they encompassed my habitual transgressionsundutifulness , ingratitude , perversity , intractability , inconstant curls , failing to be born a sonand only after about twenty minutes grew particular enough to catch my interest , for she began to abuse my stupidity in regard to mr. grayson , who was , she had learned , not a lowly cantab at allor not only a cantabbut also the sole heir to his uncle harold overton grayson , who had owned the upper half of england , all the mines in newcastle and borrowdale , and probably the crown jewels as well , since no doubt the prince of wales has had them secretly sold and replaced with paste copies in order to settle his debts .