“DOWN — Certainly, Relentlessly Down! It Vibrated Within Three-Inches Of My Bosom…”

“…I Struggled Violently, Furiously, To Free My Left Arm. This Was Free Only From The Elbow To The Hand. I Could Reach The Latter, From The Platter Beside Me, To My Mouth, With Great Effort, But No Farther. Could I Have Broken The Fastenings Above The Elbow, I Would Have Seized And Attempted To Arrest The Pendulum. I Might As Well Have Attempted To Arrest An Avalanche! …“

—EDGAR ALLAN POE

(From His “THE PIT And THE PENDULUM“)