Ninety-three By Victor Hugo, Aline Delano

Ninety-three By Victor Hugo, Aline Delano: "fascinate a snake frighten a tiger mollify a lion but there is no resouree with the monster known as a loosened gun You cannot kill it it is already dead and yet it lives It breathes a sinister life bestowed on it by the Infinite The plank beneath sways it to and fro it is moved by the ship the sea lifts the ship and the wind keeps the sea in motion This destroyer is a toy Its terrible vitality is fed by the ship the waves and the wind each lending its aid What is to be done with this complication How fetter this monstrous mechanism of shipwreck How foresee its comings and goings its recoils its halts its shocks Any one of those blows may stave in the side of the vessel How can one guard against these terrible gyrations One has to do with a projectile that reflects that has ideas and changes its direction at"