If I have spoken strongly of Mr Abbott, it must be remembered that a patriotic duty has claims superior to those of convention: moreover, Mr Abbott has himself made a verbal declaration of the strongest kind, accompanied with an oath, that he is indifferent to my opinions.
It may be mentioned in this connection that the unhappy difficulties of the Benthorpe family, on which I was compelled (however reluctantly) to touch, are of no further moment, since young Mr Benthorpe has wooed and won Antigua, the only daughter of the Count Brahms de la Torre de Traicion y Crapular, a Spanish nobleman of immense resources.
For the rest, I have throughout striven earnestly—and I believe successfully—to avoid giving the slightest pain to any sentient being.
“He prayeth best who loveth best
All things both great and small;
For the great God who loveth us,
He made and loves them all.”
—Coleridge
Or words to that effect.
Chelsea, 1904