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A Character.
your embarrassment affords Mm , in a smile of exultation . As this sort of feeling in his guests is considere d by him as the most unequivocal praise that can be offered to him , he ' is solicitous to produce it as often as possible , by playing off his grandeur before men of broken fortunes and blushing indigence . Thus it is a rule with him to propose a dozen sorts of wine to a man who he knows has never tasted out twoand is charmed
, with his perplexity of choice , and mistakes Oi pronunciation . His table , for the same reason , is filled with foreipn dishes , " of exquisitest name , " and of most ambiguous forms ; and yon might fancy yourself at supper with LucuIIus , on fattened thrushes and the cranes of Malta . Most of his dishes have such formidable namesthat few care to risk the ridicule of their hostbventuring
, , y to aslt for them ; and if they name them ri ghtly , it is ten to one but they blunder in eatmg them , which answers equally well to the facetious entertainer . If any thing is particularly rare and out of season , you are told how much it cost before you touch it , so that you eat it ¦ with a sort of grudge , and with that feeling which disappoints the relish of the richest dainties . This ham sent him from West
was - phalia ; this pickle was prepared from the receipt of an Italian count f this wine was imported for him by the Spanish ambassador ; the venison he killed himself ; the pig was fed with chesnuts and apples . Every thing has rts history : his potatoes are not common potatoes , they are the potatoes of Demades ; they have an anecdote belono-incr 4-r , . I .. ™ + 1- .-- ... . . -.. O £ > to —toucn and
, _ rnem one you will hear it . His apartments are replete with every imaginable contrivance for elegance and accommodation _ , but his manners render it plain that they are there , not for your convenience , but your admiration . Whatever you touch , taste , or use , you cannot forget for a moment who is its owner . Egotism , and a certain stamp of property and possession , accompany all his acts , and characterise all his hrases . Mis monosyllable omitted
p y a never , and always emphatic : thus it is my doors , my hinges , my coals , and my carpet . Touch his poker , and you will presently feel that it belongs to Demades . You may always know in what part of the room Demades is seated , without the trouble of looking for him ; for , besides a magisterial cough , his voice is the loudest in the company ; and if he moves you are sure it is Demadesfor attends
, some ceremony upon every act , that marks it for his own . - He breathes with a certain emphasis ; he has a motion more than any man present in usinohis handkerchief ; there is a supererogatory flourish in his manne " of drinking your health ; his glass makes a turn or two extraordinary m its journey to his li ps ; and in seating himself in his chair , the toe of his right foot describes on the floor a semicircle with the
otherthat is to say , he does it with a swing , that shews him to be the master of the house , and the chair to be his own . Thus altogether bis entertainment is the grandest and the meanest , his viand ' s the ( Jest and the worst u . the world .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
A Character.
your embarrassment affords Mm , in a smile of exultation . As this sort of feeling in his guests is considere d by him as the most unequivocal praise that can be offered to him , he ' is solicitous to produce it as often as possible , by playing off his grandeur before men of broken fortunes and blushing indigence . Thus it is a rule with him to propose a dozen sorts of wine to a man who he knows has never tasted out twoand is charmed
, with his perplexity of choice , and mistakes Oi pronunciation . His table , for the same reason , is filled with foreipn dishes , " of exquisitest name , " and of most ambiguous forms ; and yon might fancy yourself at supper with LucuIIus , on fattened thrushes and the cranes of Malta . Most of his dishes have such formidable namesthat few care to risk the ridicule of their hostbventuring
, , y to aslt for them ; and if they name them ri ghtly , it is ten to one but they blunder in eatmg them , which answers equally well to the facetious entertainer . If any thing is particularly rare and out of season , you are told how much it cost before you touch it , so that you eat it ¦ with a sort of grudge , and with that feeling which disappoints the relish of the richest dainties . This ham sent him from West
was - phalia ; this pickle was prepared from the receipt of an Italian count f this wine was imported for him by the Spanish ambassador ; the venison he killed himself ; the pig was fed with chesnuts and apples . Every thing has rts history : his potatoes are not common potatoes , they are the potatoes of Demades ; they have an anecdote belono-incr 4-r , . I .. ™ + 1- .-- ... . . -.. O £ > to —toucn and
, _ rnem one you will hear it . His apartments are replete with every imaginable contrivance for elegance and accommodation _ , but his manners render it plain that they are there , not for your convenience , but your admiration . Whatever you touch , taste , or use , you cannot forget for a moment who is its owner . Egotism , and a certain stamp of property and possession , accompany all his acts , and characterise all his hrases . Mis monosyllable omitted
p y a never , and always emphatic : thus it is my doors , my hinges , my coals , and my carpet . Touch his poker , and you will presently feel that it belongs to Demades . You may always know in what part of the room Demades is seated , without the trouble of looking for him ; for , besides a magisterial cough , his voice is the loudest in the company ; and if he moves you are sure it is Demadesfor attends
, some ceremony upon every act , that marks it for his own . - He breathes with a certain emphasis ; he has a motion more than any man present in usinohis handkerchief ; there is a supererogatory flourish in his manne " of drinking your health ; his glass makes a turn or two extraordinary m its journey to his li ps ; and in seating himself in his chair , the toe of his right foot describes on the floor a semicircle with the
otherthat is to say , he does it with a swing , that shews him to be the master of the house , and the chair to be his own . Thus altogether bis entertainment is the grandest and the meanest , his viand ' s the ( Jest and the worst u . the world .