bays, and Latin as far as the conjugations (he the wrangler!) how
he loathed and abominated it! Now a fresh start! Hurrah!

That was like Rosalie's father--in those days. That way blew the
cold fit and the hot fit--then.

The magnificent fresh start after the magnificent escape from the
morass of the moribund father-in-law and the moribund school and
the moribund Devonshire town proved to be but a stagger down into
morass heavier and more devastating of ambition. He always jumped
blindly and wildly into things. Blindly and wildly into the
Church, blindly and wildly into marriage, blindly and wildly into
the school, blindly and wildly, one might say, into fatherhood on
a lavish scale. Blindly and wildly--the magnificent fresh start--into
the rectory in which Rosalie was born.

It was "a bit in the wilds" (of Suffolk); "a bit of a tight
fit" (L200 a year) and a bit or two or three other drawbacks; but
it was thousands of miles from Devonshire and from the school and
schooling, that was the great thing; and it was a jolly big rectory
with a ripping big garden; and above all and beyond everything it
was just going to be a jumping-off place while he looked around for
something suitable to his talents and while he got in touch again
with his old friends of the brilliant years.

It was just going to be a jumping-off place, but he never jumped off
from it; a place from which to look around for something suitable,
but instead he sunk in it up to his chin; a place from which to
get in touch again with his friends of the brilliant years, but
his friends were all doing brilliant things and much too busy at