brilliant young man," he went on, "very enlightened, very cultivated,
quite up to the mark in the fine arts and all that sort of thing. I 'm a
plain, practical old boy, content to follow an honorable profession in a
free country. I did n't go off to the Old World to learn my business; no
one took me by the hand; I had to grease my wheels myself, and, such as
I am, I 'm a self-made man, every inch of me! Well, if our young friend
is booked for fame and fortune, I don't suppose his going to Rome will
stop him. But, mind you, it won't help him such a long way, either. If
you have undertaken to put him through, there 's a thing or two you 'd
better remember. The crop we gather depends upon the seed we sow. He may
be the biggest genius of the age: his potatoes won't come up without his
hoeing them. If he takes things so almighty easy as--well, as one or two
young fellows of genius I 've had under my eye--his produce will never
gain the prize. Take the word for it of a man who has made his way inch
by inch, and does n't believe that we 'll wake up to find our work done
because we 've lain all night a-dreaming of it; anything worth doing is
devilish hard to do! If your young protajay finds things easy and has
a good time and says he likes the life, it 's a sign that--as I may
say--you had better step round to the office and look at the books. That
's all I desire to remark. No offense intended. I hope you 'll have a
first-rate time."

Rowland could honestly reply that this seemed pregnant sense, and he
offered Mr. Striker a friendly hand-shake as the latter withdrew. But
Mr. Striker's rather grim view of matters cast a momentary shadow on his
companions, and Mrs. Hudson seemed to feel that it necessitated between
them some little friendly agreement not to be overawed.

Rowland sat for some time longer, partly because he wished to please the
two women and partly because he was strangely pleased himself. There