. Bird's eye views of society . nd what a depreffing thing it is when you endeavourto converfe with your next neighbour, and find, afterftarting the moft various fubjects, making the moft abrupttranfitions from one to another, in the vain hope of hitting,upon her or his favourite topic, that it is impoffible to elicitanything but yes, except no. There is nothing for it at laft but to throw yourwhole mind into your dinner, and to feek that con- 22 folation therein which is denied in your neighbours con-verfation. The accompanying picture is to be underftood as re-prefenting only one type, and t
. Bird's eye views of society . nd what a depreffing thing it is when you endeavourto converfe with your next neighbour, and find, afterftarting the moft various fubjects, making the moft abrupttranfitions from one to another, in the vain hope of hitting,upon her or his favourite topic, that it is impoffible to elicitanything but yes, except no. There is nothing for it at laft but to throw yourwhole mind into your dinner, and to feek that con- 22 folation therein which is denied in your neighbours con-verfation. The accompanying picture is to be underftood as re-prefenting only one type, and that rather an old-fafhionedone, of the heavy dinner-party. It is not intended to imply that becaufe fuch enter-tainments are fumptuous and profufe they are confe- quently always dull. The exceptions are brilliant andnumerous. What can be more delightful to the eye and to the earthan a dinner-table, with its bright lights and beautifulflowers and pretty china, and furrounded by a party offriends fparkling with pleafant talk ? 23. The Picture Sal The Picture Sale. ICTURES are verywell in their way,but it is the pur-chafers that aremolt valuable tolook at. And theyform a collectionthat includes fpeci-mens of a greatvariety of fchools—fome antique, fomemediaeval, manyquite unique. Curious old noblemen, very rare, with anearly Englifh tone and flavour of the country about them;old-fafhioned foffils of men, looking as if they had beendug up ; and who rauft be dug down again, for they neverappear anywhere elfe—may be feen peering into the pic-
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1860, booksubjectgreatbritain, bookyea
