The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Mouse and The Moonbeam, by Eugene Field
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
Title: The Mouse and The Moonbeam
Author: Eugene Field
Release Date: January 4, 2009 [EBook #27697]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ASCII
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MOUSE AND THE MOONBEAM ***
Produced by Louise Hope, David Edwards and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This
file was produced from images generously made available
by The Internet Archive)
THE MOUSE
AND THE MOONBEAM
[Illustration]
THE MOUSE
AND THE MOONBEAM
By
Eugene Field
NEW YORK
1919
Copyright, 1912
by Charles Scribner's Sons
Through the courtesy of Charles Scribner's Sons,
we were permitted to print this small private edition.
--GIFT--
[Decoration]
THE MOUSE AND THE MOONBEAM
Whilst you were sleeping, little Dear-my-soul, strange things
happened; but that I saw and heard them, I should never have
believed them. The clock stood, of course, in the corner, a
moonbeam floated idly on the floor, and a little mauve mouse
came from the hole in the chimney corner and frisked and
scampered in the light of the moonbeam upon the floor. The
little mauve mouse was particularly merry; sometimes she danced
upon two legs and sometimes upon four legs, but always very
daintily and always very merrily.
"Ah, me!" sighed the old clock, "how different mice are nowadays
from the mice we used to have in the good old times! Now there
was your grandma, Mistress Velvetpaw, and there was your
grandpa, Master Sniffwhisker,--how grave and dignified they
were! Many a night have I seen them dancing upon the carpet
below me, but always the stately minuet and never that crazy
frisking which you are executing now, to my surprise--yes, and
to my horror, too."
"But why shouldn't I be merry?" asked the little mauve mouse.
"Tomorrow is Christmas, and this is Christmas eve."
"So it is," said the old clock. "I had really forgotten all
about it. But, tell me, what is Christmas to you, little Miss
Mauve Mouse?"
"A great deal to me!" cried the little mauve mouse. "I have been
very good a very long time: I have not used any bad words, nor
have I gnawed any holes, nor have I stolen any canary seed, nor
have I worried my mother by running behind the flour-barrel
where that horrid trap is set. In fact, I have been so good that
I am very sure Santa Claus will bring me something very pretty."
This seemed to amuse the old clock mightily; in fact the old
clock fell to laughing so heartily that in an unguarded moment
she struck twelve instead of ten, which was exceedingly careless
and therefore to be reprehended.
"Why, you silly little mauve mouse," said the old clock, "you
don't believe in Santa Claus, do you?"
"Of course I do," answered the little mauve mouse. "Believe in
Santa Claus? Why shouldn't I? Didn't Santa Claus bring me a
beautiful butter-cracker last Christmas, and a lovely
gingersnap, and a delicious rind of cheese, and--and--lots of
things? I should be very ungrateful if I did _not_ believe in
Santa Claus, and I certainly shall not disbelieve in him at the
very moment when I am expecting him to arrive with a bundle of
goodies for me.
"I once had a little sister," continued the little mauve mouse,
"who did not believe in Santa Claus, and the very thought of the
fate that befell her makes my blood run cold and my whiskers
stand on end. She died before I was born, but my mother has told
me all about her. Perhaps you never saw her: her name was
Squeaknibble, and she was in stature one of those long, low,
rangy mice that are seldom found in well-stocked pantries.
Mother says that Squeaknibble took after our ancestors who came
from New England, where the malignant ingenuity of the people
and the ferocity of the cats rendered life precarious indeed.
Squeaknibble seemed to inherit many ancestral traits, the most
conspicuous of which was a disposition to sneer at some of the
most respected dogmas in mousedom. From her very infancy she
doubted, for example, the widely accepted theory that the moon
was composed of green cheese; and this heresy was the first
intimation her parents had of the sceptical turn of her mind.
Of course her parents were vastly annoyed, for their maturer
natures saw that this youthful scepticism portended serious,
if not fatal, consequences. Yet all in vain did the sagacious
couple reason and plead with their headstrong and heretical
child.
"For a long time Squeaknibble would not believe that there was
any such archfiend as a cat; but she came to be convinced to the
contrary one memorable night, on which occasion she lost two
inches of her beautiful tail, and received so terrible a fright
that for fully an hour afterward her little heart beat so
violently as to lift her off her feet and bump her head against
the top of our domestic hole. The cat that deprived my sister of
so large a percentage of her vertebral colophon was the same
brindled ogress that nowadays steals ever and anon into this
room, crouches treacherously behind the sofa, and feigns to be
asleep, hoping, forsooth, that some of us, heedless of her hated
presence, will venture within reach of her diabolical claws. So
enraged was this ferocious monster at the escape of my sister
that she ground her fangs viciously together, and vowed to take
no pleasure in life until she held in her devouring jaws the
innocent little mouse which belonged to the mangled bit of tail
she even then clutched in her remorseless claws."
"Yes," said the old clock, "now that you recall the incident,
I recollect it well. I was here then, in this very corner, and
I remember that I laughed at the cat and chided her for her
awkwardness. My reproaches irritated her; she told me that a
clock's duty was to run itself down, _not_ to be depreciating
the merits of others! Yes, I recall the time; that cat's tongue
is fully as sharp as her claws."
"Be that as it may," said the little mauve mouse, "it is a
matter of history, and therefore beyond dispute, that from that
very moment the cat pined for Squeaknibble's life; it seemed as
if that one little two-inch taste of Squeaknibble's tail had
filled the cat with a consuming passion, or appetite, for the
rest of Squeaknibble. So the cat waited and watched and hunted
and schemed and devised and did everything possible for a cat--a
cruel cat--to do in order to gain her murderous ends. One
night--one fatal Christmas eve--our mother had undressed the
children for bed, and was urging upon them to go to sleep
earlier than usual, since she fully expected that Santa Claus
would bring each of them something very palatable and nice
before morning. Thereupon the little dears whisked their cunning
tails, pricked up their beautiful ears, and began telling one
another what they hoped Santa Claus would bring. One asked for a
slice of Roquefort, another for Neufchatel, another for Sap
Sago, and a fourth for Edam; one expressed a preference for de
Brie, while another hoped to get Parmesan; one clamored for
imperial blue Stilton, and another craved the fragrant boon of
Caprera. There were fourteen little ones then, and consequently
there were diverse opinions as to the kind of gift which Santa
Claus should best bring; still, there was, as you can readily
understand, an enthusiastic unanimity upon this point, namely,
that the gift should be cheese of some brand or other.
"'My dears,' said our mother, 'what matters it whether the boon
which Santa Claus brings be royal English cheddar or fromage de
Bricquebec, Vermont sage, or Herkimer County skim-milk? We
should be content with whatsoever Santa Claus bestows, so long
as it be cheese, disjoined from all traps whatsoever, unmixed
with Paris green, and free from glass, strychnine, and other
harmful ingredients. As for myself, I shall be satisfied with a
cut of nice, fresh, Western reserve; for truly I recognise in no
other viand or edible half the fragrance or half the gustfulness
to be met with in one of these pale but aromatic domestic
products. So run away to your dreams now, that Santa Claus may
find you sleeping.'
"The children obeyed,--all but Squeaknibble. 'Let the others
think what they please,' said she, 'but I don't believe in Santa
Claus. I'm not going to bed either. I'm going to creep out of
this dark hole and have a quiet romp, all by myself, in the
moonlight.' Oh, what a vain, foolish, wicked little mouse was
Squeaknibble! But I will not reproach the dead; her punishment
came all too swiftly. Now listen: who do you suppose overheard
her talking so disrespectfully of Santa Claus?"
"Why, Santa Claus himself," said the old clock.
"Oh, no," answered the little mauve mouse. "It was that wicked,
murderous cat! Just as Satan lurks and lies in wait for bad
children, so does the cruel cat lie in wait for naughty little
mice. And you can depend upon it that, when that awful cat heard
Squeaknibble speak so disrespectfully of Santa Claus, her wicked
eyes glowed with joy, her sharp teeth watered, and her bristling
fur emitted electric sparks as big as marrowfat peas. Then what
did that blood-thirsty monster do but scuttle as fast as she
could into Dear-my-Soul's room, leap up into Dear-my-Soul's
crib, and walk off with the pretty little white muff which
Dear-my-Soul used to wear when she went for a visit to the
little girl in the next block! What upon earth did the horrid
old cat want with Dear-my-Soul's pretty little white muff? Ah,
the duplicity, the diabolical ingenuity of that cat! Listen.
"In the first place," resumed the little mauve mouse, after
a pause that testified eloquently to the depth of her
emotion,--"in the first place, that wretched cat dressed herself
up in that pretty little white muff, by which you are to
understand that she crawled through the muff just so far as to
leave her four cruel legs at liberty."
"Yes, I understand," said the old clock.
"Then she put on the boy doll's fur cap," said the little mauve
mouse, "and when she was arrayed in the boy doll's fur cap and
Dear-my-Soul's pretty little white muff, of course she didn't
look like a cruel cat at all. But whom did she look like?"
"Like the boy doll," suggested the old clock.
"No, no!" cried the little mauve mouse.
"Like Dear-my-Soul?" asked the old clock.
"How stupid you are!" exclaimed the little mauve mouse. "Why,
she looked like Santa Claus, of course!"
"Oh, yes; I see," said the old clock. "Now I begin to be
interested; go on."
"Alas!" sighed the little mauve mouse, "not much remains to be
told; but there is more of my story left than there was of
Squeaknibble when that horrid cat crawled out of that miserable
disguise. You are to understand that, contrary to her sagacious
mother's injunction, and in notorious derision of the mooted
coming of Santa Claus, Squeaknibble issued from the friendly
hole in the chimney corner, and gambolled about over this very
carpet, and, I dare say, in this very moonlight."
"I do not know," said the moonbeam faintly. "I am so very old,
and I have seen so many things--I do not know."
"Right merrily was Squeaknibble gambolling," continued the
little mauve mouse, "and she had just turned a double back
somersault without the use of what remained of her tail when,
all of a sudden, she beheld, looming up like a monster ghost, a
figure all in white fur! Oh, how frightened she was, and how her
little heart did beat! 'Purr, purr-r-r,' said the ghost in white
fur. 'Oh, please don't hurt me!' pleaded Squeaknibble. 'No; I'll
not hurt you,' said the ghost in white fur; 'I'm Santa Claus,
and I've brought you a beautiful piece of savory old cheese,
you dear little mousie, you.' Poor Squeaknibble was deceived;
a sceptic all her life, she was at last befooled by the most
palpable and most fatal of frauds. 'How good of you!' said
Squeaknibble. 'I didn't believe there was a Santa Claus, and--'
but before she could say more she was seized by two sharp, cruel
claws that conveyed her crushed body to the murderous mouth of
mousedom's most malignant foe. I can dwell no longer upon this
harrowing scene. Suffice it to say that ere the morrow's sun
rose like a big yellow Herkimer County cheese upon the spot
where that tragedy had been enacted, poor Squeaknibble passed to
that bourn whence two inches of her beautiful tail had preceded
her by the space of three weeks to a day. As for Santa Claus,
when he came that Christmas eve, bringing morceaux de Brie and
of Stilton for the other little mice, he heard with sorrow of
Squeaknibble's fate; and ere he departed he said that in all his
experience he had never known of a mouse or of a child that had
prospered after once saying that he didn't believe in Santa
Claus."
"Well, that is a remarkable story," said the old clock. "But if
you believe in Santa Claus, why aren't you in bed?"
"That's where I shall be presently," answered the little mauve
mouse, "but I must have my scamper you know. It is very
pleasant, I assure you, to frolic in the light of the moon; only
I cannot understand why you are always so cold and so solemn and
so still, you pale, pretty little moonbeam."
"Indeed, I do not know that I am so," said the moonbeam. "But I
am very old, and I have travelled many, many, leagues, and I
have seen wondrous things. Sometimes I toss upon the ocean,
sometimes I fall upon a slumbering flower, sometimes I rest upon
a dead child's face. I see the fairies at their play, and I hear
mothers singing lullabies. Last night I swept across the frozen
bosom of a river. A woman's face looked up at me; it was the
picture of eternal rest. 'She is sleeping,' said the frozen
river. 'I'll rock her to and fro, and sing to her. Pass gently
by, O moonbeam; pass gently by, lest you awaken her.'"
"How strangely you talk," said the old clock. "Now, I'll warrant
me that, if you wanted to, you could tell many a pretty and
wonderful story. You must know many a Christmas tale; pray, tell
us one to wear away this night of Christmas watching."
"I know but one," said the moonbeam. "I have told it over and
over again, in every land and in every home; yet I do not weary
of it. It is very simple. Should you like to hear it?"
"Indeed we should," said the old clock; "but before you begin,
let me strike twelve; for I shouldn't want to interrupt you."
When the old clock had performed this duty with somewhat more
than usual alacrity, the moonbeam began its story:
"Upon a time--so long ago that I can't tell how long ago it
was--I fell upon a hill-side. It was in a far distant country;
this I know, because, although it was the Christmas time, it was
not in that country as it is wont to be in countries to the
north. Hither the snow-king never came; flowers bloomed all the
year, and at all times the lambs found pleasant pasturage on the
hill-sides. The night wind was balmy, and there was a fragrance
of cedar in its breath. There were violets on the hill-side,
and I fell amongst them and lay there. I kissed them, and they
awakened. 'Ah, is it you, little moonbeam?' they said, and they
nestled in the grass which the lambs had left uncropped.
"A shepherd lay upon a broad stone on the hill-side; above him
spread an olive-tree, old, ragged, and gloomy; but now it swayed
its rusty branches majestically in the shifting air of night.
The shepherd's name was Benoni. Wearied with long watching, he
had fallen asleep; his crook had slipped from his hand. Upon the
hill-side, too, slept the shepherd's flock. I had counted them
again and again; I had stolen across their gentle faces and
brought them pleasant dreams of green pastures and of cool
water-brooks. I had kissed old Benoni, too, as he lay slumbering
there; and in his dreams he seemed to see Israel's King come
upon earth, and in his dreams he murmured the promised Messiah's
name.
"'Ah, is it you, little moonbeam?' quoth the violets. 'You have
come in good time. Nestle here with us, and see wonderful things
come to pass.'
"'What are these wonderful things of which you speak?' I asked.
"'We heard the old olive-tree telling of them to-night,' said
the violets. 'Do not go to sleep, little violets,' said the old
olive-tree, 'for this is Christmas night, and the Master shall
walk upon the hill-side in the glory of the midnight hour.' So
we waited and watched; one by one the lambs fell asleep; one by
one the stars peeped out; the shepherd nodded and crooned, and
crooned and nodded, and at last he, too, went fast asleep, and
his crook slipped from his keeping. Then we called to the old
olive-tree yonder, asking how soon the midnight hour would come;
but all the old olive-tree answered was 'Presently, presently,'
and finally we, too, fell asleep, wearied by our long watching,
and lulled by the rocking and swaying of the old olive-tree in
the breezes of the night.
"'But who is this Master?' I asked.
"'A child, a little child,' they answered. 'He is called the
little Master by the others. He comes here often, and plays
among the flowers of the hill-side. Sometimes the lambs,
gambolling too carelessly, have crushed and bruised us so that
we lie bleeding and are like to die; but the little Master heals
our wounds and refreshes us once again.'
"I marvelled much to hear these things. 'The midnight hour is at
hand,' said I, 'and I will abide with you to see this little
Master of whom you speak.' So we nestled among the verdure of
the hill-side, and sang songs one to another.
"'Come away!' called the night wind; 'I know a beauteous sea not
far hence, upon whose bosom you shall float, float, float, away
out into the mists and clouds, if you will come with me.'
"But I hid under the violets and amid the tall grass, that the
night wind might not woo me with its pleading. 'Ho, there, old
olive-tree!' cried the violets; 'do you see the little Master
coming? Is not the midnight hour at hand?'
"'I can see the town yonder,' said the old olive-tree. 'A star
beams bright over Bethlehem, the iron gates swing open, and the
little Master comes.'
"Two children came to the hill-side. The one, older than his
comrade, was Dimas, the son of Benoni. He was rugged and sinewy,
and over his brown shoulders was flung a goat-skin; a leathern
cap did not confine his long, dark curly hair. The other child
was he whom they called the little Master; about his slender
form clung raiment white as snow, and around his face of
heavenly innocence fell curls of golden yellow. So beautiful a
child I had not seen before, nor have I ever since seen such as
he. And as they came together to the hill-side, there seemed to
glow about the little Master's head a soft white light, as if
the moon had sent its tenderest, fairest beams to kiss those
golden curls.
"'What sound was that?' cried Dimas, for he was exceeding
fearful.
"'Have no fear, Dimas,' said the little Master. 'Give me thy
hand and I will lead thee.'
"Presently they came to the rock whereon Benoni, the shepherd,
lay; and they stood under the old olive-tree, and the old
olive-tree swayed no longer in the night wind, but bent its
branches reverently in the presence of the little Master. It
seemed as if the wind, too, stayed in its shifting course just
then; for suddenly there was a solemn hush, and you could hear
no noise, except that in his dreams Benoni spoke the Messiah's
name.
"'Thy father sleeps,' said the little Master, 'and it is well
that it is so; for that I love thee Dimas, and that thou shalt
walk with me in my Father's Kingdom, I would show thee the
glories of my birthright.'
"Then all at once sweet music filled the air, and light, greater
than the light of day, illumined the sky and fell upon all that
hill-side. The heavens opened, and angels, singing joyous songs,
walked to the earth. More wondrous still, the stars, falling
from their places in the sky, clustered upon the old olive-tree,
and swung hither and thither like colored lanterns. The flowers
of the hill-side all awakened, and they, too, danced and sang.
The angels, coming hither, hung gold and silver and jewels and
precious stones upon the old olive, where swung the stars; so
that the glory of that sight, though I might live forever, I
shall never see again. When Dimas heard and saw these things he
fell upon his knees, and catching the hem of the little Master's
garment, he kissed it.
"'Greater joy than this shall be thine, Dimas,' said the little
Master; 'but first must all things be fulfilled.'
"All through that Christmas night did the angels come and go
with their sweet anthems; all through that Christmas night did
the stars dance and sing; and when it came my time to steal
away, the hill-side was still beautiful with the glory and the
music of heaven."
"Well, is that all?" asked the old clock.
"No," said the moonbeam; "but I am nearly done. The years went
on. Sometimes I tossed upon the ocean's bosom, sometimes I
scampered o'er a battle-field, sometimes I lay upon a dead
child's face. I heard the voices of Darkness and mothers'
lullabies and sick men's prayers--and so the years went on.
"I fell one night upon a hard and furrowed face. It was of
ghostly pallor. A thief was dying on the cross, and this was his
wretched face. About the cross stood men with staves and swords
and spears, but none paid heed unto the thief. Somewhat beyond
this cross another was lifted up, and upon it was stretched a
human body my light fell not upon. But I heard a voice that
somewhere I had heard before,--though where I did not know,--and
this voice blessed those that railed and jeered and shamefully
entreated. And suddenly the voice called 'Dimas, Dimas!' and the
thief upon whose hardened face I rested made answer.
"Then I saw that it was Dimas; yet to this wicked criminal there
remained but little of the shepherd child whom I had seen in all
his innocence upon the hill-side. Long years of sinful life had
seared their marks into his face; yet now, at the sound of that
familiar voice, somewhat of the old-time boyish look came back,
and in the yearning of the anguished eyes I seemed to see the
shepherd's son again.
"'The Master!' cried Dimas, and he stretched forth his neck that
he might see him that spake.
"'O Dimas, how art thou changed!' cried the Master, yet there
was in his voice no tone of rebuke save that which cometh of
love.
"Then Dimas wept, and in that hour he forgot his pain. And the
Master's consoling voice and the Master's presence there wrought
in the dying criminal such a new spirit, that when at last his
head fell upon his bosom, and the men about the cross said that
he was dead, it seemed as if I shined not upon a felon's face,
but upon the face of the gentle shepherd lad, the son of Benoni.
"And shining on that dead and peaceful face, I bethought me of
the little Master's words that he had spoken under the old
olive-tree upon the hill-side: 'Your eyes behold the promised
glory now, O Dimas,' I whispered, 'for with the Master you walk
in Paradise.'"
Ah, little Dear-my-Soul, you know--you know whereof the moonbeam
spake. The shepherd's bones are dust, the flocks are scattered,
the old olive-tree is gone, the flowers of the hill-side are
withered, and none knoweth where the grave of Dimas is made. But
last night, again, there shined a star over Bethlehem, and the
angels descended from the sky to earth, and the stars sang
together in glory. And the bells,--hear them, little
Dear-my-Soul, how sweetly they are ringing,--the bells bear us
the good tidings of great joy this Christmas morning, that our
Christ is born, and that with him he bringeth peace on earth and
good-will toward men.
End of Project Gutenberg's The Mouse and The Moonbeam, by Eugene Field
*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MOUSE AND THE MOONBEAM ***
***** This file should be named 27697.txt or 27697.zip *****
This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
https://www.gutenberg.org/2/7/6/9/27697/
Produced by Louise Hope, David Edwards and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This
file was produced from images generously made available
by The Internet Archive)
Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
will be renamed.
Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules,
set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project
Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you
do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is
subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
redistribution.
*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
https://gutenberg.org/license).
Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic works
1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all
the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be
used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few
things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See
paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
works. See paragraph 1.E below.
1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the
collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an
individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in
a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check
the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning
the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
States.
1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
copied or distributed:
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
1.E.9.
1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked
to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
Gutenberg-tm License.
1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or
distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
that
- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is
owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments
must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License. You must require such a user to return or
destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
Project Gutenberg-tm works.
- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
of receipt of the work.
- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the
Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
1.F.
1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
your equipment.
1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
DAMAGE.
1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you
received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with
the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy
is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
opportunities to fix the problem.
1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER
WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any
provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists
because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
people in all walks of life.
Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
and the Foundation web page at https://www.pglaf.org.
Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
Foundation
The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
https://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at
809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact
information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
page at https://pglaf.org
For additional contact information:
Dr. Gregory B. Newby
Chief Executive and Director
gbnewby@pglaf.org
Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation
Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations
($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
status with the IRS.
The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations
where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To
SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
particular state visit https://pglaf.org
While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
approach us with offers to donate.
International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other
ways including including checks, online payments and credit card
donations. To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate
Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
works.
Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily
keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
https://www.gutenberg.org
This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.