"Lamely" Quotes from Famous Books
 ... him standing beside her, his face aglow with rapture. A quick catch of the breath, a sudden movement of the hand that lay upon her breast, and then she smiled,—a wavering, uncertain smile that went straight to his heart and shamed him for startling her. "I beg your pardon," he began lamely. "I—I startled you." ...
— The Prince of Graustark • George Barr McCutcheon
... can help you," she concluded, a little lamely. "I want to help—the people. Of course, we Americans believe that a people ought to choose their own rulers—but where that isn't possible, the next best thing is to give them the best available. I should be proud to ...
— Affairs of State • Burton E. Stevenson
... impalpable things in his mind, cloudy emotions half shaped towards ideas, vanished before the rough grasp of words. "It is hard to express," he said lamely. ...
— Tales of Space and Time • Herbert George Wells
... not very like any of you!" Sylvia said lamely. She wanted to be pleasant and appreciative, but could not think what on earth to say next. "It must be—er—very nice to have a little sister. She is in Paris, you say. Will ...
— More about Pixie • Mrs. George de Horne Vaizey
... Progress' hold their own generation after generation, altho the cultivated class did not discover their merits until long after the plain people had taken them to heart. Cervantes and Shakspere were widely popular from the start; and appreciative criticism limped lamely after the approval of the mob. Whatever blunders in belauding, the plain people may make now and again, in time they come unfailingly to a hearty appreciation of work that is honest, genuine, and broad in its appeal; and when ...
— Inquiries and Opinions • Brander Matthews
... wrong there," returned the lad eagerly. "I should be glad to have your opinion of"—he hesitated, and then finished lamely, "of the Jacobis, I mean. You are such a judge of character, and ...
— Herb of Grace • Rosa Nouchette Carey
... preferred to be alone, you seemed so abstracted," she said, lamely; and then, as they came out into the sunlight in the circle, she began talking of the garden as she would to any visitor; of its beginnings, its growth, and its future, when her father's ...
— Over the Pass • Frederick Palmer
... from a faint by a wheeze close in his ear. The wolf leaped lamely back, losing its footing and falling in its weakness. It was ludicrous, but he was not amused. Nor was he even afraid. He was too far gone for that. But his mind was for the moment clear, and he lay and considered. The ship was no more than four miles away. He could see it quite distinctly ...
— Love of Life - and Other Stories • Jack London
... never shall. And yet if you could know—' He stopped short, and then added quietly, 'Well, will you accept all that as an apology? The very scrubbiest sackcloth made, and the grittiest ashes on the heap....I didn't mean to get worked up,' he ended lamely. ...
— Trent's Last Case - The Woman in Black • E.C. (Edmund Clerihew) Bentley
... enthusiasm, the disconcerting thought came suddenly that perhaps her statement might not be accurate. No such thought had ever suggested itself to him before, and it now filled him with guilty confusion. He met the clear, honest gaze of her eyes for a moment, then he stammered lamely: ...
— In the Midst of Alarms • Robert Barr
... see," I returned lamely, though I didn't see at all. The indifferent way in which he spoke of centuries in connection with this brilliant and apparently fresh-painted picture rather ...
— A Crystal Age • W. H. Hudson
... strange creatures. How often he had heard that said, he thought lamely. He felt no anger, no surprise or resentment, at the trick. It was only to be expected. He could sit on till morning; easily till morning. He had never noticed before how empty a well-furnished room could seem. It was his ...
— The Return • Walter de la Mare
... "Oh!" he said lamely. "Thank you, Miss Cohen; I'll make a memorandum of it." He went over to the commercial agency book and scanned three or four pages with an unseeing eye. Then he repaired to the sample room, where Abe sat ...
— Abe and Mawruss - Being Further Adventures of Potash and Perlmutter • Montague Glass
... "I hope we shall see him then. He was telling us ..." I paused. It occurred to me that she would hardly care to be apprised of what her husband had been telling us—"of his early life," I ended lamely. ...
— Aliens • William McFee
... Douglas asked rather lamely, being at a loss for any adequate comment upon a tragedy which the child before him was ...
— Polly of the Circus • Margaret Mayo
... prosecution rested, Whitredge took up his line of defense. He tried to show, rather lamely, I thought, that I had always lived within my means, hadn't been dissipated, and had never been known to bet, either on horse races or on the stock market; that whatever I had done had been done without criminal intent. In this part of the trial I had a heart-warming ...
— Branded • Francis Lynde
... about emotions? If we accept the somewhat unscientific theory that it's a soul which is responsible for feelings and emotions, these ... these ... creatures would be handicapped." Brent paused as if uncertain of his ground. "Wouldn't they?" he asked lamely. "I mean, they couldn't—theoretically, at least—react to situations ... or other ...
— Ten From Infinity • Paul W. Fairman
... was not so old as Conrad, and quite aware he was not so clever, and he didn't know their game, so he strove as he could to hold the meaning of what he had heard, and ended rather lamely: "Well, too bad about Miguel, but if you, Tomas, are going instead, you had better get your war togs ready. We start tonight from the Junction, and have ...
— The Treasure Trail - A Romance of the Land of Gold and Sunshine • Marah Ellis Ryan
... Meander. He promenades if he walks in a public place, as for pleasure or display. He prowls if he moves about softly and stealthily, as in search of prey or booty. He hobbles if he jerks along unevenly, as from a stiff or crippled condition of body. He limps if he walks lamely. He perambulates when he walks through, perhaps for observation or inspection. (Perambulates is of course ...
— The Century Vocabulary Builder • Creever & Bachelor
... answer. And, nonplussed thereby, he added lamely: "I should have liked to have seen Tod and your youngsters. Remember me to them. Clara sent her regards"; and, looking round the room in a rather lost way, he ...
— Forsyte Saga • John Galsworthy
... arm, Mrs. Wilson," returned Barbara firmly. "I am telling you the truth. How absurd for you to think anything else! What could I wish in here? But I needed to look into the directory at once—for a—for a special purpose," Barbara finished lamely. ...
— The Automobile Girls At Washington • Laura Dent Crane
... sooner than I thought," she answered lamely, a sense of something wrong irritating her. "I had a hard time finding you, too. Who's your—" she was about to say "pretty housekeeper," but turned to find Jennie dazedly gathering up certain articles in the adjoining ...
— Jennie Gerhardt - A Novel • Theodore Dreiser
... know they belonged to you. I just saw the strings in the pool and took a few," answered the boy, lamely. "Give ...
— Randy of the River - The Adventures of a Young Deckhand • Horatio Alger Jr.
... Here are the men who, both by their qualities and their defects, are to have for their span of life the leading—or the wrecking?—of this great fate-bearing force, this "weary Titan" we call our country. Here things are not only debated, but done—lamely or badly, perhaps, but still done—which will affect our children's children; which link us to the Past; which carry us on safely or dangerously to a Future only the gods know. And in this passage, this chequered, doubtful passage from thinking to doing, ...
— Marcella • Mrs. Humphry Ward
... he caught hold of a fold of his opponent's throat, which he began to tear open with fingers and teeth. Wrenching himself free with a supreme effort the crocodile shot into the stream and disappeared with a sounding splash of its tail, while the mias waded lamely to the shore with an expression of sulky indignation on its great ...
— Blown to Bits - or, The Lonely Man of Rakata • Robert Michael Ballantyne
... tongue to say that he would not have her so; but he checked himself, and said, lamely enough: "Perhaps you will ...
— Between The Dark And The Daylight • William Dean Howells
... 'I am diverted with you, sir.' JOHNSON. 'Sir, I could never be diverted with incivility. Doing such a thing, makes one lose confidence in him who has done it, as one cannot tell what he may do next.' His extraordinary warmth confounded me so much, that I justified myself but lamely to him; yet my intentions were not improper. I wished to get on, to see how we were to be lodged, and how we were to get a boat; all which I thought I could best settle myself, without his having any trouble. To apply his great mind to minute particulars, is wrong: it is like taking ...
— The Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides with Samuel Johnson, LL.D. • James Boswell
... loquacious mood and ready to be lured on by Hayden's interest, "was one evening when I happened to see them dining together at the Gildersleeve. They were with Mr.——" Bea hesitated the twinkling of an eyelash, "an elderly man," she concluded rather lamely. ...
— The Silver Butterfly • Mrs. Wilson Woodrow
... word inventiveness for lack of a better name. It expresses but lamely the peculiar faculty that distinguishes Chekhov. Chekhov does not really invent. He reveals. He reveals things that no author before him has revealed. It is as though he possessed a special organ which enabled him to see, hear and feel things ...
— Best Russian Short Stories • Various
... she stammered, and added lamely "I thought you were—were—were some one else." She paused, then she went on with some slight return of her earlier sternness "Just the same, your coming ...
— Black Caesar's Clan • Albert Payson Terhune
... him while he walked lamely into the house. He was relieved to find that there was nothing more the matter with him than a shaking ...
— The Head of Kay's • P. G. Wodehouse
... continued to stare at Chatfield much as he might have, stared at the Sphinx if she had been present—and in the end he could only think of one word. "Well?" he asked lamely. "Well?" ...
— Scarhaven Keep • J. S. Fletcher
... calling them; he lifted his head and looked at Olive, but she would not meet his eye; she led by the hand the little girl, who kept asking, "Is this the house where papa lives?" with the merciless iteration of a child. Halleck dragged lamely after the Squire, who had mounted the steps with unnatural vigor; he promptly found his way to the clerk's office, where he examined the docket, and then returned to his party triumphant. "We are in time," he said, and he led them ...
— A Modern Instance • William Dean Howells
... was, of a sudden. There was his shyness again, so lamely come upon him that it colored his face. And the halting boyishness of the request had warmed Cecille's face too; warmed her through and through. She knew an impulse to hug his head to her breast, a very ...
— Winner Take All • Larry Evans
... now to discount instinct, I know; well—but you can't get away from it. I've thought about the thing—a lot. Men are brave against their better reason, against their conscience. It's a mixed-up thing. It's confusing and—and sort of damnable," he concluded lamely. ...
— The Best Short Stories of 1915 - And the Yearbook of the American Short Story • Various
... and, crossing to the open doorway, stood leaning there. "But, indeed," I went on hurriedly, "there is no chance of such a thing happening—not the remotest. Black George's bark is a thousand times worse than his bite; this letter means nothing, and—er—nothing at all," I ended, somewhat lamely, for she had turned and was looking at ...
— The Broad Highway • Jeffery Farnol
... he thought, and then pulled himself up. "That is—I don't think a man would have to be in love with her to see that," he ended lamely. "I thought they ...
— The Wishing-Ring Man • Margaret Widdemer
... Millsburgh so long before the end of the summer season. Then she continued slowly, as if remembering that she must guard her words, "Brother wrote me that they were expecting serious labor troubles, and with father as he is—" Her voice broke and she finished lamely, "Mother is so worried and unhappy. I—I felt that I really ought not to ...
— Helen of the Old House • Harold Bell Wright
... very lamely, and conscious of an unsympathetic audience. The very parrot ruffled up his feathers and turned his glistening eye upon his mistress when it was over, as though he shrugged ...
— A Pair of Clogs • Amy Walton
... distracted with doubt concerning the conduct of his friend, should at this relation pass unobserved the incident of his being committed to the boat by the captain of the privateer, which he had at the time of his telling so lamely accounted for; but now, when Heartfree came to reflect on the whole, and with a high prepossession against Wild, the absurdity of this fact glared in his eyes and struck him in the most sensible manner. At length a thought of great horror suggested itself to ...
— The History of the Life of the Late Mr. Jonathan Wild the Great • Henry Fielding
... to know the worst at once," said Raffles, rather lamely for him; "and then a man playing in a 'Varsity match is never quite his own master, you know. Still, he oughtn't to ...
— Mr. Justice Raffles • E. W. Hornung
... These mountains and woods are beautiful, and I never saw lovelier beech-trees. The coloring of their trunks is so exquisite, and the shade is so fine," he concluded, lamely, noticing a blank look on the old woman's face. To his delight the girl, half turned toward him, was listening ...
— A Mountain Europa • John Fox Jr.
... does a merchant like Scharley got to hear such things," Klinger protested lamely. "Honestly, I was ashamed for your partner's sake to hear such a talk going ...
— Elkan Lubliner, American • Montague Glass
... Dave stared in bewilderment. Then he lamely apologized for the trouble he had caused, and tried to thank the women ...
— Heart of the Sunset • Rex Beach
... The Colonel wouldn't come. He said it was all foolishness, and that he had a book he wanted to read. So he sent me after what he called my mare's nest. It isn't, you see—no, not quite, not quite," Mr. Woods murmured, with an odd smile, and then laughed and added, lamely: "I—I suppose I'm the only person who ...
— The Eagle's Shadow • James Branch Cabell
... They are——" He pauses. What are they? What are his thoughts of her at all hours, all seasons? "They are always kind," says he, lamely, in a low tone, looking at the carpet. That downward glance condemns him in her eyes—to her it is but a token of ...
— A Little Rebel - A Novel • Margaret Wolfe Hungerford
... was weaned and raised on bean soup—and liverwurst," interjected Adolph Kunkel in the lull which followed, and immediately squirmed under Mrs. Symes's blazing eyes. "Of course," he added lamely, "we et other ...
— The Lady Doc • Caroline Lockhart
... Maiesty, To strut before a wonton ambling Nymph: I, that am curtail'd of this faire Proportion, Cheated of Feature by dissembling Nature, Deform'd, vn-finish'd, sent before my time Into this breathing World, scarse halfe made vp, And that so lamely and vnfashionable, That dogges barke at me, as I halt by them. Why I (in this weake piping time of Peace) Haue no delight to passe away the time, Vnlesse to see my Shadow in the Sunne, And descant on mine owne Deformity. And therefore, since I cannot proue a Louer, To entertaine these faire ...
— The First Folio [35 Plays] • William Shakespeare
... would be to you—here, after all you'd been used to back East—fine clothes, fine feed, and fine doin's all around, to say nothin' of books and learnin' in between times; so we—we tried to break ye in easy. That's all," he finished, a little lamely. ...
— The Sunbridge Girls at Six Star Ranch • Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman) Porter
... with happiness than foolish with misfortune, better to dance awkwardly than walk lamely. So learn, I pray you, my wisdom, ye higher men: even the worst thing hath two ...
— Thus Spake Zarathustra - A Book for All and None • Friedrich Nietzsche
... I did not know you," explained young Denton, lamely. "I thought you might be willing to flirt a little—no ...
— For Gold or Soul? - The Story of a Great Department Store • Lurana W. Sheldon
... a hard question to answer; but growing once more full of energy now that he was satisfied that there was no immediate danger, Pen stepped back lamely, as if every muscle were strained, to his companion's side, to be greeted with a smile and a ...
— !Tention - A Story of Boy-Life during the Peninsular War • George Manville Fenn
... feature by dissembling nature, Deformed, unfinished, sent before my time Into this breathing world, scarce half-made up, And that so lamely and unfashionable, The dogs bark at me, ...
— The Continental Monthly, Vol. 2, No 3, September, 1862 - Devoted to Literature and National Policy. • Various
... talking shells on the neck of the Duck, and the singing shells in her beak, and though painfully and lamely, yet he followed the sound she made with the shells. From place to place with swift flight she sped, then awaiting him, ducking her head that the shells might call loudly. By and by they came to the country of thick rains and mists on the borders of the Snow World, and passed from water to water, ...
— Myths and Legends of California and the Old Southwest • Katharine Berry Judson
... air of determination which I was beginning to fear. Mrs Neverbend pursed up her lips, and said nothing; but I knew what was passing through her mind. I managed to turn the conversation, but I was aware that I did it very lamely. ...
— The Fixed Period • Anthony Trollope
... have some money of your own, Edith; it will be enough for you and the children to live quietly. And perhaps I shall be able to afford to send you part of my income that my father left me when I get something to do over there,' he added rather lamely. ...
— Love at Second Sight • Ada Leverson
... observances, customs and laws, Decline to your confounding contraries; And let confusion live!—Plagues, incident to men, Your potent and infectious fevers heap On Athens, ripe for stroke! Thou cold sciatica, Cripple our senators, that their limbs may halt As lamely as their manners! Lust and liberty Creep in the minds and manners of our youth, That 'gainst the stream of virtue they may strive, And drown themselves in riot! Itches, blains, Sow all th' Athenian bosoms; and their crop Be general leprosy: breath infect breath, ...
— Characters of Shakespeare's Plays • William Hazlitt
... know you were to come out this autumn," she protested lamely, not daring to look at Cleopatra, whose attitude she ...
— Too Old for Dolls - A Novel • Anthony Mario Ludovici
... death. But the great trial was an anthem that had been prepared and arranged by Master Simon, and on which he had founded great expectation. Unluckily, there was a blunder at the very outset: the musicians became flurried; Master Simon was in a fever; everything went on lamely and irregularly until they came to a chorus beginning, "Now let us sing with one accord," which seemed to be a signal for parting company: all became discord and confusion: each shifted for himself, and got to the end as well—or, rather, as soon—as ...
— The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. • Washington Irving
... worth remembering very long," he said lamely. She smiled and said the statement threw a different light on the question. Whereupon he did not know whether to laugh ...
— Nedra • George Barr McCutcheon
... lamely it seemed, however. The editor said that it read amateurish, and he felt he would have to make a change. Carl made for some files where all the daily papers were kept, and read and re-read the yellowest of the yellow. As luck would have it, that very night a big fire broke ...
— An American Idyll - The Life of Carleton H. Parker • Cornelia Stratton Parker
... But he did not follow on with the thought. There was no need of sowing suspicion when he wasn't really certain there were grounds for it. "Well, you never can tell," he continued, lamely. "These writer ...
— The Ragged Edge • Harold MacGrath
... no longer, so, fetching down her writing-case, she spoiled a dozen sheets of paper in the effort to make her news fairly palatable, finally dashing off an unsatisfactory scrawl, badly written and lamely expressed; and, having folded and directed it, she flew out into the yard to find a messenger to take it. The first who presented himself ...
— The Village by the River • H. Louisa Bedford
... sorry, but there is absolutely nothing I can do to help you, Mr. Henderson," Saunders said, lamely. "Of course, I mean in regard to this particular matter. If you are in want, however, and any reasonable amount would be of service to you—why, on my own account ...
— The Desired Woman • Will N. Harben
... if that 'Red Rover' had disappeared while we were away," answered the red-headed Larry. "You can't tell about that craft. It's just as likely not to be there as it is to be there," he added lamely, then flushed when his companions ...
— The Meadow-Brook Girls Afloat • Janet Aldridge
... impress Collinson with his penetration, nor the undaunted energy he had displayed in getting up his company and opening the mine, so that he was actually embarrassed by his own understatement; and under the grave, patient eyes of his companion, told his story at best lamely. Collinson's face betrayed neither profound interest nor the slightest resentment. When Key had ended his awkward recital, Collinson ...
— In a Hollow of the Hills • Bret Harte
... matter of competence either, is it? I mean, one can easily understand that Mr. Wyatt is proud of being your...." He stopped lamely. ...
— Christopher Hibbault, Roadmaker • Marguerite Bryant
... bleeding figure till it arose lamely. "Why did you do that?" His desire to strangle the ...
— Pardners • Rex Beach
... half-breed were seriously hurt, and in a week both were well again—the one going lamely about his business and the other in jail beside ...
— The Spoilers of the Valley • Robert Watson
... the Cause, mademoiselle, but of myself alone—of my own personal honour. I would that I could explain; but I am afraid," I ended lamely. ...
— Bardelys the Magnificent • Rafael Sabatini
... sullenly; no one had ever believed him yet and he wasn't expecting her to. He would like to have invented something a little more plausible, but he lacked the imagination to tell a convincing lie. So, as usual, he lamely told the truth. ...
— Just Patty • Jean Webster
... apprehend the same and the other rightly, and become rational. The soul of him who has education is whole and perfect and escapes the worst disease, but, if a man's education be neglected, he walks lamely through life and returns good for nothing to the world below. This, however, is an after-stage—at present, we are only concerned with the creation of the body ...
— Timaeus • Plato
... clear enough," he replied lamely. He made a pretense of rereading the letter, but only detached phrases penetrated to his consciousness. His imagination was in rebellion against the curbing to which he strove to subject it. When ...
— A Hoosier Chronicle • Meredith Nicholson
... which was to have been erected in the Tribune of St. Peter's. The socles, upon which captive Arts and Sciences were meant to stand, remain; but instead of statues, inverted consoles take their places, and lead lamely up to the heads and busts of terminal old men. The pilasters of these terms have been shortened. There are four of them, enclosing two narrow niches, where beautiful female figures, the Active Life and the Contemplative Life, still ...
— The Life of Michelangelo Buonarroti • John Addington Symonds
... sort of a religious meeting, or something of that kind, I suppose," he answered lamely. ...
— The Girl from Montana • Grace Livingston Hill
... distance, and I was guessing at it, and not making very good guesses either. B. had his Springfield and made closer practice, finally hitting a leg of one of the beasts. We saw him lift his paw and shake it, but he did not move lamely afterward, so the damage was probably confined to a simple scrape. It was a good shot anyway. Then they disappeared over ...
— The Land of Footprints • Stewart Edward White
... blind stupidity I began to hear a voice in my ears, and to find myself lunging back and forth and stumbling lamely on my left foot. The right foot had no feeling, no power of motion, and I forgot ...
— The Price of the Prairie - A Story of Kansas • Margaret Hill McCarter
... began Garry lamely, "you must be starting a new cycle. Jan could tell you. He talks a lot about the cycle of dates and ...
— Kenny • Leona Dalrymple
... do with it," she faltered rather lamely. "If you Juniors have any complaints to make, you must make them ...
— The Leader of the Lower School - A Tale of School Life • Angela Brazil
... learned to keep your balance; and also to steer without wrenching the tiller out by the roots (I say tiller because it IS a tiller; "handle-bar" is a lamely descriptive phrase). So you steer along, straight ahead, a little while, then you rise forward, with a steady strain, bringing your right leg, and then your body, into the saddle, catch your breath, fetch a violent hitch this way and then that, ...
— Innocents abroad • Mark Twain
... He has used you—you have been material for him. If there is nothing worse"—Kathryn flushed here—"it is because I have come in time. May I ask you now to leave me here in Mr. Northrup's"—Kathryn sought the proper word—"study?" she said lamely. "I will rest awhile; try to compose myself. If he comes I will meet him here. If not, I will go ...
— At the Crossroads • Harriet T. Comstock
... over to them, offering no explanations on its peculiarities or parts, speaking only when they asked him, in horse parlance, with humor that broadened as they put off their reserve. On invitation to show its gait he mounted it, after explaining that it had stepped on a nail and traveled lamely. He circled the fire and came back to them, offering it to anybody who might want to ...
— The Duke Of Chimney Butte • G. W. Ogden
... conductor, kindly; "if I were you, I would go and read, or I would lie down if I felt tired; but I wouldn't do that." The patient considered a moment, and vacantly answered, "No, sir, I won't; I'll—I'll go and read," and so he lamely shuffled away into one of the little rooms. I turned my head before we had gone many paces. He had already come out again, and was again poring over the matting, and tracking out its fibres with his thumb and forefinger. I stopped to look at him, and it came into my mind, that ...
— The Lazy Tour of Two Idle Apprentices • Charles Dickens
... rather they killed your father, and your mother, who was ill, died with the shock, because they refused to go to Zululand whither Dingaan had ordered that they should be taken. So seeing that you were travelling here I came to rescue you, lest you should fall into their hands, and," he added lamely, "you know ...
— The Ghost Kings • H. Rider Haggard
... child up either by pulling rank or cuffing the young offender with an open hand. To have this upstart defend Mrs. Bagley, in whose presence he could hardly lash back, put Mr. Fisher in a very unhappy state of mind. He swallowed and then asked, lamely, "Why does he have ...
— The Fourth R • George Oliver Smith
... pedigree," he explained lamely; "champion stock, imported." His temper again slowly got the better of his wisdom. "What if I did pay two hundred dollars for him?" he demanded; "it's harmless, ain't it? I'd a sight better do that than some ...
— Mountain Blood - A Novel • Joseph Hergesheimer
... clouds do sit, Mocking our poor apish wit, That so lamely with such state Their high glory imitate. No ill can be felt but pain, And that happy ...
— Lyrics from the Song-Books of the Elizabethan Age • Various
... another argument with the chauffeur, a little more animated than the first; more greasy plugs taken out and wiped, and a sharper exchange of compliments with the crowd; more grinding, until the chauffeur's face was steeped in perspiration, and more pistol shots. They were off again, but lamely, spurting a little at times, and again slowing down to the pace of an ox-cart. Their progress became a series of illustrations of the fable of the hare and the tortoise. They passed horses, and the horses shied into the ditch: then the same horses passed them, usually at the periods ...
— The Crossing • Winston Churchill
... year's cut, listen to his half whimsical account of how he "came to the Cape in 1852, with a black coat eleven years out of fashion, and Mrs. Livingstone and the children half naked." You who shudder at the tale of a starving child in the papers, and lamely wonder why the law allows such things, read his recital of the sufferings of his wife and little ones during the days without water under a tropic sun, and of the splendid heroism of the mother who did not complain, ...
— Masterpieces of Negro Eloquence - The Best Speeches Delivered by the Negro from the days of - Slavery to the Present Time • Various
... nature, yet, if lost, would make a lamentable chasm. For, to say nothing of half the birds, and some quadrupeds, which are almost entirely supported by them, worms seem to be the great promoters of vegetation, which would proceed but lamely without them, by boring, perforating, and loosening the soil, and rendering it pervious to rains and the fibres of plants, by drawing straws and stalks of leaves and twigs into it; and, most of all, by ...
— The Natural History of Selborne • Gilbert White
... He broke off lamely. He was confused, painfully conscious of his inarticulateness. He had felt the bigness and glow of life in what he had read, but his speech was inadequate. He could not express what he felt, and to himself he likened himself to a sailor, in a strange ship, on a dark night, groping about in ...
— Martin Eden • Jack London
... he hesitated. For some reason he could not bear to say he was an utter stranger to the lonely girl. "No, only a friend," he finished. "A—a—kind of neighbor!" he added, lamely, trying to explain ...
— The Witness • Grace Livingston Hill Lutz
... to realize," I said lamely. "Doesn't a little whiff of it ever eddy around somehow, ...
— The House of Pride • Jack London
... not control the conversation with her usual sure touch, she floundered and contradicted herself like a schoolgirl. One of her brilliant stories fell rather flat because its humor was largely supplied by an intoxicated man—"of course it was dreadful, but then it was funny, too!" Rachael finished lamely. Another flashing account won from the old hostess the single ...
— The Heart of Rachael • Kathleen Norris
... the lie, she told it so lamely and unconvincingly that neither of the other two believed it for a moment. Nelly stood up—tottering—but mistress of herself. She looked ...
— Missing • Mrs. Humphry Ward
... extricated; but at least he had been put to his defence, he had come lamely out, and the attraction of his personal danger was now publicly plucked away from him. My lord, in his heart of hearts, now knew his favourite to be a Government spy; and Mrs. Henry (however she explained the tale) was notably cold in her behaviour to the discredited hero of romance. ...
— The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition, Vol. XII (of 25) - The Master of Ballantrae • Robert Louis Stevenson
... her to hold her breath for an instant. Then she answered, rather lamely, it seemed ...
— The Czar's Spy - The Mystery of a Silent Love • William Le Queux
... over a bottle, without being restricted to time or terms, he pronounced it not valid in law, proceeded to inquire into the particulars of the battle, and affirmed that, although the English had drawn themselves into premunire at first, the French managed their cause so lamely in the course of the dispute, that they would have been utterly nonsuited, had they not obtained a nolli prosequi. In spite of these enlivening touches, the conversation was like to suffer another ...
— The Adventures of Roderick Random • Tobias Smollett
... they can teach nothing about love to him, the lover of the very Goddess of Love, seizes his harp, his sword in this duel, and breaks forth in his impassioned Praise of Venus,—the song we heard in the heart of her Hill, when he celebrated her at her own bidding, in conclusion begging so lamely for his dismissal. "To you, Goddess of Love, shall my song resound! Loud shall your praises now be sung by me! Your sweet beauty is the source of all that is beautiful, and every lovely miracle has its origin in you! He who ...
— The Wagnerian Romances • Gertrude Hall
... said A regiment of bangomen who led. "And ours a Christian Navy," added he Who sailed a thunder-junk upon the sea. Better they know than men unwarlike do What is an army and a navy, too. Pray God there may be sent them by-and-by The knowledge what a Christian is, and why. For somewhat lamely the conception runs Of a ...
— Shapes of Clay • Ambrose Bierce
... wager five shillings you never had such an inexpensive one before," said John. Phyllis didn't answer that; and John added, "Your uncle will send your pretty clothes to—to—wherever you go," he ended lamely. ...
— Old Valentines - A Love Story • Munson Aldrich Havens
... sure it was my fault,' I wound up rather lamely at last, 'and, if you will allow me to make you amends, I shall be pleased to send you a ticket for the ball ...
— The Grey Wig: Stories and Novelettes • Israel Zangwill
... in one way, your decision does you credit, madam," answered the surgeon lamely. "You have done a great deal for the lad, and for that I must be as thankful as he is. When I have proved my claim I will pay you back all the money ...
— Young Captain Jack - The Son of a Soldier • Horatio Alger and Arthur M. Winfield
... to maintain it or set it out; seamen yet unpaid, and mutinous when pressed to go out again; our office able to do little, nobody trusting us, nor we desiring any to trust us, and yet have not money for any thing, but only what particularly belongs to this fleet going out, and that but lamely too. The Parliament several months upon an Act for 300,000l. but cannot or will not agree upon it, but do keep it back, in spite of the King's desires to hasten it, till they can obtain what they have a mind in revenge upon some men for the late ill managements; ...
— The Diary of Samuel Pepys • Samuel Pepys |
