result is art. If you fail, it may be the book of the year."

"Enduring immortality and--ah--the patronage of the reading public,"

Mr. Jukesbury placidly insisted, "will be awarded, in the end, only

to those who dwell upon the true, the beautiful, and the--er

--respectable. Art must cheer; it must be optimistic and

edifying and--ah--suitable for young persons; it must have an uplift,

a leaven of righteousness, a--er--a sort of moral baking-powder. It

must utterly eschew the--ah--unpleasant and repugnant details of life.

It is, if I may so express myself, not at home in the ménage à trois

or--er--the representation of the nude. Yes, another glass of claret,