His Grace — page 220: what you’re looking at

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

214 HIS GRACE. right to fight him; but it isn’t only by spending as much money as he does that we hope to show him that he is not invincible.” “The common household flea,’ I ventured to re- mark, “is not invincible; yet one doesn’t expend one’s life and one’s fortune and any little intelligence that one may possess in stooping to conquer him. A simpler and better plan is to avoid his haunts.” I should doubtless have proceeded to the utterance of further indiscretions had not my oration been cut short by the entrance of Hurstbourne, who bounced into the room, with a radiant countenance and a pair of field-glasses slung over his shoulder, to announce that Mock Turtle had proved worthy of the confidence reposed in him by his backers. “It looked like a near thing,” he told us, “but the horse really won as he chose, and I believe the poor old Crocodile would have about won his race too, if he hadn’t beena bit unlucky. Well, one mustn’t be greedy; it’s something to have pulled off the big event isn’t it?” He was so elated that I had not the cruelty to inquire what might be the exact pecuniary result of having pulled off the big event, nor did he volunteer any more mercenary details ‘for our benefit. The nearest ap- proach that he made to astatement bearing upon that point was when he remarked exultingly : ‘‘'This will be arare sell for Paul Gascoigne! He was going about all over the place yesterday, telling people that I was broke, and pretending to be deeply afflicted. He'd be afflicted without any pretence if he knew how many thousands more to the good I am this evening than I was when he spoke.” SO we gave ourselves up to triumph and mutual con- Eomichooks (E(@)