And even the revelations of the seamy side of human character which thrust themselves upon the most purblind of editors were blessings in disguise.  The office of the Flag was a forcing-house for Raphael; many latent thoughts developed into extraordinary maturity.  A month of the Flag was equal to a year of experience in the outside world.  And not even little Sampson himself was keener to appreciate the humors of the office when no principle was involved; though what made the sub-editor roar with laughter often made the editor miserable for the day.  For compensation, Raphael had felicities from which little Sampson was cut off; gladdened by revelations of earnestness and piety in letters that were merely bad English to the sub-editor.

A thing that set them both laughing occurred on the top of their conversation about the reader who objected to quotations from the Old Testament.  A package of four old Flags arrived, accompanied by a letter.  This was the letter: 

     “DEAR SIR: 

“Your man called upon me last night, asking for payment for four advertisements of my Passover groceries.  But I have changed my mind about them and do not want them; and therefore beg to return the four numbers sent me You will see I have not opened them or soiled them in any way, so please cancel the claim in your books.

     “Yours truly,

     “ISAAC WOLLBERG.”

“He evidently thinks the vouchers sent him are the advertisements,” screamed little Sampson.

“But if he is as ignorant as all that, how could he have written the letter?” asked Raphael.

“Oh, it was probably written for him for twopence by the Shalotten Shammos, the begging-letter writer.”

“This is almost as funny as Karlkammer!” said Raphael.

Karlkammer had sent in a long essay on the Sabbatical Year question, which Raphael had revised and published with Karlkammer’s title at the head and Karlkammer’s name at the foot.  Yet, owing to the few rearrangements and inversions of sentences, Karlkammer never identified it as his own, and was perpetually calling to inquire when his article would appear.  He brought with him fresh manuscripts of the article as originally written.  He was not the only caller; Raphael was much pestered by visitors on kindly counsel bent or stern exhortation.  The sternest were those who had never yet paid their subscriptions.  De Haan also kept up proprietorial rights of interference.  In private life Raphael suffered much from pillars of the Montagu Samuels type, who accused him of flippancy, and no communal crisis invented by little Sampson ever equalled the pother and commotion that arose when Raphael incautiously allowed him to burlesque the notorious Mordecai Josephs by comically exaggerating its exaggerations.  The community took it seriously, as an attack upon the race.  Mr. and Mrs. Henry Goldsmith were scandalized, and Raphael had to shield little Sampson by accepting the whole responsibility for its appearance.