lize Margaret Green's ideas. It was at night that he did most of
his reading in the spring books which the publishers were willing to
send him gratis, when they understood he was going to open a
bookstore, and only wanted sample copies. As long as she remained in
town Margaret Green helped him read, and they talked the books over,
and mostly rejected them. By the time she went to Europe in August
with another elderly girl they had not chosen more than eight or ten
books; but they hoped for better things in the fall.

Word of what he was doing had gone out from Margaret, and a great many
women of their rather esthetic circle began writing to him about the
books they were reading, and commending them to him or warning him
against them. The circle of his volunteer associates enlarged itself
in the nature of an endless chain, and before society quite broke up
for the summer a Sympathetic Tea was offered to Erlcort by a Leading
Society Woman at the Intellectual Club, where he was invited to
address the Intellectuals in explanation of his project. This was
before Margaret sailed, and he hurried to her in horror.

"Why, of course you must accept. You're not going to hide your
Critical Bookstore under a bushel; you can't have too much publicity."

The Leading Society Woman flowed in fulsome gratitude at his
acceptance, and promised no one but the club should be there; he had
hinted his reluctance. She kept her promise, but among the
Intellectuals there was a girl who was a just beginning journalist,
and who pumped Erlcort's whole scheme out of him, unsuspicious of what
she was doing, till he saw it all, with his picture, in the Sunday
Supplement. She rightly judged that the intimacy of an interview would
be more popular with her readers than the cold and distant report of
his formal address, which she must give, though she received it so
ardently with all the other Intellectuals. They flocked flatteringly,
almost suffocatingly, around him at the end. His scheme was just what
every one had vaguely thought of: something must be done to stem the
tide of worthless fiction, which was so often shocking as well as
silly, and they would only be too glad to help read for him. They were
nearly all just going to sail, but they would each take a spring book
on the ship, and write him about it from the other side; they would
each get a fall book coming home, and report as soon as they got back.

His scheme was discussed seriously and sat