The  pupils  snapped  up  their  dispatch  cases .sx   They  fumbled  for  their  umbrellas  , and  off  they  went  , clattering  down  the  steep  stone  steps  , chattering :sx   `Well  , wasn't  he  good  this  evening ?sx '  `Musn't  it  be  marvellous  to  have  all  those  ideas ?sx '  Even  Loram  , the  jeweller  , with  masculine  restraint  , conceded  `Brilliant  fellow .sx   Very .sx   Expect  we  shall  hear  more  of  him  one  day .sx '  Whatever  else  Johnson  might  do  for  his  pupils  , he  certainly  gave  them  a  sense  of  vitality .sx   His  enormous  physical  gusto  invigorated  them .sx   He  made  them  feel  that  life  was  full  of  exciting  possibilities  ; he  made  them  feel  that  they  were  in  close  contact  with  a  cultured  mind .sx   
In  his  search  for  culture  and  beauty  , Johnson  had  acquired  almost  every  kind  of  outline  and  selection  that  modern  publishers'  advertisements  could  recommend .sx   On  his  shelves  were  Outlines  of  History  , Science  , Philosophy  and  Religion  ; Literature  was  served  up  to  him  in  the  Hundred  Most  Famous  Stories  of  the  World  , in  the  Thirty-Seven  Forms  of  the  Plot  , and  the  Dictionary  of  Literary  Characters .sx   He  knew  the  characteristics  of  Mr.  Micawber  and  Paul  Dombey  without  having  read  a  word  of  Dickens .sx   He  could  adorn  his  tales  with  classical  allusions  and  paint  his  morals  from  great  fiction  of  the  Continent .sx   All  modern  labour-saving  devices  for  recognising  allusions  to  Cervantes  , Bellerophon  , Cicero  and  Ella  Wheeler  Wilcox  lay  at  his  elbow  , and  if  in  the  course  of  his  headlong  gallops  through  history  , science  , literature  and  religion  , he  sometimes  misplaced  an  island  , or  swept  an  artist  or  composer  into  the  wrong  century  , who  among  his  audience  was  to  question  him ?sx   And  , if  challenged  , had  he  not  his  perfect  justification ?sx   
`Dates ?sx '  said  Johnson .sx   `What  are  dates ?sx   An  arbitrary  division  of  time  invented  for  the  convenience  of  unimaginative  men .sx   'Smy  belief  that  in  the  future  you'll  never  stop  to  bother  about  the  date  of  this  A.D.  or  that  B.C.  If  you  want  facts  an'  dates  , hop  along  the  Strand  to  Somerset  House .sx   You'll  get  'em  there .sx   You'll  get  nothing  else .sx   Dead  stuff  , I  say .sx   Dead  stuff .sx   I  give  you  living  knowledge .sx   I  give  you  Beauty  -  The  Eternal  Quest .sx   The  Eternal  Question .sx   I  give  you  the  key  to  the  Universe .sx   Culture  -'   .sx
His  breast  expanded  to  the  thought  of  culture  and  his  eyes  glowed .sx   He  soared  high  on  the  wind  of  his  own  words .sx   His  borrowed  Americanisms  infected  him  with  a  Great  Glad  sense  of  Pep  and  Progress .sx   He  forgot  the  unfortunate  slump  in  Bolivian  Minerals  , the  return  of  his  latest  scenario  from  his  agent  , with  a  brief  note  to  say  that  they  had  exhausted  all  possible  markets  , the  gnawing  worry  of  accumulating  debts  , and  the  thought  that  Mollie  was  going  to  have  another  child .sx   
It  was  so  like  Mollie  to  hang  always  a  little  behind  his  evolution .sx   When  he  met  her  he  was  floundering  splendidly  in  the  shallows  of  a  Back  to  Nature  Phase .sx   He  had  been  working  on  a  pioneer  film  of  the  `Covered  Wagon'  type  , and  saw  himself  as  the  strong  , virile  man  in  the  sheepskin  coat  , accompanied  by  his  broad-hipped  , broad-bosomed  woman  , mother  of  many  children .sx   Mollie  had  indeed  followed  him  with  daring  confidence  to  the  experimental  pioneer  life  in  a  two-roomed  flatlet  at  Haverstock  Hill  and  their  first  child  arrived  with  flattering  promptitude .sx   Johnson  invented  quite  fascinating  theories  about  child  psychology  and  infant  education .sx   But  after  cluttering  the  living  room  with  coloured  cubes  and  squares  intended  to  teach  the  small  thing  how  to  appreciate  tone  and  form  values  , he  retreated  to  the  office  in  Essex  Street  , and  finally  rented  the  flat  in  Battersea .sx   
For  the  Haverstock  Hill  establishment  cramped  not  only  his  educational  system  , which  required  a  background  of  great  open  spaces  , but  also  his  style  of  thinking  , since  a  creative  artist  cannot  afford  broken  nights  with  a  wailing  child  , and  days  wasted  in  nursery  disorder .sx   
It  was  just  then  that  he  met  Delia  and  began  to  create  for  her  a  scenario  of  London  and  Paris  night  life  , with  a  background  of  cocktail  parties  and  orchids  and  fashion  shows  and  the  Croydon  Aerodrome .sx   
Delia  complicated  everything  , for  Mollie  grew  less  and  less  like  his  ideal  Soul  Mate  the  more  she  fulfilled  the  role  he  had  designed  for  her .sx   Johnson  began  to  realise  the  difference  between  the  economic  situation  of  the  pioneer  patriarch  , enriched  increasingly  by  each  addition  to  his  family  , and  the  city  father  , whose  more  numerous  offspring  simply  result  in  larger  bills .sx   Moreover  , Delia  was  extravagant .sx   The  best  alone  was  good  enough  for  her .sx   Johnson  began  to  feel  " a  little  tired  of  her .sx   His  imagination  was  already  turning  towards  a  new  enchantment  and  the  thought  of  a  long  epic  poem  embodying  the  Dream  Woman  of  the  centuries .sx   
For  he  had  met  another  woman  , the  perfect  fulfilment  of  all  his  ideals  in  one .sx   Strong  as  a  pioneer  , sophisticated  as  a  cocktail  , majestic  , confident  , splendid  and  conquering  , Gloria  St.  Denis .sx   
Because  he  was  feeling  good  after  the  lecture  , warmed  with  the  heady  wine  of  his  own  eloquence  , Johnson  let  his  thoughts  dwell  upon  her  -  her  slow  indifferent  smile  , the  rich  curving  lines  of  her  body  , her  fund  of  admirably  chosen  anecdotes .sx   He  was  thinking  of  her  when  he  heard  a  knock  on  the  door .sx   
He  glanced  up  , suddenly  a  little  pale  , for  behind  his  rapturous  dreams  lurked  the  smothered  subconscious  worry  of  his  financial  difficulties .sx   There  were  so  many  visitors  whom  it  might  be  inconvenient  to  receive .sx   
He  sat  for  a  moment  , wondering  if  the  caller  would  go  away  if  he  kept  quite  still  and  pretended  that  he  had  left  the  office .sx   
But  the  knock  came  again  , and  the  voice  of  Mrs.  Franley  , the  office  cleaner  , shouted :sx   `Mr .sx   Johnson  , Mr.  Johnson !sx '  
`Oh  , come  in  , Mrs.  Franley,'  he  cried  , relieved .sx   `I've  been  taking  a  class  and  I'm  a  bit  late .sx '  
`There's  a  young  lady  to  see  you  , Mr.  Johnson .sx   I  told  her  it  was  past  your  hours  , but  she  said  she  saw  your  light  in  the  window  and  knew  you  was  still  here  , and  she  won't  go  away .sx '  
`The  devil  she  won't !sx '  thought  Johnson .sx   `Who  is  it ?sx '  he  asked .sx   `Anyone  you  know ?sx '  
`Not  that  I  know  of .sx   Not  one  of  your  regulars .sx '  
`Oh  , all  right  , all  right  ; if  you're  going  down  you  might  ask  her  to  come  up .sx   It's  probably  someone  come  to  join  the  school .sx '  
But  within  himself  he  thought  that  it  was  more  likely  to  be  Delia .sx   They  had  had  a  tiff  two  nights  ago  at  Pinaldi's .sx   He  had  ordered  the  three  shilling  table  d'hote  in  an  unwonted  panic  of  economy  , and  she  , with  angry  hauteur  , had  messed  up  the  hors  d'oeuvres  with  her  fork  and  declared  she  never  saw  such  muck  in  her  life .sx   What  did  he  take  her  for ?sx   A  servant  girl  on  her  night  out ?sx   What  did  he  think  she  wanted  to  eat :sx   Herring  bones  in  oil  and  some  vegetables  saved  from  other  people's  plate-sweepings ?sx   And  up  she  got  , and  into  her  fur  coat  she  wriggled  , and  out  of  the  building  she  flounced  , the  little  devil !sx   Johnson  had  been  left  to  pay  , without  rancour  , the  bill  for  her  uneaten  dinner .sx   It  would  be  just  like  her  , he  thought  , if  she  came  again  to-night  , and  nestled  up  to  him  and  begged  him  to  take  her  to  that  nice  , nice  restaurant  where  the  hors  d'oeuvres  were  made  of  herring  bones  and  all  the  waiters  had  flat  feet .sx   Well  , well  , he  wouldtake  her  if  she  asked  him  , for  in  a  melting  kittenish  mood  she  was  delicious .sx   
But  the  girl  who  came  nervously  through  the  open  door  was  neither  the  petted  Delia  nor  the  splendid  Gloria .sx   She  glanced  with  scared  , red-rimmed  eyes  through  her  pince-nez  , and  clutched  a  shabby  dispatch  case  as  though  it  contained  the  secret  of  the  universe .sx   She  was  like  the  thousands  of  girls  whom  Johnson  saw  swinging  daily  down  to  City  offices  on  trams  and  buses  , narrow-chested  , drooping  , creatures  with  mud-splashed  stockings  , unbecoming  brown  felt  hats  and  deplorable  coats  trimmed  with  worn  fur .sx   She  looked  at  Johnson  as  though  she  thought  that  he  might  swallow  her .sx   
`Mr .sx   -  Mr.  Johnson ?sx '  
`At  your  service,'  he  bowed  , with  his  theatrical  exaggeration .sx   `And  what  is  there  that  I  can  do  for  you ?sx '  
`You  won't  know  my  face,'  she  stammered .sx   `But  you  will  know  my  name .sx   It's  Miss  Weller .sx   Doreen  Weller .sx '  
A  faint  recollection  of  some  slight  discomfort  stirred  at  the  back  of  his  mind .sx   
`I'm  very  pleased  to  meet  you  , Miss  Weller .sx   This  isn't  the  time  I  generally  see  clients  , you  know  , but  I  stayed  a  little  late  after  a  special  tutorial  class  , and  as  you  are  here  , you  might  as  well  tell  me  what  I  can  do  for  you .sx   Sit  down  , won't  you ?sx '  
She  sat  , drooping  and  unattractive  , while  he  tried  to  remember  which  of  the  stupid  girls  who  wrote  to  the  school  from  time  to  time  she  might  be .sx   
`Mr .sx   Johnson,'  she  said  at  last  , with  a  sort  of  desperate  rush .sx   `Why  don't  you  answer  my  letters ?sx '  
`Ah  , letters !sx   letters !sx   There  , my  dear  young  lady  , you  unhappily  hit  upon  one  of  my  congenital  failings .sx   I  can't  answer  letters .sx   I  mean  to .sx   I  mean  to .sx   I  compose  in  my  head  wonderful  phrases  to  dictate  to  my  secretary .sx   And  they  just  fade  away .sx   They  fade  away .sx '  
`Yes  , yes,'  she  interrupted .sx   `But  what  about  my  novel ?sx   What's  happened  to  my  novel ?sx '  And  without  warning  Miss  Weller  dropped  her  face  in  her  hands  and  began  to  cry .sx   
He  stared  at  her  with  increasing  disgust  , but  his  voice  was  bracing  and  avuncular .sx   
`Now  , now  , you're  tired  , I  expect .sx   What's  gone  wrong  , eh ?sx   Oh  , you  city  girls !sx   You  city  girls .sx   It's  a  sin  -  forcing  the  sweet  flower  of  girlhood  to  fade  in  the  dark  offices .sx   Distorting  the  natural  function  of  womanhood .sx   Now  try  to  pull  yourself  together  and  tell  me  what's  the  trouble .sx '  
Who  the  devil  was  she ?sx   What  the  devil  was  she ?sx   
Miss  Weller  removed  her  pince-nez  and  dabbed  her  streaming  eyes .sx   Johnson  rose  from  his  chair  by  the  desk  and  began  to  walk  the  room  with  a  lecturer's  strides  , giving  her  time  to  recover  her  composure .sx   
`We  call  it  progress  , ye  gods :sx   we  call  it  progress .sx   We  force  our  women  to  do  things  they  were  never  meant  to  do .sx   We  wrench  'em  away  from  their  sacred  tasks .sx   We  waste  their  lives .sx   We  waste  their  lives .sx   And  we  call  it  progress !sx '  
`But  , Mr.  Johnson,'  gulped  the  girl  , past  all  concern  for  the  welfare  of  her  sex .sx   `I  must  know  about  my  novel .sx '  
`Well  , now  , Miss  Weller  , I  confess  I  don't  at  the  moment  recall  exactly  what  it  is  about  this  novel .sx '  
He  had  to  go  carefully  , for  the  girl  might  have  a  real  grievance .sx   She  might  even  , disquieting  thought  , have  a  legal  case .sx   
It  happened  that  Johnson  was  not  only  the  director  of  the  Anglo-American  School  of  Scenario  Writing .sx   He  was  also  proprietor  of  the  Metropolitan  and  Professional  Correspondence  School  of  Journalism .sx   This  school  had  been  for  a  time  a  lucrative  little  venture .sx   Johnson  ran  it  with  the  aid  of  a  man  called  Osborne  , a  broken  downjournalist  , a  clever  man  but  irresponsible  and  an  intermittent  and  furious  drinker .sx   The  correspondence  school  conducted  its  beneficient  operations  along  the  simplest  lines .sx   Johnson  inserted  from  time  to  time  in  various  papers  his  characteristically  ingenious  advertisements .sx   `Every  Man  , Woman  or  Child  can  sell  at  least  One  Story  , if  they  know  how .sx '  `There  would  never  have  been  a  Mute  Inglorious  Milton  if  he  had  known  the  Metropolitan  and  Professional .sx '  `You  can  make  people  laugh  and  cry  and  make  them  pay  you  for  it .sx '  `Manuscripts  read  free .sx '  And  so  on .sx   In  response  to  these  advertisements  from  Bath  and  Huddersfield  , Peebles  and  Penzance  , came  poems  , short  stories  , essays  , plays  and  scenarios .sx   To  each  correspondent  Johnson  dispatched  , after  a  suitable  interval  , his  standardised  reply .sx   The  work  submitted  , he  declared  , was  hardly  marketable  , but  it  showed  undoubted  promise .sx   The  one  thing  needed  to  enable  the  writer  to  produce  saleable  stuff  was  an  intensive  study  of  his  little  volume  `How  to  make  threepence  into  three  thousand  pounds,'  to  be  obtained  from  the  school  at  the  trifling  price  of  six  and  six  , post  free .sx   As  a  matter  of  fact  , the  school  had  been  designed  largely  as  a  convenient  way  of  turning  to  profit  the  1,786  remainder  copies  of  his  book  which  Johnson  had  been  forced  under  his  contract  with  his  publisher  to  purchase .sx