His Grace — page 104: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

98 HIS GRACE. utter rot. You can see that for yourself in the papers. Of course if you want to go, mother, we'll go; but I don’t believe you would like it when you were there, and goodness knows how long it will be before I get another opportunity of proving to Miss Martyn that, with a little practice, I can do all the figures that she is forever bragging about.”’ “T wasn’t thinking of myself,’ answered good: -natured Lady Charles: “I was only afraid that you must be getting bored todeath here. If you aren't, so much the better.” “Oh, I’m all right,’”’ Hurstbourne declared, with a prompt brightening of face and tone. “I shouldn’t like our friend Paul to think that he had driven me out of the county like a beaten cur ; besides, I’d really rather be here than anywhereelse. Skating isn’t hunting, but it does well enough to fill up the time when there’s no other sport to be had, and it’s better than totting up sums in addition all day long, anyhow. Now, look here, Martyn, you must come down to the lake with us this afternoon, and get a little healthy exercise. I believe half the time when you pretend to be so_ busy you're only writing sonnets, or something of that sort.” A modest blush suffused my cheeks, for I do feel that, however communicative Nora might have seen fit to be respecting her own affairs, she ought to have respected her brother’s secrets; but she looked as if she did not know what Hurstbourne meant, and I thought I wouldn’t pursue the topic. I said I wouia run down to the ice in the course of the afternoon if I could manage it, but that, without any humbug, I had an awful lot of work on hand. My excuse was accepted ; perhaps, after all, my com. Eomichoo “S (E(0)