5 perlepigraphs - list of Perl release epigraphs
9 Many Perl release announcements included an I<epigraph>, a short excerpt
10 from a literary or other creative work, chosen by the pumpking or release
11 manager. This file assembles the known list of epigraph for posterity,
12 and also links to the release announcements in mailing list archives.
14 I<Note>: these have also been referred to as <epigrams>, but the
15 definition of I<epigraph> is closer to the way they have been used.
16 Consult your favorite dictionary for details.
20 =head2 v5.13.11 - Walt Whitman, L<Leaves of Grass|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leaves_of_Grass>
22 L<Announced on 2011-02-20 by Florian Ragwitz|http://www.xray.mpe.mpg.de/mailing-lists/perl5-porters/2011-03/msg00560.html>
24 When the full-grown poet came,
25 Out spake pleased Nature (the round impassive globe, with all its
26 shows of day and night,) saying, He is mine;
27 But out spake too the Soul of man, proud, jealous and unreconciled,
29 --Then the full-grown poet stood between the two, and took each
31 And to-day and ever so stands, as blender, uniter, tightly holding hands,
32 Which he will never release until he reconciles the two,
33 And wholly and joyously blends them.
35 =head2 v5.13.10 - Egill Skalla-Grímsson, L<Egils saga Skalla-Grímssonar|http://www.heimskringla.no/wiki/Egils_saga_Skalla-Gr%C3%ADmssonar>
37 L<Announced on 2011-02-20 by Ævar Arnfjörð Bjarmason|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2011/02/msg169340.html>
39 Skalat maðr rúnar rísta,
41 Þat verðr mörgum manni,
42 es of myrkvan staf villisk.
46 langs ofrtrega fengit.
48 =head2 v5.13.9 - John F Kennedy, L<Inaugural Address January 20, 1961|http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy%27s_Inaugural_Address>
50 L<Announced on 2011-01-20 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2011/01/msg168335.html>
52 In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been
53 granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I
54 do not shrink from this responsibility -- I welcome it. I do not believe
55 that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other
56 generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this
57 endeavor will light our country and all who serve it. And the glow from
58 that fire can truly light the world.
60 And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you;
61 ask what you can do for your country.
63 My fellow citizens of the world, ask not what America will do for you,
64 but what together we can do for the freedom of man.
66 Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world,
67 ask of us here the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which
68 we ask of you. With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history
69 the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love,
70 asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God's
71 work must truly be our own.
73 =head2 v5.13.8 - Roger Williams, L<"The Fifth Gift"|http://www.kuro5hin.org/story/2005/8/19/21304/8493>
75 L<Announced on 2010-12-19 by Zefram|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/12/msg167271.html>
77 The aliens called the box a "matter generator," but we'd be more inclined
78 to call it a matter duplicator. By connecting switches and potentiometers
79 between the copper posts it was possible to make the box mark off two
80 cubic rectangular areas of volume. Make a certain contact, and these
81 areas would be isolated within perfectly reflective fields. They could
82 be expanded or contracted by altering resistances between other posts.
83 As I worked out the user interface I built a little control panel for
84 the device. It was actually a clever way for the aliens to do things;
85 instead of trying to build controls we could use, they built us an
86 interface we could attach to controls that made sense to us. It could
89 Once you had made the contact that established the shielded volumes,
90 if you made another certain contact the contents of the first volume
91 were copied to the second. The machine copied metal, plastic, steel,
92 and diamond with equal ease. Copies of copies of copies of copies were
93 indistinguishable from the originals at any magnification, even using
94 techniques like X-ray crystallography.
96 =head2 v5.13.7 - Andy Wachowski and Lana Wachowski, 'The Matrix'
98 L<Announced on 2010-11-20 by Chris 'BinGOs' Williams|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/11/msg166162.html>
100 [Neo sees a black cat walk by them, and then a similar black cat walk by them just like the first one]
104 [Everyone freezes right in their tracks]
106 Trinity: What did you just say?
107 Neo: Nothing. Just had a little deja vu.
108 Trinity: What did you see?
109 Cypher: What happened?
110 Neo: A black cat went past us, and then another that looked just like it.
111 Trinity: How much like it? Was it the same cat?
112 Neo: It might have been. I'm not sure.
113 Morpheus: Switch! Apoc!
115 Trinity: A deja vu is usually a glitch in the Matrix. It happens when they change something.
117 =head2 v5.13.6 - Haruki Murakami, "Kafka on the Shore"
119 L<Announced on 2010-10-20 by Tatsuhiko Miyagawa|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/10/msg165183.html>
121 The boy called Crow softly rests a hand on my shoulder, and with that
124 "From now on -- no matter what -- you've got to be the world's toughest
125 fifteen-year-old. That's the only way you're going to survive. And in order
126 to do that, you've got to figure out what it means to be tough. You following
129 I keep my eyes closed and don't reply. I just want to sink off into sleep
130 like this, his hand on my shoulder. I hear the faint flutter of wings.
132 "You're going to be the world's toughest fifteen-year-old," Crow whispers
133 as I try to fall asleep. Like he was carving the words in a deep blue tattoo
136 (Translated from Japanese by Philip Gabriel)
138 =head2 v5.13.5 - Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu, "The Room in the Dragon Volant"
140 L<Announced on 2010-09-19 by Steve Hay|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/09/msg164238.html>
142 Candle in hand I stepped in. I do not know whether the quality of
143 air, long undisturbed, is peculiar; to me it has always seemed so, and
144 the damp smell of the old masonry hung in this atmosphere. My candle
145 faintly lighted the bare stone wall that enclosed the stair, the foot
146 of which I could not see. Down I went, and a few turns brought me to
147 the stone floor. Here was another door, of the simple, old, oak kind,
148 deep sunk in the thickness of the wall. The large end of the key
149 fitted this. The lock was stiff; I set the candle down upon the
150 stair, and applied both hands; it turned with difficulty, and as it
151 revolved, uttered a shriek that alarmed me for my secret.
153 For some minutes I did not move. In a little time, however, I took
154 courage, and opened the door. The night-air floating in puffed out
155 the candle. There was a thicket of holly and underwood, as dense as a
156 jungle, close about the door. I should have been in pitch-darkness,
157 were it not that through the topmost leaves there twinkled, here and
158 there, a glimmer of moonshine.
160 Softly, lest any one should have opened his window at the sound of the
161 rusty bolt, I struggled through this till I gained a view of the open
162 grounds. Here I found that the brushwood spread a good way up the
163 park, uniting with the wood that approached the little temple I have
166 =head2 v5.13.4 - Lewis Carroll, "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"
168 L<Announced on 2010-08-20 by Florian Ragwitz|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/08/msg163150.html>
170 `How the creatures order one about, and make one repeat lessons!' thought Alice;
171 `I might as well be at school at once.' However, she got up, and began to repeat
172 it, but her head was so full of the Lobster Quadrille, that she hardly knew what
173 she was saying, and the words came very queer indeed:--
175 "'Tis the voice of the Lobster; I heard him declare,
176 "You have baked me too brown, I must sugar my hair."
177 As a duck with its eyelids, so he with his nose
178 Trims his belt and his buttons, and turns out his toes.'
181 `That's different from what I used to say when I was a child,' said the Gryphon.
183 `Well, I never heard it before,' said the Mock Turtle; `but it sounds uncommon
186 Alice said nothing; she had sat down with her face in her hands, wondering if
187 anything would ever happen in a natural way again.
189 `I should like to have it explained,' said the Mock Turtle.
191 `She can't explain it,' said the Gryphon hastily. `Go on with the next verse.'
193 `But about his toes?' the Mock Turtle persisted. `How could he turn them out
194 with his nose, you know?'
196 `It's the first position in dancing.' Alice said; but was dreadfully puzzled by
197 the whole thing, and longed to change the subject.
199 =head2 v5.13.3 - Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, "Good Omens"
201 L<Announced on 2010-07-20 by David Golden|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/07/msg162230.html>
203 Look at Crowley, doing 110 mph on the M40 heading towards
204 Oxfordshire. Even the most resolutely casual observer would
205 notice a number of strange things about him. The clenched teeth,
206 for example, or the dull red glow coming from behind his
207 sunglasses. And the car. The car was a definite hint.
209 Crowley had started the journey in his Bentley, and he was
210 dammned if he wasn't going to finish it in the Bentley as well.
211 Not that even the kind of car buff who owns his own pair of
212 motoring goggles would have been able to tell it was a vintage
213 Bentley. Not any more. They wouldn't have been able to tell
214 that it was a Bentley. They would only offer fifty-fifty that it
215 had ever even been a car.
217 There was no paint left on it, for a start. It might still have
218 been black, where it wasn't a rusty, smudged reddish-brown, but
219 this was a dull charcoal black. It traveled in its own ball of
220 flame, like a space capsule making a particularly difficult
223 There was a thin skin of crusted, melted rubber left around the
224 metal wheel rims, but seeing that the wheel rims were still
225 somhow riding an inch above the road surface this didn't seem to
226 make an awful lot of difference to the suspension.
228 It should have fallen apart miles back.
230 =head2 v5.13.2 - Iain M Banks, "Use of Weapons"
232 L<Announced on 2010-06-22 by Matt S Trout|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/06/msg161112.html>
234 We deal in the moral equivalent of black holes, where the normal laws -
235 the rules of right and wrong that people imagine apply everywhere else
236 in the universe - break down; beyond those metaphysical event-horizons,
237 there exist ... special circumstances.
239 =head2 v5.13.1 - Miguel de Unamuno, "The Sepulchre of Don Quixote"
241 L<Announced on 2010-05-20 by Ricardo Signes|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/05/msg160275.html>
243 And if anyone shall come to you and say that he knows how to construct
244 bridges and that perhaps a time will come when you will wish to avail
245 yourself of his science in order to cross over a river, out with him! Out
246 with the engineer! Rivers will be crossed by wading or swimming them, even
247 if half the crusaders drown themselves. Let the engineer go off and build
248 bridges somewhere else, where they are badly wanted. For those who go in
249 quest of the sepulchre, faith is bridge enough.
251 =head2 v5.13.0 - Jules Verne, "A Journey to the Centre of the Earth"
253 L<Announced on 2010-04-20 by LE<0xe9>on Brocard|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/04/msg159275.html>
255 The heat still remained at quite a supportable degree. With an
256 involuntary shudder, I reflected on what the heat must have been
257 when the volcano of Sneffels was pouring its smoke, flames, and
258 streams of boiling lava -- all of which must have come up by the
259 road we were now following. I could imagine the torrents of hot
260 seething stone darting on, bubbling up with accompaniments of
261 smoke, steam, and sulphurous stench!
263 "Only to think of the consequences," I mused, "if the old
264 volcano were once more to set to work."
266 =head2 v5.12.3 - Howard W. Campbell, Jr., "Reflections on Not Participating in Current Events"
268 L<Announced on 2011-01-21 by Ricardo Signes|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2011/01/msg168368.html>
270 I saw a huge steam roller,
271 It blotted out the sun.
272 The people all lay down, lay down;
273 They did not try to run.
274 My love and I, we looked amazed
275 Upon the gory mystery.
276 'Lie down, lie down!' the people cried.
277 'The great machine is history!'
278 My love and I, we ran away,
279 The engine did not find us.
280 We ran up to a mountain top,
281 Left history far behind us.
282 Perhaps we should have stayed and died,
283 But somehow we don't think so.
284 We went to see where history'd been,
285 And my, the dead did stink so.
287 =head2 v5.12.2 - William Gibson, "Pattern Recognition"
289 L<Announced on 2010-09-06 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/09/msg163852.html>
291 CPUs. Cayce Pollard Units. That's what Damien calls the clothing
292 she wears. CPUs are either black, white, or gray, and ideally
293 seem to have come into this world without human intervention.
295 What people take for relentless minimalism is a side effect
296 of too much exposure to the reactor-cores of fashion. This
297 has resulted in a remorseless paring-down of what she can and
298 will wear. She is, literally, allergic to fashion. She can
299 only tolerate things that could have been worn, to a general
300 lack of comment, during any year between 1945 and 2000. She's a
301 design-free zone, a one-woman school of and whose very austerity
302 periodically threatens to spawn its own cult.
304 =head2 v5.12.2-RC1 - William Gibson, "Pattern Recognition"
306 L<Announced on 2010-08-31 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/08/msg163670.html>
308 The front page opens, familiar as a friend's living room. A frame-grab
309 from #48 serves as backdrop, dim and almost monochrome, no characters in
310 view. This is one of the sequences that generate comparisons with
311 Tarkovsky. She only knows Tarkovsky from stills, really, though she did
312 once fall asleep during a screening of The Stalker, going under on an
313 endless pan, the camera aimed straight down, in close-up, at a puddle on
314 a ruined mosaic floor. But she is not one of those who think that much
315 will be gained by analysis of the maker's imagined influences. The cult
316 of the footage is rife with subcults, claiming every possible influence.
317 Truffaut, Peckinpah -- The Peckinpah people, among the least likely, are
318 still waiting for the guns to be drawn.
320 =head2 v5.12.1 - Kurt Vonnegut, "Cat's Cradle"
322 L<Announced on 2010-05-16 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/05/msg160109.html>
324 "Now suppose," chortled Dr. Breed, enjoying himself, "that there were
325 many possible ways in which water could crystallize, could freeze.
326 Suppose that the sort of ice we skate upon and put into highballs --
327 what we might call ice-one -- is only one of several types of ice.
328 Suppose water always froze as ice-one on Earth because it had never
329 had a seed to teach it how to form ice-two, ice-three, ice-four
330 ...? And suppose," he rapped on his desk with his old hand again,
331 "that there were one form, which we will call ice-nine -- a crystal as
332 hard as this desk -- with a melting point of, let us say, one-hundred
333 degrees Fahrenheit, or, better still, a melting point of one-hundred-
336 =head2 v5.12.1-RC2 - Kurt Vonnegut, "Cat's Cradle"
338 L<Announced on 2010-05-13 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/05/msg160066.html>
340 San Lorenzo was fifty miles long and twenty miles wide, I learned from
341 the supplement to the New York Sunday Times. Its population was four
342 hundred, fifty thousand souls, "...all fiercely dedicated to the ideals
345 Its highest point, Mount McCabe, was eleven thousand feet above sea
346 level. Its capital was Bolivar, "...a strikingly modern city built on a
347 harbor capable of sheltering the entire United States Navy." The principal
348 exports were sugar, coffee, bananas, indigo, and handcrafted novelties.
350 =head2 v5.12.1-RC1 - Kurt Vonnegut, "Cat's Cradle"
352 L<Announced on 2010-05-09 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/05/msg159971.html>
354 Which brings me to the Bokononist concept of a wampeter. A wampeter is
355 the pivot of a karass. No karass is without a wampeter, Bokonon tells us,
356 just as no wheel is without a hub. Anything can be a wampeter: a tree,
357 a rock, an animal, an idea, a book, a melody, the Holy Grail. Whatever
358 it is, the members of its karass revolve about it in the majestic chaos
359 of a spiral nebula. The orbits of the members of a karass about their
360 common wampeter are spiritual orbits, naturally. It is souls and not
361 bodies that revolve. As Bokonon invites us to sing:
363 Around and around and around we spin,
364 With feet of lead and wings of tin . . .
366 =head2 v5.12.0 - Lewis Carroll, "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"
368 L<Announced on 2010-04-12 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/04/msg158820.html>
370 'Please would you tell me,' said Alice, a little timidly, for she was
371 not quite sure whether it was good manners for her to speak first, 'why
372 your cat grins like that?'
374 'It's a Cheshire cat,' said the Duchess, 'and that's why. Pig!'
376 She said the last word with such sudden violence that Alice quite
377 jumped; but she saw in another moment that it was addressed to the baby,
378 and not to her, so she took courage, and went on again:--
380 'I didn't know that Cheshire cats always grinned; in fact, I didn't know
381 that cats COULD grin.'
383 'They all can,' said the Duchess; 'and most of 'em do.'
385 =head2 v5.12.0-RC5 - Lewis Carroll, "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"
387 L<Announced on 2010-04-09 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/04/msg158720.html>
389 'Not QUITE right, I'm afraid,' said Alice, timidly; 'some of the words
392 'It is wrong from beginning to end,' said the Caterpillar decidedly, and
393 there was silence for some minutes.
395 =head2 v5.12.0-RC4 - Lewis Carroll, "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"
397 L<Announced on 2010-04-06 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/04/msg158567.html>
399 'It was much pleasanter at home,' thought poor Alice, 'when one wasn't
400 always growing larger and smaller, and being ordered about by mice and
401 rabbits. I almost wish I hadn't gone down that rabbit-hole--and yet--and
402 yet--it's rather curious, you know, this sort of life! I do wonder what
403 can have happened to me! When I used to read fairy-tales, I fancied that
404 kind of thing never happened, and now here I am in the middle of one!
406 =head2 v5.12.0-RC3 - Lewis Carroll, "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"
408 L<Announced on 2010-04-02 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/04/msg158346.html>
410 At last the Mouse, who seemed to be a person of authority among them,
411 called out, 'Sit down, all of you, and listen to me! I'LL soon make you
412 dry enough!' They all sat down at once, in a large ring, with the Mouse
413 in the middle. Alice kept her eyes anxiously fixed on it, for she felt
414 sure she would catch a bad cold if she did not get dry very soon.
416 'Ahem!' said the Mouse with an important air, 'are you all ready? This
417 is the driest thing I know. Silence all round, if you please! "William
418 the Conqueror, whose cause was favoured by the pope, was soon submitted
419 to by the English, who wanted leaders, and had been of late much
420 accustomed to usurpation and conquest. Edwin and Morcar, the earls of
421 Mercia and Northumbria --"'
423 =head2 v5.12.0-RC2 - no announcement
425 Available on CPAN since 2010-04-01.
427 =head2 v5.12.0-RC1 - Lewis Carroll, "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"
429 L<Announced on 2010-03-29 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/03/msg158060.html>
431 So she was considering in her own mind (as well as she could, for the
432 hot day made her feel very sleepy and stupid), whether the pleasure of
433 making a daisy-chain would be worth the trouble of getting up and
434 picking the daisies, when suddenly a White Rabbit with pink eyes ran
437 There was nothing so VERY remarkable in that; nor did Alice think it so
438 VERY much out of the way to hear the Rabbit say to itself, 'Oh dear! Oh
439 dear! I shall be late!' (when she thought it over afterwards, it
440 occurred to her that she ought to have wondered at this, but at the time
441 it all seemed quite natural); but when the Rabbit actually TOOK A WATCH
442 OUT OF ITS WAISTCOAT-POCKET, and looked at it, and then hurried on,
443 Alice started to her feet, for it flashed across her mind that she had
444 never before seen a rabbit with either a waistcoat-pocket, or a watch to
445 take out of it, and burning with curiosity, she ran across the field
446 after it, and fortunately was just in time to see it pop down a large
447 rabbit-hole under the hedge.
449 In another moment down went Alice after it, never once considering how
450 in the world she was to get out again.
452 =head2 v5.12.0-RC0 - no epigraph
454 L<Announced on 2020-03-21 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/03/msg157761.html>
456 =head2 v5.11.5 - Samuel Taylor Coleridge, "Christabel"
458 L<Announced on 2010-02-21 by Steve Hay|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/02/msg156957.html>
460 A little child, a limber elf,
461 Singing, dancing to itself,
462 A fairy thing with red round cheeks,
463 That always finds, and never seeks,
464 Makes such a vision to the sight
465 As fills a father's eyes with light;
466 And pleasures flow in so thick and fast
467 Upon his heart, that he at last
468 Must needs express his love's excess
469 With words of unmeant bitterness.
470 Perhaps 'tis pretty to force together
471 Thoughts so all unlike each other;
472 To mutter and mock a broken charm,
473 To dally with wrong that does no harm.
474 Perhaps 'tis tender too and pretty
475 At each wild word to feel within
476 A sweet recoil of love and pity.
477 And what, if in a world of sin
478 (O sorrow and shame should this be true!)
479 Such giddiness of heart and brain
480 Comes seldom save from rage and pain,
481 So talks as it's most used to do.
483 =head2 v5.11.4 - Fyodor Dostoevsky, "Crime and Punishment"
485 L<Announced on 2010-01-20 by Ricardo Signes|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2010/01/msg155848.html>
487 And you don't suppose that I went into it headlong like a fool? I went
488 into it like a wise man, and that was just my destruction. And you
489 mustn't suppose that I didn't know, for instance, that if I began to
490 question myself whether I had the right to gain power -- I certainly
491 hadn't the right -- or that if I asked myself whether a human being is a
492 louse it proved that it wasn't so for me, though it might be for a man
493 who would go straight to his goal without asking questions.... If I
494 worried myself all those days, wondering whether Napoleon would have
495 done it or not, I felt clearly of course that I wasn't Napoleon.
497 =head2 v5.11.3 - Mark Twain, "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer"
499 L<Announced on 2009-12-20 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2009/12/msg154838.html>
501 "Say -- I'm going in a swimming, I am. Don't you wish you could? But of
502 course you'd druther work -- wouldn't you? Course you would!"
504 Tom contemplated the boy a bit, and said: "What do you call work?"
506 "Why ain't that work?"
508 Tom resumed his whitewashing, and answered carelessly: "Well, maybe it
509 is, and maybe it aint. All I know, is, it suits Tom Sawyer."
511 "Oh come, now, you don't mean to let on that you like it?"
513 The brush continued to move. "Like it? Well I don't see why I oughtn't
514 to like it. Does a boy get a chance to whitewash a fence every day?"
516 That put the thing in a new light. Ben stopped nibbling his apple. Tom
517 swept his brush daintily back and forth -- stepped back to note the effect
518 -- added a touch here and there-criticised the effect again -- Ben
519 watching every move and getting more and more interested, more and more
520 absorbed. Presently he said: "Say, Tom, let me whitewash a little."
522 =head2 v5.11.2 - Michael Marshall Smith, "Only Forward"
524 L<Announced on 2009-11-20 by |http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2009/11/msg153646.html>
526 The streets were pretty quiet, which was nice. They're always quiet here
527 at that time: you have to be wearing a black jacket to be out on the
528 streets between seven and nine in the evening, and not many people in
529 the area have black jackets. It's just one of those things. I currently
530 live in Colour Neighbourhood, which is for people who are heavily into
531 colour. All the streets and buildings are set for instant colourmatch:
532 as you walk down the road they change hue to offset whatever you're
533 wearing. When the streets are busy it's kind of intense, and anyone
534 prone to epileptic seizures isn't allowed to live in the Neighbourhood,
535 however much they're into colour.
537 =head2 v5.11.1 - Joseph Heller, "Catch-22"
539 L<Announced on 2009-10-20 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2009/10/msg152360.html>
541 Milo had been caught red-handed in the act of plundering his countrymen,
542 and, as a result, his stock had never been higher. He proved good as his
543 word when a rawboned major from Minnesota curled his lip in rebellious
544 disavowal and demanded his share of the syndicate Milo kept saying
545 everybody owned. Milo met the challenge by writing the words "A Share"
546 on the nearest scrap of paper and handing it away with a virtuous disdain
547 that won the envy and admiration of almost everyone who knew him. His
548 glory was at a peak, and Colonel Cathcart, who knew and admired his
549 war record, was astonished by the deferential humility with which Mil
550 presented himself at Group Headquarters and made his fantastic appeal
551 for more hazardous assignment.
553 =head2 v5.11.0 - Mikhail Bulgakov, "The Master and Margarita"
555 L<Announced on 2009-10-02 by Jesse Vincent|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2009/10/msg151376.html>
557 Whispers of an "evil power" were heard in lines at dairy shops, in
558 streetcars, stores, arguments, kitchens, suburban and long-distance
559 trains, at stations large and small, in dachas and on beaches. Needless
560 to say, truly mature and cultured people did not tell these stories
561 about an evil power's visit to the capital. In fact, they even made fun
562 of them and tried to talk sense into those who told them. Nevertheless,
563 facts are facts, as they say, and cannot simply be dismissed without
564 explanation: somebody had visited the capital. The charred cinders of
565 Griboyedov alone, and many other things besides, confirmed it. Cultured
566 people shared the point of view of the investigating team: it was the
567 work of a gang of hypnotists and ventriloquists magnificently skilled in
570 =head2 v5.10.1 - Right Hon. James Hacker MP, "The Complete Yes Minister: The Diaries of a Cabinet Minister"
572 L<Announced on 2009-09-23 by Dave Mitchell|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2009/08/msg150172.html>
574 'Briefly, sir, I am the Permanent Under-Secretary of State, known as
575 the Permanent Secretary. Woolley here is your Principal Private
576 Secretary. I, too, have a Principal Private Secretary, and he is the
577 Principal Private Secretary to the Permanent Secretary. Directly
578 responsible to me are ten Deputy Secretaries, eighty-seven Under
579 Secretaries and two hundred and nineteen Assistant Secretaries.
580 Directly responsible to the Principal Private Secretaries are plain
581 Private Secretaries. The Prime Minister will be appointing two
582 Parliamentary Under-Secretaries and you will be appointing your own
583 Parliamentary Private Secretary.'
585 'Can they all type?' I joked.
587 'None of us can type, Minister,' replied Sir Humphrey smoothly. 'Mrs
588 McKay types - she is your Secretary.'
590 I couldn't tell whether or not he was joking. 'What a pity,' I said.
591 'We could have opened an agency.'
593 Sir Humphrey and Bernard laughed. 'Very droll, sir,' said Sir
594 Humphrey. 'Most amusing, sir,' said Bernard. Were they genuinely
595 amused at my wit, or just being rather patronising? 'I suppose they
596 all say that, do they?' I ventured.
598 Sir Humphrey reassured me on that. 'Certainly not, Minister,' he
599 replied. 'Not quite all.'
601 =head2 v5.10.1-RC2 - no epigraph
603 L<Announced on 2009-08-18 by Dave Mitchell|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2009/08/msg150015.html>
605 =head2 v5.10.1-RC1 - no epigraph
607 L<Announced on 2009-08-06 by Dave Mitchell|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2009/08/msg149498.html>
609 =head2 v5.10.0 - Laurence Sterne, "Tristram Shandy"
611 L<Announced on 2007-12-18 by Rafael Garcia-Suarez|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2007/12/msg131636.html>
613 He would often declare, in speaking his thoughts upon the subject, that
614 he did not conceive how the greatest family in England could stand it
615 out against an uninterrupted succession of six or seven short
616 noses.--And for the contrary reason, he would generally add, That it
617 must be one of the greatest problems in civil life, where the same
618 number of long and jolly noses, following one another in a direct line,
619 did not raise and hoist it up into the best vacancies in the kingdom.
621 =head2 v5.10.0-RC2 - no epigraph
623 L<Announced on 2007-11-25 by Rafael Garcia-Suarez|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2007/11/msg130978.html>
625 =head2 v5.10.0-RC1 - no epigraph
627 L<Announced on 2007-11-17 by Rafael Garcia-Suarez|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2007/11/msg130653.html>
629 =head2 v5.9.5 - no announcement
631 L<Pre-announced on 2007-07-07 by Rafael Garcia-Suarez|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2007/07/msg126358.html>,
632 available on CPAN with same date, but never actually announced.
634 =head2 v5.9.4 - no epigraph
636 L<Announced on 2006-08-15 by Rafael Garcia-Suarez|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2006/08/msg115782.html>
638 =head2 v5.9.3 - no epigraph
640 L<Announced on 2006-01-28 by Rafael Garcia-Suarez|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2006/01/msg109086.html>
642 =head2 v5.9.2 - Thomas Pynchon, "V"
644 L<Announced on 2005-04-01 by Rafael Garcia-Suarez|http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=20050401150702.2b4a70d5@grubert.mandrakesoft.com>
646 This word flip was weird. Every recording date of McClintic's he'd
647 gotten into the habit of talking electricity with the audio men and
648 technicians of the studio. McClintic once couldn't have cared less
649 about electricity, but now it seemed if that was helping him reach a
650 bigger audience, some digging, some who would never dig, but all
651 paying and those royalties keeping the Triumph in gas and McClintic
652 in J. Press suits, then McClintic ought to be grateful to
653 electricity, ought maybe to learn a little more about it. So he'd
654 picked up some here and there, and one day last summer he got around
655 to talking stochastic music and digital computers with one
656 technician. Out of the conversation had come Set/Reset, which was
657 getting to be a signature for the group. He had found out from this
658 sound man about a two-triode circuit called a flip-flop, which when
659 it turned on could be one of two ways, depending on which tube was
660 conducting and which was cut off: set or reset, flip or flop.
662 "And that," the man said, "can be yes or no, or one or zero. And
663 that is what you might call one of the basic units, or specialized
664 `cells' in a big `electronic brain.' "
666 "Crazy," said McClintic, having lost him back there someplace. But
667 one thing that did occur to him was if a computer's brain could go
668 flip or flop, why so could a musician's. As long as you were flop,
669 everything was cool. But where did the trigger-pulse come from to
672 =head2 v5.9.1 - Tom Stoppard, "Arcadia"
674 L<Announced on 2004-03-16 by Rafael Garcia-Suarez|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/8587d77c565f2d43>
676 Aren't you supposed to have a pony?
678 =head2 v5.9.0 - Doris Lessing, "Martha Quest"
680 L<Announced on 2003-10-27 by Rafael Garcia-Suarez|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/63a8c34385de82a1>
682 What of October, that ambiguous month
684 =head2 v5.8.9 - Right Hon. James Hacker MP, "The Complete Yes Minister: The Diaries of a Cabinet Minister"
686 L<Announced on 2008-12-14 by Nicholas Clark|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2008/12/msg142571.html>
688 Frank and I, unlike the civil servants, were still puzzled that such a
689 proposal as the Europass could even be seriously under consideration by
690 the FCO. We can both see clearly that it is wonderful ammunition for the
691 anti-Europeans. I asked Humphrey if the Foreign Office doesn't realise
692 how damaging this would be to the European ideal?
694 'I'm sure they do, Minister, he said. That's why they support it.'
696 This was even more puzzling, since I'd always been under the impression
697 that the FO is pro-Europe. 'Is it or isn't it?' I asked Humphrey.
699 'Yes and no,' he replied of course, 'if you'll pardon the
700 expression. The Foreign Office is pro-Europe because it is really
701 anti-Europe. In fact the Civil Service was united in its desire to make
702 sure the Common Market didn't work. That's why we went into it.'
704 This sounded like a riddle to me. I asked him to explain further. And
705 basically his argument was as follows: Britain has had the same foreign
706 policy objective for at least the last five hundred years - to create a
707 disunited Europe. In that cause we have fought with the Dutch against
708 the Spanish, with the Germans against the French, with the French and
709 Italians against the Germans, and with the French against the Italians
710 and Germans. [The Dutch rebellion against Phillip II of Spain, the
711 Napoleonic Wars, the First World War, and the Second World War - Ed.]
713 In other words, divide and rule. And the Foreign Office can see no
714 reason to change when it has worked so well until now.
716 I was aware of this, naturally, but I regarded it as ancient history.
717 Humphrey thinks that it is, in fact, current policy. It was necessary
718 for us to break up the EEC, he explained, so we had to get inside. We
719 had previously tried to break it up from the outside, but that didn't
720 work. [A reference to our futile and short-lived involvement in EFTA,
721 the European Free Trade Association, founded in 1960 and which the UK
722 left in 1972 - Ed.] Now that we're in, we are able to make a complete
723 pig's breakfast out of it. We've now set the Germans against the French,
724 the French against the Italians, the Italians against the Dutch... and
725 the Foreign office is terribly happy. It's just like old time.
727 I was staggered by all of this. I thought that the all of us who are
728 publicly pro-European believed in the European ideal. I said this to Sir
729 Humphrey, and he simply chuckled.
731 So I asked him: if we don't believe in the European Ideal, why are we
732 pushing to increase the membership?
734 'Same reason,' came the reply. 'It's just like the United Nations. The
735 more members it has, the more arguments you can stir up, and the more
736 futile and impotent it becomes.'
738 This all strikes me as the most appalling cynicism, and I said so.
740 Sir Humphrey agreed completely. 'Yes Minister. We call it
741 diplomacy. It's what made Britain great, you know.'
743 =head2 v5.8.9-RC2 - Right Hon. James Hacker MP, "The Complete Yes Minister: The Diaries of a Cabinet Minister"
745 L<Announced on 2008-12-06 by Nicholas Clark|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2008/11/msg142422.html>
747 There was silence in the office. I didn't know what we were going to do
748 about the four hundred new people supervising our economy drive or the
749 four hundred new people for the Bureaucratic Watchdog Office, or
750 anything! I simply sat and waited and hoped that my head would stop
751 thumping and that some idea would be suggested by someone sometime soon.
753 Sir Humphrey obliged. 'Minister... if we were to end the economy drive
754 and close the Bureaucratic Watchdog Office we could issue an immediate
755 press announcement that you had axed eight hundred jobs.' He had
756 obviously thought this out carefully in advance, for at this moment he
757 produced a slim folder from under his arm. 'If you'd like to approve
760 I couldn't believe the impertinence of the suggestion. Axed eight
761 hundred jobs? 'But no one was ever doing these jobs,' I pointed out
762 incredulously. 'No one's been appointed yet.'
764 'Even greater economy,' he replied instantly. 'We've saved eight hundred
765 redundancy payments as well.'
767 'But...' I attempted to explain '... that's just phony. It's dishonest,
768 it's juggling with figures, it's pulling the wool over people's eyes.'
770 'A government press release, in fact.' said Humphrey.
772 =head2 v5.8.9-RC1 - Right Hon. James Hacker MP, "The Complete Yes Minister: The Diaries of a Cabinet Minister"
774 L<Announced on 2008-11-10 by Nicholas Clark|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2008/11/msg141515.html>
776 A jumbo jet touched down, with BURANDAN AIRWAYS written on the side. I
777 was hugely impressed. British Airways are having to pawn their Concordes,
778 and here is this little tiny African state with its own airline, jumbo
781 I asked Bernard how many planes Burandan Airways had. 'None,' he said.
783 I told him not to be silly and use his eyes. 'No Minister, it belongs to
784 Freddie Laker,' he said. 'They chartered it last week and repainted it
785 specially.' Apparently most of the Have-Nots (I mean, LDCs) do this - at
786 the opening of the UN General Assembly the runways of Kennedy Airport are
787 jam-packed with phoney flag-carriers. 'In fact,' said Bernard with a sly
788 grin, 'there was one 747 that belonged to nine different African airlines
789 in a month. They called it the mumbo-jumbo.'
791 While we watched nothing much happening on the TV except the mumbo-jumbo
792 taxiing around Prestwick and the Queen looking a bit chilly, Bernard gave
793 me the next day's schedule and explained that I was booked on the night
794 sleeper from King's Cross to Edinburgh because I had to vote in a
795 three-line whip at the House tonight and would have to miss the last
796 plane. Then the commentator, in that special hushed BBC voice used for any
797 occasion with which Royalty is connected, announced reverentially that we
798 were about to catch our first glimpse of President Selim.
800 And out of the plane stepped Charlie. My old friend Charlie Umtali. We
801 were at LSE together. Not Selim Mohammed at all, but Charlie.
803 Bernard asked me if I were sure. Silly question. How could you forget a
804 name like Charlie Umtali?
806 I sent Bernard for Sir Humphrey, who was delighted to hear that we now
807 know something about our official visitor.
809 Bernard's official brief said nothing. Amazing! Amazing how little the FCO
810 has been able to find out. Perhaps they were hoping it would all be on the
811 car radio. All the brief says is that Colonel Selim Mohammed had converted
812 to Islam some years ago, they didn't know his original name, and therefore
813 knew little of his background.
815 I was able to tell Humphrey and Bernard /all/ about his background.
816 Charlie was a red-hot political economist, I informed them. Got the top
817 first. Wiped the floor with everyone.
819 Bernard seemed relieved. 'Well that's all right then.'
823 'I think Bernard means,' said Sir Humphrey helpfully, 'that he'll know how
824 to behave if he was at an English University. Even if it was the LSE.' I
825 never know whether or not Humphrey is insulting me intentionally.
827 Humphrey was concerned about Charlie's political colour. 'When you said
828 that he was red-hot, were you speaking politically?'
830 In a way I was. 'The thing about Charlie is that you never quite know
831 where you are with him. He's the sort of chap who follows you into a
832 revolving door and comes out in front.'
834 'No deeply held convictions?' asked Sir Humphrey.
836 'No. The only thing Charlie was committed too was Charlie.'
838 'Ah, I see. A politician, Minister.'
840 =head2 v5.8.8 - Joe Raposo, "Bein' Green"
842 L<Announced on 2006-02-01 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/28caf52e41ebe723>
844 It's not that easy bein' green
845 Having to spend each day the color of the leaves
846 When I think it could be nicer being red or yellow or gold
847 Or something much more colorful like that
849 It's not easy bein' green
850 It seems you blend in with so many other ordinary things
851 And people tend to pass you over 'cause you're
852 Not standing out like flashy sparkles in the water
855 But green's the color of Spring
856 And green can be cool and friendly-like
857 And green can be big like an ocean
858 Or important like a mountain
861 When green is all there is to be
862 It could make you wonder why, but why wonder why?
863 Wonder I am green and it'll do fine, it's beautiful
864 And I think it's what I want to be
866 =head2 v5.8.8-RC1 - Cosgrove Hall Productions, "Dangermouse"
868 L<Announced on 2006-01-20 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/d231fc554af8cc51>
870 Greenback: And the world is mine, all mine. Muhahahahaha. See to it!
872 Stiletto: Si, Barone. Subito, Barone.
874 =head2 v5.8.7 - Sergei Prokofiev, "Peter and the Wolf"
876 L<Announced on 2005-05-31 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/9a545704a0062f16>
878 And now, imagine the triumphant procession: Peter at the head; after him the
879 hunters leading the wolf; and winding up the procession, grandfather and the
882 Grandfather shook his head discontentedly: "Well, and if Peter hadn't caught
883 the wolf? What then?"
885 =head2 v5.8.7-RC1 - Sergei Prokofiev, "Peter and the Wolf"
887 L<Announced on 2005-05-20 by Nicholas Clark|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2005/05/msg100711.html>
889 And now this is how things stood: The cat was sitting on one branch. The
890 bird on another, not too close to the cat. And the wolf walked round and
891 round the tree, looking at them with greedy eyes.
893 In the meantime, Peter, without the slightest fear, stood behind the
894 gate, watching all that was going on. He ran home,got a strong rope and
895 climbed up the high stone wall.
897 One of the branches of the tree, around which the wolf was walking,
898 stretched out over the wall.
900 Grabbing hold of the branch, Peter lightly climbed over on to the tree.
901 Peter said to the bird: "Fly down and circle round the wolf's head, only
902 take care that he doesn't catch you!".
904 The bird almost touched the wolf's head with its wings, while the wolf
905 snapped angrily at him from this side and that.
907 How that bird teased the wolf, how that wolf wanted to catch him! But
908 the bird was clever and the wolf simply couldn't do anything about it.
910 =head2 v5.8.6 - A. A. Milne, "The House at Pooh Corner"
912 L<Announced on 2004-11-28 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=20041128000836.GA304@Bagpuss.unfortu.net>
914 "Hallo, Pooh," said Piglet, giving a jump of surprise. "I knew it was
917 "So did I,", said Pooh. "What are you doing?"
919 "I'm planting a haycorn, Pooh, so that it can grow up into an oak-tree,
920 and have lots of haycorns just outside the front door instead of having
921 to walk miles and miles, do you see, Pooh?"
923 "Supposing it doesn't?" said Pooh.
925 "It will, because Christopher Robin says it will, so that's why I'm
928 "Well," aid Pooh, "if I plant a honeycomb outside my house, then it will
929 grow up into a beehive."
931 Piglet wasn't quite sure about this.
933 "Or a /piece/ of a honeycomb," said Pooh, "so as not to waste too much.
934 Only then I might only get a piece of a beehive, and it might be the
935 wrong piece, where the bees were buzzing and not hunnying. Bother"
937 Piglet agreed that that would be rather bothering.
939 "Besides, Pooh, it's a very difficult thing, planting unless you know
940 how to do it," he said; and he put the acorn in the hole he had made,
941 and covered it up with earth, and jumped on it.
943 =head2 v5.8.6-RC1 - A. A. Milne, "Winnie the Pooh"
945 L<Announced on 2004-11-11 by Nicholas Clark|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2004/11/msg95786.html>
947 "Hallo!" said Piglet, "whare are /you/ doing?"
949 "Hunting," said Pooh.
953 "Tracking something," said Winnie-the-Pooh very mysteriously.
955 "Tracking what?" said Piglet, coming closer.
957 "That's just what I ask myself, I ask myself, What?"
959 "What do you think you'll answer?"
961 "I shall have to wait until I catch up with it," said Winnie-the-Pooh.
962 "Now, look there." He pointed to the ground in front of him. "What do
965 "Track," said Piglet. "Paw-marks." He gave a little squeak of
966 excitement. "Oh, Pooh!" Do you think it's a--a--a Woozle?"
968 =head2 v5.8.5 - wikipedia, "Yew"
970 L<Announced on 2004-07-19 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/68340e2e4c39222c>
972 Yews are relatively slow growing trees, widely used in landscaping and
973 ornamental horticulture. They have flat, dark-green needles, reddish
974 bark, and bear seeds with red arils, which are eaten by thrushes,
975 waxwings and other birds, dispersing the hard seeds undamaged in their
976 droppings. Yew wood is reddish brown (with white sapwood), and very
977 hard. It was traditionally used to make bows, especially the English
980 In England, the Common Yew (Taxus baccata, also known as English Yew) is
981 often found in churchyards. It is sometimes suggested that these are
982 placed there as a symbol of long life or trees of death, and some are
983 likely to be over 3,000 years old. It is also suggested that yew trees
984 may have a pre-Christian association with old pagan holy sites, and the
985 Christian church found it expedient to use and take over existing sites.
986 Another explanation is that the poisonous berries and foliage discourage
987 farmers and drovers from letting their animals wander into the burial
988 grounds. The yew tree is a frequent symbol in the Christian poetry of
989 T.S. Eliot, especially his Four Quartets.
991 =head2 v5.8.5-RC2 - wikipedia, "Beech"
993 L<Announced on 2004-07-09 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/f92175725af7a5ad>
995 Beeches are trees of the Genus Fagus, family Fagaceae, including about
996 ten species in Europe, Asia, and North America. The leaves are entire or
997 sparsely toothed. The fruit is a small, sharply-angled nut, borne in
998 pairs in spiny husks. The beech most commonly grown as an ornamental or
999 shade tree is the European beech (Fagus sylvatica).
1001 The southern beeches belong to a different but related genus,
1002 Nothofagus. They are found in Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea, New
1003 Caledonia and South America.
1005 =head2 v5.8.5-RC1 - wikipedia, "Pedunculate Oak" (abridged)
1007 L<Announced on 2004-07-07 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/ca6ce4a7ed9f219c?pli=1>
1009 The Pedunculate Oak is called the Common Oak in Britain, and is also
1010 often called the English Oak in other English speaking countries It is a
1011 large deciduous tree to 25-35m tall (exceptionally to 40m), with lobed
1012 and sessile (stalk-less) leaves. Flowering takes place in early to mid
1013 spring, and their fruit, called "acorns", ripen by autumn of the same
1014 year. The acorns are pedunculate (having a peduncle or acorn-stalk) and
1015 may occur singly, or several acorns may occur on a stalk.
1017 It forms a long-lived tree, with a large widespreading head of rugged
1018 branches. While it may naturally live to an age of a few centuries, many
1019 of the oldest trees are pollarded or coppiced, both pruning techniques
1020 that extend the tree's potential lifespan, if not its health.
1022 Within its native range it is valued for its importance to insects and
1023 other wildlife. Numerous insects live on the leaves, buds, and in the
1024 acorns. The acorns form a valuable food resource for several small
1025 mammals and some birds, notably Jays Garrulus glandarius.
1027 It is planted for forestry, and produces a long-lasting and durable
1028 heartwood, much in demand for interior and furniture work.
1030 =head2 v5.8.4 - T. S. Eliot, "The Old Gumbie Cat"
1032 L<Announced on 2004-04-22 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/c7333acf03ef4015>
1034 I have a Gumbie Cat in mind, her name is Jennyanydots;
1035 The curtain-cord she likes to wind, and tie it into sailor-knots.
1036 She sits upon the window-sill, or anything that's smooth and flat:
1037 She sits and sits and sits and sits -- and that's what makes a Gumbie Cat!
1039 But when the day's hustle and bustle is done,
1040 Then the Gumbie Cat's work is but hardly begun.
1041 She thinks that the cockroaches just need employment
1042 To prevent them from idle and wanton destroyment.
1043 So she's formed, from that a lot of disorderly louts,
1044 A troop of well-disciplined helpful boy-scouts,
1045 With a purpose in life and a good deed to do--
1046 And she's even created a Beetles' Tattoo.
1048 So for Old Gumbie Cats let us now give three cheers --
1049 On whom well-ordered households depend, it appears.
1052 =head2 v5.8.4-RC2 - T. S. Eliot, "Macavity: The Mystery Cat"
1054 L<Announced on 2004-04-16 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/84f6fdd73cc56a1b>
1056 Macavity's a Mystery Cat: he's called the Hidden Paw --
1057 For he's the master criminal who can defy the Law.
1058 He's the bafflement of Scotland Yard, the Flying Squad's despair:
1059 For when they reach the scene of crime -- /Macavity's not there/!
1061 Macavity, Macavity, there's no one like Macavity,
1062 He's broken every human law, he breaks the law of gravity.
1063 His powers of levitation would make a fakir stare,
1064 And when you reach the scene of crime -- /Macavity's not there/!
1065 You may seek him in the basement, you may look up in the air --
1066 But I tell you once and once again, /Macavity's not there/!
1068 =head2 v5.8.4-RC1 - T. S. Eliot, "Skimbleshanks: The Railway Cat"
1070 L<Announced on 2004-04-05 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/e500353440769ebf>
1072 There's a whisper down the line at 11.39
1073 When the Night Mail's ready to depart,
1074 Saying 'Skimble where is Skimble has he gone to hunt the thimble?
1075 We must find him of the train can't start.'
1076 All the guards and all the porters and the stationmaster's daughters
1077 They are searching high and low,
1078 Saying 'Skimble where is Skimble for unless he's very nimble
1079 Then the Night Mail just can't go'
1080 At 11.42 then the signal's overdue
1081 And the passengers are frantic to a man--
1082 Then Skimble will appear and he'll saunter to the rear:
1083 He's been busy in the luggage van!
1084 He gives one flash of his glass-green eyes
1085 And the the signal goes 'All Clear!'
1086 And we're off at last of the northern part
1087 Of the Northern Hemisphere!
1089 =head2 v5.8.3 - Arthur William Edgar O'Shaugnessy, "Ode"
1091 L<Announced on 2004-01-14 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/968fb8d71e23af69>
1093 We are the music makers,
1094 And we are the dreamers of dreams,
1095 Wandering by lonely sea-breakers,
1096 And sitting by desolate streams; --
1097 World-losers and world-forsakers,
1098 On whom the pale moon gleams:
1099 Yet we are the movers and shakers
1100 Of the world for ever, it seems.
1102 =head2 v5.8.3-RC1 - Irving Berlin, "Let's Face the Music and Dance"
1104 L<Announced on 2004-01-07 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/5ced50bebcd11c96>
1106 There may be trouble ahead,
1107 But while there's music and moonlight,
1108 And love and romance,
1109 Let's face the music and dance.
1111 Before the fiddlers have fled,
1112 Before they ask us to pay the bill,
1113 And while we still have that chance,
1114 Let's face the music and dance.
1116 Soon, we'll be without the moon,
1117 Humming a different tune, and then,
1119 There may be teardrops to shed,
1120 So while there's music and moonlight,
1121 And love and romance,
1122 Let's face the music and dance.
1124 =head2 v5.8.2 - Walt Whitman, "Passage to India"
1126 L<Announced on 2003-11-06 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/4714574f93967673>
1128 Passage, immediate passage! the blood burns in my veins!
1129 Away O soul! hoist instantly the anchor!
1130 Cut the hawsers - hall out - shake out every sail!
1131 Have we not stood here like trees in the ground long enough?
1132 Have we not grovel'd here long enough, eating and drinking like mere brutes?
1133 Have we not darken'd and dazed ourselves with books long enough?
1135 Sail forth - steer for the deep waters only,
1136 Reckless O soul, exploring, I with the and thou with me,
1137 For we are bound where mariner has not yet dared to go,
1138 And we will risk the ship, ourselves and all.
1141 O farther farther sail!
1142 O daring job, but safe! are they not all the seas of God?
1143 O farther, farther, farther sail!
1145 =head2 v5.8.2-RC2 - Eric Idle/John Du Prez, "Accountancy Shanty"
1147 L<Announced on 2003-11-03 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/7669de5804b792f6>
1149 It's fun to charter an accountant
1150 And sail the wide accountan-cy,
1151 To find, explore the funds offshore
1152 And skirt the shoals of bankruptcy.
1154 =head2 v5.8.2-RC1 - Edward Lear, "The Jumblies"
1156 L<Announced on 2003-10-28 by Nicholas Clark|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/83680ef3bbf7378d>
1158 They went to sea in a Sieve, they did,
1159 In a Sieve they went to sea:
1160 In spite of all their friends could say,
1161 On a winter's morn, on a stormy day,
1162 In a Sieve they went to sea!
1163 And when the Sieve turned round and round,
1164 And everyone cried, "You'll all be drowned!"
1165 They cried aloud, "Our Sieve ain't big,
1166 But we don't care a button, we don't care a fig!
1167 In a Sieve we'll go to sea!"
1169 Far and few, far and few,
1170 Are the lands where the Jumblies live;
1171 Their heads are green, and their hands are blue,
1172 And they went to sea in a Sieve.
1174 =head2 v5.8.1 - epigraph same as v5.7.1
1176 L<Announced on 2003-09-25 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2003/09/msg82678.html>
1178 =head2 v5.8.1-RC5 - Terry Pratchett, "Lords and Ladies"
1180 L<Announced on 2003-09-22 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2003/09/msg82476.html>
1182 No matter what she did with her hair it took about
1183 three minutes for it to tangle itself up again,
1184 like a garden hosepipe in a shed [Footnote: Which,
1185 no matter how carefully coiled, will always uncoil
1186 overnight and tie the lawnmower to the bicycles].
1188 =head2 v5.8.1-RC4 - Terry Pratchett, "Interesting Times"
1190 L<Announced on 2003-08-01 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2003/08/msg79184.html>
1192 Grand Viziers were /always/ scheming megalomaniacs.
1193 It was probably in the job description: "Are you a
1194 devious, plotting, unreliable madman? Ah, good,
1195 then you can be my most trusted minister."
1197 =head2 v5.8.1-RC3 - Terry Pratchett, "Interesting Times"
1199 L<Announced on 2003-07-30 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2003/07/msg79048.html>
1201 Lord Hong had a mind like a knife, although possibly
1202 a knife with a curved blade.
1204 =head2 v5.8.1-RC2 - Terry Pratchett, "Interesting Times"
1206 L<Announced on 2003-07-11 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2003/07/msg78102.html>
1208 Many an ancient lord's last words had been, "You can't kill
1209 me because I've got magic aaargh."
1211 =head2 v5.8.1-RC1 - Terry Pratchett, "Interesting Times"
1213 L<Announced on 2003-07-10 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2003/07/msg78009.html>
1215 Cohen was familiar with city gates. He'd broken down a number
1216 in his time, by battering ram, siege gun, and on one occasion
1219 But the gates of Hunghung were pretty damn good gates. They
1220 weren't like the gates of Ankh-Morpork, which were usually wide
1221 open to attract the spending customer and whose concession to
1222 defense was the sign "Thank You For Not Attacking Our City.
1223 Bonum Diem." These things were big and made of metal and there
1224 was a guardhouse and a squad of unhelpful men in black armor.
1226 =head2 v5.8.0 - Terry Pratchett, "Reaper Man"
1228 L<Announced on 2002-07-18 by Rafael Garcia-Suarez|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2002/07/msg63720.html>
1230 There was the faint sound of footsteps.
1231 "Chap with a whip got as far as the big sharp spikes last week,"
1232 said the low priest.
1233 There was a sound like the flushing of a very old dry lavatory.
1234 The footsteps stopped. The High Priest smiled to himself.
1235 "Right," he said. "See your two pebbles and raise you two pebbles."
1236 The low priest threw down his cards. "Double Onion," he said.
1237 The High Priest looked down suspiciously.
1238 The low priest consulted a scrap of paper. "That's three hundred
1239 thousand, nine hundred and sixty-four pebbles you owe me," he said.
1240 There was the sound of footsteps. The priests exchanged glances.
1241 "Haven't had one for poisoned-dart alley for quite some time,"
1242 said the High Priest.
1243 "Five says he makes it", said the low priest. "You're on."
1244 There was a faint clatter of metal points on stone.
1245 "It's a shame to take your pebbles."
1246 There were footsteps again.
1248 =head2 v5.8.0-RC3 - no epigraph
1250 L<Announced on 2002-07-13 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2002/07/msg63234.html>
1252 =head2 v5.8.0-RC2 - no epigraph
1254 L<Announced on 2002-06-21 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2002/06/msg62013.html>
1256 =head2 v5.8.0-RC1 - no epigraph
1258 L<Announced on 2002-06-01 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2002/06/msg60317.html>
1260 =head2 v5.7.3 - Terry Pratchett, "Reaper Man"
1262 L<Announced on 2002-03-04 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2002/03/msg53652.html>
1264 Light thinks it travels faster than anything but it is wrong.
1265 No matter how fast light travels it finds the darkness has always
1266 got there first, and is waiting for it.
1268 =head2 v5.7.2 - Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"
1270 L<Announced on 2001-07-13 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2001/07/msg40370.html>
1272 His philosophy was a mixture of three famous schools --
1273 the Cynics, the Stoics and the Epicureans -- and summed up
1274 all three of them in his famous phrase, "You can't trust any
1275 bugger further than you can throw him, and there's nothing
1276 you can do about it, so let's have a drink."
1278 =head2 v5.7.1 - Terry Pratchett, "The Colour of Magic"
1280 L<Announced on 2001-07-13 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2001/04/msg33851.html>
1282 "What happens next?" asked Twoflower.
1284 Hrun screwed a finger in his ear and inspected it absently.
1286 "Oh,", he said, "I expect in a minute the door will be
1287 flung back and I'll be dragged off to some sort of temple
1288 arena where I'll fight maybe a couple of giant spiders
1289 and an eight-foot slave from the jungles of Klatch and then
1290 I'll rescue some kind of a princess from the altar and then
1291 I'll kill off a few guards or whatever and then this girl
1292 will show me the secret passage out of the place and we'll
1293 liberate a couple of horses and escape with the treasure."
1294 Hrun leaned his head back on his hands and looked at the
1295 ceiling, whistling tunelessly.
1297 "All that?" said Twoflower.
1301 =head2 v5.7.0 - Terry Pratchett, "Moving Pictures"
1303 L<Announced on 2000-09-02 by Jarkko Hietaniemi|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2000/09/msg17730.html>
1305 The Librarian had seen many weird things in his time,
1306 but that had to be the 57th strangest.
1307 [footnote: he had a tidy mind]
1309 =head2 v5.6.2 - Sterne, "Tristram Shandy"
1311 L<Announced on 2003-11-15 by Rafael Garcia-Suarez|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/deb8cb9ad918716f>
1313 When great or unexpected events fall out upon the stage of this
1314 sublunary word--the mind of man, which is an inquisitive kind of
1315 a substance, naturally takes a flight, behind the scenes, to see
1316 what is the cause and first spring of them--The search was not
1317 long in this instance.
1319 =head2 v5.6.2-RC1 - Sterne, "Tristram Shandy"
1321 L<Announced on 2003-11-15 by Rafael Garcia-Suarez|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/e3d4acc7a8dd3ce5>
1323 "Pray, my dear", quoth my mother, "have you not forgot to wind up the clock?"
1325 =head2 v5.6.1 - J R R Tolkien, "The Hobbit", Riddles in the Dark
1327 L<Announced on 2001-04-08 by Gurusamy Sarathy|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2001/04/msg33823.html>
1329 `What have I got in my pocket?' he said aloud. He was talking to
1330 himself, but Gollum thought it was a riddle, and he was frightfully
1333 `Not fair! not fair!' he hissed. `It isn't fair, my precious, is it,
1334 to ask us what it's got in its nassty little pocketses?'
1336 Bilbo seeing what had happened and having nothing better to ask
1337 stuck to his question, `What have I got in my pocket?' he said
1340 `S-s-s-s-s,' hissed Gollum. `It must give us three guesseses,
1341 my precious, three guesseses.'
1343 =head2 v5.6.1-foolish - no epigraph
1345 L<Announced on 2001-08-04 by Gurusamy Sarathy|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2001/04/msg33421.html>
1347 =head2 v5.6.1-TRIAL3 - I can't find the announcement
1349 No announcement available.
1351 =head2 v5.6.1-TRIAL2 - no epigraph
1353 L<Announced on 2001-01-31 by Gurusamy Sarathy|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2001/01/msg29934.html>
1355 =head2 v5.6.1-TRIAL1 - no epigraph
1357 L<Announced on 2000-12-18 by Gurusamy Sarathy|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2000/12/msg27738.html>
1359 =head2 v5.6.0 - J R R Tolkien, "The Hobbit", The Last Stage
1361 L<Announced on 2000-03-23 by Gurusamy Sarathy|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2000/03/msg10341.html>
1363 The dragon is withered,
1364 His bones are now crumbled;
1365 His armour is shivered,
1366 His splendour is humbled!
1367 Though sword shall be rusted,
1368 And throne and crown perish
1369 With strength that men trusted
1370 And wealth that they cherish,
1371 Here grass is still growing,
1372 And leaves are a yet swinging,
1373 The white water flowing,
1374 And elves are yet singing
1375 Come! Tra-la-la-lally!
1376 Come back to the valley.
1378 =head2 v5.6.0-RC3 - no epigraph
1380 L<Announced on 2000-03-22 by Gurusamy Sarathy|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2000/03/msg10140.html>
1382 =head2 v5.005_05-RC1 - no epigraph
1384 L<Announced on 2009-02-16 by LE<0xe9>on Brocard|http://www.nntp.perl.org/group/perl.perl5.porters/2009/02/msg144227.html>
1386 =head2 v5.005_04 - no epigraph
1388 L<Announced on 2004-03-01 by LE<0xe9>on Brocard|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/6c240ad0b189cb47>
1390 =head2 v5.005_04-RC2 - Rudyard Kipling, "The Jungle Book"
1392 L<Announced on 2004-02-19 by LE<0xe9>on Brocard|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/83e5421124a7b49d>
1394 The monkeys called the place their city, and pretended to despise
1395 the Jungle-People because they lived in the forest. And yet they
1396 never knew what the buildings were made for nor how to use
1397 them. They would sit in circles on the hall of the king's council
1398 chamber, and scratch for fleas and pretend to be men; or they would
1399 run in and out of the roofless houses and collect pieces of plaster
1400 and old bricks in a corner, and forget where they had hidden them,
1401 and fight and cry in scuffling crowds, and then break off to play up
1402 and down the terraces of the king's garden, where they would shake
1403 the rose trees and the oranges in sport to see the fruit and flowers
1406 =head2 v5.005_04-RC1 - Lewis Carroll, "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"
1408 L<Announced on 2004-02-05 by LE<0xe9>on Brocard|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/6aaeb6ec699bd116>
1410 Either the well was very deep, or she fell very slowly, for she had
1411 plenty of time as she went down to look about her and to wonder what was
1412 going to happen next. First, she tried to look down and make out what
1413 she was coming to, but it was too dark to see anything; then she looked
1414 at the sides of the well, and noticed that they were filled with
1415 cupboards and book-shelves; here and there she saw maps and pictures
1416 hung upon pegs. She took down a jar from one of the shelves as she
1417 passed; it was labelled 'ORANGE MARMALADE', but to her great
1418 disappointment it was empty: she did not like to drop the jar for fear
1419 of killing somebody, so managed to put it into one of the cupboards as
1422 =head2 v1.0_16 - Johan Vromans, extemporarily
1424 L<Announced on 2003-12-18 by Richard Clamp|http://groups.google.com/group/perl.perl5.porters/msg/9281dc6194d15940>
1426 =head1 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
1428 This document was originally compiled based on a list of epigraphs
1429 on L<Perl Monks|http://perlmonks.org> titled
1430 L<Recent Perl Release Announcement|http://perlmonks.org/?node_id=372406>