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Tales and Novels Novel Chapters
List of most recent chapters published for the Tales and Novels novel. A total of 626 chapters have been translated and the release date of the last chapter is Apr 02, 2024
Latest Release: Chapter 1 : Tales And Novels.Volume 1.by Maria Edgeworth.PREFACE.It has been somewhere said by Johns
Tales And Novels.Volume 1.by Maria Edgeworth.PREFACE.It has been somewhere said by Johnson, that merely to invent a story is no small effort of the human understanding. How much more difficult is it to construct stories suited to the early years of youth,
- 101 James, who was extremely fond of his brother Frank, called upon him and took him to Mrs. Hungerford's, to ask f.a.n.n.y to accompany them in this walk. They had seldom seen her since they had quitted their father's house and lived in Monmouth; a
- 102 One morning Patty came into her room with a face full of sorrow; a face so unlike her usual countenance, that even her mistress, unaccustomed as she was to attend to the feelings of others, could not help noticing the change."Well! What's the ma
- 103 "I shall be out of this world long, long before that time, I hope," said the poor old man, as he left the room. "But G.o.d's will be done! Send the clergyman to my boy!"The clergyman remained in the room but a short time: when he
- 104 "Bid her come in," said Mrs. Crumpe, in a voice more distinct than she had ever been heard to speak in since the day of her illness."What! are you sorry for me, child?" said Mrs. Crumpe, fixing her eyes upon Patty's. Patty made no
- 105 What a fine healthy colour this walking has brought into her face, thought Mason, as he stood looking at her, whilst they were waiting for some one to open the door. Though she has not a single beautiful feature, and though n.o.body could call her handsom
- 106 "Oh! yes, mamma," cried the children, all together, "that I am sure you may.""Come with me, f.a.n.n.y," resumed Mrs. Hungerford; "it is not necessary that your explanation should be public, though I am persuaded it will
- 107 "I am sorry for that," said Mr. Cleghorn, with a mixture of shame and anger in his countenance: "my conscience is as nice as other people's; and yet I have a notion I shall have something to do with him, though he is a smuggler; and, i
- 108 As soon as she was gone, Mrs. Bettesworth gave a house-warming, as she called it, to all her acquaintance; a dinner, a ball, and a supper, in her new house. The house was not half dry, and all the company caught cold. Mrs. Bettesworth's cold was the
- 109 Ensign Bloomington was deaf to all overtures of peace: he was rejoiced to escape from this virago; and, as we presume that none of our readers are much interested in her fate, we shall leave her to wear the willow, without following her history farther.Le
- 110 "To whom is Caesar going to be sold? and for what sum?""For what can be got for him," replied Durant, laughing; "and to whoever will buy him. The sheriff's officer is here, who has seized him for debt, and must make the most
- 111 The enlightened inhabitants of Europe may, perhaps, smile at the superst.i.tious credulity of the negroes, who regard those ignorant beings called _Obeah_ people with the most profound respect and dread; who believe that they hold in their hands the power
- 112 Mr. Edwards armed himself and the negroes on his plantation, as well as the whites; they were all equally attached to him. He followed Caesar into the recesses of the wood.They proceeded with all possible rapidity, but in perfect silence, till they reache
- 113 when my companions at length departed, they left me in no condition to complete a sermon. I fell fast asleep, and was wakened in the morning by the bishop's servant. The dismay I felt is indescribable; I started up--it was nine o'clock: I began
- 114 After many days' tiresome attempts, I was obliged to give up all hopes of deciphering the most important of my notes, those which I had made from the information of the French missionary. Most of what I had trusted so securely to my memory was defect
- 115 "I am, my dear sir, "Yours sincerely, "J. C."In May he wrote to me again: "DEAR SIR, "I am much surprised at not having yet received the books I wrote for last March--beg to know the cause of this delay; and am, "Dear si
- 116 He proceeded to inform me how he had settled my affairs, and how he had obtained from my creditors a small allowance for the immediate support of myself and family. He had given up the third part of a considerable sum due to himself. As my own house was s
- 117 Mr. Hudson persuaded me to accompany him to a swamp, at some miles'distance from Philadelphia, to hear one of these concerts. The performance lasted some time, and it was late before we returned to town: I went to bed tired, and waked in the morning
- 118 That a motive might not be wanting for the crime, it was whispered that old Mr. Hudson had talked of leaving me a considerable legacy, which I was impatient to touch, that I might carry my adventuring schemes into execution. I was astonished as much as sh
- 119 In the mean time a coachman came to me to be hired: my boy was playing about the room, and, as I afterward collected, went close up to the man, and, while I was talking, stood examining a greyhound upon his b.u.t.tons.I asked the coachman many questions,
- 120 Tales And Novels.Volume 3.by Maria Edgeworth.BELINDA CHAPTER I.CHARACTERS.Mrs. Stanhope, a well-bred woman, accomplished in that branch of knowledge which is called the art of rising in the world, had, with but a small fortune, contrived to live in the hi
- 121 I have a sort of cobweb feeling, an imaginary net coming all over me.""Fore-warned is fore-armed," replied his companion: "a man must be a novice indeed that could be taken in at this time of day by a niece of Mrs. Stanhope's.&quo
- 122 Now you'll meet those young men continually who took the liberty of laughing at your aunt, and your cousins, and yourself; they are men of fas.h.i.+on. Show them you've no feeling, and they'll acknowledge you for a woman of fas.h.i.+on. You
- 123 "I at first flattered myself that my lord's was not an inveterate, incurable malady: but from his obvious weakness, I might have seen that there was no hope; for cases of obstinacy are always dangerous in proportion to the weakness of the patien
- 124 "The French officer found great difficulty in getting safe out of the town; but Clarence represented to the mob that he was a prisoner on his parole, and that it would be unlike Englishmen to insult a prisoner. So he got off without being pelted, and
- 125 "She is really a charming woman," said Clarence Hervey, in a low voice, to Lady Delacour, drawing her into a recessed window: he in the same low voice continued, "Could I obtain a private audience of a few minutes when your ladys.h.i.+p is
- 126 "Surely," said Miss Portman, "it is better for me to throw away fifty guineas, poor as I am, than to hazard the happiness of my life. Your ladys.h.i.+p knows that if I say _a_ to Mr. Hervey, I must say _b_. No, no, my dear Lady Delacour; he
- 127 "Who the devil are these two that seem to be making up to us?" said Sir Philip, looking at two gentlemen who were coming towards them; "St.George, hey? you know every body.""The foremost is Percival, of Oakly-park, I think, '
- 128 "I can't say particularly, upon my soul," replied Mr. St. George; "for my own part, I was in boots, so you know I was out of the question. But what signifies all that now? Come, come, we had best think of looking after our dinners.&quo
- 129 "It would have been better if I had," cried Mrs. Delacour, "I can understand that there may be such a thing in nature as a jealous wife, but an unfeeling mother I cannot comprehend--that pa.s.ses my powers of imagination.""And min
- 130 "Every one to his taste," said Clarence; "for my part I have even less ambition to imitate the heroism than hope of being inspired with the poetic genius of Petrarch. I have no wish to pa.s.s whole nights composing sonnets. I would (am I no
- 131 The combat now began--the spectators were silent. Clarence made an error in his first move, for his attention was distracted by seeing Belinda behind his adversary's chair. The Spaniard was deceived by this mistake into a contemptuous opinion of his
- 132 "Evils!" repeated Clarence Hervey, in a tone which surprised her ladys.h.i.+p. She looked immediately with a significant smile at Belinda."Why do not you echo _evils_, Miss Portman?""Pray, Lady Delacour," interrupted Clarence
- 133 "The horses--the young horses!--Oh, I wish my lady had never seen them.Oh, my lady, my poor lady, what will become of her?"It was some minutes before Belinda could obtain from Marriott any intelligible account of what had happened."All I kn
- 134 The doctor now followed Belinda, and satisfied himself by ocular demonstration, that this cabinet was the retirement of disease, and not of pleasure.It was about eight o'clock in the morning when Dr. X---- got home; he found Clarence Hervey waiting f
- 135 "Then to please you, Marriott, I will complain of the only noise that does, or ever did disturb me--the screaming of your odious macaw."Now Marriott had a prodigious affection for this macaw, and she defended it with as much eagerness as if it h
- 136 The baronet vibrated for some time between the fear of being taken in by one of Mrs. Stanhope's nieces, and the hope of triumphing over Clarence Hervey. At last, what he called love prevailed over prudence, and he was resolved, cost him what it would
- 137 Just as Belinda was beginning to sing, Marriott's macaw began to scream, so that Lady Delacour could not hear any thing else."Oh, that odious macaw!" cried her ladys.h.i.+p, "I can endure it no longer"(and she rang her bell violen
- 138 A few minutes' conversation pa.s.sed afterward upon different subjects, and Lady Anne Percival and Belinda parted with a mutual desire to see more of each other.CHAPTER XIII.SORTES VIRGILIANAE.When Belinda got home, Lady Delacour was busy in the libr
- 139 "You need not be afraid to make a noise--you need not walk on tiptoe, nor shut the doors softly; for Lady Delacour seems to like all noises except the screaming of the macaw. This way, my dear.""Oh, I forgot--it is so long since!--Is mamma
- 140 The reading party went on, and Lady Delacour made her appearance as the company were drinking orgeat, between the fourth and fifth act. "Helena, _my dear_," said she, "will you bring me a gla.s.s of orgeat?"Clarence Hervey looked at Be
- 141 "The opinion of Dr. X----," said Belinda, "must certainly be more satisfactory than mine;" and she repeated what the doctor had left with her in writing upon this subject. "You see," said Belinda, "that Dr.X----is by no
- 142 "There now, you look like yourself again, and I am satisfied," cried Belinda. "As to going to Oakly-park, I give you my word I have not the most distant thoughts of it. I stay with you from choice, and not from compulsion, believe me."
- 143 "Nay," cried Clarence, "your ladys.h.i.+p certainly sees that this is St.Pierre's Virginia?""St. Pierre's Virginia! Oh, I know who it is, Clarence, as well as you do. I am not quite so blind, or so stupid, as you take me
- 144 "Very handsome, upon my word!" said Lady Delacour, coldly, and she fixed her eyes upon the fringe, which was black and orange: "Miss Portman's taste, I see!""Did you not say black and orange fringe, my dear?""No. I
- 145 "I want nothing from you, Lady Delacour," said Belinda. "_You have suspected me long in silence!_ then I have mistaken your character--I can love you no longer. Farewell for ever! Find another--a better friend."She walked away from Lad
- 146 Those who unfortunately have never enjoyed domestic happiness, such as we have just described, will perhaps suppose the picture to be visionary and romantic; there are others--it is hoped many others--who will feel that it is drawn from truth and real lif
- 147 "The devil! they seem to have put you in a course of the bitters--a course of the woods might do your business better. Do you ever hunt?--Let me take you out with me some morning--you'd be quite an angel on horseback; or let me drive you out som
- 148 "I only wish," continued Mrs. Freke, "I only wish his wife had been by.Why the devil did not she make her appearance? I suppose the prude was afraid of my demolis.h.i.+ng and unrigging her.""There seems to have been more danger of
- 149 "Then I am very glad of it!" said the boy, dropping the weed, and clapping his hands joyfully; "for then I hope you will always stay here, don't you, mamma?--don't _you_, Mr. Vincent? Oh, _you_ do, I am sure, for I heard you say s
- 150 "My belief in the reconciling power of custom does not go quite so far,"said Lady Anne. "It does not extend to Caliban, or even to the hero of La Belle et La Bete; but I do believe, that, in a mind so well regulated as yours, esteem may cer
- 151 "It does not appear to me to be a matter of chance," said Mr. Percival."This is a game of address, not chance, and that is the reason I like it.""Oh, papa! Oh, Miss Portman! look how nicely these are balanced. There!my breath has
- 152 "I remember the time," said Mr. Percival, "when you thought it impossible that your taste should ever change; when you told me that taste, whether for the beauties of animate or inanimate nature, was immutable.""You and Miss Portm
- 153 "And now you have abused yourself till you are breathless, I may have some chance," said Belinda, "of being heard in your defence. I perfectly agree with you in thinking that a suspicious temper is despicable and intolerable; but there is a
- 154 "My friend, Dr. X----," said he, "divides mankind into three cla.s.ses: those who learn from the experience of others--they are happy men; those who learn from their own experience--they are wise men; and, lastly, those who learn neither fr
- 155 "If the lock be spoiled, Lady Delacour, you had better send for a locksmith," replied his lords.h.i.+p, who was still employed about the wick of the Argand: "I am no locksmith--I do not pretend to understand locks--especially secret locks.&
- 156 "Yes, ma'am; yes, ma'am, I'll remember; I'll be sure to remember," said Helena, tripping down the steps. But just as she was getting into the carriage she stopped at the sight of the old man, and exclaimed, "Oh, good old
- 157 The fears which her ladys.h.i.+p expressed of Mrs. Luttridge's malicious curiosity were not totally without foundation. Champfort was at work for her and for himself. The memorable night of Lady Delacour's overturn, and the bustle that Marriott
- 158 "One would think that you were the person that was going to suffer. But drink this water, my dear, and do not tremble for me; you see that I do not tremble for myself. Listen to me, dearest Belinda! I owe it to your friends.h.i.+p not to torment you
- 159 And so in fact it was.There is a certain cla.s.s of people, who are incapable of generous confidence in their equals, but who are disposed to yield implicit credit to the underhand information of mean emissaries. Through the medium of Champfort and the _s
- 160 "They ought to be hunted by common consent out of civilized society,"said Lady Delacour."They are by public opinion banished from all rational society; and your ladys.h.i.+p's just indignation proves, that they have no chance of being
- 161 Belinda was convinced that, when Lady Delacour had once tasted the pleasures of domestic life, she would not easily return to that dissipation which she had followed from habit, and into which she had first been driven by a mixture of vanity and despair.
- 162 "I am heartily glad of it--I shall be infinitely overpaid for my journey, by having the pleasure of going back with you."After some conversation upon different subjects, Mr. Vincent, with an air of frankness which was peculiarly pleasing to Beli
- 163 "No," said Belinda, "I do not love him yet.""But for that emphatic _yet_, how I should have wors.h.i.+pped you! I wish I could once clearly understand the state of your mind about Mr. Vincent, and then I should be able to judge ho
- 164 Mr. Vincent, who had by this time seen his dog fed, which was one of his daily pleasures, returned, and politely a.s.sured Lady Delacour that Juba should not again intrude. To make her peace with Mr. Vincent, and to drive the E O table from Belinda's
- 165 said the dowager: "an amiable woman, to be sure; but that means nothing.I have not had a guess from Miss Portman.""From general character," Belinda began, in a constrained voice."Do not guess from general character, my dear Belind
- 166 Clarence Hervey's packet contained a history of his connexion with Virginia St. Pierre.To save our hero from the charge of egotism, we shall relate the princ.i.p.al circ.u.mstances in the third person.It was about a year before he had seen Belinda th
- 167 "Seventeen!--is she only seventeen?" cried Clarence, with a mixture of surprise and disappointment in his countenance--"Only seventeen! Why she is but a child still.""Quite a child," said Mrs. Ormond; "and so much the be
- 168 To dissipate his own mind, and to give time for the development of hers, he now, according to his resolution, left his pupil to the care of Mrs.Ormond, and mixed as much as possible in gay and fas.h.i.+onable company. It was at this period that he renewed
- 169 "I am very glad that he would not think me ungrateful--but if he knew that I dream of them sometimes?""He would think you dreamed, as all people do, of what they think of in the daytime.""And he would not be angry? I am very glad
- 170 "Oh, that you need not a.s.sure me," said Mrs. Ormond."But I do not wish to marry him--I do not wish to marry.""You are a modest girl to say so; and this modesty will make you ten times more amiable, especially in Mr. Hervey'
- 171 "And my life to a china orange," cried a sailor who was standing by, "he's gone to kingdom come, or more likely to Bedlam, afore this; for he was plaguy crazy in his timbers, and his head wanted righting, I take it, if it was he, Jack,
- 172 replied Virginia. "I promise nothing but what I am able to perform.""I doubt it," said Mrs. Ormond, shaking her head. "You _are_--you _will_ be perfectly happy. Oh, Virginia, my love, do not deceive yourself; do not deceive us so
- 173 "I will be calm--only is she alive?""The lady, of whom this is the portrait, is alive," replied Clarence Hervey, who was obliged to exert his utmost command over himself, to maintain that composure which he saw was necessary; "the
- 174 "Your blessing!--give me your blessing, and then I shall know that you are indeed my father!" cried Virginia, kneeling to him, and looking up with an enthusiastic expression of filial piety in her countenance."G.o.d bless you, my sweet chil
- 175 As he saw no possibility of receding with honour, he, with becoming resolution, desired to urge things forward as fast as possible, and to strengthen in his mind the sense of the _necessity_ of the sacrifice that he was bound to make. His pa.s.sions were
- 176 "Down, Juba!--down, sir!" repeated Mr. Vincent, in a tone of bitter feeling, all his a.s.sumed gaiety forsaking him at this instant: "Down, Juba!--down, sir, down!" as low as your master, thought he; and pus.h.i.+ng back his chair, he
- 177 Overjoyed at the sight of Mrs. Luttridge's acknowledgment, Vincent repeated his vow never more to hazard himself in her dangerous society.He was impatient to see Belinda; and, full of generous and grateful sentiments, in his first moment of joy, he d
- 178 "Cannot you, dear Mr. Percival, save me the intolerable shame of confessing my own folly? Spare me this mortification! Be yourself the bearer of this intelligence, and the mediator in my favour.""I will with pleasure," said Mr. Perciva
- 179 "How _against_ me?""They are evidently as applicable to second as to first loves, I think.""Perhaps they are," said Belinda; "but I really and truly am not inclined to think of love at present; particularly as there is n
- 180 "My dear Miss Portman," said she, "you have a great deal of good-nature, else I should not venture to apply to you on the present occasion. Will you oblige me, and serve a friend of mine--a gentleman who, as I once imagined, was an admirer
- 181 "Take it coolly," said Lady Delacour, "and she will come to her senses presently. Young ladies must shriek and faint upon certain occasions; but men (looking at Clarence Hervey) need not always be dupes. This is only a _scene_; consider it
- 182 "Do not leave me--oh, do not leave me in anger!" cried Virginia, clinging to him. "Not trust you!--I!--not trust you! Oh, what _can_ you mean? I have no confessions to make! Mrs. Ormond knows every thought of my mind, and so shall you, if y
- 183 "Dear Mrs. Ormond, what have _you_ done with her?" replied Clarence. "By your mistaken kindness, by insisting upon doing us both good against our wills, you were very near making us both miserable for life. But I blame n.o.body; I have no r
- 184 [1] This declaration was taken from the lips of a celebrated character. [2] The manners, if not the morals, of gentlemen, have improved since the first publication of this work. Swearing has gone out of fas.h.i.+on. But Sir Philip Baddelys oaths are retai
- 185 Tales And Novels.Volume 4.by Maria Edgeworth.PREFACE The prevailing taste of the public for anecdote has been censured and ridiculed by critics who aspire to the character of superior wisdom; but if we consider it in a proper point of view, this taste is
- 186 It is a problem of difficult solution to determine, whether an Union will hasten or r.e.t.a.r.d the amelioration of this country. The few gentlemen of education, who now reside in this country, will resort to England: they are few, but they are in nothing
- 187 [S] _Flam_.--Short for flambeau.[T] _Barrack-room_.--Formerly it was customary, in gentlemen's houses in Ireland, to fit up one large bedchamber with a number of beds for the reception of occasional visitors. These rooms were called Barrack-rooms.[U]
- 188 [8] _Pin_, read _pen_. It formerly was vulgarly p.r.o.nounced _pin_ in Ireland.[9] _Her mark_. It _was_ the custom in Ireland for those who could not write to make a cross to stand for their signature, as was formerly the practice of our English monarchs.
- 189 "The learned man replied, 'Blockhead, as you are, why then do you say to me what you are now saying?'" [25]Making allowance for the difference of manners in eastern and northern nations, there is, certainly, such a similarity between t
- 190 But what have we next in our newspaper?--"Murder, Robbery, and Reward."This seems a strange connexion of things, according to our vulgar notions of distributive justice; but we are told that the wicked shall have their _reward_ even in this worl
- 191 "Then read it loud, you plockit."Dominick read aloud-- "There is _nothing appears so clearly_ an object of the mind or intellect only as _the future_ does, since we can find no place for its existence any where else: not but the same, if we
- 192 THE BLISS OF IGNORANCE.No _well-informed_ Englishman would laugh at the blunders of such a character as little Dominick; but there are people who justify the a.s.sertion, that laughter always arises from a sense of real or imaginary superiority. Now if it
- 193 "The council of war was sitting when I received the honour of your letters. We have unanimously resolved not to surrender the place until we shall have been buried in its ruins," &c.One step further in hyperbole is reserved for him, who, being b
- 194 "Ingrediturque solo, et caput inter nubila condit.""Her feet on earth, her head amidst the clouds."Up they go, continues our orator._Music! says he--Skulls! says I._ Metaphor continually: on one side of an Irish halfpenny there is a ha
- 195 "Health and long life to you!" said he. "Give an old man something to help to bury him. He is past his labour, and cannot trouble this world long any way."He held his hat towards us, with nothing importunate in his manner, but rather w
- 196 In anger as well as in sorrow the Irishman is eloquent. A gentleman who was lately riding through the county of ----, in Ireland, to canva.s.s, called to ask a vote from a poor man, who was planting willows in a little garden by the road side."You ha
- 197 "It is surprising," said the Englishman, "how ignorant we English in general are of Ireland: to be sure we do not now, as in the times of Bacon and Spenser, believe that wild Irishmen have wings; nor do we all of us give credit, to Mr. Twis
- 198 _Irishman_.--"Upon my word, I did not think you could have found a match for the mason; but what will you say to my countryman, who, on meeting an acquaintance, accosted him with this ambiguous compliment--'When first I saw you I thought it was
- 199 His brother allowed that not the smallest particle of brogue was to be discerned upon Phelim's tongue, but feared that some Irish idiom might be perceived in his conversation. And then the name of O'Mooney!"Oh, as to that, I need not troubl
- 200 No mortal could have guessed by Sir John Bull's air, when he heard this question, that he had never seen a candelabra before in his life. He was so much, and yet seemingly so little upon his guard, he dealt so dexterously in generals, and evaded part