His Grace — page 218: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

212 HIS GRACE. the more uncertain I became as to what they would be at, and this naturally rendered me down-hearted, as well as a trifle cross. Moreover, the control of events seemed to have been absolutely removed from my hands; so that, like a weary play-goer, I was chiefly anxious to reach a foregone conclusion, to see the curtain fall and have done with it. The fall of the curtain was not unlikely to take place at Sandown ; but I declined to accompany Hurstbourne thither, pleading as an excuse that I was not a member of the club and that I preferred, for choice, to escape the contumely with which outsiders are treated on that exclusive pleasure-ground. Lady Charles also, for once, decided to remain at home. It was a very hot day, and’she was tired, she said. She certainly looked so. Probably it had at length dawned upon her that her son had made a most stupendous fool of himself, and, for all I know, she may have begun to realize that she herself had been in a large measure to blame for his folly. It did not really signify, because the milk was spilt, and there was no more use in crying over it than there was in snapping at me. She did snap at me when we met at the luncheon hour—it was not often that she behaved in that way, poor, good-natured soul ! —and [ will not deny that I snapped back at her. If our nerves were on edge, and if we both expected to hear of a catastrophe before dinner-time, we had no great cause to feel penitent or to ask pardon of one another. , However, that good Lady Charles’s conscience must have been tenderer than mine; for about six o’clock she sent to beg that I would come downstairs and have a cup of tea with her, and when I appeared, in obedi- Eomichooks (E(0)