from the introductory:

Up from Earth's Centre through the
Seventh Gate I rose, and on the
Throne of Saturn sate, And many
a Knot unravel'd by the Road; But
not the Master-knot of Human Fate.

Ah Love! could you and I with Him
conspire To grasp this sorry Scheme
of Things entire, Would not we shatter
it to bits-and then Re-mould it nearer
to the Heart's Desire!
--Omar Khayyam

excerpt from Chapter I:

Along one of the most precipitous of the many Rocky Mountain trails a man and a woman climbed slowly one spring morning. The air was cold, and farther up the mountains little patches of snow lay here and there in the hollows. Two or three miles below them nestled one of the most famous pleasure resorts of the entire region. Three or four times as distant lay the nearest town of any importance. Over the plain and through the clear atmosphere it looked like a bird's-eye-view map rather than an actual town. Far away to the left, gorgeous in coloring [pg. 4]and grotesque in outline, could be seen the odd figures of many strangely piled rocks.

The two pedestrians stopped now and then to rest and look away over the matchless scene and take in its wonderful beauty. The woman was tall and slender, with a superb carriage. Even on that steep ascent she moved with the grace and freedom of one who has entire command of her body. She was well gowned also for such an excursion. Her short, green cloth skirt did not impede her movements, and high, stout shoes gave her firm footing.