iss Coppinger was justified in believing that Christian had been a
success with Father Sweeny.

"I declare I could like that gerr'l, Christian Lowry," he said to
Father Greer. "She's a good gerr'l enough. Decent! Civil!" Each
adjective of approval was launched on a snort that indicated some
co-existing irritation; "but I have me own opinion of young
Coppinger!"

"A good one?" simpered Father Greer.

"The reverrse!" said Father Tim, and a least four r's rang and rolled
in the word.

CHAPTER XXVI

The portrait of that civil and decent girl, Christian Talbot Lowry,
was finished; it had been conveyed to Mount Music and was there
established on an easel in the billiard-room The artist and the model,
having raised and lowered blinds and arranged curtains to their
liking, or as nearly to that unattainable ideal as circumstances
permitted, were now recovering from the criticism of their relations
on the completed work.

The artist who works in the bosom of his own family has much to bear,
and, so the family consider, much to learn. Neither in endurance, nor
in the docile assimilation of instruction, had Mr. Coppinger been
conspicuously successful, and his model, on whom had rested the
weighty responsibility of keeping the peace, or, at least, of averting
open warfare between the painter and the critics, was now, albeit much
spent by her efforts, engaged in binding up the wounds inflicted on
the former by the latter.

"If you hadn't argued with them, they would have liked it very much;
you took them the _absolutely_ wrong way! But they _really_
are deeply impressed by it."

"I don't care what they think; I know jolly well it's the best thing
I've ever done!" said Larry, whose temperature was still considerably
above normal. "Your mother is the only one of the lot with a soul to be
saved. _She_ didn't harangue about what she doesn't understand! _She_
said: 'It makes me think of when she was a little child, and used to
say she saw things, and the other children used to tease her so
dreadfully'!"

"Quite true," said Christian. "So they did! And now they're going for
you! But you never teased me, Larry."

"Thank God, I didn't!" said Larry; he had been glowering at his
picture, but as he spoke he wheeled round, and sat down beside
Christian on the long billiard-room sofa. "Christian, you know--" he
began, stammering, and hesitating in a way that was unlike himself.

Christian interrupted him quickly.

"What