His Grace — page 80: what you’re looking at

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

mA HTS GRACE. discussed every horse in the stables, had differed as to the merits of the animals, had backed their respective opinions, and had agreed to bring matters to a decisive issue on the first open day. When Nora wished me gsood-night, she whispered to me: ‘Your Duke is as delightful as if his name were Brown, Jones, or Robinson and he had just come home from school for the holidays. I don’t want him to stay too long; but I think we may Raneee to put up with him for a week, or even a fortnight.” In the smoking-room I learnt that our host was likely to remain with us for at least that length of time. He was determined, he informed me, that no effort on his part should be wanting to secure the return of Mr. Somers, the Liberal-Unionist candidate. “And of course it’s a most unfair and disgraceful thing that a Tory should come forward to stand against him. Everybody says so. Don’t you think so yourself ? ” I confessed to that absence of prejudice which be- longs to total ignorance. ‘“ I thought,” said I, “it was understood that Unionists were not to be disturbed. Who is this malignant Tory, and what does he mean by breaking away from the allegiance which he owes to the wire-pullers ? ” “ Good gracious me! don’t you know who he is? Why, Paul Gascoigne, of course! I hear that his own people have begged him to retire; but he won’t. He has the cheek to swear that the constituency is Con- servative—though everybody knows that it has re- turned Whigs to Parliament from time immemorial— and that the late man only got in because he had pledged himself to.support the Government. He pre- Gomichboo m