The Sorcery Club
by Elliott O'Donnell

Publication date 2017-11-18
Usage Public Domain Mark 1.0Creative Commons Licensepublicdomain
Topics librivox, audiobooks, fantasy, San Francisco, supernatural, Atlantis, sorcery
LibriVox recording of The Sorcery Club by Elliott O'Donnell.
Read in English by Don W. Jenkins
Leon Hamar and his friends were out-of-work and starving in San Francisco after the firm they worked for went out of business. Leon acquired a strange book and some cash in a trade for his watch-chain, one of his last posessions. He hated books and had no intention of reading the thing, but of course did, and discovered that it told the tale of Atlantis and the society of sorcerers who inhabited it. It not only told the story, but also gave specific instructions for initiation into the black arts. The friends decided they had little to lose and perhaps much to gain, even survival, if they underwent the tests and initiation into the ancient Atlantean black arts. What followed was not, perhaps, what they expected. - Summary by Don W. Jenkins.

chapter one of the sorcery club by elliot o'donnell this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain recording by don w jenkins for more information and to find out how you can volunteer please visit librivox.org chapter one how they first heard of atlantis rain is responsible for a great deal more than the mere growth of vegetables it is a controller if a somewhat capricious controller of man's destiny it was mainly if not entirely owing to rain that the french lost the battle of agancourt whilst if i mistake not confucius alone knows how many victories have been snatched from the chinese by the same factor it was most certainly rain that drove leon hamar to take refuge in a second-hand book shop were so deep-rooted was his aversion to any literature saving a financial gazette or the stock and shares column of a daily that nothing would have induced him to get within touching distance of a book save the risk of a severe wedding now to his unutterable disgust he found himself surrounded by the things he loathed books ancient very ancient judging by their bindings and modern histories biographies novels and magazines anything from ten dollars to five cents and all are raid with most laudable tact according to their bulk and condition but hamar was neither to be tempted nor multiplied he frowned at one and all alike and the colossal edition of miss somebody or others poems that by reason of its magnificent cover of crimson and gold occupied a most prominent position met with the same vindictive reception as the tattered and torn volumes of hoodie ears stowed away in an obscure corner backing still further into the entrance of the store for a better protection from the rain which now falling heavier and heavier was blown in by the wind hammar collided with a stand of books with the result that one of them fell with a loud bang on the pavement a man evidently the owner of the store and unmistakably a jew instantly appeared picking up the book and wiping it with a dirty handkerchief he thrust it at hammar see he said you have damaged this property of mine you must either buy it or give me adequate compensation what a mark right compensation for such rubbish is that why all your books together are not worth five dollars even i've seen twice as many sold at a sale for half that amount you can't chew me the two men eyed each other quizzically perhaps the owner of the store observed slowly perhaps some of your ancestors were once yiddish in which case there ought to be a bond of sympathy between us you may have that book for a nickel what no your cheeks are hollow your fingers thin a nickel is too much for you i will take your chain in exchange and leave me the watch hamar retorted with a grim smile you are a philanthropist not a store keeper i should leave you nothing you left there's no watch there see and he...

The Sorcery Club
by Elliott O'Donnell

Publication date 2017-11-18
Usage Public Domain Mark 1.0Creative Commons Licensepublicdomain
Topics librivox, audiobooks, fantasy, San Francisco, supernatural, Atlantis, sorcery
LibriVox recording of The Sorcery Club by Elliott O'Donnell.
Read in English by Don W. Jenkins
Leon Hamar and his friends were out-of-work and starving in San Francisco after the firm they worked for went out of business. Leon acquired a strange book and some cash in a trade for his watch-chain, one of his last posessions. He hated books and had no intention of reading the thing, but of course did, and discovered that it told the tale of Atlantis and the society of sorcerers who inhabited it. It not only told the story, but also gave specific instructions for initiation into the black arts. The friends decided they had little to lose and perhaps much to gain, even survival, if they underwent the tests and initiation into the ancient Atlantean black arts. What followed was not, perhaps, what they expected. - Summary by Don W. Jenkins.

chapter one of the sorcery club by elliot o'donnell this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain recording by don w jenkins for more information and to find out how you can volunteer please visit librivox.org chapter one how they first heard of atlantis rain is responsible for a great deal more than the mere growth of vegetables it is a controller if a somewhat capricious controller of man's destiny it was mainly if not entirely owing to rain that the french lost the battle of agancourt whilst if i mistake not confucius alone knows how many victories have been snatched from the chinese by the same factor it was most certainly rain that drove leon hamar to take refuge in a second-hand book shop were so deep-rooted was his aversion to any literature saving a financial gazette or the stock and shares column of a daily that nothing would have induced him to get within touching distance of a book save the risk of a severe wedding now to his unutterable disgust he found himself surrounded by the things he loathed books ancient very ancient judging by their bindings and modern histories biographies novels and magazines anything from ten dollars to five cents and all are raid with most laudable tact according to their bulk and condition but hamar was neither to be tempted nor multiplied he frowned at one and all alike and the colossal edition of miss somebody or others poems that by reason of its magnificent cover of crimson and gold occupied a most prominent position met with the same vindictive reception as the tattered and torn volumes of hoodie ears stowed away in an obscure corner backing still further into the entrance of the store for a better protection from the rain which now falling heavier and heavier was blown in by the wind hammar collided with a stand of books with the result that one of them fell with a loud bang on the pavement a man evidently the owner of the store and unmistakably a jew instantly appeared picking up the book and wiping it with a dirty handkerchief he thrust it at hammar see he said you have damaged this property of mine you must either buy it or give me adequate compensation what a mark right compensation for such rubbish is that why all your books together are not worth five dollars even i've seen twice as many sold at a sale for half that amount you can't chew me the two men eyed each other quizzically perhaps the owner of the store observed slowly perhaps some of your ancestors were once yiddish in which case there ought to be a bond of sympathy between us you may have that book for a nickel what no your cheeks are hollow your fingers thin a nickel is too much for you i will take your chain in exchange and leave me the watch hamar retorted with a grim smile you are a philanthropist not a store keeper i should leave you nothing you left there's no watch there see and he...

Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling Part 5 Free Audiobook from the Tale Teller Club.

chapter 5 of captains courageous this is a lieberbox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org this recording is by mark smith of simpsonville south carolina

captains courageous by roger kipling chapter 5.

that was the first of many talks with dan who told harvey why he would transfer his dory's name to the imaginary burgess modeled haddocker harvey heard a good deal more about the real hattie at gloucester saw a lock of her hair which then finding fair words of no avail had hooked as she sat in front of him at school that winter and a photograph hattie was about 14 years old with an awful contempt for boys and had been trampling on dan's heart through the winter all this was revealed under oath of solemn secrecy on moonlit decks in the dead dark or in choking fog the whining wheel behind them the climbing deck before and without the unresting clamorous sea once of course as the boys came to know each other there was a fight which raged from bowed to stern till pen came up and separated them but promised not to tell disco who thought fighting on watch rather worse than sleeping harvey was no match for dan physically but it says a great deal for his new training that he took his defeat and did not try to get even with his conqueror by underhand methods that was after he had been cured of a string of boils between his elbows and wrists where the wet jersey and oil skins cut into the flesh the salt water stung them unpleasantly but when they were ripe dan treated them with disco's razor and assured harvey that now he was a blooded banker the affliction of gurisour as being the mark of the cast that claimed him since he was a boy and very busy he did not bother his head with too much thinking he was exceedingly sorry for his mother and often longed to see her and above all to tell her of his wonderful new life and how brilliantly he was acquitting himself in it otherwise he preferred not to wonder too much how she was bearing the shock of his supposed death but one day as he stood on the voxel ladder guying the cook who had accused him of dan of hooking fried pies it occurred to him that this was a vast improvement on being snubbed by strangers in the smoking room of a hired liner he was a recognized part of the scheme of things on the we're here had his place at the table and among the bucks and could hold his own into long talks on stormy days when the others were always ready to listen to what they called his fairy tales of his life ashore it did not take him more than two days and a quarter to feel that if he spoke of his own life it seemed very far away no one except dan and even dan's belief was sorely tried credited him so he invented a friend a boy he had heard of who drove a miniature four-pony drag in toledo ohio and ordered five suits of clothes at a time and led things called germans at parties where the oldest girl was not quite fifteen but all the presents were solid silver salters protested that this kind of yarn was desperately wicked if not indeed positively blasphemous but he listened as greedily as the others and their criticisms at the end gave harvey entirely new notions on germans clothes cigarettes with gold leaf tips rings watches scent small dinner parties champagne card playing and hotel accommodation little by little he changed his tone when speaking of his friend whom long jack had christened the crazy kid the guild-edged baby the second vanderpoop and other pet names and with the sea booted feet cocked up on the table would even invent histories about silk pajamas and specially imported neckwear to the friends discredit harvey was a very adaptable person with a keen eye and ear for every face and tone about him before long he knew where disco kept the old green crusted quadrant that they called the...

Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling Part 5 Free Audiobook from the Tale Teller Club.

chapter 5 of captains courageous this is a lieberbox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org this recording is by mark smith of simpsonville south carolina

captains courageous by roger kipling chapter 5.

that was the first of many talks with dan who told harvey why he would transfer his dory's name to the imaginary burgess modeled haddocker harvey heard a good deal more about the real hattie at gloucester saw a lock of her hair which then finding fair words of no avail had hooked as she sat in front of him at school that winter and a photograph hattie was about 14 years old with an awful contempt for boys and had been trampling on dan's heart through the winter all this was revealed under oath of solemn secrecy on moonlit decks in the dead dark or in choking fog the whining wheel behind them the climbing deck before and without the unresting clamorous sea once of course as the boys came to know each other there was a fight which raged from bowed to stern till pen came up and separated them but promised not to tell disco who thought fighting on watch rather worse than sleeping harvey was no match for dan physically but it says a great deal for his new training that he took his defeat and did not try to get even with his conqueror by underhand methods that was after he had been cured of a string of boils between his elbows and wrists where the wet jersey and oil skins cut into the flesh the salt water stung them unpleasantly but when they were ripe dan treated them with disco's razor and assured harvey that now he was a blooded banker the affliction of gurisour as being the mark of the cast that claimed him since he was a boy and very busy he did not bother his head with too much thinking he was exceedingly sorry for his mother and often longed to see her and above all to tell her of his wonderful new life and how brilliantly he was acquitting himself in it otherwise he preferred not to wonder too much how she was bearing the shock of his supposed death but one day as he stood on the voxel ladder guying the cook who had accused him of dan of hooking fried pies it occurred to him that this was a vast improvement on being snubbed by strangers in the smoking room of a hired liner he was a recognized part of the scheme of things on the we're here had his place at the table and among the bucks and could hold his own into long talks on stormy days when the others were always ready to listen to what they called his fairy tales of his life ashore it did not take him more than two days and a quarter to feel that if he spoke of his own life it seemed very far away no one except dan and even dan's belief was sorely tried credited him so he invented a friend a boy he had heard of who drove a miniature four-pony drag in toledo ohio and ordered five suits of clothes at a time and led things called germans at parties where the oldest girl was not quite fifteen but all the presents were solid silver salters protested that this kind of yarn was desperately wicked if not indeed positively blasphemous but he listened as greedily as the others and their criticisms at the end gave harvey entirely new notions on germans clothes cigarettes with gold leaf tips rings watches scent small dinner parties champagne card playing and hotel accommodation little by little he changed his tone when speaking of his friend whom long jack had christened the crazy kid the guild-edged baby the second vanderpoop and other pet names and with the sea booted feet cocked up on the table would even invent histories about silk pajamas and specially imported neckwear to the friends discredit harvey was a very adaptable person with a keen eye and ear for every face and tone about him before long he knew where disco kept the old green crusted quadrant that they called the...

Raggedy Ann and Andy and the Camel with the Wrinkled Knees by Johnny Gruelle (6).

chapter 6 of raggedy ann and andy and the camel with the wrinkled knees this is the librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org read by tasha hobbs peterson raggedy ann and andy and the camel with the wrinkled knees by johnny gruel section six oh wait a minute raggedy ann said as they were about to enter the tree we do not want to go back up through the tree until we find babette the french doll we must blindfold the camel with the wrinkled knees and let him run backwards let's see the tired old horse thought out loud i will carry jan and jenny while the camel carries raggedy ann and raggedy andy in that way we can get there quicker so raggedy ann again tied her hanky around the camel's shoe button eyes and after she and raggedy andy had climbed upon his back and jan and jenny upon the tired old horse's back the camels started running backward lickety-split the tired old horse ran just behind the camel's head and as raggedy ann and raggedy andy sat facing jan and jenny upon the horse's back they could talk comfortably as they rode along after they had galloped along for 10 minutes the camel suddenly stopped and as the tired old horse had been running with his nose very close to the camel's nose he bumped into the camel so hard the camel's soft head was pushed way back in wrinkles against his body and jan and jenny went over the horse's head and landed upon raggedy andy and raggedy ann it is lucky you fell on us raggedy ann laughed as jan and jenny got to their feet for raggedy andy and i are soft and it did not bump me much it did not hurt us a bit jan laughed as he brushed off raggedy ann's dress but how about the camel indeed the camel with the wrinkled knees did look very sad his poor nose was flat and his neck was nothing but wrinkles jan and raggedy andy pulled and patted the camel's head into shape again and it was not long until he looked as good as before why did we stop the tired old horse asked we ran into something raggedy ann said but i can't see a thing none of the others could see anything either but when they felt in the back of the camel they could feel an invisible stone wall and although raggedy ann and raggedy andy ran along the wall for a long way feeling it they could discover no gate there must be some way of getting in right here the camel said for i am certain this is the exact spot i came out of maybe if you came out here there is a door or a gate there jan said and maybe it only opens one way like the stone at the room in the tree raggedy ann suggested but if that was so i would have fallen through just as the tired old horse did the camel said oh no you wouldn't raggedy ann laughed for don't you see mr campbell if you came out a door there it must have swung out this way and if you bump it from this side it only closes that much tighter that's so the camel agreed but can you feel any doorknob raggedy ann had to admit that she could not so there they were and could not get in after thinking for a while the tired old horse finally suggested let the camel back up right against the gate for there must be a gate right here and raggedy ann and raggedy andy get upon the camel's back then the camel can pretend that he has just come bouncing through the invisible gate and start to run this may fool the gate into thinking the same thing and it may swing open as it would do just as someone passed through it but it will close again the camel said then we are just where we started from yes but if the invisible gate swings open i shall hold it open the tired old horse said then you can come back and we will all go through it sounds reasonable raggedy andy said let's try it for there is nothing else to do and he and raggedy ann climbed upon the camel's back and the camel squeezed back tight against the invisible gate then with a...

Raggedy Ann and Andy and the Camel with the Wrinkled Knees by Johnny Gruelle (6).

chapter 6 of raggedy ann and andy and the camel with the wrinkled knees this is the librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org read by tasha hobbs peterson raggedy ann and andy and the camel with the wrinkled knees by johnny gruel section six oh wait a minute raggedy ann said as they were about to enter the tree we do not want to go back up through the tree until we find babette the french doll we must blindfold the camel with the wrinkled knees and let him run backwards let's see the tired old horse thought out loud i will carry jan and jenny while the camel carries raggedy ann and raggedy andy in that way we can get there quicker so raggedy ann again tied her hanky around the camel's shoe button eyes and after she and raggedy andy had climbed upon his back and jan and jenny upon the tired old horse's back the camels started running backward lickety-split the tired old horse ran just behind the camel's head and as raggedy ann and raggedy andy sat facing jan and jenny upon the horse's back they could talk comfortably as they rode along after they had galloped along for 10 minutes the camel suddenly stopped and as the tired old horse had been running with his nose very close to the camel's nose he bumped into the camel so hard the camel's soft head was pushed way back in wrinkles against his body and jan and jenny went over the horse's head and landed upon raggedy andy and raggedy ann it is lucky you fell on us raggedy ann laughed as jan and jenny got to their feet for raggedy andy and i are soft and it did not bump me much it did not hurt us a bit jan laughed as he brushed off raggedy ann's dress but how about the camel indeed the camel with the wrinkled knees did look very sad his poor nose was flat and his neck was nothing but wrinkles jan and raggedy andy pulled and patted the camel's head into shape again and it was not long until he looked as good as before why did we stop the tired old horse asked we ran into something raggedy ann said but i can't see a thing none of the others could see anything either but when they felt in the back of the camel they could feel an invisible stone wall and although raggedy ann and raggedy andy ran along the wall for a long way feeling it they could discover no gate there must be some way of getting in right here the camel said for i am certain this is the exact spot i came out of maybe if you came out here there is a door or a gate there jan said and maybe it only opens one way like the stone at the room in the tree raggedy ann suggested but if that was so i would have fallen through just as the tired old horse did the camel said oh no you wouldn't raggedy ann laughed for don't you see mr campbell if you came out a door there it must have swung out this way and if you bump it from this side it only closes that much tighter that's so the camel agreed but can you feel any doorknob raggedy ann had to admit that she could not so there they were and could not get in after thinking for a while the tired old horse finally suggested let the camel back up right against the gate for there must be a gate right here and raggedy ann and raggedy andy get upon the camel's back then the camel can pretend that he has just come bouncing through the invisible gate and start to run this may fool the gate into thinking the same thing and it may swing open as it would do just as someone passed through it but it will close again the camel said then we are just where we started from yes but if the invisible gate swings open i shall hold it open the tired old horse said then you can come back and we will all go through it sounds reasonable raggedy andy said let's try it for there is nothing else to do and he and raggedy ann climbed upon the camel's back and the camel squeezed back tight against the invisible gate then with a...

Little Girl Lost Songs of Innocence and Experience by William Blake Public Domain Audiobooks.

this is a librebox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librebox.org recorded by chip in tampa florida on january 17 2006 songs of innocence and experience by william blake songs of experience a little girl lost children of the future age reading this indignant page know that in a former time love sweet love was thought a crime in the age of gold free from winter's cold youth and maiden bright to the holy light naked in the sunny beams of delight once a youthful pair filled with softest care met in garden bright where the holy light had just removed the curtains of the night there in rising day on the grass they play parents were afar strangers came not near and the maiden soon forgot her fear tired with kisses sweet they agreed to meet when the silent sleep waves or heavens deep and the weary tired wanderers weep to her father white came the maiden bright but his loving look like a holy book all her tender limbs with terror shook una pale and weak to thy father speak oh the trembling fear oh the dismal care that shakes the blossoms of my hoary hair

songs of experience a little girl lost

Little Girl Lost Songs of Innocence and Experience by William Blake Public Domain Audiobooks.

this is a librebox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librebox.org recorded by chip in tampa florida on january 17 2006 songs of innocence and experience by william blake songs of experience a little girl lost children of the future age reading this indignant page know that in a former time love sweet love was thought a crime in the age of gold free from winter's cold youth and maiden bright to the holy light naked in the sunny beams of delight once a youthful pair filled with softest care met in garden bright where the holy light had just removed the curtains of the night there in rising day on the grass they play parents were afar strangers came not near and the maiden soon forgot her fear tired with kisses sweet they agreed to meet when the silent sleep waves or heavens deep and the weary tired wanderers weep to her father white came the maiden bright but his loving look like a holy book all her tender limbs with terror shook una pale and weak to thy father speak oh the trembling fear oh the dismal care that shakes the blossoms of my hoary hair

songs of experience a little girl lost

The Sea Fairies by L. Frank Baum (6) Free Audiobooks Tale Teller Children Traditional Collection.

this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org the seafairies by l frank baum chapter 6 exploring the ocean the queen now requested her guests to recline upon couches that they might rest themselves from their long swim and talk more at their ease so the girl and the sailor allowed themselves to float downward until they rested their bodies on two of the couches nearest the throne which were willingly vacated for them by the mermaids who had occupied them until then the visitors soon found themselves answering a great many questions about their life on the earth four although the queen had said she kept track of what was going on on the land there were many details of human life in which all the mermaids seemed greatly interested during the conversation several sea maids came swimming into the room bearing trays of sea apples and other fruit which they first offered to the queen and then passed the refreshments around to the company assembled trot and captain bill each took some and the little girl found the fruits delicious to eat as they had a richer flavor than any that grew upon land queen aquarine was much pleased when the old sailor asked for more but merlot warned him dinner would soon be served and he must take care not to spoil his appetite for that meal our dinner is at noon for we have to cook in the middle of the day when the sun is shining she said cook cried trot why you can't build a fire in the water can you we have no need of fires with the reply the glass roof of our kitchen is so curved that it concentrates the heat of the sun's rays which are then hot enough to cook anything we wish but how do you get along if the day is cloudy and the sun doesn't shine inquired the little girl then we use the hot springs that bubble up in another part of the palace mirla answered but the sun is the best to cook by so it was no surprise to trot when about noon dinner was announced and all the mermaids headed by their queen and their guests swam into another spacious room where a great long table was laid the dishes were of polished gold and dainty cut glass and the cloth and napkins of fine gossamer around the table were ranged rows of couches for the mermaids to recline upon as they ate only the nobility and favorites of queen aquarine were invited to partake of this repast for clea explained that tables were set for the other mermaids in different parts of the numerous palaces trot wondered who would serve the meal but her curiosity was soon satisfied when several large lobsters came sliding into the room backward bearing in their claws trays loaded with food each of these lobsters had a golden band around its neck to show it was the slave of the mermaids these curious waiters were fussy creatures and trot found much amusement in watching their odd motions they were so spry and excitable that at times they ran against one another and upset the platters of food after which they began to scold and argue as to whose fault it was until one of the mermaids quietly rebuked them and asked them to be more quiet and more careful the queen's guests had no cause to complain of the dinner provided first the lobsters served bowls of turtle soup which proved hot and deliciously flavored then came salmon steaks fried in fish oil with a fungus bread that tasted much like field mushrooms oysters clams soft shell crabs and various preparations of seafoods followed the salad was a delicate leaf from some seaweed that thought was much nicer than lettuce several courses were served and the lobsters changed the plates with each course chattering and scolding as they worked and as trot said doing everything backwards in their nervous fussy way many of the things offered them to eat were unknown to the visitors and the child was suspicious of...

The Sea Fairies by L. Frank Baum (6) Free Audiobooks Tale Teller Children Traditional Collection.

this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org the seafairies by l frank baum chapter 6 exploring the ocean the queen now requested her guests to recline upon couches that they might rest themselves from their long swim and talk more at their ease so the girl and the sailor allowed themselves to float downward until they rested their bodies on two of the couches nearest the throne which were willingly vacated for them by the mermaids who had occupied them until then the visitors soon found themselves answering a great many questions about their life on the earth four although the queen had said she kept track of what was going on on the land there were many details of human life in which all the mermaids seemed greatly interested during the conversation several sea maids came swimming into the room bearing trays of sea apples and other fruit which they first offered to the queen and then passed the refreshments around to the company assembled trot and captain bill each took some and the little girl found the fruits delicious to eat as they had a richer flavor than any that grew upon land queen aquarine was much pleased when the old sailor asked for more but merlot warned him dinner would soon be served and he must take care not to spoil his appetite for that meal our dinner is at noon for we have to cook in the middle of the day when the sun is shining she said cook cried trot why you can't build a fire in the water can you we have no need of fires with the reply the glass roof of our kitchen is so curved that it concentrates the heat of the sun's rays which are then hot enough to cook anything we wish but how do you get along if the day is cloudy and the sun doesn't shine inquired the little girl then we use the hot springs that bubble up in another part of the palace mirla answered but the sun is the best to cook by so it was no surprise to trot when about noon dinner was announced and all the mermaids headed by their queen and their guests swam into another spacious room where a great long table was laid the dishes were of polished gold and dainty cut glass and the cloth and napkins of fine gossamer around the table were ranged rows of couches for the mermaids to recline upon as they ate only the nobility and favorites of queen aquarine were invited to partake of this repast for clea explained that tables were set for the other mermaids in different parts of the numerous palaces trot wondered who would serve the meal but her curiosity was soon satisfied when several large lobsters came sliding into the room backward bearing in their claws trays loaded with food each of these lobsters had a golden band around its neck to show it was the slave of the mermaids these curious waiters were fussy creatures and trot found much amusement in watching their odd motions they were so spry and excitable that at times they ran against one another and upset the platters of food after which they began to scold and argue as to whose fault it was until one of the mermaids quietly rebuked them and asked them to be more quiet and more careful the queen's guests had no cause to complain of the dinner provided first the lobsters served bowls of turtle soup which proved hot and deliciously flavored then came salmon steaks fried in fish oil with a fungus bread that tasted much like field mushrooms oysters clams soft shell crabs and various preparations of seafoods followed the salad was a delicate leaf from some seaweed that thought was much nicer than lettuce several courses were served and the lobsters changed the plates with each course chattering and scolding as they worked and as trot said doing everything backwards in their nervous fussy way many of the things offered them to eat were unknown to the visitors and the child was suspicious of...