A Brief History of the British Empire, Part I

The milier of the firm, a name that unhappily suggests curd of tun bellied inforces, is far away from what its subjects, who are determinedly not citizens, see and know. They greet yesterday with sashes and oriflams, speaking in stiff and achronistic formulae standardized many years ago by the queen mother. An endless parade of folksee performances and tableaux vivant that might have been devised by national geographic in the 19 fifties misrepresents the realm. The unfortunate is known as the spare, the next in line, whose likely lot is to watch for ever from the bench unless the heir fails in his reproductive mission