ing was very much embarrassed. He wanted to say that if he was
going to consecrate himself to floorwalking, he would relish a raise
in salary; but old Beagle was so tremulous and kept blowing his nose so
loudly that Gissing doubted if he could make himself heard.

"I want you to take a position as General Manager," said Mr. Beagle,
"with a salary of ten thousand a year."

He rose and threw open a mahogany door that led out of his own sanctum.
"Here is your office," he said.

The bewildered Gissing looked about the room--the mahogany flat-topped
desk with a great sheet of plate glass shining greenly at its thick
edges; an inkwell, pens and pencils, a little glass bowl full of bright
paper-clips; one of those rocking blotters that are so tempting; a water
cooler which just then uttered a seductive gulping bubble; an electric
fan, gently humming; wooden trays for letters and memoranda; on one
wall a great chart of names, lettered Organization of Personnel; a nice
domestic-looking hat-and-coat stand; a soft green rug--Ah, how alluring
it all was!

Mr. Beagle pointed to the outer door of the room, which had a frosted
pane. Through the glass the astounded floorwalker could read the words

REGANAM LARENEG GNISSIG.RM

What a delightful little room to meditate in. From the broad windows he
could see the whole shining tideway of Fifth Avenue, passing lazily in
the warm sunlight. He turned to Mr. Beagle, greatly moved.

The next day an advertisement appeared in the leading papers, to this
effect:--

________________________
BEAGLE AND COMPANY
take pleasure in announcing to
their patrons and friends that
MR. GISSING
has been admitted to the firm in
the status of General Manager
Je Maintiendrai
__________________________

Mrs. Purp's excitement at this is easier imagined than described. Her
only fear was that now she would lose her best lodger. She made Purp
go out and buy a new shirt and a collar; she told Gissing, rather
pathetically, that she intended to have the whole house repapered in the
fall. The big double suite downstairs, which could be used as bedroom
and sitting-room, she suggested as a comfortable change. But Gissing
preferred to remain where he was. He had grown fond of the top floor.

Certainly there was an exhilaration in his new importance and
prosperity. The store buzzed with the news. At his request, Miss Whi