212 LAUGHTER 



of "Owen's sugar-of-lead smile "-referring to the great 

 naturalist, Richard Owen. There was no malice in the 

 description, for he had, as some others have, a very sweet 

 smile, accompanied by a strangely grave and disapproving 

 glare in his large blue prominent eyes. It was only 

 apparently sugar of lead ; really, it was sugar of milk 

 the milk of human kindness. The smile of the lost 

 picture called " La Gioconda " is by fanciful people re- 

 garded as something very wonderful. It is really the 

 clever portraiture of the habitual "leer" of a somewhat 

 wearied sensual woman. It had a fascination for the 

 great Leonardo, but no profound significance. 



