"Oh!" ejaculated Mr. Barker.

"I worship woman in the abstract and in the concrete. I reverence her
mission, and I honour the gifts of Heaven which fit her to fulfil it."

"Ah!" exclaimed Mr. Barker.

"I think there is nothing made in creation that can be compared with
woman, not even man. I am enthusiastic, of course, you will say, but I
believe that homage and devotion to woman is the first duty of man,
after homage and devotion to the Supreme Being whom all different races
unite in describing as God."

"That will do, thank you," said Mr. Barker, "I am quite satisfied of
your adoration, and I will not ask her name."

"She has no name, and she has all names," continued Claudius seriously.
"She is an ideal."

"Yes, my feeble intelligence grasps that she cannot be anything else.
But I did not want a confession of faith. I only asked if you disliked
ladies' society, because I was going to propose to introduce you to some
friends of mine here."

"Oh!" said Claudius, and he leaned back in his chair and stared at the
lamp. Barker was silent.

The Doctor was puzzled. He thought it would be very rude of him to
refuse Mr. Barker's offer. On the other hand, in spite of his
protestations of devotion to the sex, he knew that the exalted opinion