Her neo-classic beauty appealed to Jewdwine's taste (and to
the taste of Jewdwine's cousin); he recognized in Rickman a disciple,
and was instantly persuaded of his genius. At one bound Rickman had
leapt the barrier of the counter; and here he was, enthusiastic and
devoted. To be sure, his devotion was not fed largely upon praise;
for, unlike the younger man, Jewdwine admired but sparingly. Neither
was it tainted with any thought of material advantage. Jewdwine was
very free with his criticism and advice; but, beyond these high
intellectual aids, it never occurred to Rickman that he had anything
to gain by Jewdwine's friendship. Discipleship is the purest of all
human relations.
Jewdwine divined this purity, and was touched by it. He prepared to
accept a certain amount of responsibility. He looked at his watch. He
could still get to Hampstead by eight o'clock, if he took a
cab--say,--twenty minutes. He could spare him another ten. The Junior
Journalists were coming back from their dinner and the room would soon
be crowded. He took his disciple's arm in a protecting manner and
steered him into a near recess. He felt that the ten minutes he was
about to give him would be decisive in the young man's career.
"You've still got to find your formula. Not to have found your
formula," he said solemnly, "is not to have found yourself."
"Perhaps I haven't been looking in very likely places," said Rickman,
nobly touched, as he always was by the more personal utterances of the
master.
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