The Pretty Lady
THE PRETTY LADY A Novel by ARNOLD BENNETT 1918 "_Virtue has never yet been adequately represented by any who have had any claim to be considered virtuous. It is the sub-vicious who best understand virtue. Let the virtuous people stick to describing vice--which they can do well enough_."
"Here, here," Rebener joined in laughingly as he came up, "don't you
offer to give away anything. Just because your father left you
comfortably well off is no reason that you shouldn't sell things if
people want to buy. Sell and sell while you've got the market, and
sell to the highest bidder. Look at me, I am selling to both sides;
that is my way of stopping this war." He turned to the young newspaper
man. "Is there anything new, Ralph?"
"Nothing, Mr. Rebener, except that there is a story out in New York
that Mr. Edestone here has been sent over to act as a sort of
unofficial go-between to bring England and Germany to terms; but he
denies this. Then there is another story that he is trying to sell
this new invention of his to England and that the German agents are
trying to get it away from him before he does. You've just heard what
he has to say on that subject, so I seem to have landed on a 'Flivver'
all around.
"Say, Mr. Edestone, you'll give me the dope on this lay-out won't you,
before the other boys get to it?" he wheedled. "We all know that
something is going on, and she's going to be a big story when she
breaks, and it would be the making of me with the 'old man' if I could
put it over first.
"I saw you, sir, this afternoon coming home from the Palace," he
chuckled, "and the President, going out to the first ball game of the
THE PRETTY LADY A Novel by ARNOLD BENNETT 1918 "_Virtue has never yet been adequately represented by any who have had any claim to be considered virtuous. It is the sub-vicious who best understand virtue. Let the virtuous people stick to describing vice--which they can do well enough_."