There Was Once a Man (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. 1884 Excerpt: ...intoxicated by the exceptional homage of all American classes to his just fame as a writer, and undertook to march into the Presidential Mansion itself, with a sort of 'hail, fellow, well met ' freedom, to teach Executive and cabinet that the international copyright scheme of the author of 'Pickwick ' must no longer be disregarded. Well, at that point he was himself taught, and sharply, that even a "Boz " might presume too far upon the social equalities of a republic. So, upon going home, he berated us hysterically in 'Martin Chuzzlewit', --not to mention his 'American Notes.' "Now, Doctor Hedland, I put it to your own sense of justice--is it fair for you, Europeans, to assume, gratuitously, that we, Americans, have less sense of degrees in social refinement than all the remainder of mankind; and so accuse us of false pretense, because you see, upon coming amongst us, that the assumption has egregiously misled you?" Hedland was too acute not to realize that he was being sarcastically arraigned, by implication, as a middle-class English representative who had found his undue social expectations to be a fallacy in America The profoundly silent attention of the company; the irrepressible twinkle in the Rajah's eyes, and the now intensely animated expression of Abretta's listening face; did not tend to make him more philosophical under the lecture he had wantonly brought upon himself. "We have digressed from the real point at issue between us, Mr. Effingham," said he, in supercilious dismissal of the general question. "You have asserted that adherence to party in American politics is decided by social preference. I have replied that such a principle is more essentially aristocratic than any permanent phase of European aristocr...