Foreign Office, Diplomatic and Consular Sketches (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1883. Excerpt: ... III. AMATEUR CONSULS. Captain Richard Francis Burton, "dont le nom," to quote the words of a distinguished authority, "sera cite toujours partni ceux des plus grands voyageurs," although he happens to be a Consul, cannot, of course, be presented as an ordinary product of our Consular Service. Captain Burton is, in fact, a traveller who has been rewarded for his distinguished services to the cause of science by being appointed a Consul. The manner of his introduction into the Service was as follows: --Captain Burton, in character and appearance, is about as nearly as possible the exact antipodes of the conventional lady-killer. Yet, all swarthy and reckless as he was, a fair Desdemona had fallen once for all in love on hearing the tale of his " moving incidents by flood and field, hair-breadth escapes." There were, of course, endless objections and difficulties in the way of their marriage. In the first place Miss Arundel was a devout Catholic, a member of a historical Catholic family whilst Captain Burton was--well, supposed to lean to Mohammedanism, if to any dogmatic form of religion in particular. Both of them at the time were equally untroubled with the cares attending the possession of an undue proportion of this world's goods, and the profession of traveller, though all very well for a bachelor, has, except in such rare instances as that of Sir Samuel Baker, not yet generally commended itself to marrying men. However, Captain Burton was of all men the least likely to be stopped by difficulties, and, after having taken eight years to overcome the obstacles raised by Church and family, Miss Arundel and he were married. The adventurous bride then waited on her friend, Lord Russell, at the Foreign Office, with the comforting assurance that, unless his ...