the parts of his work he loved, the splendid things he had found in

it, beyond the compass of any other writer of the day? St. George



listened a while, courteously; then he said, laying his hand on his

visitor's: "That's all very well; and if your idea's to do nothing



better there's no reason you shouldn't have as many good things as

I - as many human and material appendages, as many sons or



daughters, a wife with as many gowns, a house with as many

servants, a stable with as many horses, a heart with as many



aches." The Master got up when he had spoken thus - he stood a

moment - near the sofa looking down on his agitated pupil. "Are



you possessed of any property?" it occurred to him to ask.

"None to speak of."



"Oh well then there's no reason why you shouldn't make a goodish

income - if you set about it the right way. Study ME for that -



study me well. You may really have horses."

Paul sat there some minutes without speaking. He looked straight



before him - he turned over many things. His friend had wandered

away, taking up a parcel of letters from the table where the roll



of proofs had lain. "What was the book Mrs. St. George made you

burn - the one she didn't like?" our young man brought out.



"The book she made me burn - how did you know that?" The Master

looked up from his letters quite without the facialconvulsion the



pupil had feared.

"I heard her speak of it at Summersoft."



"Ah yes - she's proud of it. I don't know - it was rather good."

"What was it about?"



"Let me see." And he seemed to make an effort to remember. "Oh

yes - it was about myself." Paul gave an irrepressible groan for



the disappearance of such a production, and the elder man went on:

"Oh but YOU should write it - YOU should do me." And he pulled up



- from the restlessmotion that had come upon him; his fine smile a

generous glare. "There's a subject, my boy: no end of stuff in



it!"

Again Paul was silent, but it was all tormenting. "Are there no



women who really understand - who can take part in a sacrifice?"

"How can they take part? They themselves are the sacrifice.



They're the idol and the altar and the flame."

"Isn't there even ONE who sees further?" Paul continued.



For a moment St. George made no answer; after which, having torn up

his letters, he came back to the point all ironic. "Of course I



know the one you mean. But not even Miss Fancourt."

"I thought you admired her so much."



"It's impossible to admire her more. Are you in love with her?"

St. George asked.



"Yes," Paul Overt presently said.

"Well then give it up."



Paul stared. "Give up my 'love'?"

"Bless me, no. Your idea." And then as our hero but still gazed:



"The one you talked with her about. The idea of a decent

perfection."



"She'd help it - she'd help it!" the young man cried.

"For about a year - the first year, yes. After that she'd be as a



millstone round its neck."

Paul frankly wondered. "Why she has a passion for the real thing,



for good work - for everything you and I care for most."

"'You and I' is charming, my dear fellow!" his friend laughed.



"She has it indeed, but she'd have a still greater passion for her

children - and very proper too. She'd insist on everything's being



made comfortable, advantageous, propitious for them. That isn't

the artist's business."



"The artist - the artist! Isn't he a man all the same?"

St. George had a grand grimace. "I mostly think not. You know as



well as I what he has to do: the concentration, the finish, the

independence he must strive for from the moment he begins to wish



his work really decent. Ah my young friend, his relation to women,

and especially to the one he's most intimatelyconcerned with, is



at the mercy of the damning fact that whereas he can in the nature

of things have but one standard, they have about fifty. That's

• domestic [də´mestik] a.家庭的；本国的 (初中英语单词)


• acquaintance [ə´kweintəns] n.相识；熟人，相识的人 (初中英语单词)


• delightful [di´laitful] a.讨人喜欢的 (初中英语单词)


• forbid [fə´bid] vt.禁止，不许，阻止 (初中英语单词)


• absence [´æbsəns] n.不在，缺席；缺乏 (初中英语单词)


• instrument [´instrumənt] n.仪器；手段；乐器 (初中英语单词)


• hidden [´hid(ə)n] hide 的过去分词 (初中英语单词)


• therefore [´ðeəfɔ:] ad.&conj.因此；所以 (初中英语单词)


• chatter [´tʃætə] vi.&n.饶舌；闲聊 (初中英语单词)


• complain [kəm´plein] vi.抱怨，叫屈；控诉 (初中英语单词)


• immense [i´mens] a.广大的，无限的 (初中英语单词)


• poverty [´pɔvəti] n.贫穷(乏，瘠)；不足 (初中英语单词)


• charming [´tʃɑ:miŋ] a.可爱的；极好的 (初中英语单词)


• tribute [´tribju:t] n.贡物；献礼；颂词 (初中英语单词)


• desirable [di´zaiərəbəl] a.向往的；极好的 (初中英语单词)


• interfere [,intə´fiə] vi.干涉；妨碍；打扰 (初中英语单词)


• sympathy [´simpəθi] n.同情，怜悯 (初中英语单词)


• virtue [´və:tʃu:] n.美德；贞操；长处 (初中英语单词)


• innocent [´inəsənt] a.无罪的；单纯的 (初中英语单词)


• companion [kəm´pæniən] n.同伴；同事；伴侣 (初中英语单词)


• affect [ə´fekt] vt.影响；感动；假装 (初中英语单词)


• spoken [´spəukən] speak的过去分词 (初中英语单词)


• intelligent [in´telidʒənt] a.聪明的；理智的 (初中英语单词)


• sincere [sin´siə] a.真挚的；直率的 (初中英语单词)


• critic [´kritik] n.批评家；吹毛求疵者 (初中英语单词)


• gravely [´greivli] ad.庄重地，严肃地 (初中英语单词)


• expensive [ik´spensiv] a.费钱的，昂贵的 (初中英语单词)


• carriage [´kæridʒ] n.马车；客车；货运 (初中英语单词)


• pretend [pri´tend] v.假装；借口；妄求 (初中英语单词)


• tremendous [tri´mendəs] a.可怕的；巨大的 (初中英语单词)


• imagination [i,mædʒi´neiʃən] n.想象(力) (初中英语单词)


• impression [im´preʃən] n.印刷；印象；效果 (初中英语单词)


• conflict [´kɔnflikt, kən´flikt] n.&vi.战斗；抵触 (初中英语单词)


• swallow [swɔləu] n.燕子 v.吞，咽；淹没 (初中英语单词)


• compass [´kʌmpəs] n.指南针；圆规 (初中英语单词)


• writer [´raitə] n.作者；作家 (初中英语单词)


• stable [´steibəl] n.马棚 a.稳固的 (初中英语单词)


• parcel [´pɑ:sl] n.包裹；一批 vt.区分 (初中英语单词)


• restless [´restləs] a.没有休息的 (初中英语单词)


• presently [´prezəntli] ad.不久；目前 (初中英语单词)


• frankly [´fræŋkli] ad.直率地；慷慨地 (初中英语单词)


• passion [´pæʃən] n.激情；激怒；恋爱 (初中英语单词)


• mostly [´məustli] ad.主要地；多半；通常 (初中英语单词)


• concentration [,kɔnsən´treiʃən] n.集中，专心 (初中英语单词)


• whereas [weər´æz] conj.鉴于；因此；而 (初中英语单词)


• intellectual [,inti´lektʃuəl] n.知识分子 (高中英语单词)


• precisely [pri´saisli] ad.精确地；刻板地 (高中英语单词)


• distinguished [di´stiŋgwiʃt] a.卓越的，著名的 (高中英语单词)


• oxford [´ɔksfəd] n.牛津 (高中英语单词)


• saying [´seiŋ, ´sei-iŋ] n.言语；言论；格言 (高中英语单词)


• conception [kən´sepʃən] n.构思；概念；怀孕 (高中英语单词)


• apparently [ə´pærəntli] ad.显然，表面上地 (高中英语单词)


• stammer [´stæmə] v.&n.口吃 (高中英语单词)


• clumsy [´klʌmzi] a.笨拙的；粗俗的 (高中英语单词)


• eminent [´eminənt] a.卓越的；杰出的 (高中英语单词)


• enjoyment [in´dʒɔimənt] n.享受；愉快；乐趣 (高中英语单词)


• assent [ə´sent] vi.&n.同意，赞成 (高中英语单词)


• tenderness [´tendənis] n.娇嫩；柔软；温柔 (高中英语单词)


• tragic [´trædʒik] a.悲剧的；悲惨的 (高中英语单词)


• consciousness [´kɔnʃəsnis] n.意识；觉悟；知觉 (高中英语单词)


• revelation [,revə´leiʃən] n.展现；揭露(的事物) (高中英语单词)


• passionate [´pæʃənit] a.易动情的；易怒的 (高中英语单词)


• motion [´məuʃən] n.手势 vt.打手势 (高中英语单词)


• strive [straiv] vi.争取；努力；奋斗 (高中英语单词)


• decent [´di:sənt] a.体面的，正派的 (高中英语单词)


• concerned [kən´sə:nd] a.有关的；担心的 (高中英语单词)


• luxurious [lʌg´zjuəriəs] a.奢侈的；豪华的 (英语四级单词)


• wonderfully [´wʌndəfuli] ad.令人惊讶地；奇妙地 (英语四级单词)


• candour [´kændə] n.正直；坦率 (英语四级单词)


• wasting [´weistiŋ] a.&n.浪费(的) (英语四级单词)


• masculine [´mæ:skjulin] a.男性的 n.男子 (英语四级单词)


• immensely [i´mensli] ad.极大地，无限地 (英语四级单词)


• conventional [kən´venʃənəl] a.常规的；协定的 (英语四级单词)


• hospitable [´hɔspitəbəl] a.好客的；招待周到的 (英语四级单词)


• listener [´lisənə] n.(收)听者，听众之一 (英语四级单词)


• humility [hju:´militi] n.谦逊，谦让 (英语四级单词)


• intensely [in´tensli] ad.激烈地；热切地 (英语四级单词)


• extravagance [iks´trævigəns] n.奢侈；极端 (英语四级单词)


• felicity [fi´lisiti] n.幸福；(措词)适当 (英语六级单词)


• harrow [´hærəu] n.&v.耙(地) (英语六级单词)


• eminence [´eminəns] n.杰出；重要人物；高处 (英语六级单词)


• withhold [wið´həuld] v.不给；扣留；抑制 (英语六级单词)


• incentive [in´sentiv] n.刺激；鼓励；动机 (英语六级单词)


• suggestive [sə´dʒestiv] a.暗示的；启发的 (英语六级单词)


• bewilderment [bi´wildəmənt] n.为难；狼狈；迷惑 (英语六级单词)


• enumerate [i´nju:məreit] vt.列举；清点，数 (英语六级单词)


• courteously [´kə:tjəsli] ad.有礼貌地；殷勤地 (英语六级单词)


• speaking [´spi:kiŋ] n.说话 a.发言的 (英语六级单词)


• taking [´teikiŋ] a.迷人的 n.捕获物 (英语六级单词)


• facial [´feiʃəl] a.面部的，脸部的 (英语六级单词)


• convulsion [kən´vʌlʃən] n.震动；骚动；灾变 (英语六级单词)


• disappearance [,disə´piərəns] n.消失；失踪 (英语六级单词)


• advantageous [,ædvən´teidʒəs] a.有利的；有帮助的 (英语六级单词)


• intimately [´intimitli] ad.密切地；熟悉地 (英语六级单词)