was already in his bath, refilled the kettle and put it back on the
fire. After dressing, he came into his sitting-room, made tea and
cooked, in his Dutch oven, something he had bought the day before.
His laundress was an elderly woman, and he could not trouble her to
come to his rooms so early in the morning; on the other hand, he
could not stay in bed until he thought it right for her to go out; so
it ended in his doing a great deal for himself. He then got his
breakfast and read the Times. At 9.30 Alfred came, with whom he
discussed anything requiring attention, and soon afterwards his
laundress arrived. Then he started to walk to the British Museum,
where he arrived about 10.30, every alternate morning calling at the
butcher's in Fetter Lane to order his meat. In the Reading Room at
the Museum he sat at Block B ("B for Butler") and spent an hour
"posting his notes"--that is reconsidering, rewriting, amplifying,
shortening, and indexing the contents of the little note-book he
always carried in his pocket. After the notes he went on till 1.30
with whatever book he happened to be writing.

On three days of the week he dined in a restaurant on his way home,
and on the other days he dined in his chambers where his laundress
had cooked his dinner. At two o'clock Alfred returned (having been
home to dinner with his wife and children) and got tea ready for him.
He then wrote letters and attended to his accounts till 3.45, when he
smoked his first cigarette. He used to smoke a great deal, but,
believing it to be bad for him, took to cigarettes instead of pipes,
and gradually smoked less and less, making it a rule not to begin
till some particular hour, and pushing this hour later and later in
the day, till it settled itself at 3.45. There was no water laid on
in his rooms, and every day he fetched one can full from the tap in
the court, Alfred fetching the rest. When anyone expostulated with