'
'Exactly! And if you find it so, what must be the case with the
mass of untaught people, the quarter-educated? It might encourage
in some of them a taste for reading--don't you think?'
'It might,' assented Dora, musingly. 'And in that case you would
be doing good!'
'Distinct good!'
They smiled joyfully at each other. Then Whelpdale turned to
Jasper:
'You are convinced that there is something in this?'
'Seriously, I think there is. It would all depend on the skill of
the fellows who put the thing together every week. There ought
always to be one strongly sensational item--we won't call it
article. For instance, you might display on a placard: "What the
Queen eats!" or "How Gladstone's collars are made!"--things of
that kind.'
'To be sure, to be sure. And then, you know,' added Whelpdale,
glancing anxiously at Dora, 'when people had been attracted by
these devices, they would find a few things that were really
profitable. We would give nicely written little accounts of
exemplary careers, of heroic deeds, and so on. Of course nothing
whatever that could be really demoralising--cela va sans dire.
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