"
"Do not say that to the Portuguese," said L'Isle. "They will be justly
offended; for their tongue is rather the elder sister of the Spanish
than a corruption of it."
"Pray, lend me your tongue, Colonel L'Isle," said Mrs.
Shortridge. "Here Dona Carlotta Sequiera has been jabbering at me in
what I now find out to be French, but I am ashamed to say, I do not
know thirty words of the language."
"Better to be ignorant of it," said L'Isle with a sneer, "than learn
it as Dona Carlotta did."
"I know not how she acquired it," said Mrs. Shortridge, "but I am told
that here on the continent every educated person speaks French. We
English are far behind them in that."
"Be proud rather than ashamed of that," said L'Isle. "Monsieur has
taught all Europe his language except ourselves. Flagellation is a
necessary part of schooling. As he has never been able to thrash us,
we are the worst French scholars in Europe, and those he has thrashed
oftenest, are the best. They should blush at their knowledge; we plume
ourselves on our ignorance. Thank God you have an English tongue in
your head, and never mar a better language with a Gallic phrase.
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