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208 ''about him for some light reading—simple yet not altogether meaningless, unreal yet not impossible: he has longed to draw a veil on actualities and see a shadow-life frisking on tiptoes, followed by a dance of sorrows and a merry-making of cares. He does not presume to say that he has fulfilled his own desire in the following pages, but the desire in question may explain their tone''.

In conclusion, this fantasia makes no claim to the great title of novel, and is, indeed, no more than it is called—"A Study in Temptations"—and it will be found that at least one form of temptation, if not more, is dealt with in each chapter.