Mr Rudyard Kipling. \ 85 



On the evening of the day in which his report appeared, he 

 met the extravagantly praised-up one, who, instead of being 

 annoyed with him for having chaffed her, said : ' I am very 

 cross with you, Mr Kipling, for having compared me to Miss 

 Ellen Terry, who is much older than I am. Don't you think 

 that I am far more like Miss Mary Anderson ? ' 'I am 

 very sorry/ replied the gallant Mr Kipling, * that I made such 

 a stupid mistake. I ought to have said that you reminded 

 me of Miss Mary Anderson.' ' Of course, that was what you 

 meant/ added the lady, who graciously signified her accept- 

 ance of the journalist's amende. * After that/ said Mr Kipling 

 to me, ' I gave up reporting amateur theatricals.' 



