t had come to be an
irksome one: the more real by that token. He burst open Edgar's letter
with his forefinger, and read:

"DEAR HENRY,--I've been going to write you any time these last
six weeks, but--well, old man, I'm no hand at correspondence
unless it's a penny a line. Besides, I hear about you through
Flo, who is quite reconciled to your absence, which the poet
tells us makes the heart grow fonder. I wonder!

"But first of all, you'll want an inside view of the dear old
rickety old _Leader_. Your successor is a daisy, and no mistake.
Walks into the office in knickers and a cloth cap, and shaves
once a week when his beard is ready for clipping. Even Dodge,
the newest junior, sneers at him, and refuses to recognise 'that
josser' as editor. It's hard cheese on a youngster to run up
against a weed like Steel for his first editor. Gives a low idea
of our noble profession, don't you know.

"Steel's greatest feat has been to assault his wife in the
street while drunk (that's Steel, not the wife, I mean, who was
lushing), and get run in; but a word from 'Puggie' [Mr. Albert
Scriven, the chief reporter, so called by reason of his physical
appearance], who happened to be at the police station at the
time, put the matter right, and 'Puggie' took our warrior to his
''appy little 'ome.' It fell to my lot to vamp up the usual
editorial cackle myself that night, but I've got to help the
beauty most nights, as he doesn't like work. Jones knows of his
little exploits, but does nothing. He's got him cheap, and
that's enough for him. Besides, nobody outside the office--and
nobody in it, for that matter--would believe that Steel was
editor of the paper, so Jones swaggers about the town, and has
taken to describing himself as 'managing editor.' Oh, we enjoy
life here! there's a lot of fun in the game. Steel wonders how
the paper lived through the editorship of 'a literary ass.' He
isn't nuts on literature; but with a pair of scissors, some gum,
and a pencil, the Johnnie can knock out leaders while you cough,
and the joke is nobody seems to be a bit the worse. Hope you
don't mind my telling you this; but really, do you think anybody
reads leaders? I hope they don't read mine.

"The _Leader_ appeared four hours late yesterday. What do you
think of that? Jones again. He's a treat. A cog-whee