spread of taste among the lower classes, and he was
very sad and eloquent about organized excursions which he said
consisted chiefly of meals. To my mind he went on deploring far too
long, for if anybody does remember Rome by what he had for dinner
there, and forgets everything about Venice except his tea, his
temporary absence from England is not exactly a disaster, and the
Italians are glad to have him. Craddock of Balliol, who spoke before
the man from London, was crushed for dealing with the subject in a
frivolous manner, but I was not persuaded that a serious debate about
English Tourists would make them any less humorous or plentiful. That
debate did me good in one way, for I was so angry with this man of
distinction that I wished I could have told him what I thought, and for
three consecutive mornings I addressed an imaginary audience while I
was having my bath. But if my remarks had been made at the Union I am
afraid they would have caused a tumult, they were more suited to the
House of Commons, where, if the worst happens, you have the consolation
of being led out by a dignified official, and can read about your
departure in the newspapers of the following morning. I was so worried
about my speech that I mentioned it to several men, and most of them
said that they would come to the debate, which was the last thing I
wanted them to do. I had, however, to go through with it, so I
consoled myself by the thought that I couldn't be duller than some of
the people whom I had heard speaking at our debates; but when I went
into the common room and found a larger crowd of men there than I had
ever seen at a previous meeting, I wished that I had never come near
the place. Before Lambert spoke we had to go through a lot of private
business, which consisted chiefly of attempts by the college wags to be
funny. Some men cultivate the special form of humour which shines at
private business, but on this occasion all our wags were either absent
or silent, and the President and Secretary of the debating society had
a very peaceful evening.

When Lambert got up to pulverize the modern novel a great many men, who
had only come in for a rag, left the room, but Dennison, Webb and some
others who knew that I intended to speak, remained, and I made up my
mind that they should wait a very long time if they meant to hear me.
There was not a trace of nervousness about Lambert; he shot his cuffs,
stroked his upper lip with one fin