FOR YOUNG SHOOTERS 65 



CHAPTEE XI 



LADIES AGAIN 



BEFORE I proceed with the order of subjects which 

 I have proposed to myself as the proper one to 

 follow, I feel that I must revert for a moment to 

 the question of ' ladies at lunch.' You may re- 

 member that a few chapters back I ventured to offer 

 some observations on this topic. Dear ladies, you 

 can read for yourselves the winged words in which I 

 settled the matter. ; By all means/ I said, 'come 

 to lunch, if you must.' What can be plainer or 

 more direct ? Bless your pretty, pouting faces, 

 I am not responsible for the characters of my 

 fellow-men, nor for the harsh language they use. 

 If they behave like boors, and show an incompre- 

 hensible distaste for your delightful presence, am I, 

 your constant friend, to be blamed ? I cannot alter 

 the nature of these barbarians. But what has 

 happened since I published an article which had , 



F 



