Within a few months the ‘slave Alexandre’ had been successfully transformed into what, across the Channel, was called a ‘blackamoor dandy’. Parisians preferred the more politely euphemistic term ‘American’.

Imposition tends to generate opposition, and life is better, I find, if you approach it with open eyes and open-heartedly.

Commander Birch was a trifle uneasy when he found there was more than a popple on the sea; it was, in fact, distinctly choppy.

The total with tax is $1.05.