It requires experience and love of reality to avoid the deceptions of
life.
“During the conflagration at the Crystal Palace in the winter
of 1866–67, when the animals were destroyed by the fire, it
was supposed that the chimpanzee had succeeded in escaping
from his cage. Attracted to the roof, with this expectation in
full force, men saw the unhappy animal holding on to it, and
writhing in agony to get astride of one of the iron ribs. It
need not be said that its struggles were watched by those below
with breathless suspense, and, as the newspapers informed us,
with sickening dread.” But there was no animal whatever there;
and all this feeling was thrown away upon a tattered piece of
blind, so torn as to resemble, to the eye of fancy, the body,
arms, and legs of an ape!--EDWIN J. HOUSTON, “The
Wonder Book of Light.”
(1066)
=Fashion, Absurd=--See ABSURD NOTIONS.