Excerpt from The Fountain of Arethusa, Vol. 2 of 2 The history of Antistia consumed less time than the indignant commentaries on Pompeius the Great which followed it. In how small a circle do our most generous passions, after having found a sufficient area for the display of their nobility, often contrive to become as base! Almost encompassing their hippodrome amid the acclamations of myriads, these high-bred coursers flag, or stumble, or start aside, or fall lame, or grow vicious, saluted only by curses and hisses before they can reach the goal. The love of glory is applauded as magnanimous; the indulgence of selfishness is condemned as contemptible; yet, between the two, what greater distance or distinction is there than between the sunnier side of a man's countenance, and the shadier? They must change their places if he turn his head. Glory is ambitious, ambition is selfish, selfishness is despicable. This chain has no more than three links; and you may easily hook the last of them to the first. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.