These elders, our betters by a trick of chance, commanded no respect, but only a certain blend of envy-of their good luck-and pity-for their inability to make use of it. Indeed, it was one of the most hopeless features in their character (when we troubled ourselves to waste a thought on them: which wasn't often) that, having absolute licence to indulge in the pleasures of life, they could get no good of it.They might dabble in the pond all day, hunt the chickens, climb trees in the most uncompromising Sunday clothes; they were free to issue forth and buy gunpowder in the full eye of the...

In the issue of general culture and attainments, we children stood on quite even footing. True, it was always the case that one of us would be picked at random, inexplicably, and without regard to his own preferences to struggle with the inflections of some idiotic language that was long since dead; meanwhile, another, from some fancied artistic tendency that always failed to justify itself, might be told off without warning to hammer out scales and exercises, and to bedew the pointless keys with wet tears of exhaustion or indignation.However, neither would have cared to be the best in areas...