a man, bury them under what guano-mountains and obscene
owl-droppings you will, do not perish, cannot perish. What of Heroism,
what of Eternal Light was in a Man and his Life, is with very great
exactness added to the Eternities, remains forever a new divine portion
of the Sum of Things.

"Now, my friends, the bookseller is one of the keys in that universal
adding machine, because he aids in the cross-fertilization of men and
books. His delight in his calling doesn't need to be stimulated even
by the bright shanks of a Coles Phillips picture.

"Roger, my boy," said Gladfist, "your innocent enthusiasm makes me
think of Tom Daly's favourite story about the Irish priest who was
rebuking his flock for their love of whisky. 'Whisky,' he said, 'is
the bane of this congregation. Whisky, that steals away a man's
brains. Whisky, that makes you shoot at landlords--and not hit them!'
Even so, my dear Roger, your enthusiasm makes you shoot at truth and
never come anywhere near it."

"Jerry," said Roger, "you are a upas tree. Your shadow is poisonous!"

"Well, gentlemen," said Mr. Chapman, "I know Mrs. Mifflin wants to be
relieved of her post. I vote we adjourn early. Your conversation is
always delightful, though I am sometimes a bit uncertain as to the
conclusions. My daughter is going to be a bookseller, and I shall look
forward to hearing her views on the business."

As the guests made their way out through the shop, Mr. Chapman drew
Roger aside. "It's perfectly all right about sending Titania?" he
asked.

"Absolutely," said Roger. "When does she want to come?"

"Is to-morrow too soon?"

"The sooner the better. We've got a little spare room upstairs that
she can have. I've got some ideas of my own about furnishing it for
her. Send her round to-morrow afternoon."

Chapter III

Titania Arrives

The first pipe after breakfast is a rite of some importance to seasoned
smokers, and Roger applied the flame to the bowl as he stood at the
bottom of the stairs. He blew a great gush of strong blue reek that
eddied behind him as he ran up the flight, his mind eagerly meditating
the congenial task of arranging the little spare room for the coming
employee. Then, at the top of the steps, he found that his pipe had
already gone out. "What with filling my pipe and emptying it, lighting
it and relighting it," he thought, "I don't seem to get much time for
the serious concerns of life. Come to think of it,