But when in the last days of June Mr.Chamberlain made his attack, and Mr.Dillon had listened to it and asked for dates, Mr.Dillon thought that the matter would not be worth further attending to, and relapsed into his old attitude of easy contempt.
[Sidenote: The outbreak.] This will account for what would otherwise be inexplicable; namely, that, having had a week to prepare his defence, Mr.Dillon should on July 3rd have fallen into a dreadful, and, for the moment, disastrous blunder.

The truth was, Mr.Dillon had never thought of the subject for more than a few moments between the date of the challenge and Mr.
Chamberlain's renewal of the attack, and, if he had been left free to exercise his own judgment, would have allowed the whole thing to lapse into the nothingness into which every such charge finally falls.

On this Monday night Mr.Chamberlain was in his most venomous mood.

He had come down to the House with the set determination to get up a row somehow or other.

There was evil in his eye; there was rancour in his voice; there was the hoarse rage which always shows in him whenever he feels that he has been beaten.