. Tales of adventure and stories of travel of fifty years ago. rivate and domestic life, or, as he ex-presses himself, a portrait of the author in his night-gownand slippers ; and this from you, who, I dare say, couldfurnish some anecdotes of our younger days which mightnow seem ludicrous enough. Even as to my night-gownand slippers, I believe the time has been when the articlesof my wardrobe were as familiar to your memory as Poinssto Prince Henry : but that period has been for some yearspast, and I cannot think it would be interesting to thepublic to learn that I had changed my old robe-de-c
. Tales of adventure and stories of travel of fifty years ago. rivate and domestic life, or, as he ex-presses himself, a portrait of the author in his night-gownand slippers ; and this from you, who, I dare say, couldfurnish some anecdotes of our younger days which mightnow seem ludicrous enough. Even as to my night-gownand slippers, I believe the time has been when the articlesof my wardrobe were as familiar to your memory as Poinssto Prince Henry : but that period has been for some yearspast, and I cannot think it would be interesting to thepublic to learn that I had changed my old robe-de-chambrefor a handsome douillette when I was last at Paris. The truth is, that a man of ordinary sense cannot besupposed delighted with the species of gossip which, in thedearth of other news, recurs to such a quiet individual asmyself • and though, like a well-behaved lion of twentyyears standing, I am not inclined to vex myself about whatI cannot help, I will not, in any case in which I can preventit, be accessory to these follies. There is no man known at. >-_l < LL CO X Q Z< hh-OOCO DCLU H_l< CO THE FAMILY OF SIR WALTER SCOTT 77 all in literature who may not have more to tell of his privatelife than I have : I have surmounted no difficulties eitherof birth or education, nor have I been favoured by anyparticular advantages, and my life has been as void ofincidents of importance as that of the weary knife-grinder — * Story ! God bless you ! I have none to tell, Sir. The follies of youth ought long since to have passedaway ; and if the prejudices and absurdities of age havecome in their place, I will keep them, as Beau Tibbs didhis prospect, for the amusement of my domestic friends. Amere enumeration of the persons in the sketch is all whichI can possibly permit to be published respecting myself andmy family ; and, as must be the lot of humanity when welook back seven or eight years, even what follows cannotbe drawn up without some very painful recollections. The
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Keywords: ., bo, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectvoyagesandtravels
