ife was its own
justification. Philip thought that in throwing over the desire for
happiness he was casting aside the last of his illusions. His life had
seemed horrible when it was measured by its happiness, but now he seemed
to gather strength as he realised that it might be measured by something
else. Happiness mattered as little as pain. They came in, both of them, as
all the other details of his life came in, to the elaboration of the
design. He seemed for an instant to stand above the accidents of his
existence, and he felt that they could not affect him again as they had
done before. Whatever happened to him now would be one more motive to add
to the complexity of the pattern, and when the end approached he would
rejoice in its completion. It would be a work of art, and it would be none
the less beautiful because he alone knew of its existence, and with his
death it would at once cease to be.

Philip was happy.

CVII

Mr. Sampson, the buyer, took a fancy to Philip. Mr. Sampson was very
dashing, and the girls in his department said they would not be surprised
if he married one of the rich customers. He lived out of town and often
impressed the assistants by putting on his evening clothes in the office.
Sometimes he would be seen by those on sweeping duty coming in next
morning still dressed, and they would wink gravely to one another while he
went into his office and changed into a frock coat. On these occasions,
having slipped out for a hurried breakfast, he also would wink at Philip
as he walked up the stairs on his way back and rub his hands.

"What a night! What a night!" he said. "My word!"

He told Philip that he was the only gentleman there, and he and Philip
were the only fellows who knew what life was. Having said this, he changed
his manner suddenly, called Philip Mr. Carey instead of old boy, assumed
the importance due to his position as buyer, and put Philip back into his
place of shop-walker.

Lynn and Sedley received fashion papers from Paris once a week and adapted
the costumes illustrated in them to the needs of their customers. Their
clientele was peculiar. The most substantial part consisted of women from
the smaller manufacturing towns, who were too elegant to have their frocks
made locally and not sufficiently acquainted with London to discover good
dressmakers within their means. Beside these, incongruously, was a large
number of music-hall artistes. This was a connection that Mr.