Whence they come I know not.

I am a blind man pushed from behind; in vain, I turn about to see what propels me.

As vanity, I regard the praises of my friends; for what they commend pertains not to me, Babbalanja; but to this unknown something that forces me to it.

But why am I, a middle aged Mardian, less prone to excesses than when a youth?
The same inducements and allurements are around me.

But no; my more ardent passions are burned out; those which are strongest when we are least able to resist them.
Thus, then, my lord, it is not so much outer temptations that prevail over us mortals; but inward instincts." "A very curious speculation," said Media.