Frank had no desire whatever to revolt. His mother’s sway had been very
light upon him: had he been what he was not, inclined towards
dissipation, so long as it had been carried on among what she called
“the right sort of people,” I am inclined to believe that Mrs. Mowbray
would rather have liked it than otherwise; but that would have been
perhaps because she did not know what it was, and liked to see her
son’s name among the names of the great, on whatsoever excuse. She would
rather have had Frank conspicuous by the side of a young duke, than
known to the world in the most virtuous circumstances, as the companion
of lesser men; but Frank did not accept, nor was he even aware of, this
tacit license to do evil, so long as it was fashionably done. He had not
the slightest leaning towards dissipation--he was one of those young men
whom perhaps we undervalue in theory, though in action they are the
backbone of the race, who seem to be inaccessible to the ordinary
temptations. Had he been offered the choice of Hercules, he would
certainly, by inclination, have offered his arm to Madam Virtue, and
waved away dishevelled Pleasure, however pretty, with the most unfeigned
indifference: he did not care for that sort of thing, he would have
said: and this insensibility was better than coat armour to him. It is
common to believe that a boy, brought up as he had been, at the
apron-strings of his mother, is open to every touch of temptation, and
apt to find the fascination of a disorderly life irresistible; but,
howsoever Frank had been brought up, the issue would have been the
same--he was “no an ill callant”--he was not led away by fancies, either
for good or evil, quite disposed to be kind, but never lavish in
generosity; not prodigal in anything, able to balance the pros and the
cons, and to accept the disadvantages with the advantages. Perhaps it
was not a character to excite any great enthusiasm, but it was one that
was very easy to live with, and could not have inspired any serious
anxiety in the most fanciful and susceptible of minds.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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