,the ,hall of ,fantasy    by ,nathaniel 
,hawthorne          ,it has happened to 
me1 on various occasions1 to find myself
 in a  certain edifice which would      
appear to have some of the              
characteristics  of a public exchange4  
,its interior is a spacious hall1 with a
 pavement  of white marble4 ,overhead is
 a lofty dome1 supported by long rows of
  pillars of fantastic architecture1 the
 idea of which was probably taken  from 
the ,moorish ruins of the ,alhambra1 or 
perhaps from some enchanted  edifice in 
the ,arabian tales4 ,the windows of this
 hall have a breadth  and grandeur of   
design and an elaborateness of          
workmanship that have  nowhere been     
equalled1 except in the ,gothic         
cathedrals of the ,old  ,world4 ,like   
their prototypes1 too1 they admit the   
light of heaven only  through stained   
and pictured glass1 thus filling the    
hall with  many-colored radiance and    
painting its marble floor with beautiful
 or  grotesque designs2 so that its     

inmates breathe1 as it were1 a visionary
  atmosphere1 and tread upon the        
fantasies of poetic minds4 ,these       
peculiarities1 combining a wilder       
mixture of styles than even an          
,american architect usually recognizes  
as allowable1--,grecian1 ,gothic1       
,oriental1 and nondescript1--cause the  
whole edifice to give the  impression of
 a dream1 which might be dissipated and 
shattered to  fragments by merely       
stamping the foot upon the pavement4    
,yet1 with such  modifications and      
repairs as successive ages demand1 the  
,hall of  ,fantasy is likely to endure  
longer than the most substantial        
structure  that ever cumbered the earth4
    ,it is not at all times that one can
 gain admittance into this edifice1     
although most persons enter it at some  
period or other of their lives2  if not 
in their waking moments1 then by the    
universal passport of a  dream4 ,at my  
last visit ,i wandered thither unawares 
while my mind was  busy with an idle    

tale1 and was startled by the throng of 
people who  seemed suddenly to rise up  
around me4    8,bless me6 ,where am ,i80
 cried ,i1 with but a dim recognition of
 the  place4    8,you are in a spot10   
said a friend who chanced to be near at 
hand1  8which occupies in the world of  
fancy the same position which the       
,bourse1 the ,rialto1 and the ,exchange 
do in the commercial world4 ,all  who   
have affairs in that mystic region1     
which lies above1 below1 or  beyond the 
actual1 may here meet and talk over the 
business of their  dreams40    8,it is a
 noble hall10 observed ,i4    8,yes10 he
 replied4 8,yet we see but a small      
portion of the edifice4 ,in  its upper  
stories are said to be apartments where 
the inhabitants of  earth may hold      
converse with those of the moon2 and    
beneath our feet  are gloomy cells1     
which communicate with the infernal     
regions1 and  where monsters and        
chimeras are kept in confinement and fed
 with all  unwholesomeness40    ,in     

niches and on pedestals around about the
 hall stood the statues or  busts of men
 who in every age have been rulers and  
demigods in the  realms of imagination  
and its kindred regions4 ,the grand old 
countenance of ,homer2 the shrunken and 
decrepit form but vivid face of         
,a,esop2 the dark presence of ,dante2   
the wild ,ariosto2 ,rabelais's smile  of
 deep-wrought mirth1 the profound1      
pathetic humor of ,cervantes2 the       
all-glorious ,shakespeare2 ,spenser1    
meet guest for an allegoric  structure2 
the severe divinity of ,milton2 and     
,bunyan1 moulded of  homeliest clay1 but
 instinct with celestial fire1--were    
those that  chiefly attracted my eye4   
,fielding1 ,richardson1 and ,scott      
occupied  conspicuous pedestals4 ,in an 
obscure and shadowy niche was deposited 
the bust of our countryman1 the author  
of ,arthur ,mervyn4    8,besides these  
indestructible memorials of real        
genius10 remarked my  companion1 8each  
century has erected statues of its own  

ephemeral  favorites in wood40    8,i   
observe a few crumbling relics of such10
 said ,i4 8,but ever and anon1  ,i      
suppose1 ,oblivion comes with her huge  
broom and sweeps them all from  the     
marble floor4 ,but such will never be   
the fate of this fine statue  of        
,goethe40    8,nor of that next to      
it1--,emanuel ,swedenborg10 said he4    
8,were ever two  men of transcendent    
imagination more unlike80    ,in the    
centre of the hall springs an ornamental
 fountain1 the water of  which          
continually throws itself into new      
shapes and snatches the most            
diversified lines from the stained      
atmosphere around4 ,it is impossible  to
 conceive what a strange vivacity is    
imparted to the scene by the  magic     
dance of this fountain1 with its endless
 transformations1 in  which the         
imaginative beholder may discern what   
form he will4 ,the water  is supposed by
 some to flow from the same source as   
the ,castalian  spring1 and is extolled 

by others as uniting the virtues of the 
,fountain of ,youth with those of many  
other enchanted wells long  celebrated  
in tale and song4 ,having never tasted  
it1 ,i can bear no  testimony to its    
quality4    8,did you ever drink this   
water80 ,i inquired of my friend4    8,a
 few sips now and then10 answered he4   
8,but there are men here who  make it   
their constant beverage1--or1 at least1 
have the credit of doing  so4 ,in some  
instances it is known to have           
intoxicating qualities40    8,pray let  
us look at these water-drinkers10 said  
,i4    ,so we passed among the fantastic
 pillars till we came to a spot where a 
number of persons were clustered        
together in the light of one of the     
great stained windows1 which seemed to  
glorify the whole group as well  as the 
marble that they trod on4 ,most of them 
were men of broad  foreheads1 meditative
 countenances1 and thoughtful1 inward   
eyes2 yet it  required but a trifle to  
summon up mirth1 peeping out from the   

very  midst of grave and lofty musings4 
,some strode about1 or leaned against   
the pillars of the hall1 alone and in   
silence2 their faces wore a rapt        
expression1 as if sweet music were in   
the air around them1 or as if  their    
inmost souls were about to float away in
 song4 ,one or two1  perhaps1 stole a   
glance at the bystanders1 to watch if   
their poetic  absorption were observed4 
,others stood talking in groups1 with a 
liveliness of expression1 a ready smile1
 and a light1 intellectual  laughter1   
which showed how rapidly the shafts of  
wit were glancing to  and fro among     
them4    ,a few held higher converse1   
which caused their calm and melancholy  
souls to beam moonlight from their eyes4
 ,as ,i lingered near them1--for ,i     
felt an inward attraction towards these 
men1 as if the sympathy of  feeling1 if 
not of genius1 had united me to their   
order1--my friend  mentioned several of 
their names4 ,the world has likewise    
heard those  names2 with some it has    

been familiar for years2 and others are 
daily  making their way deeper into the 
universal heart4    8,thank ,heaven10   
observed ,i to my companion1 as we      
passed to another  part of the hall1 8we
 have done with this techy1 wayward1    
shy1 proud  unreasonable set of         
laurel-gatherers4 ,i love them in their 
works1 but  have little desire to meet  
them elsewhere40    8,you have adopted  
all old prejudice1 ,i see10 replied my  
friend1 who was  familiar with most of  
these worthies1 being himself a student 
of  poetry1 and not without the poetic  
flame4 8,but1 so far as my experience   
goes1 men of genius are fairly gifted   
with the social qualities2 and in  this 
age there appears to be a fellow-feeling
 among them which had not  heretofore   
been developed4 ,as men1 they ask       
nothing better than to be  on equal     
terms with their fellow-men2 and as     
authors1 they have thrown  aside their  
proverbial jealousy1 and acknowledge a  
generous  brotherhood40    8,the world  

does not think so10 answered ,i4 8,an   
author is received in  general society  
pretty much as we honest citizens are in
 the ,hall of  ,fantasy4 ,we gaze at him
 as if he had no business among us1 and 
question  whether he is fit for any of  
our pursuits40    8,then it is a very   
foolish question10 said he4 8,now1 here 
are a class  of men whom we may daily   
meet on ',change4 ,yet what poet in the 
hall is  more a fool of fancy than the  
sagest of them80    ,he pointed to a    
number of persons1 who1 manifest as the 
fact was1 would  have deemed it an      
insult to be told that they stood in the
 ,hall of  ,fantasy4 ,their visages were
 traced into wrinkles and furrows1 each 
of  which seemed the record of some     
actual experience in life4 ,their eyes  
had the shrewd1 calculating glance which
 detects so quickly and so  surely all  
that it concerns a man of business to   
know about the  characters and purposes 
of his fellow-men4 ,judging them as they
 stood1  they might be honored and      

trusted members of the ,chamber of      
,commerce1  who had found the genuine   
secret of wealth and whose sagacity gave
 them  the command of fortune4    ,there
 was a character of detail and matter of
 fact in their talk which  concealed the
 extravagance of its purport1 insomuch  
that the wildest  schemes had the aspect
 of everyday realities4 ,thus the       
listener was not  startled at the idea  
of cities to be built1 as if by magic1  
in the  heart of pathless forests2 and  
of streets to be laid out where now the 
sea was tossing2 and of mighty rivers to
 be stayed in their courses in  order to
 turn the machinery of a cotton-mill4   
,it was only by an effort1  and scarcely
 then1 that the mind convinced itself   
that such  speculations were as much    
matter of fantasy as the old dream of   
,eldorado1 or as ,mammon's ,cave1 or any
 other vision of gold ever  conjured up 
by the imagination of needy poet or     
romantic adventurer4    8,upon my word10
 said ,i1 8it is dangerous to listen to 

such dreamers as  these4 ,their madness 
is contagious40    8,yes10 said my      
friend1 8because they mistake the ,hall 
of ,fantasy for  actual brick and       
mortar1 and its purple atmosphere for   
unsophisticated  sunshine4 ,but the poet
 knows his whereabout1 and therefore is 
less  likely to make a fool of himself  
in real life40    8,here again10        
observed ,i1 as we advanced a little    
farther1 8we see  another order of      
dreamers1 peculiarly characteristic1    
too1 of the  genius of our country40    
,these were the inventors of fantastic  
machines4 ,models of their  contrivances
 were placed against some of the pillars
 of the hall1 and  afforded good emblems
 of the result generally to be          
anticipated from an  attempt to reduce  
day-dreams to practice4 ,the analogy may
 hold in  morals as well as physics2 for
 instance1 here was the model of a      
railroad through the air and a tunnel   
under the sea4 ,here was a              
machine--stolen1 ,i believe--for the    

distillation of heat from moonshine2    
and another for the condensation of     
morning mist into square blocks of      
granite1 wherewith it was proposed to   
rebuild the entire ,hall of  ,fantasy4  
,one man exhibited a sort of lens       
whereby he had succeeded in  making     
sunshine out of a lady's smile2 and it  
was his purpose wholly to  irradiate the
 earth by means of this wonderful       
invention4    8,it is nothing new10 said
 ,i2 8for most of our sunshine comes    
from  woman's smile already40           
8,true10 answered the inventor2 8but my 
machine will secure a constant  supply  
for domestic use2 whereas hitherto it   
has been very precarious40    ,another  
person had a scheme for fixing the      
reflections of objects in a  pool of    
water1 and thus taking the most         
life-like portraits imaginable2  and the
 same gentleman demonstrated the        
practicability of giving a  permanent   
dye to ladies' dresses1 in the gorgeous 
clouds of sunset4  ,there were at least 

fifty kinds of perpetual motion1 one of 
which was  applicable to the wits of    
newspaper editors and writers of every  
description4 ,professor ,espy was here1 
with a tremendous storm in a            
gum-elastic bag4 ,i could enumerate many
 more of these ,utopian  inventions2    
but1 after all1 a more imaginative      
collection is to be  found in the       
,patent ,office at ,washington4         
,turning from the inventors we took a   
more general survey of the inmates  of  
the hall4 ,many persons were present    
whose right of entrance appeared  to    
consist in some crotchet of the brain1  
which1 so long as it might  operate1    
produced a change in their relation to  
the actual world4 ,it is  singular how  
very few there are who do not           
occasionally gain admittance  on such a 
score1 either in abstracted musings1 or 
momentary thoughts1  or bright          
anticipations1 or vivid remembrances2   
for even the actual  becomes ideal1     
whether in hope or memory1 and beguiles 

the dreamer into  the ,hall of ,fantasy4
 ,some unfortunates make their whole    
abode and  business here1 and contract  
habits which unfit them for all the real
  employments of life4 ,others--but     
these are few--possess the faculty1 in  
their occasional visits1 of discovering 
a purer truth than the world  call      
impart among the lights and shadows of  
these pictured windows4    ,and with all
 its dangerous influences1 we have      
reason to thank ,god that  there is such
 a place of refuge from the gloom and   
chillness of actual  life4 ,hither may  
come the prisoner1 escaping from his    
dark and narrow  cell and cankerous     
chain1 to breathe free air in this      
enchanted  atmosphere4 ,the sick man    
leaves his weary pillow1 and finds      
strength to  wander hither1 though his  
wasted limbs might not support him even 
to  the threshold of his chamber4 ,the  
exile passes through the ,hall of       
,fantasy to revisit his native soil4    
,the burden of years rolls down from    

the old man's shoulders the moment that 
the door uncloses4 ,mourners  leave     
their heavy sorrows at the entrance1 and
 here rejoin the lost  ones whose faces 
would else be seen no more1 until       
thought shall have  become the only     
fact4 ,it may be said1 in truth1 that   
there is but half  a life--the meaner   
and earthier half--for those who never  
find their way  into the hall4 ,nor must
 ,i fail to mention that in the         
observatory of  the edifice is kept that
 wonderful perspective-glass1 through   
which the  shepherds of the ,delectable 
,mountains showed ,christian the far-off
  gleam of the ,celestial ,city4 ,the   
eye of ,faith still loves to gaze       
through it4    8,i observe some men     
here10 said ,i to my friend1 8who might 
set up a  strong claim to be reckoned   
among the most real personages of the   
day40    8,certainly10 he replied4 8,if 
a man be in advance of his age1 he must 
be  content to make his abode in this   
hall until the lingering generations  of

 his fellow-men come up with him4 ,he   
can find no other shelter in the        
universe4 ,but the fantasies of one day 
are the deepest realities of a  future  
one40    8,it is difficult to           
distinguish them apart amid the gorgeous
 and  bewildering light of this ball10  
rejoined ,i4 8,the white sunshine of    
actual life is necessary in order to    
test them4 ,i am rather apt to  doubt   
both men and their reasonings till ,i   
meet them in that truthful  medium40    
8,perhaps your faith in the ideal is    
deeper than you are aware10 said my     
friend4 8,you are at least a democrat2  
and methinks no scanty share of  such   
faith is essential to the adoption of   
that creed40    ,among the characters   
who had elicited these remarks were most
 of the  noted reformers of the day1    
whether in physics1 politics1 morals1 or
  religion4 ,there is no surer method of
 arriving at the ,hall of ,fantasy  than
 to throw one's-self into the current of
 a theory2 for1 whatever  landmarks of  

fact may be set up along the stream1    
there is a law of  nature that impels it
 thither4 ,and let it be so2 for here   
the wise head  and capacious heart may  
do their work2 and what is good and true
  becomes gradually hardened into fact1 
while error melts away and  vanishes    
among the shadows of the ball4          
,therefore may none who believe  and    
rejoice in the progress of mankind be   
angry with me because ,i  recognized    
their apostles and leaders amid the     
fantastic radiance of  those pictured   
windows4 ,i love and honor such men as  
well as they4    ,it would be endless to
 describe the herd of real or self      
styled  reformers that peopled this     
place of refuge4 ,they were the         
representatives of an unquiet period1   
when mankind is seeking to cast  off the
 whole tissue of ancient custom like a  
tattered garment4 ,many of  then had got
 possession of some crystal fragment of 
truth1 the  brightness of which so      
dazzled them that they could see nothing

 else in  the wide universe4 ,here were 
men whose faith had embodied itself in  
the  form of a potato2 and others whose 
long beards had a deep spiritual        
significance4 ,here was the             
abolitionist1 brandishing his one idea  
like  an iron flail4 ,in a word1 there  
were a thousand shapes of good and      
evil1 faith and infidelity1 wisdom and  
nonsense1--a most incongruous  throng4  
,yet1 withal1 the heart of the stanchest
 conservative1 unless he abjured  his   
fellowship with man1 could hardly have  
helped throbbing in sympathy  with the  
spirit that pervaded these innumerable  
theorists4 ,it was good  for the man of 
unquickened heart to listen even to     
their folly4 ,far  down beyond the      
fathom of the intellect the soul        
acknowledged that all  these varying and
 conflicting developments of humanity   
were united in  one sentiment4 ,be the  
individual theory as wild as fancy could
 make it1  still the wiser spirit would 
recognize the struggle of the race after

 a  better and purer life than had yet  
been realized on earth4 ,my faith       
revived even while ,i rejected all their
 schemes4 ,it could not be that  the    
world should continue forever what it   
has been2 a soil where  ,happiness is so
 rare a flower and ,virtue so often a   
blighted fruit2 a  battle-field where   
the good principle1 with its shield     
flung above its  head1 can hardly save  
itself amid the rush of adverse         
influences4 ,in  the enthusiasm of such 
thoughts ,i gazed through one of the    
pictured  windows1 and1 behold6 the     
whole external world was tinged with the
  dimly glorious aspect that is peculiar
 to the ,hall of ,fantasy1 insomuch     
that it seemed practicable at that very 
instant to realize some plan  for the   
perfection of mankind4 ,but1 alas6 if   
reformers would understand  the sphere  
in which their lot is cast they must    
cease to look through  pictured windows4
 ,yet they not only use this medium1 but
 mistake it for  the whitest sunshine4  

8,come10 said ,i to my friend1 starting 
from a deep revery1 8let us  hasten     
hence1 or ,i shall be tempted to make a 
theory1 after which there  is little    
hope of any man40    8,come hither1     
then10 answered he4 8,here is one theory
 that swallows up  and annihilates all  
others40    ,he led me to a distant part
 of the hall where a crowd of deeply    
attentive auditors were assembled round 
an elderly man of plain1  honest1       
trustworthy aspect4 ,with an earnestness
 that betokened the  sincerest faith in 
his own doctrine1 he announced that the 
destruction  of the world was close at  
hand4    8,it is ,father ,miller        
himself60 exclaimed ,i4    8,no less a  
man10 said my friend2 8and observe how  
picturesque a  contrast between his     
dogma and those of the reformers whom we
 have just  glanced at4 ,they look for  
the earthly perfection of mankind1 and  
are  forming schemes which imply that   
the immortal spirit will be connected   
with a physical nature for innumerable  

ages of futurity4 ,on the other  hand1  
here comes good ,father ,miller1 and    
with one puff of his  relentless theory 
scatters all their dreams like so many  
withered  leaves upon the blast40       
8,it is1 perhaps1 the only method of    
getting mankind out of the various      
perplexities into which they have       
fallen10 ,i replied4 8,yet ,i could wish
  that the world might be permitted to  
endure until some great moral  shall    
have been evolved4 ,a riddle is         
propounded4 ,where is the solution8     
,the sphinx did not slay herself until  
her riddle had been guessed4 ,will  it  
not be so with the world8 ,now1 if it   
should be burned to-morrow  morning1 ,i 
am at a loss to know what purpose will  
have been  accomplished1 or how the     
universe will be wiser or better for our
  existence and destruction40    8,we   
cannot tell what mighty truths may have 
been embodied in act  through the       
existence of the globe and its          
inhabitants10 rejoined my  companion4   

8,perhaps it may be revealed to us after
 the fall of the  curtain over our      
catastrophe2 or not impossibly1 the     
whole drama1 in  which we are           
involuntary actors1 may have been       
performed for the  instruction of       
another set of spectators4 ,i cannot    
perceive that our  own comprehension of 
it is at all essential to the matter4   
,at any rate1  while our view is so     
ridiculously narrow and superficial it  
would be  absurd to argue the           
continuance of the world from the fact  
that it  seems to have existed hitherto 
in vain40    8,the poor old earth10     
murmured ,i4 8,she has faults enough1 in
 all  conscience1 but ,i cannot hear to 
have her perish40    8,it is no great   
matter10 said my friend4 8,the happiest 
of us has been  weary of her many a time
 and oft40    8,i doubt it10 answered   
,i1 pertinaciously2 8the root of human  
nature  strikes down deep into this     
earthly soil1 and it is but reluctantly 
that we submit to be transplanted1 even 

for a higher cultivation in  heaven4 ,i 
query whether the destruction of the    
earth would gratify any  one individual1
 except perhaps some embarrassed man of 
business whose  notes fall due a day    
after the day of doom40    ,then        
methought ,i heard the expostulating cry
 of a multitude against the             
consummation prophesied by ,father      
,miller4 ,the lover wrestled with       
,providence for his foreshadowed bliss4 
,parents entreated that the  earth's    
span of endurance might be prolonged by 
some seventy years1 so  that their      
new-born infant should not be defrauded 
of his lifetime4 ,a  youthful poet      
murmured because there would be no      
posterity to recognize  the inspiration 
of his song4 ,the reformers1 one and    
all1 demanded a few  thousand years to  
test their theories1 after which the    
universe might  go to wreck4 ,a         
mechanician1 who was busied with an     
improvement of the  steam-engine1 asked 
merely time to perfect his model4 ,a    

miser insisted  that the world's        
destruction would be a personal wrong to
 himself1  unless he should first be    
permitted to add a specified sum to his 
enormous heap of gold4 ,a little boy    
made dolorous inquiry whether the  last 
day would come before ,christmas1 and   
thus deprive him of his  anticipated    
dainties4 ,in short1 nobody seemed      
satisfied that this  mortal scene of    
things should have its close just now4  
,yet1 it must be  confessed1 the motives
 of the crowd for desiring its          
continuance were  mostly so absurd1 that
 unless infinite ,wisdom had been aware 
of much  better reasons1 the solid earth
 must have melted away at once4    ,for 
my own part1 not to speak of a few      
private and personal ends1 ,i  really   
desired our old mother's prolonged      
existence for her own dear  sake4       
8,the poor old earth60 ,i repeated4     
8,what ,i should chiefly regret in her  
destruction would be that very          
earthliness which no other sphere or    

state of existence can renew or         
compensate4 ,the fragrance of flowers   
and of new-mown hay2 the genial warmth  
of sunshine1 and the beauty of a  sunset
 among clouds2 the comfort and cheerful 
glow of the fireside2 the  deliciousness
 of fruits and of all good cheer2 the   
magnificence of  mountains1 and seas1   
and cataracts1 and the softer charm of  
rural  scenery2 even the fast-falling   
snow and the gray atmosphere through    
which it descends1--all these and       
innumerable other enjoyable things of   
earth must perish with her4 ,then the   
country frolics2 the homely humor2  the 
broad1 open-mouthed roar of laughter1 in
 which body and soul  conjoin so        
heartily6 ,i fear that no other world   
call show its anything  just like this4 
,as for purely moral enjoyments1 the    
good will find them  in every state of  
being4 ,but where the material and the  
moral exist  together1 what is to happen
 then8 ,and then our mute four-footed   
friends  and the winged songsters of our

 woods6 ,might it not be lawful to      
regret  them1 even in the hallowed      
groves of paradise80    8,you speak like
 the very spirit of earth1 imbued with a
 scent of  freshly turned soil10        
exclaimed my friend4    8,it is not that
 ,i so much object to giving up these   
enjoyments on my  own account10         
continued ,i1 8but ,i hate to think that
 they will have  been eternally         
annihilated from the list of joys40     
8,nor need they be10 he replied4 8,i see
 no real force in what you say4         
,standing in this ,hall of ,fantasy1 we 
perceive what even the  earth-clogged   
intellect of man can do in creating     
circumstances which1  though we call    
them shadowy and visionary1 are scarcely
 more so than  those that surround us in
 actual life4 ,doubt not then that man's
  disembodied spirit may recreate time  
and the world for itself1 with all      
their peculiar enjoyments1 should there 
still be human yearnings amid  life     
eternal and infinite4 ,but ,i doubt     

whether we shall be inclined to  play   
such a poor scene over again40    8,o1  
you are ungrateful to our mother earth60
 rejoined ,i4 8,come what  may1 ,i never
 will forget her6 ,neither will it      
satisfy me to have her  exist merely in 
idea4 ,i want her great1 round1 solid   
self to endure  interminably1 and still 
to be peopled with the kindly race of   
man1 whom  ,i uphold to be much better  
than he thinks himself4 ,nevertheless1  
,i  confide the whole matter to         
,providence1 and shall endeavor so to   
live  that the world may come to an end 
at any moment without leaving me at a   
loss to find foothold somewhere else40  
8,it is an excellent resolve10 said my  
companion1 looking at his watch4  8,but 
come2 it is the dinner-hour4 ,will you  
partake of my vegetable  diet80    ,a   
thing so matter of fact as an invitation
 to dinner1 even when the  fare was to  
be nothing more substantial than        
vegetables and fruit1  compelled us     
forthwith to remove from the ,hall of   

,fantasy4 ,as we passed  out of the     
portal we met the spirits of several    
persons who had been  sent thither in   
magnetic sleep4 ,i looked back among the
 sculptured  pillars and at the         
transformations of the gleaming         
fountain1 and almost  desired that the  
whole of life might be spent in that    
visionary scene  where the actual world1
 with its hard angles1 should never rub 
against  me1 and only be viewed through 
the medium of pictured windows4 ,but for
  those who waste all their days in the 
,hall of ,fantasy1 good ,father         
,miller's prophecy is already           
accomplished1 and the solid earth has   
come  to an untimely end4 ,let us be    
content1 therefore1 with merely an      
occasional visit1 for the sake of       
spiritualizing the grossness of this    
actual life1 and prefiguring to         
ourselves a state in which the ,idea    
shall be all in all4