Dutchman
14 Dutchman 15 .

one of Uncle Parker 's eyes had been blown out with gunpowder , and the other did but glimmer in its socket .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 one
1 one 2 of
2 of 3 Uncle
3 Uncle 4 Parker
4 Parker 5 's
5 's 6 eyes
6 eyes 7 had
7 had 8 been
8 been 9 blown
9 blown 10 out
10 out 11 with
11 with 12 gunpowder
12 gunpowder 13 ,
13 , 14 and
14 and 15 the
15 the 16 other
16 other 17 did
17 did 18 but
18 but 19 glimmer
19 glimmer 20 in
20 in 21 its
21 its 22 socket
22 socket 23 .

even now I seem to see the group of fishermen , with that old salt in the midst .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 even
1 even 2 now
2 now 3 I
3 I 4 seem
4 seem 5 to
5 to 6 see
6 see 7 the
7 the 8 group
8 group 9 of
9 of 10 fishermen
10 fishermen 11 ,
11 , 12 with
12 with 13 that
13 that 14 old
14 old 15 salt
15 salt 16 in
16 in 17 the
17 the 18 midst
18 midst 19 .

they are a likely set of men .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 they
1 they 2 are
2 are 3 a
3 a 4 likely
4 likely 5 set
5 set 6 of
6 of 7 men
7 men 8 .

be it well with you , my brethren !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 be
1 be 2 it
2 it 3 well
3 well 4 with
4 with 5 you
5 you 6 ,
6 , 7 my
7 my 8 brethren
8 brethren 9 !

but where was the mermaid in those delightful times ?
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 but
1 but 2 where
2 where 3 was
3 was 4 the
4 the 5 mermaid
5 mermaid 6 in
6 in 7 those
7 those 8 delightful
8 delightful 9 times
9 times 10 ?

what a picture was Susan behind the counter !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 what
1 what 2 a
2 a 3 picture
3 picture 4 was
4 was 5 Susan
5 Susan 6 behind
6 behind 7 the
7 the 8 counter
8 counter 9 !

a few freckles became beauty-spots beneath her eyelids .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 a
1 a 2 few
2 few 3 freckles
3 freckles 4 became
4 became 5 beauty-spots
5 beauty-spots 6 beneath
6 beneath 7 her
7 her 8 eyelids
8 eyelids 9 .

Nature wrought the charm .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 Nature
1 Nature 2 wrought
2 wrought 3 the
3 the 4 charm
4 charm 5 .

she made you a frank , simple , kind-hearted , sensible , and mirthful girl .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 she
1 she 2 made
2 made 3 you
3 you 4 a
4 a 5 frank
5 frank 6 ,
6 , 7 simple
7 simple 8 ,
8 , 9 kind-hearted
9 kind-hearted 10 ,
10 , 11 sensible
11 sensible 12 ,
12 , 13 and
13 and 14 mirthful
14 mirthful 15 girl
15 girl 16 .

it was beautiful to observe , how her simple and happy nature mingled itself with mine .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 it
1 it 2 was
2 was 3 beautiful
3 beautiful 4 to
4 to 5 observe
5 observe 6 ,
6 , 7 how
7 how 8 her
8 her 9 simple
9 simple 10 and
10 and 11 happy
11 happy 12 nature
12 nature 13 mingled
13 mingled 14 itself
14 itself 15 with
15 with 16 mine
16 mine 17 .

she gave me warmth of feeling , while the influence of my mind made her contemplative .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 she
1 she 2 gave
2 gave 3 me
3 me 4 warmth
4 warmth 5 of
5 of 6 feeling
6 feeling 7 ,
7 , 8 while
8 while 9 the
9 the 10 influence
10 influence 11 of
11 of 12 my
12 my 13 mind
13 mind 14 made
14 made 15 her
15 her 16 contemplative
16 contemplative 17 .

except the almanac , we had no other literature .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 except
1 except 2 the
2 the 3 almanac
3 almanac 4 ,
4 , 5 we
5 we 6 had
6 had 7 no
7 no 8 other
8 other 9 literature
9 literature 10 .

in truth I dreaded him .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 in
1 in 2 truth
2 truth 3 I
3 I 4 dreaded
4 dreaded 5 him
5 him 6 .

I feared to trust them even with the alphabet ; it was the key to a fatal treasure .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 I
1 I 2 feared
2 feared 3 to
3 to 4 trust
4 trust 5 them
5 them 6 even
6 even 7 with
7 with 8 the
8 the 9 alphabet
9 alphabet 10 ;
10 ; 11 it
11 it 12 was
12 was 13 the
13 the 14 key
14 key 15 to
15 to 16 a
16 a 17 fatal
17 fatal 18 treasure
18 treasure 19 .

sometimes my voice lost itself in a tremulous depth ; for I felt His eye upon me as I spoke .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 sometimes
1 sometimes 2 my
2 my 3 voice
3 voice 4 lost
4 lost 5 itself
5 itself 6 in
6 in 7 a
7 a 8 tremulous
8 tremulous 9 depth
9 depth 10 ;
10 ; 11 for
11 for 12 I
12 I 13 felt
13 felt 14 His
14 His 15 eye
15 eye 16 upon
16 upon 17 me
17 me 18 as
18 as 19 I
19 I 20 spoke
20 spoke 21 .

strange illusion !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 strange
1 strange 2 illusion
2 illusion 3 !

like Uncle Parker , whose rheumatic bones were dashed against Egg Rock , full forty years ago , I am a spinner of long yarns .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 like
1 like 2 Uncle
2 Uncle 3 Parker
3 Parker 4 ,
4 , 5 whose
5 whose 6 rheumatic
6 rheumatic 7 bones
7 bones 8 were
8 were 9 dashed
9 dashed 10 against
10 against 11 Egg
11 Egg 12 Rock
12 Rock 13 ,
13 , 14 full
14 full 15 forty
15 forty 16 years
16 years 17 ago
17 ago 18 ,
18 , 19 I
19 I 20 am
20 am 21 a
21 a 22 spinner
22 spinner 23 of
23 of 24 long
24 long 25 yarns
25 yarns 26 .

with a broken voice I give utterance to much wisdom .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 with
1 with 2 a
2 a 3 broken
3 broken 4 voice
4 voice 5 I
5 I 6 give
6 give 7 utterance
7 utterance 8 to
8 to 9 much
9 much 10 wisdom
10 wisdom 11 .

with such awful fidelity did that lover return to fulfil his vows !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 with
1 with 2 such
2 such 3 awful
3 awful 4 fidelity
4 fidelity 5 did
5 did 6 that
6 that 7 lover
7 lover 8 return
8 return 9 to
9 to 10 fulfil
10 fulfil 11 his
11 his 12 vows
12 vows 13 !

thus do I talk , and all my auditors grow wise , while they deem it pastime .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 thus
1 thus 2 do
2 do 3 I
3 I 4 talk
4 talk 5 ,
5 , 6 and
6 and 7 all
7 all 8 my
8 my 9 auditors
9 auditors 10 grow
10 grow 11 wise
11 wise 12 ,
12 , 13 while
13 while 14 they
14 they 15 deem
15 deem 16 it
16 it 17 pastime
17 pastime 18 .

I recollect no happier portion of my life , than this , my calm old age .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 I
1 I 2 recollect
2 recollect 3 no
3 no 4 happier
4 happier 5 portion
5 portion 6 of
6 of 7 my
7 my 8 life
8 life 9 ,
9 , 10 than
10 than 11 this
11 this 12 ,
12 , 13 my
13 my 14 calm
14 calm 15 old
15 old 16 age
16 age 17 .

but with me , the verdure and the flowers are not frostbitten in the midst of winter .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 but
1 but 2 with
2 with 3 me
3 me 4 ,
4 , 5 the
5 the 6 verdure
6 verdure 7 and
7 and 8 the
8 the 9 flowers
9 flowers 10 are
10 are 11 not
11 not 12 frostbitten
12 frostbitten 13 in
13 in 14 the
14 the 15 midst
15 midst 16 of
16 of 17 winter
17 winter 18 .

show me anything that would make an infant smile , and you shall behold a gleam of mirth over the hoary ruin of my visage .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 show
1 show 2 me
2 me 3 anything
3 anything 4 that
4 that 5 would
5 would 6 make
6 make 7 an
7 an 8 infant
8 infant 9 smile
9 smile 10 ,
10 , 11 and
11 and 12 you
12 you 13 shall
13 shall 14 behold
14 behold 15 a
15 a 16 gleam
16 gleam 17 of
17 of 18 mirth
18 mirth 19 over
19 over 20 the
20 the 21 hoary
21 hoary 22 ruin
22 ruin 23 of
23 of 24 my
24 my 25 visage
25 visage 26 .

why should not an old man be merry too , when the great sea is at play with those little children ?
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 why
1 why 2 should
2 should 3 not
3 not 4 an
4 an 5 old
5 old 6 man
6 man 7 be
7 be 8 merry
8 merry 9 too
9 too 10 ,
10 , 11 when
11 when 12 the
12 the 13 great
13 great 14 sea
14 sea 15 is
15 is 16 at
16 at 17 play
17 play 18 with
18 with 19 those
19 those 20 little
20 little 21 children
21 children 22 ?

next , they are smit with wonder at the black shells of a wagon-load of live lobsters , packed in rock-weed for the country market .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 next
1 next 2 ,
2 , 3 they
3 they 4 are
4 are 5 smit
5 smit 6 with
6 with 7 wonder
7 wonder 8 at
8 at 9 the
9 the 10 black
10 black 11 shells
11 shells 12 of
12 of 13 a
13 a 14 wagon-load
14 wagon-load 15 of
15 of 16 live
16 live 17 lobsters
17 lobsters 18 ,
18 , 19 packed
19 packed 20 in
20 in 21 rock-weed
21 rock-weed 22 for
22 for 23 the
23 the 24 country
24 country 25 market
25 market 26 .

for I launch my boat no more .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 for
1 for 2 I
2 I 3 launch
3 launch 4 my
4 my 5 boat
5 boat 6 no
6 no 7 more
7 more 8 .

for I am a patriarch !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 for
1 for 2 I
2 I 3 am
3 am 4 a
4 a 5 patriarch
5 patriarch 6 !

Susan !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 Susan
1 Susan 2 !

my children !
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 my
1 my 2 children
2 children 3 !

will you meet me there ?
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 will
1 will 2 you
2 you 3 meet
3 meet 4 me
4 me 5 there
5 there 6 ?

and now for a moral to my revery .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 and
1 and 2 now
2 now 3 for
3 for 4 a
4 a 5 moral
5 moral 6 to
6 to 7 my
7 my 8 revery
8 revery 9 .

be this the moral , then .
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 be
1 be 2 this
2 this 3 the
3 the 4 moral
4 moral 5 ,
5 , 6 then
6 then 7 .

end of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Village Uncle ( from " twice Told Tales " ) , by Nathaniel Hawthorne
0 ###LEFT-WALL### 1 end
1 end 2 of
2 of 3 the
3 the 4 Project
4 Project 5 Gutenberg
5 Gutenberg 6 EBook
6 EBook 7 of
7 of 8 The
8 The 9 Village
9 Village 10 Uncle
10 Uncle 11 (
11 ( 12 from
12 from 13 "
13 " 14 twice
14 twice 15 Told
15 Told 16 Tales
16 Tales 17 "
17 " 18 )
18 ) 19 ,
19 , 20 by
20 by 21 Nathaniel
21 Nathaniel 22 Hawthorne