OUR GUEST BOOK 



"No, I don't care for stained glass," he answered, 

 "except in the dining-room. There it is suitable; for 

 when a company of people are around a table, they 

 should be shut in away from distractions ; they should 

 each be forced, if necessary, to contribute something 

 to the zest of the conversation." 



We had been taught that the dining-room of a house 

 should have the pleasantest outlook, as so much of the 

 time must necessarily be spent there; but he had ac 

 quired the European idea of a repast as a social func 

 tion, no matter how simple the food might be. Being 

 himself a brilliant talker, one could understand his point 

 of view. Evidently he believed that anyone could 

 talk if he would, like the accomplished cartoonist who 

 scorned the word genius and insisted, "It is just keep 

 ing at it; anyone can do it with practice." 



We were telling rare experiences around the fire 

 of great logs a chilly afternoon in October, when a 

 sunny American painter told us of an entertaining 

 spectacle which he saw down in Virginia while shoot 

 ing. 



201 



