Tragic Comedians, the — Volume 1 by George Meredith
page 69 of 71 (97%)
page 69 of 71 (97%)
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to the feminine sentiment of the maternal, and of course he was beaten.
He was compelled to sit and gnaw his eloquence. Clotilde likened his appearance to a strangled roar. 'Mothers and their children are too much for me!' he said, penitent for his betrayal of over-urgency, as he helped to wrap her warmly, and counselled her very mode of breathing in the raw mountain atmosphere. 'I admire you for knowing when to yield,' said she. He groaned, with frown and laugh: 'You know what I would beg!' She implored him to have some faith in her. The missiles of the impassioned were discharged at the poor English: a customary volley in most places where they intrude after quitting their shores, if they diverge from the avenue of hotel-keepers and waiters: but Clotilde pointed out to him that her English friend was not showing coldness in devoting herself to her child. 'No, they attend to their duties,' he assented generally, desperately just. 'And you owe it to her that you have seen me.' 'I do,' he said, and forthwith courted the lady to be forgiven. Clotilde was taken from him in a heavy downpour and trailing of mists. At the foot of the mountain a boy handed her a letter from Alvan--a burning flood, rolled out of him like lava after they had separated on |
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