That entire bunch could have been justly branded crusty, flinty, and crank. Well… all but Chesterton – who seems to have escaped the curse and been graced with a cheerful charism.
Belloc was cranky, but on no account a crank...
Cranky to a degree. I find that I can only read a bit of him at a time, after which I need to refresh myself with someone more cheerful (such as Chesterton).
My sponsor when I was received into HMC is one of the Belloc-like doom and gloomers, too. Increasingly, I find it hard to listen to him as he carries on about the impending downfall.
Not that he isn't right about a great many things, but I much prefer the Happy Warrior.
I suppose it depends on which period of life Belloc was writing in. His work definitely gets gloomier as he ages--and who can blame him? The loss of the love of his life after 17 years of marriage, followed quickly by the death of his son in WWI, and later, the death of another son in WWII. He entered Parliament a fresh-faced youth ready to conquer the world with good will, and he resigned some years later jaded from the corruption entrenched within the system...
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