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Cecilia de Noël by Lanoe Falconer
page 71 of 131 (54%)

"But the ghost--the ghost he almost saw."

"The sinking horror produced the ghost, instead of _vice versa_, as you
might suppose. It is like a dream. In unpleasant dreams we fancy it is
the dream itself which makes us feel uncomfortable. It is just the other
way round. It is the discomfort that produces the dream. Have you ever
dreamt you were tramping through snow, and felt cold in consequence? I
did the other night. But I did not feel cold because I dreamt I was
walking through snow, but because I had not enough blankets on my bed;
and because I felt cold I dreamt about the snow. Don't you know the
dream you make up in a few moments about the knocking at the door when
they call you in the morning? And ghosts are only waking dreams."

"I wonder if you ever had an illusion yourself--gave way to it, I mean.
You were in love once--twice," I added hastily, in deference to Lady
Atherley.

"Only once," said Atherley, calmly. "Do you ever see her now, Lindy? She
has grown enormously fat. Certainly I have had my illusions, and I don't
object to them when they are pleasant and harmless--on the contrary.
Now, falling in love, if you don't fall too deep, is pleasant, and it
never lasts long enough to do much mischief. Marriage, of course, you
will say, may be mischievous--only for the individual, it is useful for
the race. What I object to is the deliberate culture of illusions which
are not pleasant but distinctly depressing, like half your religious
beliefs."

"George," said Lady Atherley, coming into the room at this instant;
"have you--oh, dear! what a state this room is in!"
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