Summary

The student bumps into a friend who invites him to go to the house of a poet and painter named Byrne. At Byrne’s, the student joins a group of men discussing their literary endeavors. Brinsley suggests that the student should tell the others about Trellis. The student reads them an extract from his novel.

Trellis refused to read any books that did not have a green cover, believing that all books with covers of a different color were sinful. Brinsley questions the student about how the plot is developing. The student reveals that Furriskey devised a plan to put sleeping pills in Trellis’s drinks so that he was asleep for a greater portion of time, leaving his characters free to do as they pleased. Furriskey married Peggy, a servant at the Red Swan Hotel, and they set up home together. Their lives...