ostentational

Updated: November 19, 2024

But in peace, that too passes into mere demand of the ostentations, of the pipeclays and the blank cartridges; and, except that Naval men are occasionally, on long voyages, forced to hold their tongue, and converse with the dumb elements, and illimitable oceans, that moan and rave there without you and within you, which is a great advantage to the Naval man, our poor United Services have to make conversational windbags and ostentational paper-lanterns of themselves, or do worse, even as the others.

Thomas Carlyle - Latter-Day Pamphlets