📔 Romance and Reality

Quotes from this book

A woman's love is essentially lonely and spiritual in its nature—feeding on fancy, rather than hope—or like that fairy flower of the East, which floats in, and lives upon, the air. Her attachment is the heathenism of the heart: she has herself created the glory and beauty with which the idol of her altar stands invested. In good truth, I hardly know—a Miss Arundel—a wood-nymph, the daughter of either a country squire or a clergyman—equipped, I suppose, by a mortgage on either the squire's corn-fields, or the parson's glebe land—[..] Above all, let her eschew the impertinence of invention; let her leave genius to her milliner. "The ancients referred melancholy to the mind, the moderns make it matter of digestion—to either case my plan applies," said Lady Mandeville. I never knew any debatable point not maintained on both sides by unanswerable arguments; and yet you are angry that he has not thrown every advantage aside to enact your beau-idéal of patriotic excellence. Motives are like harlequins—there is always a second dress beneath their first. "But, sir," said Mr. Brande—who, being a traveller himself, considered that their injuries were personal ones—"look at the long years of obloquy and wrong, of taunts and doubts, which embittered Bruce's return home." No one can deny Lady Charlotte Bury's assertion, that no well-regulated young female will ever indulge in a species of amusement so improper as flirtation; but it must be admitted, that having a pleasant partner is preferable to not dancing, and that a little persiflage, a little raillery, a little flattery, go far to make a partner pleasant. Portraits are but the mirrors of lovely countenances. And married she was, thanks to the affinities of landed property! One request was subjoined—that Arundel Hall should be pulled down. Truly, we need human infirmity to teach us human nature, and that to Louis had been as a sealed book; he had only seen the coloured and gilded outside: too late he had to decipher the rough and gloomy page within. With some difficulty they deciphered the scrawl, and instantly proceeded to carry its advice into execution. Conversation commenced by Lady Mandeville's refusing some lampreys,—a dish, en passant, greatly resembling stewed adders. I must own they do dearly delight in a judgment; and sorry am I that I cannot gratify this laudable propensity by specifying some peculiar evil incurred by Mr. Delawarr's ambition, or Lady Etheringhame's vanity. Among the many universal propensities in human nature, the love of sight-seeing is about as universal as any. "Did you tell cook to put by the leg of the turkey, to be deviled for my supper?" after...Mrs. Arundel went back to her ordinary avocations—small savings and domestic inspections. Essays are written on causes—they might be more pithily turned on consequences. The signal was given by shrouding the lights. The grove was varied by a plantation of rose trees, a few pinasters, and a multitude of winding paths. A change came o'er the spirit of Don Henriquez' dream; from political he turned scientific; and his superabundant activity found ample employment in deciphering the Egyptian hieroglyphics. "But do you not think," asked Lorraine, "that these ideal excellencies have their origin in our nature's better part?" Then there are flowers to be painted on velvet—the new romance to be read—or some invention of novel embellishment to be discussed with your Mlle. Jacinthe, Hyacinthe, or whatever poetic name may euphoniously designate your Parisian priestess of the mirror. But Emily's excuse could not be gainsayed—she had that morning received news of the death of Lady Alicia Delawarr. ...Mrs. Arundel simpered, and hinted "she dare-sayed some time hence they would be delightful neighbours;"... Emily sat in the window, sometimes pondering on objects without, and then on those within, when Lorraine's entrance interrupted a very profound meditation on the strange contrarieties of love affairs in this world. A Signora Rossinuola, with the face of a goddess, and the voice of an angel, made her first curtsy that evening to the Neapolitans. She was received with the most rapturous applause. Mr. Delawarr, it must be confessed, took the matter much more coolly. Habits are the petrifactions of the feelings, and his habits were those of business. A resolution is never shaken by a conviction. "Lord love you, miss! we did think you were to be bridemaid, till mistress told us not to call you." He forgot Emily had no choice. Pre-occupied and absent, Lord Merton never came into Emily's head: excepting their intervisiting, both families were living rather retired,... "Add to these, my lady," replied the traveller, laughing, "the privilege of telling my own stories after dinner uncontradicted." He has embodied a general system of depreciatives, out of which he extracts most 'strange contents.' I never yet heard him allow merit to man, woman or child;... The sale of part of his property cleared the rest. A large portion of his income was put aside to accumulate. Horses, pictures, wines, bijouterie, German meerschaum, and Turkish hookahs, were alike brought to the hammer. ...flowers stood beside, in an alabaster vase—exotics, that say, "our growth has been precious." A lute leant against the ebon stand; but the face of the lady wore the expression of deep and touching sorrow. If prevented by force, the screams she sometimes uttered in her paroxysms of rage were fearful, and must inevitably be heard. She who would fain give the starry worlds to the object of her affection—it is a fine and beautiful pride which makes her shrink from aught of benefit from him. The plain where he was riding was one immense thicket of the gum cistus, whose frail white leaves, just veined with the faintest pink, fell in showers at the least movement of the passer-by. What a prodigality of blossom!—for the gum cistus, born and withered in an hour, is the most ephemeral of flowers.