ually and brought him home again. A few of the lectures and
debates of these years were: "Is Journalism Justifiable?", "An Aspect
of St. Francis of Assisi," "The Problem of Liberty," "Is the House of
Commons any Use," "What Poland Is," "Culture and the Coming Peril,"
"Progress and Old Books," "Americanization," "The Modern Novel," "If
I Were a Dictator."

The excitement of Catholics everywhere had been intense when Gilbert
came into the church: in England it was almost as great over Frances.
Her real wish to remain in the background, her dislike of publicity,
were seldom believed in by those who did not know her. I happened to
be present at a conversation between the proprietor and the editor of
a Catholic paper which had displayed a poster all over London
announcing her conversion. One of them had heard that she was annoyed
and for a moment both seemed a little dashed. Then said one: "Of
course she has to pretend not to like it"--and this was at once
accepted by the other: for both took for granted that such publicity
could in reality have given her nothing but pleasure.

It was difficult at first for either Frances or Gilbert to see the
wood for the trees in their new environment, and it was the greatest
good fortune that the year of Frances's reception was also that of
the new simplification following upon Dorothy's arrival. For the
preceding few years had resembled the hectic period of the lionising
of the young Chesterton of 1904. Requests poured in, for lectures,
for articles, for introductions to books. "Are there no other
Catholics to do things?" Frances asked me rather plaintively. Of
these years Monsignor Knox said later, "his health had begun to
decline, and he was overworked, partly through our fault."

A dip into the post bag brings up some letters from Father Martindale
to Gilbert and Frances passing on various requests, but also
realising the difficulty: "I sympathize with all desperately busy
men": "I have already protected him by advising small or fussy groups
not to invite him now and again." The solitary recollection I have of
any interest Gilbert showed in a review of his books is the remark he
made to my husband when Father Martindale had said of _The Queen of
Seven Swords_ "Francis Thompson is here outpassed." Gilbert repeated
the phrase and said eagerly: "He wouldn't say it unless he meant it,
would he?"

C.C.M., who has himself been caricatured talking on the radio, typing
and eating at the