IN FULL CAREER. 165 



was open to him. First, the air of the town 

 choked and suffocated him; he panted for the 

 breath of the fields. Next, he had no know- 

 ledge or experience of men; he never belonged 

 to society at all, not even to the quiet society 

 of a London suburb; he had none of the con- 

 versation which belongs to clubs and to club life; 

 he never associated with literary men or London 

 journalists; he knew nobody. Thirdly, there 

 was the reserve which clung round him like a 

 cloak which cannot be removed. He did not 

 want to know anybody ; he was not only re- 

 served, but he was self-contained. Therefore, 

 the success which he achieved did not mean to 

 him what it should have meant had he been 

 a man of the world. On the other hand, it must 

 be conceded that no mere man of the world 

 could write the things which Jefferies subse- 

 quently wrote. Let us, therefore, content our- 

 selves with the reflection that his success 

 proved in the end to be of a far higher kind 

 than a mere worldly success. This knowledge, 

 if such things follow beyond the grave, should 

 be enough to make him happy. 



He was himself contented he was even 



