ly; but there must be a great deal of freedom
about it. I went to a studio tea once, and----"

"A studio tea! Merciful heavens---- Go on."

"Yes, a studio tea. Don't you like them? To be sure, we didn't know
whether the man could paint very well, and I suppose you think it is an
imposition for anyone who is not a great painter to give a tea."

"Go on."

"Well, he had the dearest little Japanese servants, and some of the cups
came from Algiers, and some from Turkey, and some from---- What's the
matter?"

"Go on. I'm not interrupting you."

"Well, that's all; excepting that everything was charming in colour, and
I thought what a lazy, beautiful life the man must lead, lounging in
such a studio, smoking monogrammed cigarettes, and remarking how badly
all the other men painted."

"Very fascinating. But----"

"Oh! you are going to ask if he could draw. I'm sure I don't know, but
the tea that he gave was charming."

"I was on the verge of telling you something about artist life, but if
you have seen a lot of draperies and drunk from a cup of Algiers, you
know all about it."

"You, then, were going to make it something very terrible, and tell how
young painters struggled, and all that."

"No, not exactly. But listen: I suppose there is an aristocracy who,
whether they paint well or paint ill, certainly do give charming teas,
as you say, and all other kinds of charming affairs too; but when I
hear people talk as if that was the whole life, it makes my hair rise,
you know, because I am sure that as they get to know me better and
better they will see how I fall short of that kind of an existence, and
I shall probably take a great tumble in their estimation. They might
even conclude that I can not paint, which would be very unfair, because
I can paint, you know."

"Well, proceed to arrange my point of view, so that you sha'n't tumble
in my estimation when I discover that you don't lounge in a studio,
smoke monogrammed cigarettes, and remark how badly the other men paint."

"That's it. That's precisely what I wish to do."

"Begin."

"Well, in the first place----"

"In the first place--what?"

"Well, I started to study when I was very poor, you understand. Look
here! I'm telling you these things because I want you to know, somehow.
It isn't that I'm not ashamed of it. Well, I began very poor, and I--as
a matter of fact--I--well, I earned myself over half the money for my
studying, and the other half I bullied