I have heard him say many a time that he desired nothing but mediocrity, which was a poor compliment, it must be confessed, to us who have the honour of serving him.' 'A clever man at his Court shows his cleverness best by pretending to be dull,' said Caulaincourt, with some bitterness.

For one thing, she was so good-natured, so kindly, so always eager to do someone a good turnand last, not least, she had inherited her aunt's cleverness about clothes!

He noticed also that it was well guarded and that it would require some cleverness on his part to get it.

When I could sit on the one-legged stool, which Jakie had made me, hold a pail between my knees and milk one or more cows, without help, they both praised my clevernessa cleverness which fixed more outside responsibilities upon me, and kept me from Georgia a longer while each day.

The managing owner of the Independent Freighters needed cleverness, since the company was small and often embarrassed for money.

I felt sorry for the Grand Duke; sorrier still for that admirable M. Pigot; but, after all, one could not but admire the cleverness of the man who had despoiled them.

To the vulgar the intelligence is a sort of maid-of-all-work, and in this position she displays the sly, dishonest cleverness of her kind.

I did not know whether to be angry, amused, or alarmed that the man estimated my cleverness so slightly.

This evidences his cleverness in the greatest degree that he should have known and arranged the occasions and the amount of his services so well as to attach them both to him when they were working against each other.

Here comes the servant and we must talk about orchidsuntil I finish this sherbet" The following evening Bedient met Miss Mallory in the main hall, and exceeding cleverness was required to impart her information, as they moved together among the crowd.

The successful scenario writers, who conceive our best plays, are the real heart of this business, and the next to them in importance are the directors, or producers, who exercise marvelous cleverness in staging the work of the authors.

The constable was explaining with parental vanity the precocious cleverness of his youngest child, a girl of two, when Holymead made his appearance, and he became aware that Mr. Crewe's interest in children was at an end.

Maria Dmitrievna began to extol Varvara's cleverness.

I grant your cleverness, your shrewdness, even your common sense, but all three are academic.

He didn't become a millionaire without having cleverness to back him and I imagine he is clever enough to thwart Skeelty and all his gang.

The cleverest and most learned men that ever lived could not have found itwe know they did not find itby their own cleverness and learning.

It isn't that I don't like cleverness and brilliance, but I don't care for the public glory.'

The young man was not only a good journalist, but possessed sufficient cleverness and tact to make him excellent company.

His hard work in their training had been fully repaid; for Spot had not only proved his cleverness as a leader, but Queen had been no worse than he had anticipated, and Baldy had faithfully performed his duty as a wheeler in keeping the trail when it was most necessary.

"Madame," he said, "I fully recognize your cleverness in raising yourself to the position you now occupy.

However to-morrow I will take you on a journey and find some means of testing your cleverness.

I can assure you we've much for which to thank her cleverness and tactand beauty.

'You know that I'm not in the least curious,' she said, 'so don't waste any cleverness in putting me off!

To appreciate the cleverness with which it has been done, one should read Swift's "Abstract" side by side with Collins's "Discourse.

He asked my daughterwhose cleverness in such things