FIFTY YEARS OF A SHOWMAN'S LIFE 



to inquire when Sir Thomas would " lecture "- 

 though he, himself, would indignantly repudiate 

 the idea of delivering himself of anything so pre- 

 tentious, or so cut-and-dried, as was thereby 

 implied. Nor would he enter into any under- 

 taking beforehand to deliver an address upon a 

 specified subject at a specified hour ; he disliked 

 what he considered the " ostentatiousness " of 

 this. But some one who knew how to serve the 

 cause would, at a favourable juncture, beg Sir 

 Thomas to say " just a few words " to the butter- 

 making competitors and others. And then, after 

 a preliminary declaration that he was not going 

 to occupy their time for more than a few moments, 

 he would hold their attention for half an hour at 

 least, and everybody was sorry when he had 

 finished. 



He was fearless in the expression of his opinions, 

 whether they were popular or unpopular, and 

 sometimes they bore hardly upon cherished con- 

 victions ; but his transparent sincerity, if it 

 could not convince, at least, could never be doubted. 

 He was apt to chafe under what he considered 

 the unnecessary restraints and delays of diplo- 

 matic methods, and occasionally he hindered 

 somewhat the attainment of an end by too readily 

 taking one of those short cuts which are ultimately 

 found to be the longest way round. His natural 

 impulsiveness led him to prefer a sudden coup de 

 main to a deliberate siege, and when once he had 

 convinced himself which sometimes happened 

 with lightning rapidity of the desirability of a 

 certain course, he could not easily realize that 

 there could be any possible obstacle to following it. 



146 



