The fever of war that would presently
clog vein and artery, deaden nerve and destroy brain, had still to develop.
A general confessed, in my presence, "that he got a victory purely by the force of cowardice and ill conduct;" and an admiral, "that, for want of proper intelligence, he beat the enemy, to whom he intended to betray the fleet." Three kings protested to me, "that in their whole reigns they never did once prefer any person of merit, unless by mistake, or treachery of some minister in whom they confided; neither would they do it if they were to live again:" and they showed, with great strength of reason, "that the royal throne could not be supported without corruption, because that positive, confident, restiff temper, which virtue infused into a man, was a perpetual
clog to public business."
Though far from kindred and friends, Captain Bonneville and his handful of free trappers were not disposed to suffer the festival to pass unenjoyed; they were in a region of good cheer, and were disposed to be joyous; so it was determined to "light up the yule
clog," and celebrate a merry Christmas in the heart of the wilderness.
He was tired out now, and his brains were beginning to
clog. He said he would sleep himself fresh, and then see what he could do with this riddle.
They left a great many odd little foot-marks all over the bed, especially little Benjamin, who was wearing
clogs.
One fine evening a young princess put on her bonnet and
clogs, and went out to take a walk by herself in a wood; and when she came to a cool spring of water, that rose in the midst of it, she sat herself down to rest a while.
Bute Crawley had always kept up an understanding with the great house), that lady in her
clogs and calash, the Reverend Bute Crawley, and James Crawley, her son, had walked over from the Rectory through the park, and had entered the mansion by the open hall-door.
And one of the ladies-in-waiting had to go down; but she put on wooden
clogs. 'What will you take for the pot?' asked the lady-in-waiting.
The gentleman at first thought he had committed a mistake, and was going to ask pardon and retreat, when, on a sudden, as the moon shone very bright, he cast his eyes on stays, gowns, petticoats, caps, ribbons, stockings, garters, shoes,
clogs, &c., all which lay in a disordered manner on the floor.
The soles of these
clogs are not what they seem to be, for each one is a sweet little box; and by twisting the second nail from the toe, the upper of the shoe and part of the sole lifts up like a lid, and in the spaces within are fourscore and ten bright golden pounds in each shoe, all wrapped in hair, to keep them from clinking and so telling tales of themselves."
She heard heavy breathing, a clatter of wooden
clogs. It stopped.
"Nay, Sancho," returned Teresa; "marry her to her equal, that is the safest plan; for if you put her out of wooden
clogs into high-heeled shoes, out of her grey flannel petticoat into hoops and silk gowns, out of the plain 'Marica' and 'thou,' into 'Dona So-and-so' and 'my lady,' the girl won't know where she is, and at every turn she will fall into a thousand blunders that will show the thread of her coarse homespun stuff."