. . . if chocolate would help? ;-)

You're right, though, that the General really sucks the life out of a gathering---perhaps more so at home since he seems the type to bother less there with good manners than he might in a more public setting. It's one of Austen's most striking character portraits, one of those that makes me exclaim "I know people just like that!" (Unfortunately. I wish I knew more people like Henry!) *g*