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Ballantyne, R. M. (Robert Michael), 1825-1894

"The Coral Island A Tale of the Pacific Ocean"

But I must not misrepresent Peterkin. We
often found, to our surprise, that he knew many things which we did
not; and I also observed that those things which he learned from
experience were never forgotten. From all these things I came at length
to understand that things very opposite and dissimilar in themselves,
when united, do make an agreeable whole; as, for example, we three on
this our island, although most unlike in many things, when united, made
a trio so harmonious that I question if there ever met before such an
agreeable triumvirate. There was, indeed, no note of discord whatever
in the symphony we played together on that sweet Coral Island; and I am
now persuaded that this was owing to our having been all tuned to the
same key, namely, that of _love!_ Yes, we loved one another with
much fervency while we lived on that island; and, for the matter of
that, we love each other still.
And while I am on this subject, or rather the subject that just
preceded it--namely, the tides--I may here remark on another curious
natural phenomenon. We found that there was little or no twilight in
this island. We had a distinct remembrance of the charming long
twilight at home, which some people think the most delightful part of
the day, though for my part I have always preferred sunrise; and when
we first landed, we used to sit down on some rocky point or eminence,
at the close of our day's work, to enjoy the evening breeze; but no
sooner had the sun sunk below the horizon than all became suddenly
dark.


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