{"id":31912,"date":"2015-07-19T01:00:23","date_gmt":"2015-07-19T05:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/?p=31912"},"modified":"2018-01-15T18:48:32","modified_gmt":"2018-01-15T23:48:32","slug":"qotd-virtue-vs-temptation-touring-version","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/2015\/07\/19\/qotd-virtue-vs-temptation-touring-version\/","title":{"rendered":"QotD: Virtue vs. temptation, touring version"},"content":{"rendered":"

We did not succeed in carrying out our programme in its entirety, for the reason that human performance lags ever behind human intention. It is easy to say and believe at three o\u2019clock in the afternoon that: \u201cWe will rise at five, breakfast lightly at half-past, and start away at six.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen we shall be well on our way before the heat of the day sets in,\u201d remarks one.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis time of the year, the early morning is really the best part of the day. Don\u2019t you think so?\u201d adds another.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, undoubtedly.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo cool and fresh.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd the half-lights are so exquisite.\u201d<\/p>\n

The first morning one maintains one\u2019s vows. The party assembles at half-past five. It is very silent; individually, somewhat snappy; inclined to grumble with its food, also with most other things; the atmosphere charged with compressed irritability seeking its vent. In the evening the Tempter\u2019s voice is heard:<\/p>\n

\u201cI think if we got off by half-past six, sharp, that would be time enough?\u201d<\/p>\n

The voice of Virtue protests, faintly: \u201cIt will be breaking our resolution.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Tempter replies: \u201cResolutions were made for man, not man for resolutions.\u201d The devil can paraphrase Scripture for his own purpose. \u201cBesides, it is disturbing the whole hotel; think of the poor servants.\u201d<\/p>\n

The voice of Virtue continues, but even feebler: \u201cBut everybody gets up early in these parts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey would not if they were not obliged to, poor things! Say breakfast at half-past six, punctual; that will be disturbing nobody.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thus Sin masquerades under the guise of Good, and one sleeps till six, explaining to one\u2019s conscience, who, however, doesn\u2019t believe it, that one does this because of unselfish consideration for others. I have known such consideration extend until seven of the clock.<\/p>\n

Likewise, distance measured with a pair of compasses is not precisely the same as when measured by the leg.<\/p>\n

\u201cTen miles an hour for seven hours, seventy miles. A nice easy day\u2019s work.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are some stiff hills to climb?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe other side to come down. Say, eight miles an hour, and call it sixty miles. Gott in Himmel!<\/em> if we can\u2019t average eight miles an hour, we had better go in bath-chairs.\u201d It does seem somewhat impossible to do less, on paper.<\/p>\n

But at four o\u2019clock in the afternoon the voice of Duty rings less trumpet-toned:<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I suppose we ought to be getting on.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, there\u2019s no hurry! don\u2019t fuss. Lovely view from here, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cVery. Don\u2019t forget we are twenty-five miles from St. Blasien.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow far?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTwenty-five miles, a little over if anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you mean to say we have only come thirty-five miles?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNonsense. I don\u2019t believe that map of yours.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is impossible, you know. We have been riding steadily ever since the first thing this morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, we haven\u2019t. We didn\u2019t get away till eight, to begin with.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cQuarter to eight.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, quarter to eight; and every half-dozen miles we have stopped.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have only stopped to look at the view. It\u2019s no good coming to see a country, and then not seeing it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd we have had to pull up some stiff hills.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBesides, it has been an exceptionally hot day to-day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, don\u2019t forget St. Blasien is twenty-five miles off, that\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAny more hills?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, two; up and down.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought you said it was downhill into St. Blasien?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo it is for the last ten miles. We are twenty-five miles from St. Blasien here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIsn\u2019t there anywhere between here and St. Blasien? What\u2019s that little place there on the lake?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt isn\u2019t St. Blasien, or anywhere near it. There\u2019s a danger in beginning that sort of thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a danger in overworking oneself. One should study moderation in all things. Pretty little place, that Titisee, according to the map; looks as if there would be good air there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right, I\u2019m agreeable. It was you fellows who suggested our making for St. Blasien.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I\u2019m not so keen on St. Blasien! poky little place, down in a valley. This Titisee, I should say, was ever so much nicer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cQuite near, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFive miles.\u201d<\/p>\n

General chorus: \u201cWe\u2019ll stop at Titisee.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jerome K. Jerome, Three Men on the Bummel<\/em><\/a>, 1914.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We did not succeed in carrying out our programme in its entirety, for the reason that human performance lags ever behind human intention. It is easy to say and believe at three o\u2019clock in the afternoon that: \u201cWe will rise at five, breakfast lightly at half-past, and start away at six.\u201d \u201cThen we shall be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":35193,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[62,1118,57,41],"tags":[948,202],"class_list":["post-31912","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-europe","category-germany","category-humour","category-quotations","tag-jkjerome","tag-travel"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/favicon.png","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2hpV6-8iI","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31912","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31912"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31912\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31913,"href":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31912\/revisions\/31913"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35193"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31912"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31912"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quotulatiousness.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31912"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}