Some of the
stricter Presbyterians, though fond of a dance, experienced
conscientious qualms about it. So they struck an ingenious
compromise with their consciences by dancing vigorously whilst
assuming an air of intense misery, as though they were undergoing
some terrible penance. Every one present enjoyed these barn-dances
enormously.
My father was an admirable speaker of the old-fashioned school,
with calculated pauses, an unusual felicity in the choice of his
epithets, and a considerable amount of gesticulation. The veteran
Lord Chaplin is the last living exponent of this type of oratory.
Although my father prepared his speeches very carefully indeed, he
never made a single written note. He had a beautiful speaking
voice and a prodigious memory; this memory, he knew from
experience, would not fail him. An excellent shot himself both
with gun and rifle, and a good fisherman, to the end of his life
he maintained his interest in sport and in all the pursuits of the
younger life around him, for he was very human.
It is difficult for a son to write impartially of his mother.
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