Sociology - (Classical theorist Marx) Give an account of how Marx Essay

Sociology - (Classical theorist Marx) Give an account of how Marx understood History - Essay Example But was Karl Marx, sometimes in collaboration with friend and political economist, Friedrich Engels (1820-1895) who revolutionized the relationship of material production and the role of human beings within social structures. He devoted a good part of his time to economic studies on the flaws of the capitalist society; and produced some famous works like the ‘Communist Manifesto’ (1848) and ‘Das Capital’ (1867), with one aim: the self-emancipation of the working class. Hegel (1770-1831) and Ludwig Feuerbach (1804 -1872) are two theorists who affected Marx very strongly. The concept of Historical Materialism: In his ‘Introduction to Theses On Feuerbach’ (1845), Marx commences his own distinctive posit on Materialism, based on Feuerbach’s critique of Hegel’s ‘Theory of the Right’ (1821).His view of history is very different from the others. Marx, states that â€Å"it is not the consciousness of men that determines their being, but, on the contrary, their social being that determines their consciousness (Marx and Engels, 1859: pp 503-504). According to Hegel (1821), God created everything from Him, thus ‘God’ was the ‘Absolute Idea’. Then, due to the nature of the material world opposing God, the ‘negation’ or ‘alienation’ from God occurred; this was a dialectic or a clash of opposite forces; until a third stage of the growth of man’s consciousness, would reconcile with the ‘Absolute Idea’ and return to a state of original consciousness. It had at its centre that all events are predetermined by God. Feuerbach (1841) argued that, the faculty of thought, which is the property of human beings, was the ruling principle of existence, and not God, as theorized by Hegel, and love was what united them. Marx, while agreeing with Hegel in part by accepting the ‘clash of opposing forces’ notion, he rejected Hegel’s view of the ‘Absolute Idea’. Marx posited that ‘labour’ was the ‘essence

Eating disorders and sexual violence Essay Example for Free

Eating disorders and sexual violence Essay Many neurotic behaviors are a direct consequence of Trauma. Some of the disorders caused by sexual violence trauma include Rape Trauma Syndrome, (PTSD), Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), and eating disorders (ED). Developing an eating disorder such as compulsive over-eating, anorexia or bulimia after going through sexual violence trauma is very common. However, not all sexual abuse and violence victims will develop an eating disorder. It is estimated that almost 30% to 40% of eating disorder patients are survivors of sexual trauma. A person already vulnerable to eating disorders or suffering from bad self image can use a devastating incident like rape or incest as a trigger to develop an eating disorder. There are countless reasons why eating disorders are used as a coping mechanism by persons suffering from sexual trauma. Some develop eating disorders to avoid sexuality. In other cases it is seen as a way to hide anger or frustration and seek the approval of other people. Since they cannot show the anger and resentment directly, they find unhealthy ways like starving or overeating to express themselves. Some abused teenagers might start viewing their body as a source of shame. In their opinion, unhealthy eating is a way of fixing the problem. In stressful situations like divorce of parents, car accident, death of a sibling and especially rape or molestation the victim feels utterly powerless. The person going through mental trauma will find new ways to improve his or her sense of control. Our culture and society place great emphasis on body image. Being thin is equated with maximum control. As a result, majority of victims start avoiding food or limiting intake to dangerous levels. In this way, the victim no longer remains powerless in their life. A commercial that shows unrealistic bodies will keep motivating such a person to indulge in unhealthy eating behavior. When a person remembers a stressful situation they can be driven to eat more than a normal person. Overeating or eating comfort foods that are high caloric foods can calm the body and relieve it from chronic stress. Sometimes sexually abused women and men merge physical or emotional pleasures with terrifying events. A woman who was raped repeatedly by her uncle as a child will show effects of depression and stress in her later life. However, if the woman had no affection shown towards her by members of her family she will start associating the sexual violence with great affection. This confusing association of good with bad makes her starve and harm her body. She feels pride and satisfaction from harming her body. For her, she has secretly accomplished something other cant. Bulimic patients often experience pleasure and pain for a short span of time. The binging alleviates the hunger longing but very soon shame and self-hatred takes over and she is forced to purge her system entirely. Without recognizing and dealing with trauma it is impossible to treat an eating disorder. It is important that cognitive awareness of the patient is increased as part of the treatment. He/She needs to understand the things that can or cannot be controlled in their lives. The most difficult part is making the patient realize that pain and pleasure are separate experiences that do not need to be subsequently followed by one or the other.

Macbeth the Tragic Hero Essay -- essays research papers

Macbeth could justly be classified a â€Å"Tragic Hero† as his tragic story fills out the defined criteria for a tragic hero. Macbeth holds a significant social status, reveals essential truths about humanity through his suffering, has tragically wasted talent, contains a â€Å"tragic flaw† leading to his downfall and finally he finds some relief in his death. Macbeth, throughout this play, has held a substantial amount of power in society. Firstly he begins as the Thane of Glamis before becoming the Thane of Cawdor and finally King of Scotland. His death greatly affected everyone in Scotland, both those who stood by him and those who opposed and finally killed him. *****quotes from both sides***** Macbeth’s downfall would have meant that finally the rightful king was on the throne of Scotland and this would have been significant for the Scottish people of all socio-economic classes. The suffering of Macbeth throughout the play is a disconsolate process. Throughout the stages of his grievous downfall essential truths about humanity are dubiously displayed. Macbeth’s ordeal reveals the ev...

Newspapers -How have newspaper changed overtime? Essay

Newspapers have changed so much overtime. It’s changed in so many different ways. Many of them are obvious such as use of colour, text size etc. The first printed newspaper was published in 1605; the World Association of Newspapers recognizes Johann Carolus’s ‘Relation aller Fi rnemmen und gedenckwi rdigen Historie’, published in 1605, as the world’s first newspaper. ‘ However, when the English started printing their own papers in London, they reverted to the pamphlet format used by contemporary books. The era of these news books lasted until the publication of the Oxford Gazette in 1665. Text size has changed drastically as in the early 1900s the text size was so small you needed a magnifier. This was because in the 1900s ink was expensive, very expensive. The newspapers, newsprint (paper) was also very expensive. So the editor had to cram in as much words as possible in the smallest size available. Nowadays the text size is much bigger and not crammed as its given space; even sometimes they make the font bigger when there is less information. This is because people are becoming lazier; they tend to want to read less but also want to know more. They are not prepared to read longer articles. Many popular tabloids are encouraging a ‘culture of ignorance’. Apparently nowadays ‘less is more’ this is referring to the text sizes. There are many studies that shows, people are more likely to read newspapers with fewer words than a newspaper with more words. Anther reason is that the ink is also much cheaper nowadays and so is the manufacturing of newsprint (newspaper paper). The highlighted areas in yellow show how the text many years ago is different to modern newspapers. In the 1903 newspaper the writing is really tiny you can hardly see it whereas in the 2005 newspaper the writing is really big and can be seen from far, so it will catch a passers bys attention. On the other hand in areas highlighted in red is the headline of the story. As you can see in the 1903 newspaper the headline is barely visual as they want to cram in as much information as possible into a tiny area so that they don’t have to pay a lot of money for paper as it was really expensive in the past. However in the 2005 newspaper the headline is really, really big so it can be seen from far. The headlines as you’ve would have guessed are also much bigger this is because the editor wanted to catch the reader’s attention. It reflects less loyal readership. Using the newspapers above the headlines is highlighted in red see how different they are? The 1903 Daily Mail shows that the headline is really small, if you compare it with the 2005 Daily Mail you will see a 20x bigger difference between the headlines. If you saw the 1903 Daily Mail headline in a 2005 newspaper you would think that it was the date, or a little reminder of what is inside the newspaper. Because you wouldn’t even see that type of small font in a newspaper at this date as the newspapers are becoming more modern. That is the really big difference of newspapers and how they adapted to culture. The order of newspapers are really important as you don’t want to clash too many of the sections together and make it appear all incorrect e. g. Fashion section and sport section together, this will confuse people and make the newspaper look unorganized. In the early stages of newspapers there used to be notices of the births, deaths of people etc on the front page of the newspapers, a few newspapers still do it till this day (The Times, Daily Telegraph) but it is hidden, either in the middle or the end of the newspaper. Because it’s no longer important to insert it into the papers to the wider audience, this is because we find out about deaths and births through a wider range of technology such as mobile phones, telephones, and internet etc. And also, there is no longer a target market for this as people are no longer interested to find out about this in newspapers. Newspapers are clearly split into sections. Society has changed therefore newspapers have changed to adapt to the society, and it reflects societies different priorities. For example, sport is more important than the death and birth notices therefore there is always a huge section on sports at the end of the newspaper so it is easier to find and shows the most important story as a front page but at the back. It is also more socially acceptable for newspapers to have a section for fun and enjoyment. In the middle to end, depending on the newspaper, there is a section which includes; crosswords, Sudoku (easy, medium, and hard), horoscopes, mini cartoon strips etc.

Counselor Role in Special Education Essay

My perception of the school counselor’s role in special education is that it largely mirrors the role embodied for all students, but with some added considerations and collaborations for the special needs student. My understanding is that a school counselor should be available to all students for personal, ethical, academic, career, and social advice; to listen to a student’s point of view; to deal with any mental health issues that may arise for a student; to help a student prepare for transitions; to advocate for a student in a given situation, and to whatever degree possible, teach the student to advocate for himself. A counselor must be committed to helping all students reach their full potential; but for students with disabilities and other special needs, a school counselor needs to accomplish this in the face of extra challenges. These tasks and trials are not limited to those presented by the varying disabilities of a child, but include the demands of satisfying the administrative and legal requirements of a counselor serving students with special needs. Today’s school counselor is likely to be involved in a student’s individualized education program (IEP) when one is warranted. According to the Ohio Department of Education’s Office for Exceptional Children, at least one of the IEP team members needs to be an individual who has knowledge or special expertise regarding the child. This person is in addition to the child’s regular and special education teachers, a principal/assistant principal or other senior staff member, the parents, the school psychologist, and the child (if appropriate) required to participate on the team. The school counselor, at the discretion of the parent or the school district, may be included as a member of the IEP team if they have special insight regarding the child. A school counselor will work as part of a multidisciplinary team within the school and community in aligning and providing services for the special needs student. Without yet having been exposed to a practicum or internship experience as a school counselor, I perceive this piece of the workload to be potentially delicate and complex. A parent may have a viewpoint divergent from that which is covered in the Evaluation Team Report (ETR), resulting in an extended identification process. School staff members may have contrasting opinions as to whether a child is in need of special education and an IEP, or just accommodations covered under a 504 Plan. The bottom line is that the identification team must work collaboratively, with a lack of ego, in assessing and determining what measures are in the best interests of helping the child to be successful in school. It seems that the most difficult aspect of a school counselor’s job is to find a balance in managing so many responsibilities in each given day. Responding to the unique challenges of special needs students can both intensify and complement the workload. I think much can be gained professionally, personally, and emotionally by embracing that responsibility. A good counselor should teach the special education students attending her school about resiliency, inner strength, positive identity, and a sense of purpose. In the general terms of the professional school counselor’s role, I believe that the most valuable services to be provided in the special education realm are: †¢ Individual Student Planning – communicate high expectations and help disabled students establish personal goals for each school year and their future success. Familiarize oneself with the varying learning styles of the students who have disabilities, and work consultatively with teachers to improve their performance behaviorally and academically. Be a staunch advocate for these students and their post-secondary options; help create opportunities for them. †¢ Responsive Services – implement prevention and/or intervention activities like individual and group counseling, provide referrals, facilitate better peer relations, and advocate for them. Conduct needs assessments to identify potential systematic, programmatic, and attitudinal areas for change in order to create positive environments for their learning. Assist teachers in staying on top of 504 and IEP accommodations/interventions, being prepared to troubleshoot if certain measures are not enabling student to perform optimally. †¢ School Guidance Curriculum – developing and delivering a curriculum of structured lessons to help each identified student achieve desired social and academic outcomes. A counselor could implement a student development curriculum aimed to improve typical students’ understanding of and sensitivity to their special needs’ peers. By communicating high expectations and providing support, school counselors can help students with disabilities understand that their disabilities should not be reason to limit their aspirations.

buy custom Peloponnesian War and Oedipus Tyrannus essay

buy custom Peloponnesian War and Oedipus Tyrannus essay The Peloponnesian war refers to a fight that occurred between the Athenian empire and the Peloponnesian. The attack was initiated and led by Sparta. The war has been split into three distinct phases by various historians. The phases are the Archidamian War (or first phase), the Peloponnese Fight (or second phase) and, finally, the Decelean War (or third phase). These three phases of the war were characterized by signing of various treaties such the Peace of Nicias, massive use of force during attacks and often repeated invasions of the cities. During the Decelean phase, Sparta fortunately received support from Persia (Thucydides Lattimore 17). There were numerous migrations as most people were abandoning their homes due to the tension and fear of the war. The war was characterized by destitute of capital, non-agricultural activities, reduced trading activities and the rich occupied large masses of land. Causes of the War According to Bagnall, the war was as a result of extreme greed by Athens which led it to attempt taking full control of the whole land of Greece. In response to this behavior of Athens, Sparta initiated a war so as to help itself as well as other oppressed cities of Greece. Sparta wanted Peloponnesians to have independence (Bagnall 213). In order to achieve this mission of saving itself and other cities from Athens control, Sparta had to form alliances with other smaller cities of Greece. It then sent its army to Athens in 430 BC. Disagreements between the two states started after Sparta rejected and prevented the proposed reconstruction of the great walls of Athens. According to Kagan, Sparta made the move so that it would be able to rule the defenseless Athens (Kagan 43). However, the real fight began in around 460 BC, when a rebellion broke up in Sparta. During this period, Sparta had to seek military support from its friendly nations, including Athens, but it surprisingly rejected the forces that sent by Athens to it. Kagan suggests that Spartas action was due to the fear of Athens forces changing their military aid mission and supporting the rebellions instead. As a confirmation of these allegations, Athens resettled the rebellious helot in the city of Naupactus after they were forced to surrender and exiled form Sparta (Kagan 67). In 460 BC, Athens again took advantage of a conflict between Megara and Corinth to form an alliance with Megara and initiated a war against Sparta that lasted for more than fifteen years. Megara and Corinth were both allies of Sparta. Another source of aggravation of the conflicts between the two states was the imposition of the Megara decree, a sanction that barred trade with citizens of Megara. DeSouza asserts that the Peloponnesian war was caused by persistent differences that existed between Athens and Sparta (De Souza 81). In Athens, there was democracy whereas Sparta had a military led government. He states that certain cities were overwhelmed with the fear that Athens would grab their power while others were not happy with Athens spending of the Delian money. According to Bagnall, Pericles punishment on cities that resisted Athens further catalyzed the speared of the war. Sparta finally declared war against Athens in 431 BC. During the regime of Pericles, Athens became overcrowded and people could easily get infected by disease. Plague spread steadily killing more than two thirds of Athens population, thereby weakening its forces and defense system, including the Pericles (Bagnall 142). Impacts of the War The war had a great impact on ancient Greece. Economically, the war left Grece in a miserable economic condition. The city of Athens was not able to regain its economic state and prosperity that it used to enjoy before the war, while Peloponnese suffered from skyrocketing inflation rates and increased poverty. Politically, the war between the two states resulted in frequent civil wars between cities of Greece. Being in conflict with another city became a norm for the states. The Peloponnesian war resulted into massive destruction of most cities of Greece. It also led to deaths of thousands of the Greeks. In addition, all the Greek states suffered from economic and military losses irrespective of whether or not a city was involved in the wars. The prestigious wealth, policies, and power of Athens led to umbrage, anger and bitterness among other cities of Greece. One of its major effects was the long-term weakening of city-states for more than 50 years. Athens, which was once the strongest city in Greece, was terribly reduced to a helpless and vulnerable state whereas its rival Sparta gained full momentum and power to become the leader of Greece. End of the War The war eventually ended after a severe destruction of Athens fleet at Aegospotami which forced it to deliberately surrender the fight. In 404 BC, Athens was forced to surrender to Sparta after the fight continued for another fifteen years, despite the signing of the Truce Agreement in 420 BC to bring the war to a halt. Athens Recovery There are various factors that led to the successful recovery of Athens. First, the enemies of Athens did not have enough force, strength and drive to bring down Athens, for instance, Sparta lacked the urge to send its military troops to Athens. Athens also received support from other Ionian states that required protection. Persia, on the other hand, deliberately delayed its promise to furnish Sparta with funds and army ships. This led to more and more frustrations of Spartas battle plans and strategies during the war. Consequently, Athena was able to win and recover most portions of its empire between 410 BC and 400 BC. Similarly, Athens shrewdly set aside some finances and more than one hundred and fifty ships that it would use as the last resort during the war. Rusten and Thucydides suggest that Alcibiades; use of less coercion also rapidly facilitated the process of restoring democracy in Athens. He was able to achieve this within a period of only two years (Rusten Thucydides 69). Athens after War In 403 BC, Athens was able to overthrow the oligarchs after a short period of suspension of Athens democracy. Similarly, the Corinthian war made it possible for Athens to recover its lost power during the Peloponnesian war. Lessons from the War According to Lattimore and Thucydides, countries that wage should learn from the Peloponnesian war that they can easily lose their power, control and supremacy despite their fights to gain it. When Athens was attacked by Sparta, a large number of its citizens migrated and settled behind the walls of the city (Thucydides Lattimore 51). This led to overcrowding and consequently poor living standards which eventually led to outbreaks of diseases and plagues. He further advises that countries should try as possible as they can to avoid conflicts with their neighbors. Oedipus Tyrannus This play was first performed in 426 BC, just a few years after the plague that hard hit Athens. At the beginning of the story, Oedipus finds himsellf in the city where there was the plague. He attempts to elate the plague. He then comes to realize that the plague would only end after the murder of Laius is identified. Oedipus was determined to pursue the truth but he later realized that he was the actual murder of his own father. This drives him to carry out investigations and develops a series of questions in his efforts of finding out the murderer of Laius, not knowing that he was the one who killed him in a three-way road. Similarly, he later on realizes that the same way he killed Laius, his real father. It is crammed when neverending questions from Oedipus and his condemnation of those who did not want to reveal the truth about the death of Laius (Gaylord 65). Oedipus exhibits extreme arrogance and violence as he searches for the murderer. The play revolves around a king who is humbled by a series of mysterious events beyond his control from extreme supremacy and seeks help form a blind woman. It was a tragic for a king of such high profile to be brought down to high poverty levels. Lessons from the Play The play explores different themes, state control among them. This theme can be paralleled with the conflicts that emerged between different states of the ancient Greek. From the story we learn how one may fall due to the unknown circumstance. It also shows us the disadvantages of destructive use of power and excessive pride. The play is about King Oedipus. It begins by the king sending his brother-in-law to seek help for the problems that were being encountered in his empire. When Creon goes to a priest, he is told that the problems were due to the religious pollution that resulted after the killing of King Laius (Segal 141). When Oedipus called for the priest, he refuses to speak on arrival. Oedipus becomes raged with this act and orders the priest to be killed. The priest further insists that the murder of King Laius was Oedipus plan. Visionary leadership King Oedipus in the play resembles a dictator king who uses force and coercion to rule. The writer emphasizes on the good qualities of a king such as love for his state and the people. A good king should not be self-centered or be proud. From the Peloponnesian war and Oedipus, it is evidenced that kings usually fall due to the bad ruling of the people who consequently form rebellions to overthrow their governments. In this play, Oedipus is portrayed a leader who will always pursues his own personal interest, is overconfident about himself and quick to angers. According to Gaylord, King Oedipus resembles that various characters of current political leaders who make citizens of their countries live in hopelessness, fear and desperation (Gaylord 127). Conclusion In my opinion, it would be easier for one to understand Oedipus Tyrannus play when he/she has heard of the Peloponnesian war. This is because there is a direct relationship between the play and the war. Actually, the play was sent just a few years after the Peloponnesian war within the same setting or environment. The play sets similar themes as the lessons that were learnt during and after the war. In my view, King Oedipus can be compared with Athens that was taking advantage of its economical, social and political supremacy to exercise control on other cities. This behavior of Athens can be directly linked to King Oedipus character of dictatorship. Both the play and Peloponnesian war provide valuable lessons to states that the use of force and conflicts as a way of acquiring power over other nations. The play was best set for colonies. Buy custom Peloponnesian War and Oedipus Tyrannus essay

Homelessness Today essays

Homelessness Today essays One day as I was driving to my sisters house in Ravenswood, I saw an elderly man standing at the end of the off-ramp. The gentleman was holding a sign that read: Homeless will work for food. God Bless. As I rolled to a stop, I rolled down my window and offered him my last five dollars. To my amazement the gentleman declined my charity. He said god bless you miss but I will work for my keep. I told him that I could certainly appreciate that. I then inquired if he had a place to stay for the evening and he informed me that if he didnt get to Parkersburg he would go to a friends house. As Mr. Baumohl declares in his book Homelessness in America "The lives of all people, disabled or not, are embedded in circumstances shaped as much by structural factors as personal and biographical ones" ( 26). It is sad to say that with that statement the gentleman I encountered is not eligible for homeless assistance according to the West Virginia Bureau for women and childrens homeless services. In order to be eligible for services under the homeless program, an individual or family must be in immediate need of housing and have no income or means of obtaining housing. This means that there is no one, friend or family, who can provide emergency shelter and there are no financial resources available to the individual or family with which to purchase shelter. Individuals or families facing eviction are not yet homeless and therefore do not qualify for homeless services (West Virginia Bureau for Children and Families). Today, in America, more and more people are becoming homeless in every sense of the word and still unable to receive assistance from government agencies. We as a concerned and caring nation need to combat these unjust labels and help those who need it, not just those who qualify. Homeless, its meaning is literal and prosaic: the absence of a domicile. Thus, we employ it to describe those sl...

The History of Electric Vehicles Began in 1830

The History of Electric Vehicles Began in 1830 By definition, an electric vehicle, or EV, will use an electric motor for propulsion rather than a gasoline-powered motor. Besides the electric car, there are bikes, motorcycles, boats, airplanes, and trains that have all been powered by electricity. Beginnings Who invented the very first EV is uncertain, as several inventors have been given credit. In 1828, Hungarian nyos Jedlik invented a small-scale model car powered by an electric motor that he designed. Between 1832 and 1839 (the exact year is uncertain), Robert Anderson of Scotland invented a crude electric-powered carriage. In 1835, another small-scale electric car was designed by Professor Stratingh of Groningen, Holland, and built by his assistant Christopher Becker. In 1835, Thomas Davenport, a blacksmith from Brandon, Vermont, built a small-scale electric car. Davenport was also the inventor of the first American-built DC electric motor. Better Batteries More practical and more successful electric road vehicles were invented by both Thomas Davenport and Scotsman Robert Davidson around 1842. Both inventors were the first to use the newly-invented, non-rechargeable electric cells (or batteries). Frenchman Gaston Plante invented a better storage battery in 1865 and his fellow countrymen Camille Faure further improved the storage battery in 1881. Better-capacity storage batteries were needed for electric vehicles to become practical. American Designs In the late 1800s, France and Great Britain were the first nations to support the widespread development of electric vehicles. In 1899, a Belgian-built electric racing car called La Jamais Contente set a world record for land speed of 68 mph. It was designed by Camille Jà ©natzy. It was not until 1895 that Americans began to devote attention to electric vehicles after an electric tricycle was built by A. L. Ryker and William Morrison built a six-passenger wagon, both in 1891. Many innovations followed, and interest in motor vehicles increased greatly in the late 1890s and early 1900s. In fact, William Morrisons design, which had room for passengers, is often considered the first real and practical EV. In 1897, the first commercial EV application was established: a fleet of New York City taxis built by the Electric Carriage and Wagon Company of Philadelphia. Increased Popularity By the turn of the century, America was prosperous. Cars, now available in steam, electric, or gasoline versions, were becoming more popular. The years 1899 and 1900 were the high point of electric cars in America,  as they outsold all other types of cars. One example was the 1902 Phaeton built by the Woods Motor Vehicle Company of Chicago, which had a range of 18 miles, a top speed of 14 mph and cost $2,000. Later in 1916, Woods invented a hybrid car that had both an internal combustion engine and an electric motor. Electric vehicles had many advantages over their competitors in the early 1900s. They did not have the vibration, smell, and noise associated with gasoline-powered cars. Changing gears on gasoline cars was the most difficult part of driving. Electric vehicles did not require gear changes. While steam-powered cars also had no gear shifting, they suffered from long start-up times of up to 45 minutes on cold mornings. The steam cars had less range before needing water, compared to an electric cars range on a single charge. The only good roads of the period were in town, which meant that most commutes were local, a perfect situation for electric vehicles since their range was limited. The electric vehicle was the preferred choice of many because it did not require manual effort to start, as with the hand crank on gasoline vehicles,  and there was no wrestling with a gear shifter. While basic electric cars cost under $1,000, most early electric vehicles were ornate, massive carriages designed for the upper class. They had fancy interiors made with expensive materials and averaged $3,000 by 1910. Electric vehicles enjoyed success into the 1920s, with production peaking in 1912. Electric Cars Almost Become Extinct For the following reasons, the electric car declined in popularity. It was several decades before there was a renewed interest in these vehicles. By the 1920s, America had a better system of roads that connected cities, bringing with it the need for longer-range vehicles.The discovery of Texas crude oil reduced the price of gasoline so that it was affordable to the average consumer.The invention of the electric starter by  Charles Kettering  in 1912 eliminated the need for the hand crank.The initiation of mass production of internal combustion engine vehicles by  Henry Ford  made these vehicles widely available and affordable, in the $500 to $1,000 price range. By contrast, the price of the less efficiently-produced electric vehicles continued to rise. In 1912, an electric roadster sold for $1,750, while a gasoline car sold for $650. Electric vehicles had all but disappeared by 1935. The years following until the 1960s were dead years for electric vehicle development and for their use as personal transportation. The Return The  60s  and  70s  saw a need for  alternative-fueled  vehicles to reduce the problems of exhaust emissions from internal combustion engines and to reduce the dependency on imported foreign crude oil. Many attempts to produce practical electric vehicles occurred after 1960. Battronic Truck Company In the early 60s, the Boyertown Auto Body Works jointly formed the Battronic Truck Company with Smith Delivery Vehicles, Ltd., of England and the Exide Division of the Electric Battery Company. The first Battronic electric truck was delivered to the Potomac Edison Company in 1964. This truck was capable of speeds of 25 mph, a range of 62 miles and a payload of 2,500 pounds. Battronic worked with General Electric from 1973 to 1983 to produce 175 utility vans for use in the utility industry and to demonstrate the capabilities of battery-powered vehicles. Battronic also developed and produced about 20 passenger buses in the mid-1970s. CitiCars and Elcar Two companies were leaders in electric car production during this time. Sebring-Vanguard produced over 2,000 CitiCars. These cars had a top speed of 44 mph, a normal cruise speed of 38 mph and a range of 50 to 60 miles. The other company was Elcar Corporation, which produced the Elcar. The Elcar had a top speed of 45 mph, a range of 60 miles and cost between $4,000 and $4,500. United States Postal Service In 1975, the United States Postal Service purchased 350 electric delivery jeeps from the American Motor Company to be used in a test program. These jeeps had a top speed of 50 mph and a range of 40 miles at a speed of 40 mph. Heating and defrosting were accomplished with a gas heater and the recharge time was ten hours.

Earth's Deserts Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Earth's Deserts - Research Paper Example The most important abiotic factor which influences the desert ecosystem is rainfall. Most deserts are characterized by the fact that it experiences little or no rainfall. The deserts receive a total of less than 300 mm of rainfall per year, where a rainforest receives about 2000 mm. The lack of rain, and ultimately water in a desert makes the vegetation scarce and influences the adaptation of the plants and organisms. Plants such as cacti which are very common in a desert ecosystem have adapted to the scarcity of water by storing water in their stems. The saguaro cacti do not have very deep roots, allowing it to soak up rain and dew before it evaporates. It's spongy surface inside expands to hold more water (Cunningham n.d.). Bushes develop small and few leave, but long roots to adapt to the harsh conditions by conserving water. Some plants are short lived and grow only during when rain is available. Temperature is another important factor which has a great impact on the ecosystem which ultimately is affected by another abiotic factor, sunlight. The temperature in the deserts reaches its extremes on a daily basis because there is no humidity in the desert air to block the Sun rays. Mean annual temperature in North American deserts like Chihuahuan, Sonoran, and Mojave, for example, is 20-25Â ° whereas it can reach up to 49Â °. Minimum temperature here can drop to -18Â ° as well. But temperatures can be so high that rain starts falling and gets evaporated whilst it reaches the ground (The desert biome. (n.d.).

Homosexuality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Homosexuality - Essay Example This paper analyses both the genetic and environmental factors involved in homosexuality. One study revealed that â€Å"if one identical twin was gay, the other was also gay 50% of the time. If they were fraternal twins, they were both gay 22% of the time. And if one was adopted, the chances fell to 11%† (Dr.Starr). Ciani et al (n. d) also have pointed out that â€Å"homosexuals have more maternal than paternal male homosexual relatives†. The above statistics and conclusions clearly point towards genetic factors involved in homosexuality. Even though the percentage has slight differences, both identical twins and fraternal twins shows the tendency of becoming homosexuals if they genetic elements of homosexuality. The possibility of existence of homosexuality gene is widely discussed at present. â€Å"Although biologists are still far from answering this question, scattered evidence for a possible gene influencing sexual orientation has recently encouraged scientists to map out a guide to future research† (Is there a homosexuality gene?). Even though, such a gene has not been discovered yet, many of the biologists are confident of identifying such a gene which will answer all the questions related to the reasons of homosexuality. â€Å"Writing in the scientific journal Archives of Sexual Behavior, researchers from Queen Mary's School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, and Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm report that genetics and environmental factors are important determinants of homosexual behavior† (Homosexual behavior due to genetics and environmental factors). Homosexuality is common in military.

From the decade of 1990s Nike Inc is facing criticisms from different Essay

From the decade of 1990s Nike Inc is facing criticisms from different human rights organizations and government bodies - Essay Example Nike management is using the sweatshops for manufacturing of the products where the labor law is violated. The manufacturing units of Nike are mainly in the Asian countries like China, Vietnam, Indonesia etc where they can get labor in a relatively lower cost, also they are getting free trade zones there. The minimum wages law is violated there as well as the working conditions are poor there. Some media have also proved that the working conditions are not standard in Nike factories. Also there were claims that Nike is using child labors. Nike is using forced labor as reported by different media. Recently in July, 2011 an article claimed that Nike the employees of Nike factory abused by the supervisors constantly. So the main problem is that Nike management has failed to ensure a standard human resource policy in the company. Problem Symptoms The problem symptoms are as follows: Certain reports are claiming that Nike is not sticking to a standard human resource policy from the 1990s. Some customers are avoiding Nike on morale ground as they are violating the labor law continuously. Problem Statement As in the manufacturing Factories Nike Inc is violated the labor laws, the human resource organizations and the government bodies are protesting this in different countries as well as some customer started to avoid the products in a morale ground. Part B The Problem Nike Inc, a major manufacturer of apparel and sports equipment is violating the labor laws in its manufacturing factories which are situated mainly in the Asian countries. As the labors are not treated well in the factories so the international media is continuously focusing on this matter. They have collected some proves which made clear the fact that Nike is violating the labor laws really. Several issues are against the company, because of which some consumers also avoid using the products of Nike on the moral ground. Fishbone Diagram Key Findings From the fishbone diagram it has been found that sever al factors are there and because of all these Nike was able to violate the labor laws from the 1990s. The main factor is the management. The human resource policy of the management is below standard, which causes the problem mainly. Moreover the long term strategy of the company is not good at all. If the company continues this type of labor policy then the company can’t make profit in the long term. The government of the respective countries is also responsible for this situation. Nike is continuing this practice from the 1990s, but the respective governments have not taken such hard step so that the company will think about the matter seriously. The government has made the trade free zones for the foreign companies, and it is attractable for the companies as they can do business in low cost. They can also get low cost

Enron paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Enron - Research Paper Example Enron was a among leading promoters in restructuring of energy markets which led to the emergent of its name, but the name was later changed to energy country as a result of its invention in new global market. Enron was a pioneer company in the legend of elite of workers in financial world. The company acquired miscellaneous investments to its portfolio and had the capability of obtaining returns of 200% of its investments to shareholders. By 2000, Enron had become a massive company in the industry. They opened branches in South America, India Asia and a host of other European States and countries. They extended their functions by starting occupation in additional projects that they had started, and it is when they started the online manufacturing of energy and telecommunication facilities. They further introduced services such as, risk management, consulting services, internet broadband services, and the launch of outstanding products that protected against bad weather (Hutton 5). H owever, in October 16, 2001, the company was involved in some fraudulent activities and this led it to bankruptcy. On December 2, 2001, in Southern District of New York, Enron Company went ahead and filed for bankruptcy after it recorded a loss of an approximated $638 million in its third quarter earnings, and chose Weil Gotshal and Manges as their bankruptcy counsel. This bankruptcy was as a result of, top executives involved in huge scandals such as, money laundering, corruption and a series of other conspiracies. To add on top of that, they lost their goodwill, investments and confidence by admitting fraud in income of about four years, which was about $586. They also admitted to have hidden $3 billion in debt to create limited partnerships. Afterwards, they faced a massive deterioration in the stock market with, is $90 per share falling to less than $1 per share in 2000. (Bhatnagar et al. 8) Employees of Enron Corporation became affected in disastrous ways, stating form unemploy ment to their retirement savings getting lost in the fraud. Banks also became victims of circumstances by losing millions of dollars of investments that the company had acquired as loan, due to fake earning reports. The firm was sidelined by a number of its clients and workers resulting to them quitting out of business. The report of these financial frauds were preplanned, and systematically arranged to undertake fraudulent activities. The counterfeiting of strategies, embezzling of profits and hiding increased debt diminished the company’s stock value through the fraudulent activities, they were able to gain access in borrowing extra wealth and with this, and they were boosted. The statistics revealed that top executives gave incorrect audit reports about the company’s economic conditions. In February 2002, the company was inquired by Senate Commerce Committee and they later came out of bankruptcy in November 2004 (Bhatnagar et al, 10). Accounting Problems Enron start ed experiencing accounting problems in late 2001 that, compounded of some of its several businesses not doing well as required. In October 2001, Enron announced a series of asset losses which included an

Australia Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Australia - Term Paper Example Due to its location, the country experiences mild winter, making the winter and summer temperatures to be almost the same (Oliver, 2005). This kind of weather is what most people find enjoyable, as the cool ocean breeze that do sweep across the land compliments it. Nevertheless, there are quite a number of beautiful landscapes such as the grassland of Queensland and mountain ranges located near Proserpine. Sydney is also famous for the Handa Opera, a masterful monumental practice held during summer that is unique to this part of the world only. The opera is a combination of various activities that include fine dining and champagne, with a stunning view of sunset from the harbor and lots of entertainment under the beautiful night sky (â€Å"Handa Opera,† 2015). The fete is characterized by a fantastic music projection through concealed speakers with the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra sheltered below the stage. The country has a good number of beautiful sites that any visitor should strive to visit. A good example is the Grampians National Park. Located within Victoria at the official end of the Great Ocean Road, the park is home to marvelous indigenous rock art and angled sandstone ridges. The Fraser Island is another place that one should never fail to visit when in Australia. Being the largest island in the world, Fraser Island is gifted with lovely beaches, unique flora and fauna that are dominant in the surrounding rainforests, among others (â€Å"Work and travel Australia,† (2015). This country is definitely a favorite tourism destination that is worth marking in a travel diary. From the elegant Handa Opera to the beautiful sandy beaches of Fraser Island, Australia has more to offer that an individual will find

Disaster Relief Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Disaster Relief - Research Paper Example When the government relief operations machine hums efficiently, we see our government at work and conclude that its disaster relief policies are working. But how are these public policies on disaster relief formulated? What happens behind the great doors of congress that makes the policy as it is? What happens at the oval office that makes a difference in the public policies of the United States government? However, the most critical is the last question: What happens outside of these government offices that affect the outcome of our public policies? In this paper, I shall attempt to evaluate the different roles performed by different agencies in the formulation of our public policy on disaster relief, including the dynamics between and among these entities. Public policy is defined simply as â€Å"whatever governments choose to do or not to do.†2 In other words, every action by the government’s three branches – the executive, legislative and judicial – is governed by a pre-determined course of action. It necessarily includes the decision not to do anything about a certain issue. Interestingly, this interpretation also works in reverse wherein government action and inaction results in public policy. That is, in the form of lessons learned from its previous mistakes. There have been identified distinct stages in the policymaking process. These are problem identification, agenda setting, policy formulation, policy legitimation, policy implementation, and policy evaluation.3 For each of the aforementioned stage, a different group of actors is involved and a different dynamics between these concurring and opposing interest occur. Each actor is espousing a specific opinion or direction for the policy being formulated, each trying to promote its interests. It is the democratic process’ hopeful expectation that when different groups try to put into the policy their

Australia Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Australia - Term Paper Example Due to its location, the country experiences mild winter, making the winter and summer temperatures to be almost the same (Oliver, 2005). This kind of weather is what most people find enjoyable, as the cool ocean breeze that do sweep across the land compliments it. Nevertheless, there are quite a number of beautiful landscapes such as the grassland of Queensland and mountain ranges located near Proserpine. Sydney is also famous for the Handa Opera, a masterful monumental practice held during summer that is unique to this part of the world only. The opera is a combination of various activities that include fine dining and champagne, with a stunning view of sunset from the harbor and lots of entertainment under the beautiful night sky (â€Å"Handa Opera,† 2015). The fete is characterized by a fantastic music projection through concealed speakers with the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra sheltered below the stage. The country has a good number of beautiful sites that any visitor should strive to visit. A good example is the Grampians National Park. Located within Victoria at the official end of the Great Ocean Road, the park is home to marvelous indigenous rock art and angled sandstone ridges. The Fraser Island is another place that one should never fail to visit when in Australia. Being the largest island in the world, Fraser Island is gifted with lovely beaches, unique flora and fauna that are dominant in the surrounding rainforests, among others (â€Å"Work and travel Australia,† (2015). This country is definitely a favorite tourism destination that is worth marking in a travel diary. From the elegant Handa Opera to the beautiful sandy beaches of Fraser Island, Australia has more to offer that an individual will find

Macroeconomics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 2

Macroeconomics - Essay Example Checkable deposits in banks reduced in the period, but checkable deposits in thrift institutions increased. Hence, there was an increase in overall M1 level between the periods of one year from Nov 2010 to Nov 2011. In terms of M2, only M1 and saving deposits showed an increased. There was a fall in retail funds and small denomination of time deposits. But the increase in M1 and saving deposits was higher than the decrease in other components and hence M2 showed an increase over a period of one year from November 2010 to November 2011. a) There won’t be any change to M1 since both the currency in circulation and checking account are part of M1. Hence shifting money from one head to another won’t have any impact on the total size of M1 and it will remain unchanged. b) There won’t be any change to M1 since the money is simply being transferred from one head of the M1 to another. Since M1 is part of M2 and there isn’t any change to M1, therefore M1 and M2 both will remain unchanged. c) There won’t be any change to M2. Since the money has been transferred to M1 base, but since M1 is part of M2, there won’t be any change to M2. However, M1 will rise by the amount of purchases since the money has been converted from saving account to money and notes in circulation. d) When Fed buys Treasury bills from the banks its liabilities and assets accounts both are being reduced. Since Treasury Bills represents the money that the Fed owes to commercial banks, therefore the reduction in Treasury Bills or purchase of Treasury Bills by the Fed is going to reduce the bank’s liability. At the same time, the Fed will have to pay cash to commercials banks as a settlement for purchase of Treasury Bills and therefore there will be a reduction in Fed’s assets as well. Therefore both the assets and liabilities sides of the balance sheet will get affected

According to Congress Essay Example for Free

According to Congress Essay Culture is the arrangement of aggregate beliefs, values, customs, behaviors, and artifacts that the associates of association use to cope with their apple and with one another, and that are transmitted from bearing to bearing through learning. It comprises all the ability and ethics aggregate by a association or the attitudes and behavior that are adapted of a accurate amusing accumulation or organization. It is the accumulated habits, attitudes, and behavior of a accumulation of humans that ascertain for them their accepted behavior and way of life; the absolute set of abstruse activities of a people. See more: Ethnic groups and racism essay According to Congress (1997), there are alone and cultural differences in agreement of affliction administration because there are patients who wish connected affliction medication while others abjure their charge for affliction reliever. Since the role of the bloom affliction provider is to advice patients apostle for what feels adapted for them aural their cultural ambience there are times if compassionate the accommodating may be difficult abnormally if patients are from altered cultures and allege altered languages Competence in a accurate profession does not alone cover ability and ability in the specific acreage or discipline. It is as well important that as a medical amount holder, the getting knows how to acquaint and collaborate with altered individuals with differing culture. Issues on race, gender, age, adoration and socio-economic cachet should be dealt with abundant abilities so as to abstain absurd confrontations. This will advice advance and advance adapted and acceptable alive relationships in the workplace. Littlejohn (2002) mentioned and provided account apropos the access of allegorical interactions which states that amusing structures and meanings are created and maintained in amusing interaction, that humans act in accordance with their abstract understandings of the situation, that people’s activity is based on their interpretations and that amusing activity is fabricated up of alternation processes rather than structures and is accordingly consistently changing. Using this access as a advance and applying its abstraction in the conveyance of podiatry, the bloom affliction provider should accept the accommodation to accept the apropos of the patient. There will be times if the accommodating will not be absolute and absolute in cogent the medical getting of his or her appraisal of the bloom affliction provided. It is the albatross of the bloom affliction provider to be acute to the needs of the patient. Observing his or her (the patient) behavior and attitudes appear situations and humans will advice in ambience the appropriate affection and action to conduct the able advice and abetment the getting to her needs. It is important that considerations not just on the bloom of the accommodating but aswell of his or her cultural acclimatization are fabricated by the clinician. Getting an abstraction of area and what blazon of getting the applicant is will accommodate the medical care to accord with the apropos of the audience better. In the profession of medicine, it not alone the concrete bloom of the getting that is getting taken affliction of, the accepted abundance of the getting is as well kept in mind. Humans in this conveyance should apperceive the able access to be acclimated in interacting with specific blazon of accommodating in agreement of his or her cultural orientation. They should be able to accept area the accommodating stands and try to reside up to the standards that they expect. There are times if advice amid the accommodating and the medical cadre is an adversity abnormally if langue aberration amid them exists. Providing instructions, guidelines and prescriptions could be awkward if one of the parties or both of them cannot accept what the added is aggravating to put through. It is accessible again that cultural accomplishment of the getting cannot be afar from the affairs that that he or she lives and has been acclimatized to. The affairs include the routines, the behaviors and attitudes that a getting exhibits. The ability he or she incorporates in his or her circadian activity includes the judgments and tastes that are made. Galanti (1999) cited an archetype in her commodity if cultural differences behest the bearings to be a little complicated due to differing socio-cultural expectations. She aggregate the afterward story: aâ‚ ¬? In the United States, there is generally no one but the assistant to yield affliction of the patientaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s psychosocial needs. The American accommodating who expects the bloom affliction artisan to appearance claimed absorption may apperceive a Filipino assistant who is aggravating to behave appropriately as algid and uncaring. (http://www. ggalanti. com/articles/articles_home_health. html). If it comes to affliction management, for example, it is a actuality that altered patients accept altered interpretations if it comes to the abstraction of pain. There are cultural orientations wherein affliction is advised as a appearance of courage abnormally if the getting has a top affliction tolerance. On the added hand, there are as well patients who feel abhorrent if ambidextrous with concrete affliction as they resort to quick affliction relievers and actual treatment. These types of cases appeal that bloom affliction training in added cultural ambience should be provided with advice as to what a accommodating expects from medical personnel. Rogers (1951) in Staats (1996) declared that anniversary alone has a life force that is afflicted and afflicted by the amusing burden that he or she adventures which hinders claimed and amusing advance and actualization. This is one of the affidavit why treatments are anchored in an area the applicant or accommodating can allocution her apperception advisedly after activity abhorrence and pressure. The atmosphere fostered by able nurses whose plan is anxious with alone development is a abode area their patients feel safe to accurate his or her accurate attributes and cocky (Staats, 1996). In ambidextrous with situations such as the cases mentioned above, it is accordant that the bloom affliction provider, whether he or she is in the podiatry profession or added medical practice, to accept a bright abstraction of the patient’s cultural background. There are just certain instances where in both the bloom affliction provider and the accommodating will be put in a amusing action wherein differences should be bent and accept for a acceptable alive ambiance as able-bodied as for the account of the patient.

The Impact of Education on the Renaissance Essay -- European Renaissanc

The gigantic effect that education had on Renaissance society was greatly stimulated by the new development of humanism. Humanism was responsible for the curiosity of many intellects during the Renaissance, which ultimately led to the discoveries and developments that made the Renaissance such a remarkable time. It proposed a different way of thinking, unprecedented by scholars. Without humanism and the educational interest that it brought about, the Renaissance would not be known as the explosion of culture that it is considered today. Humanistic belief that ?the church should not rule civic matters, but should guide in only spiritual matters? (The Humanist Philosophy) led to the expansion in education that the Renaissance is known for. Because Italian humanists believed that they should become knowledgeable and apply that knowledge for the benefit of civilization in general, a huge boom in education, seperate from that taught by the clergy, occurred (The Humanist Philosophy). For the first time in modern years, the philosophy of ancient Greeks such as Plato and Socrates were studied widely so as to better understand the thinking behind those of ancient times, an era greatly admired by the Italians of Renaissance times. These studies were a bridge to more mathematical thinking than the objective thinking of the past, thoughts were backed up by reasoning. This kind of thought and study eventually led to the opposition to the Church teachings about subjects such as Indulgences, which were not proven to be true by an y known document, including the Bible (Renaissance - Humanism). Without the new thoughts brought about by education during the Renaissance, society may very well still be dominated by the Church. The study of the s... ...the Renaissance allowed for new thoughts on the theory of gravity as well as other significant topics important to learning about the way the universe functions. Without the educational boom brought about by humanism, these important understandings might still be unknown today (Renaissance ? Science in the Renaissance). Humanism was the main factor behind the immense increase in educational interest in a society that is best known for its intellectual advancements. Without this newfound thirst for knowledge felt by many during the Renaissance, this time period would have been lost in the deep pool of European history. Education, and therefore humanism, made it the exceptionally well regarded era that it is. We owe the inventions, discoveries, and general advancements that came from this period to the expansion of fascination in education during the Renaissance.

Capital Punishment :: essays research papers fc

Introduction This day in age murderers’ actions are getting more and more incomprehensive. They are no longer just committing murder: they are torturing, mutilating, and engaging in grossly inappropriate acts against fellow human beings. Behaviors such as this will continue if nothing is done to stop them. The death penalty is a humane way to punish the convicted and deter these gruesome acts. Early as 1930, we can find the first recorded execution. Between the times of 1930 to 1967 there was a recorded number of 3,859 people executed. The following nine years would bring victory for those against capital punishment, there was no executions done in this time frame. Gregg vs. Georgia, Supreme Court of 1976 made a ruling that â€Å"the death penalty does not violate the Cruel and Unusual Punishment Clause of the Eighth Amendment.† The death penalty has been accepted by thirty-nine states of America (Newton, 1983).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the basics in understanding capital punishment is the methods of which are used. Which will be the first of things I will be presenting. I will be showing how selections of death row are made. The last of subject matters that I will be touching on are the problems with the process of capital punishment and a possible more effective approach. I will also be concluding my findings and ending with a thought of my own. Methods of Execution In the United States today, there are five existing methods of execution. These methods are used to kill convicted criminals that have been given the sentence of the death penalty. The different methods are; lethal injection, electrocution, gas chamber, hanging, and firing squad shootings.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Lethal injection is currently used by thirty-six states in America. It is the most commonly used from of execution in the U.S. The preparation begins outside of the chamber with the use of a gurney. The convict is held to the gurney by wrist and ankle straps. There is then a cardiac monitor and stethoscope attached and started. In each arm there is a saline intravenous line. The convict is then covered by a sheet. The lines are turned off and the felon receives the first injection of sodium thiopental. This puts the felon to sleep. They are then injected with Pavulon, which relaxes all of the muscles in the body and stops breathing. Shortly after, the felon dies.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The next method of execution used is electrocution. This method is done by putting the person in a wooden chair, which they are secured to by leather straps.

The Blue Sword CHAPTER ELEVEN

In the hollow where they met Murfoth they set up their first proper camp. The hunting-beasts all went out that night, and everyone, not just a few Riders, had good fresh meat for dinner. The king's zotar was put up, and it was obvious that it was the king's, for it was the biggest, but this one was plain, a dull dun color, and the door was just a tent flap, and inside there were a few carpets, and hooks on side poles for lanterns, but that was all; although the black-and-white banner still flew bravely from the peak of the roof. She and the king and Murfoth and most of the Riders – Innath and Mathin among them – slept within it; but she lay awake a long time listening to the others breathe. You didn't hear the person next to you breathing if there wasn't a ceiling over you to keep the noise closed in. She missed the stars. The next morning there was breakfast at a long table similar to the one where she had first met the Riders; they were all there again, with a few others of those who had joined them over the last few days. Corlath explained what was immediately ahead of them: how they would climb into the mountains again – the range was widest where the curve west was sharpest – to meet the high plateau where the Lake of Dreams lay, and where Luthe lived. Luthe? thought Harry. Most of the army would not climb all the way to the meeting-place, but fade into the forest in little groups and pretend to be invisible; for, so far at least, Corlath and the outriders believed they had not been sighted. Harry blinked and wondered if the morning mists that seemed to continue all day long every day as a kind of dull haze had after all been more than a curious local weather pattern. Luthe himself – Mathin told her this during an interval while the household folk brought in hot malak – had ways even Corlath did not understand of seeing things, and Corlath wished to see and speak to him. But Luthe never left his lands, and so it was necessary to seek him there. â€Å"Luthe claims that lowland air confuses him,† Mathin said, and shrugged the uneven Hill shrug. â€Å"It is not for us to know.† He picked up his cup. â€Å"Yes, but who is Luthe?† said Harry. Mathin regarded her with his inscrutable expression. â€Å"No one knows,† he said. â€Å"Luthe is †¦ someone who lives in the mountains, who sees things – things something like what some of us see when we taste the Meeldtar. He has been there a very long time. No one can remember when Luthe came, or when he has not lived on his mountain.† â€Å"And the Lake of Dreams?† Mathin stared into his cup. â€Å"There is a spring that runs into the Lake of Dreams, and it is where the Water of Sight is found; but sometimes the water from the spring is only water, and no one knows why; although it is believed that Luthe knows. Water drunk from the Lake of Dreams does not give the Sight, as the true Meeldtar does; but it is not quite like drinking †¦ water.† Harry sighed. Corlath explained briefly for the newcomers what the army was proposing to do. The Northerners must, perforce, choose the one wide pass in the mountains that led into the great central plain and then the bare desert of Damar, for it was the only gap large enough to accommodate an army's numbers. The gap was a bit west of the midpoint of the length of the mountains from the curve where the north-south mountains, the Ildik range, became the east-west Horfel Mountains. When the last of Corlath's little army had collected in the hollow at the elbow of the two ranges, they would ride as quickly as horseflesh would allow to the mouth of that pass, and prepare to engage the enemy among the empty villages and deserted fields of Damar. Then there was a silence, for all in the king's tent knew that Corlath's force could not win a victory from the Northerners; nor were they likely able to resist them to the point that the invaders would decide Damar wasn't worth the trouble and return home. The best the defenders could hope for, and this they did hope for, was to cause enough trouble and loss that the Northern army would not have the strength left to seize all of Damar in quite so tight and effective a grip as Thurra would wish; and that pockets of renegade Hillfolk might hide in the Hills, or under the kelar of the City. If they succeeded so much, the battle would be worth what it would cost them, for they would have preserved themselves a future. Harry swallowed uncomfortably. She heard, a little dizzily, what Corlath was saying about the foothills the mountain pass gave into, and where the army would stand; and she cast in her mind for her best memory of Damarian geography, for she had the unpleasant sensation that something was being ignored, something that shouldn't be. Corlath was saying that they would decide more exactly once they arrived, but he seemed to know every stone and clump of grass there, the exact location of every farmhouse, as did those who listened; no one fell so low as to seek recourse to a map. She frowned in concentration. She could almost see the Residency map of Dana; it was very poor at the eastern end; it barely admitted to the existence of the mountains where the king's City stood – the City itself was one of Jack Dedham's native legends – but about the west it was pretty accurate †¦ Ah! Corlath had fallen silent. Murfoth said something and there was another silence, and Harry put in, timidly but stubbornly: â€Å"Sola, what of the pass just northwest of the †¦ of the Outlander station? It is narrow, but not so narrow that the †¦ the Northerners could not send a line through to come up behind us.† Corlath frowned. â€Å"Let them take the Outlander city – it will keep them amused long enough to delay them, perhaps. Even the Outlanders will try to stop them when they are on the threshold.† There was a silence so rigid that Harry felt that speaking words into it was like chopping holes in a frozen lake. â€Å"They would do a better job trying to stop them if they were warned,† she said. Her words didn't make much of a hole; the ice thickened visibly. She didn't want to do anything so obvious as put her hand on her sword hilt; but she did press her elbow surreptitiously against it, and stiffened her spine. â€Å"They were warned,† said Corlath, and Harry raised her eyes to his and saw the golden tide rising in them; and wondered what that fruitless conversation in the Residency must have cost him. Yet he hadn't burned the Residency down with that golden glare of his, as she suspected he could have; and so she blinked at him now and said, â€Å"Colonel Dedham would listen to you. You did not know the Northerners were on the march †¦ then; you know for certain now. The pass is narrow; he could hold it for you indefinitely – but not if they have had time to come through and go where they will.† Her voice was rising with fear and perhaps anger: was there anything but stubborn pride, the offended majesty of the absolute ruler of his small land, working in Corlath, that he should waste a chance to gain a little more time? How little she knew him after all, and how little she knew Damar, she who could not visualize every yellow blade of korf before the great pass in the mountains. And yet she could see – did she not truly see? – the threat that this second, narrow pass presented; a threat that the king and the commander of the army was choosing to overlook. She did not understand; she was born of a different people and she understood different things. â€Å"No,† said Corlath; the word rang like an axe blow, and his eyes were as yellow as topazes. Harry stared back at him – you great bully – even knowing what he could do to her, even as the sweat broke out on her skin with the effort of holding his eyes. Her elbow clamped desperately on Gonturan, and the hard edge of the blue gem dug into her ribs and encouraged her. Then he snapped his gaze from her and pointed it at the tent flap and shouted, though he rarely shouted, and fresh malak was brought in and fruit with it. The ice began, nervously, to break up, and Harry glowered at her cup and refused to be drawn into conversation, and listened to her heart beating, and wondered if she were a traitor; and if so, to whom? The next morning thirty-five chosen horsemen, with Corlath at their head and Harry, still somewhat sulky, among them, started up the track to Luthe's holding. The rest of the army broke camp first, and melted into the scrub of the mountains' feet, taking the hunting-beasts and the pack horses with them. Corlath and the little band with him waited till last, watching them go, judging if their disappearance was effective; looking to see if there were any too obvious paths broken in the undergrowth. A few fleeks broke cover, but that was the only sign of their passage. Corlath and whoever else might have a weather talent must have been satisfied, and Harry watched, with a few cold fingers working their way up her spine in spite of the heat: for the loyal fog over them was blandly breaking up. The sky was blue and clear. A britti burst into song, and Harry raised her eyes to watch the little brown speck zigzagging madly overhead. Corlath sent his big bay forward, and thirty-four riders, and one obstinate hunting-cat, followed. Harry hung near the back. She had not slept the night before for thinking of the northwest pass and Jack Dedham; Dedham's face watching Corlath as he stormed out of the Residency; and Corlath's face as he said, â€Å"Let them take the Outlander city – it will keep them amused.† Surely there was a reason none of the Hillfolk thought that gap into Damar worth consideration? But if there was a reason, what was the reason? Perhaps this Luthe would show some sense. Perhaps his crystal ball or what-have-you would say, â€Å"Beware the northwest pass! Beware!† And then again maybe it wouldn't. So, Harry, what do you propose to do about it then? She didn't know. She concentrated on Sungold's ears, slender and pricked, framing the trail in front of her, and the dark grey haunches of Innath's horse going on before. The scrub gave way to trees, and the trees to greater trees, till they were walking in a forest heavy with age, where even the air tasted old. By the end of the afternoon all the riders were on foot, walking with their sweat-dark horses up a steep uneven incline. Harry was panting, but she tried to do it quietly. Corlath probably never breathed hard. Tsornin's nostrils showed red, but his ears were as alert as ever, and occasionally he would rub his nose gently against the nape of her neck, just in case she was momentarily not thinking about him. Narknon ranged beside them like a dappled shadow. The trees were so tall and grand that Harry, watching her, could believe that she was no bigger than a housecat; that when she came up to be petted, she would twine around Harry's ankles, and Harry would pick her up with one hand and put her on her shoulder. The trees were so high overhead that the twilight beneath them might have been sunset, but might only be leaf shade; and they were a silent company, for no one spoke and the footfalls were muted by leaves and moss. Harry allowed herself to wonder about the trail, as an alternative to her endless mental circles about northwest passes: that it stayed clear enough that no one had to duck under low-hanging branches, or fight a way through an encroaching bush, but so little used that the moss underfoot was thick and smooth. And still smooth after thirty horses and thirty human pedestrians have tramped over it, the thirty-first pedestrian thought, scuffing it curiously with one foot. Sturdy moss. Maybe Luthe is a botanist in his spare time. By nightfall Harry was still walking only by dint of holding a large handful of Sungold's mane in one hand. She had tried resting an arm across his back, but his back was too high for comfort; and her sweaty hand kept sliding through his fine hair. Even his head was hanging a little low, and Harry knew she was still in company only by the soft creaking of other saddles and the occasional flicker in the gloom immediately ahead that was Innath's horse flipping its tail. As she walked her eyes closed and the colors of exhaustion twinkled across her eyelids. Then to her dismay they began to sort themselves out into patterns, but she was too tired even to open her eyes and disperse them. She saw a red-haired rider on a white horse. The horse was old, white with age, the bones of its face very clear and fine; she thought it went just a bit short with its right hind foot, but its neck was arched and its tail high. The rider's shoulders were set grimly, the legs against the horse's sides were determined, not eager. There was a smoky redness to the horizon beyond them, scarlet that did not look like dawn or sunset; they were going toward it, and the light flashed off a chain around the rider's neck and the helm tied to the saddle, and the rider's hair, and the horse's flanks. Harry wondered where they were going, where they had come from. The countryside could have been Damar. It could have been almost anywhere. She realized there was light shining through her eyelids; it was setting the white horse on fire. The horse broke into a canter, a shining glistening wave of motion †¦ Harry dizzily opened her eyes. They were approaching a clearing set with torches; she could see Corlath halted, talking to a man as tall as he was, but narrower; the man's hair was yellow. Innath broke into the lighted circle, and Harry came after, trying not to stumble, too tired even to take her hand out of Sungold's mane for pride's sake. She looked around a little, and the faces she could see near her were haggard and drooping. Perversely, this gave her strength; she dropped her hand and straightened her shoulders. Sungold turned his head to rest his chin on her shoulder. â€Å"Who's reassuring whom here?† she murmured, and Narknon immediately sat on Harry's feet and bumped her hand with her head as if to say, I am. Someone knew the way, for while Corlath finished speaking with the yellow-haired man the rest of the Riders were following someone else to †¦ someplace to lie down, Harry wished fervently. She stole a glance at Corlath as she passed him, and was comforted by the hollows under his eyes and cheekbones. It might have been only the torchlight. When Harry woke up the sun was high, and for a minute she had no idea where she was. Her first thought was that she had missed breakfast and her father would tease her about burning midnight oil. Then she remembered, with the old lurch of the heart, that she was in Daria with Richard – no, Damar, with Sungold, and Narknon, who sprawled across her feet. And Corlath, and Gonturan. Her hand had rested lightly on her sword hilt again as she slept, and through the first upheaval of waking; now her fingers recognized what they touched. She shivered, sighed, sat up. She was in a long narrow hall with a dozen or so low beds in it; high overhead, narrow but close-spaced windows let in a flood of sunlight. She only dimly remembered coming here, having seen Tsornin stabled and unsaddled and happy with a manger of grain and a heap of hay; and falling into her bed, asleep before she touched it. Most of the other beds in the room were still occupied. The hall was built of large blocks of undressed grey-and-white stone; the same sort of stone, she thought, as much of Corlath's City. The room was cool, but it smelled clean and sharp, like young leaves. There were doors at each of the narrow ends of the room, and as she stood at the foot of the bed she could look through either of them. The flagstones were cold underfoot. She sat back down on the edge of the bed – It's even a real bed, she thought – and regarded her pillow a moment. Then she sighed regretfully and pulled on her boots. Narknon opened one eye and closed it again. The rooms on each side looked much like the one she was in, and full of still-sleeping bodies rolled in dark blankets. There was another door midway in the wall opposite the windows. This she went through. Here was a vast hall, taller than the ancient trees of the forest she had just walked wearily through, with windows cut at the very heads of the walls to open above the lower roofs of the sleeping corridors. At one end of this space was a fireplace that in any room less immense would have been itself enormous; here it looked insignificant. There were several massive wooden chairs before it, and a long trestle table beyond these; the rest of the chamber was empty. Opposite the fireplace wall were doors, thrown open to admit sunlight and birdsong and the rustle of leaves. She looked up at the ceiling. Curiously, there was no sense of oppression built by the stone and space; rather there was peacefulness, the quiet of repose. Contented simply to be less tired than she had been the night before, she stood a moment, drinking in the sense of relaxation. For the first time since the confrontation with Corlath, the thought of the northwest pass left her freely, without her straining to push it aside; even the knowledge of the coming war, of her part in her first battle, did not trouble her at present. Of the latter she did know it would trouble her later – soon; but she would attend to it later. For now she smiled. Her mouth felt stiff. She brought her gaze down from the ceiling and directed it again toward the fireplace. Sleep and peace were all very well, but she smelled food, and she was hungry. The man with yellow hair who had stood talking with Corlath the night before was sitting in one of the great wooden chairs; she did not notice him till she was quite near. Her footfalls dropped gently to silence; no sullen echoes ran up the walls to disturb the birdcalls. She stopped. There was a tiny fire, barely two hands' breadth, burning at the front of the cavern of the hearth. Over it hung a large silver pot on a chain, and on a stool nearby were a stack of deep silver bowls, and a heap of shining silver spoons. â€Å"Breakfast,† said the man with yellow hair. â€Å"I've had mine; eat as much as you like. I flatter myself it's quite good, although I admit I'm not much accustomed to cooking for so many, and one begins to lose count of how many potatoes one has already put in after the first armful.† She sat down with her bowl, feeling that formal introductions were not wanted and that he would be amused if she tried to be conventionally polite; and she was so hungry. As she sat, he brought up a leather bag from the far side of his chair and poured into a flagon discovered at his feet. He handed it to her: â€Å"Goat's milk,† he said. There were brown flecks of spices floating in it. She smiled, not so stiffly this time. She looked at him as she ate; and while she was sure he knew she watched him, he kept his eyes on the small leaps and dance steps of the flame beneath the pot, as if letting her look her fill was a courtesy he did her along with filling her belly. He was tall, she knew; sitting, he looked even taller, for he was so slender. His arms were spread wide from his sides to rest on the is of the chair; but his long fingers reached well over the curled fronts of the armrests, and his knees were several inches beyond long seat of the chair. He wore a dark green tunic, and a brown shirt beneath it, with long full sleeves gathered at the wrists with gold ribbons. He wore tall pale boots that reached just above his knees, where the tunic fell over them. The tunic was slit up the side to his waist, and the leggings beneath it were the gold of the ribbons. He wore no sash; rather a narrow band of dark blue cloth made a cross over his breast, and wrapped once thinly about his waist. The ends of it were tassels, midnight blue shot with gold. A huge dark red stone hung on a chain around his neck. His face was thoughtful as he stared at the fire. His nose was long and straight and his lips thin; his eyes were heavy-lidded and blue. His hair was curly as well as bright gold, and it grew low over his collar and ears although he was clean-shaven. He should look young, Harry thought. But he did not. Neither did he look old. He turned to her as she set down her bowl and cup, and smiled. â€Å"Well? Did I know when to stop adding potatoes?† Hill potatoes were golden and far more flavorful than the pale Homelander variety that Harry had eaten obediently but without enthusiasm when she was a child, and here they blended most satisfactorily with the delicate white fish that was the basis of the I stew. It was the first time she had eaten fresh fish since she had left her Homeland, where she had often brought supper home after a few hours beside a pool or stream on her father's estate; and she was pleased, now, to notice that remembering this fact caused no nervous ripples of emotion about her past or her future. â€Å"Yes,† she said peacefully. Their eyes met, and he asked, as though he were an old friend or her father, â€Å"Are you happy?† She thought about it, her gaze drifting away from his and coming to rest on the tip of Gonturan, as she leaned against her sol's chair; for she had, without thinking about it one way or another, slung Gonturan around her as soon as she stood up from her bed. â€Å"No, not precisely,† she said. â€Å"But I don't believe I wish to complain of unhappiness.† She paused a minute, looking at the thoughts that had been with her constantly for the weeks since she had left her old life as a bundle across Fireheart's withers. â€Å"It is that I cannot see what I am doing or why, and it is unsettling always to live only in the moment as it passes. Oh, I know – one never sees ahead or behind. But I see even less. It is like being blindfolded when everyone else in the room is not. No one can see outside the room – but everyone else can see the room. I would like to take my blindfold off.† The man smiled. â€Å"It is a reasonable wish. No one lives more than a few moments either way – even those fortunate or unfortunate ones who can see how the future will be cast; and perhaps they feel the minute's passing the most acutely. But it is comforting to have some sense of †¦ the probability of choices, perhaps?† â€Å"Yes,† she sighed, and tapped a finger on Gonturan's hilt, and thought of the red-haired rider on the white horse. He had looked as though he knew where he was going, although she had to admit that he had also looked as if the knowledge gave him no joy. â€Å"Not he,† said the man with yellow hair. â€Å"The Lady Aerin. You should begin to recognize her, you know; you have seen her often enough.† She blinked at him. â€Å"You carry her sword, and ride to a fate not entirely of your own choosing. It is not surprising that she in some manner chooses to ride with you. She knew much of fate.† Not surprising. It continued to surprise her. She would prefer that it surprise her, in fact. She permitted herself – just briefly – to think about her Homeland, with the wide grassy low hills and blue rivers, when the only sword she knew was her father's dress sword, which was not sharp and which she was forbidden to touch; and where the only sand was at the seaside. She rediscovered herself staring at a silver pot over a tiny fire. â€Å"I'm afraid I can't comfort you very much with predictions; it is pleasant when I can comfort anyone with predictions, and I always enjoy it as much as possible because it doesn't happen too often. But I can tell you even less than I can usually tell anyone, and it hurts my pride.† His hand closed around the dark stone at his neck; it glowed through his fingers like fire. She looked at him, startled. â€Å"You have already begun to see the hardness of the choices that you will soon be forced to make; and the choosing will not be any easier for your not knowing why you must choose.† His voice took on a singsong quality, the red light of the stone pulsed like a heart, and the heavy eyelids almost closed. â€Å"Take strength from your own purpose, for you will know what you must do, if you let yourself; trust your horse and the cat that follows you, for there are none better than they, and they love you; and trust your sword, for she holds the strength of centuries and she hates what you are learning to hate. And trust the Lady Aerin, who visits you for your reassurance, whether you believe it at present or not; and trust your friendships. Friends you will have need of, for in you two worlds meet. There is no one on both sides with you, so you must learn to take your own counsel; and not to fear what is strange, if you know it also to be true.† He opened his eyes. â€Å"It is not an enviable position, being a bridge, especially a bridge with visions. I should know.† â€Å"You're Luthe, of course,† she said. â€Å"Of course. I told Corlath in particular to bring you – although he has always brought his Riders if he brings anyone. And I knew you had been made a Rider. I don't ask for anyone often; you should be pleased.† â€Å"I can see the two worlds I am between,† she said, unheeding, â€Å"although why the second one chose to rise up and snatch me I still don't understand – â€Å" â€Å"Ask Colonel Dedham the next time you see him,† Luthe put in. â€Å"The next – ? But – † she said, bewildered, and thrown off her thought. â€Å"You were about to ask me a question important to you, for you were trying to put your thoughts in order, when I interrupted you,† said Luthe mildly, â€Å"although I won't be able to answer it. I told you I am not often comforting.† â€Å"What are your two worlds?† she said, almost obliterating the question as she continued: â€Å"But if you can't answer it, why should I ask? Can you hear everything I'm thinking?† â€Å"No,† he replied. â€Å"Only those arrow-like thoughts that come flying out with particular violence. You have a better organized mind than most. Most people are distressing to talk to because they have no control over their thinking at all, and it is a constant barrage, like being attacked by a tangle of thornbushes, or having a large litter of kittens walking up your legs, hooking in their claws at every step. It's perhaps also an effective preventative to having one's mind read, for who can identify the individual thorn?† Harry laughed involuntarily. â€Å"Innath said you lived where you do, high up and away from everything, because lowland air clouds your mind.† â€Å"True enough. It is a little embarrassing to be forced to play the enigmatic oracle in the mountain fastness, but I have found it necessary. â€Å"Corlath, for example, when he has something on his mind, can knock me down with it at arm's length. He's often asked me to come stay in his prison that he calls a city, saying that I might like it as it is made of the same stone as this – † He gestured upward. â€Å"No thank you.† He smiled. â€Å"He does not love the stone walls of his city, and so he does not understand why I do love my walls; to him they look the same. But he knows me better than to press it, or to be offended.† â€Å"If it is only within arm's length you find Corlath overwhelming, I have no sympathy for you,† Harry said ruefully, and he laughed. â€Å"We soothsayers have other means of resistance,† he said, â€Å"But I shall be sure to tell him you said so.† She sobered. â€Å"I'd rather you didn't, if you don't mind. I'm afraid we're – we're not on the best of terms just now.† Luthe drummed his fingers on the wooden armrest. â€Å"Yes, I did rather suspect that, and I'm sorry for it, for you need each other.† He drummed some more. â€Å"Or at any rate he needs you, and you could do a lot worse than to believe in him.† Luthe rubbed his forehead. â€Å"But I will grant you that he is a stubborn man at times.† He was silent a moment. â€Å"Aerin was a little like that; but she was also a little like you †¦ Aerin was very dear to me.† He smiled faintly. â€Å"Teachers are always vain of the students who go on to do great things.† â€Å"Aerin?† said Harry. â€Å"Aerin? Lady Aerin of this sword?† – and she banged the hilt of Gonturan. â€Å"Yes,† said Luthe gently. â€Å"The same red-haired Aerin who troubles you with visions. You asked me about my two worlds: you could say that they are the past and the present.† After a long cold moment Harry said, â€Å"Why did you ask Corlath to bring me here?† â€Å"I told you that, surely. Because I knew he needed you; and I wanted to find out if you were the sort of vessel that cracks easily.† Harry took a deep breath. â€Å"And am I?† â€Å"I think you will do very well.† He smiled. â€Å"And that is a much more straightforward answer than anyone consulting an oracle has a right to expect. I shall stop feeling guilty about you.† Corlath and his Riders spent two days in Luthe's hall; the horses grazed in a broad meadow, the only wide stretch of sunlit green within a day's journey of the tree-filled valley where Luthe made his home. Harry found Sungold tearing across the field, head up and tail a banner, on the first morning, the toilsome way up the mountain apparently forgotten. He galloped over to where Harry leaned on the frame of the open stable, where a few of the horses still lingered inside, musing over their hay. â€Å"You make me tired,† said Harry absently, thinking of her conversation with Luthe. â€Å"You should be recuperating, not bounding around like a wild foal.† Tsornin thrust his nose under her chin, unrepentant. â€Å"You realize we will have to do the whole thing again shortly? And then go on – and on and on? You should be harboring your strength.† Sungold nibbled her hair. The other Riders and the fifteen other horsemen slowly seeped out of the tall stone house. Harry tried to decide, watching them, if any had had bewildering conversations with their host; but she couldn't guess, and it did not seem the sort of thing one might ask. They all looked only semi-awake, as if the journey so far – this was the first real halt since they left the City – combined with the sweet peacefulness of Luthe's domain prevented the lot of saddle-hardened warriors from feeling anything but pleasantly drowsy. They smiled at one another and leaned on their swords, and even tended their precious horses nonchalantly, as though they knew that the horses did not need them here. Narknon, so far as Harry could tell, never moved from her bed; she merely stretched out when Harry left it, and reluctantly permitted herself to be shoved to one side when Harry re-entered. Harry, although she felt the same gentle air around her, was surprised; whatever it was, it had less effect on her. Corlath himself strode around in his usual high-energy fashion; if any sense of ease was trying to settle on him, it was having a hard time of it, for he was no different than he ever was, although he did not seem surprised at the condition of his followers. Harry stayed out of his way, and if he noticed this, he gave no sign. Mostly he spoke to Luthe – Harry saw with interest, on the occasions she saw them together, that Corlath seemed to do far more talking than his companion – or muttered to himself. The mutter-ings couldn't have been pleasant, for he was often scowling. The two days were fine and clear; warm enough during the day to make bathing in the pool at the edge of the horses' meadow pleasant, cool enough at night to make the blankets on the beds in the sleeping-chambers of comfort. The torches that formed a ring outside the front gates of the hall were not lit again; Luthe was willing to welcome his guests, but did not deem further illumination necessary. On the second afternoon Harry followed the stream that spilled out of the bathing-pool, and after a certain amount of fighting with curling branches and tripping over hidden hummocks she burst out of the undergrowth to a still silver beach bordering a wide lake. The Lake of Dreams. The stream stopped its chattering as it left the edge of the woods, and slid silently over the silver sand and slipped into the waters of the lake. Harry went to the edge of it and sat down, looking at the water. There was a step at her side; she looked up and it was Luthe. â€Å"There is a path,† he said. â€Å"You should have asked.† He bent down and detached a twig from her hair, and another from the back of her tunic. Then he sat down beside her. â€Å"I will show you the way to return.† â€Å"Do you live here alone?† Harry said, extracting a leaf from the neck of her undershift. â€Å"No,† he replied, â€Å"but my housemates are even shyer than I am, and have a tendency to retreat into the undergrowth when visitors are anticipated. There are quite a number of visitors, now and again.† â€Å"The oracle is a popular one,† said Harry, smiling. Luthe smiled back, but sidelong. â€Å"Yes; I think it may be private dismay that sends my companions away at such times; they have something of kelar and the Sight themselves.† He did not seem disposed to go on, so Harry said: â€Å"Does everyone who comes here behave as though they're half asleep?† â€Å"No again; I and my friends are generally quite sharp. But yes, most visitors find it a sleepy sort of place – a reputation I, um, encourage, as it makes their thoughts sleepy too, and thus easier to dodge.† Harry said, â€Å"Encourage?† Luthe said, â€Å"You are not a sleepy one, are you? The source of the Meeldtar taints all the water here; and the air that passes over the Lake of Dreams carries something of sleepiness with it. Only those bearing much kelar of their own do not find that faintest touch of the Water of Sight a little drowsy. Like you. And Corlath.† Harry, at that, caught a thought just as it was streaking out, and stuffed it back behind her eyes. â€Å"Very good,† said Luthe. â€Å"I thought you might prove apt. I didn't catch a glimpse of that one.† Harry smiled faintly. â€Å"I suspect, however, that it might make you more comfortable to ask me it nonetheless,† Luthe said, looking into her face; but she turned away. â€Å"Corlath, eh?† Luthe said gently. Harry shook her head, not denying it, but as though she could shake herself free of her anxieties; but Luthe said no more. At last she stood up, gazing across the lake; she could not see its farther shore. â€Å"It is so large,† she said. Luthe rose to stand beside her. â€Å"No, not so large,† he said, â€Å"but it is a private sort of lake, and hard to see. Even for me.† He was quiet a moment, looking across the water. â€Å"I think perhaps the reason I stay in this particular uninhabited valley of all the uninhabited valleys in the Hills is that it comforts me by reminding me of things I cannot do. I cannot see the farther shore of the Lake of Dreams.† He turned away. â€Å"Come; I will show you the path. Unless you prefer fighting your way through the poor trees, which are accustomed to being undisturbed.†