"My dear good friend," returned Mr. Skimpole, "and my dear Miss Simmerson, and my dear Miss Clare, how can I do that? It's business, and I don't know business. It is he who encourages me. He emerges from great feats of business, presents the brightest prospects before me as their result, and calls upon me to admire them. I do admire them--as bright prospects. But I know no more about them, and I tell him so."

"My dear good friend," returned Mr. Skimpole, "how can I do that? It's business, and I don't know business. It is he who encourages me. He emerges from great feats of business, and calls upon me to admire them. I do admire them. But I know nothing about them, and I tell him so."
