My Boyhood and Youth 



the desk, thrown open, and allowed to remain 

 there the number of minutes required. Then 

 the machinery closed the book and allowed it 

 to drop back into its stall, then moved the rack 

 forward and threw up the next in order, and 

 so on, all the day being divided according to 

 the times of recitation, and time required and 

 allotted to each study. Besides this, I thought 

 it would be a fine thing in the summer-time 

 when the sun rose early, to dispense with the 

 clock-controlled bed machinery, and make use 

 of sunbeams instead. This I did simply by 

 taking a lens out of my small spy-glass, fixing 

 it on a frame on the sill of my bedroom window, 

 and pointing it to the sunrise; the sunbeams 

 focused on a thread burned it through, allow- 

 ing the bed machinery to put me on my feet. 

 When I wished to arise at any given time after 

 sunrise, I had only to turn the pivoted frame 

 that held the lens the requisite number of 

 degrees or minutes. Thus I took Emerson's 

 advice and hitched my dumping-wagon bed 

 to a star. 



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