-esteemed member
of the _Times_ staff, who had joined Mr. Frederick Greenwood in the
editorial direction of the new development of the _Pall Mall_. What
Walter said to Fyffe I never learned in detail, but subsequently had
reason to guess he told him he had in the cab downstairs a young fellow
who was (or would be) one of the wonders of the journalistic world, and
that the morning edition of the _Pall Mall_ would have no chance unless
it secured his services.

However it came about; whether Fyffe had some work in hand and was
anxious to be relieved from the embarrassing presence of his visitor
bounding all over the room in the enthusiasm of his advocacy; or
whether, as usually happens with a new paper, choice was limited, I was
engaged then and there as assistant sub-editor at the salary of four
guineas a week. I believe the regular average rate of remuneration was
five guineas. But I was young and inexperienced; and after living in the
Quartier Latin for nearly a year on fifteenpence a day, cultivating
French literature on _petits noirs_, four guineas a week was a
competency. "_Trois de cafe_" is what Daudet in his "_Trente ans de
Paris_" calls this sip of nectar. "_C'est a dire_," he explains, "_pour
trois sous d'un cafe savoureux balsamique raisonnablement edulcore_."
But Daudet must have frequented aristocratic quarters. At our _cremerie_
we never paid more than two sous, and, bent on attaining luxury, we
demanded "_un petit noir_."

When the paper started, Mr. Fyffe did the Parliamentary summary, of
which the _Pall Mall_ made a feature, placing it on the leader page. One
afternoon, after I had been on the staff for some six weeks, I looked in
at the office, and found it in a state of consternation. Fyffe had been
suddenly taken ill, and it was impossible for him to go down to the
House to do the summary. Mr. Greenwood sent for me and asked me to take
his place, for that night at least. To go down to the House of Commons
and take an ordinary "turn" of reporting for the first time is, I
suppose, a trying thing. To be bundled off at an hour's notice to fill
the place of one of the most eminent Parliamentary writers of the day,
and to supply a leading article on a subject of the surroundings of
which one was absolutely ignorant, might seem appalling. It all came
very naturally to me. I did my best in the strange, somewhat
bewildering, circumstances, and as long as the morning edition of the
_Pall Mall_ lasted, I conti