"Of course you take the head of the table, and naturally you must learn what is expected of my wife, but don't talk confounded rubbish, mother, about devoting your life to your son.

We have seen about as little of each other as we could help.

We never agreed." They were both bullies and each made occasional efforts at bullying the other without any particular result.

But each could at least bully the other into intensified unpleasantness.
The vicar's wife having made her call of ceremony upon the new Lady Anstruthers, followed up the acquaintance, and found her quite exotically unlike her mother-in-law, whose charities one may be sure had neither been lavish nor dispensed by any hand less impressive than her own.

The younger woman was of wholly malleable material.