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The Ladies' Vase - Polite Manual for Young Ladies by An American Lady
page 56 of 104 (53%)

I had descended to the breakfast-room, at the usual hour, but no one
appeared; I looked for a book, but found none but an almanac. The books
were kept in the library--beyond all dispute their proper place, had I
not been in a humor to think otherwise. The house was too hot, and the
external air was too cold; and I was fain to betake myself to that last
resort of the absolutely idle--a mechanical movement of the body up and
down a given space. And, from the alcove where I walked, I heard the
ticking of the timepiece; and, as I passed the window, I saw the hands
advance; every time I had returned, they had gone a little farther.
"Threescore years and ten," said I to myself; "and a third or fourth of
it is nature's claim for indispensable repose--and many a day consumed
on the bed of sickness--and many a year by the infirmities of age--and
some part of all necessarily sacrificed to the recruiting of the health
by exercise. And what do we with the rest?" Nothing answered me but the
ticking of the clock, of which the hands were traversing between eight
and nine. They had nearly met, at the appointed hour, when the party
began to assemble within; and each one commenced, for aught I could
discover, the functions of the day, for neither their appearance nor
their remarks gave any intimation that they had been previously
employed. One, indeed, declared the weather made her so idle she had
scarcely found strength to dress herself; another confessed he had
passed an additional hour in bed, because the day promised him so little
to do up. One by one, as they dropped in, the seats at the
breakfast-table were filled; and, as a single newspaper was all the
apparent means of mental occupation, I anticipated some interesting
conversation.

I waited and I watched. One ran the point of his fork into the
table-cloth; another balanced her spoon on the tea-cup; a third told
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