Mononia; A Love Story of 'Forty-Eight (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. 1900 edition. Excerpt: ...of various kinds, and by invitations to pledge himself to all manner of chimerical or irreconcilable projects; and he had an important dinner party arranged for that evening, at which some guests were to attend to whom he especially wished to be agreeable. He had left a message for Philip to the effect that he wished to see him in the library an hour before the time for the dinner party. When the appointed time was approaching, Counsellor Colston had been brought by all the various worries and troubles of the day into a state of nervous irritation, or perhaps it might be called in more homely language, f ussiness, which made him annoyed with himself. Counsellor Colston's distinguishing attributes as an advocate were his limitless command of eloquent words, and a control of nerve and temper which nothing could shake. This was the part he had always taken on himself to play, and it must be allowed that he played it with remarkable success. He had, however, his outbreaks of nerves and his bursts of temper; but these he always endeavoured to reserve for his mental relief in domestic life. After all, the very greatest of actors cannot be expected to keep on acting his favourite part during the whole of his private life. We know that John Kemble had his facetious moments when the tragedy was not going on, and it is understood that in private life Mr. Arthur Roberts is sometimes silent and serious. But it greatly annoyed Counsellor Colston when he found his nerves and his temper getting the better of him at home, and making him forget the part to which he had devoted himself abroad. On this particular evening, therefore, the learned counsel was vexed with himself when, it became apparent to him that he could not meet his nephew with the intellectual...