Tremendous Trifles

The Shop Of Ghosts

Nearly all the best and most precious things in the universe you can

get for a halfpenny. I make an exception, of course, of the sun,

the moon, the earth, people, stars, thunderstorms, and such trifles.

You can get them for nothing. Also I make an exception of another thing,

which I am not allowed to mention in this paper, and of which

the lowest price is a penny halfpenny. But the general principle

will be at once apparent. In the street behind me, for instance,

you can now get a ride on an electric tram for a halfpenny.

To be on an electric tram is to be on a flying castle in a fairy tale.

You can get quite a large number of brightly coloured sweets for

a halfpenny. Also you can get the chance of reading this article

for a halfpenny; along, of course, with other and irrelevant