Page 1165 - ULYSSES

Ulysses

ignited it in the candleflame, applied it when ignited to
the apex of the cone till the latter reached the stage of
rutilance, placed the cylinder in the basin of the
candlestick disposing its unconsumed part in such a

manner as to facilitate total combustion.
What followed this operation?
The truncated conical crater summit of the diminutive
volcano emitted a vertical and serpentine fume redolent of
aromatic oriental incense.
What homothetic objects, other than the candlestick,
stood on the mantelpiece?
A timepiece of striated Connemara marble, stopped at
the hour of 4.46 a.m. on the 21 March 1896, matrimonial
gift of Matthew Dillon: a dwarf tree of glacial
arborescence under a transparent bellshade, matrimonial
gift of Luke and Caroline Doyle: an embalmed owl,
matrimonial gift of Alderman John Hooper.
What interchanges of looks took place between these
three objects and Bloom?
In the mirror of the giltbordered pierglass the
undecorated back of the dwarf tree regarded the upright
back of the embalmed owl. Before the mirror the
matrimonial gift of Alderman John Hooper with a clear
melancholy wise bright motionless compassionate gaze

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