And now they saw a procession coming through the orchard headed by the President of the Academy to proclaim the stupid girl as a virgin prophetess who had revealed to that world many great truths that had been hidden from the minds of the old masters. And when the old masters saw the apples that lay about the girl dropping up, one by one, to the tree above her, they became filled with holy zeal and abject worship and bowed down humbly before her and cried: "Hail, hail, prophetess, for the end of the world cometh, and thou, in thy holy wisdom, must tell us what we should do to be saved." "Oh, forget it till next week," said the girl, "and then you will see me in my new-style bathing suit." And Gud departed from that place in great sorrow, for once again he saw a world confounded and worshiping a fool. Chapter XXIV About a decade later, Fidu came running up to Gud. For a moment he was too excited to speak and could only bark, but when he again found his articulation the Underdog said: "Oh master, come quick, for there is a poor beggar sitting over there on the steps of the almshouse and holding out his hat for alms; but few give to him and he is weak and starving." Gud followed Fidu and came to the beggar who was poor and wretched indeed. And Gud said to him: "I will not reveal my lack of intelligence by dropping coins into your hat, for I know as well as you do that indiscriminate charity does not alleviate poverty. So throw your coppers into the gutter and put your hat on your head, while we discuss the cause of your impecunity." The beggar discarded his few coins and placed his hat on his head. "Now," began Gud, "let us consider your situation intelligently. There is usually some relation between cause and effect. The effect in your case is poverty complicated by charity. I could destroy the effect by a miracle and make you rich, but I have tried tampering with the law of cause and effect, and I find it dangerous business. It is best to change the cause and let the law change the effect. "Quite right you are, kind sir," agreed the beggar. "What was the cause of your poverty?" asked Gud. "Was it indolence, or drink, or--" "No, no," interrupted the beggar, "none of those common things. My poverty was caused by the ruin of my profession." "What was your profession?" demanded Gud. The beggar straightened up as proudly as he could and said: "I was a novelist!" "Yes," said Gud, "Go on." "And my profession has been blasted and ruined utterly." "And how did that happen?" "I do not know how it happened," replied the beggar, a baffled look coming into his eyes; "worse yet not even the critics know--but it happened--it happened--the impossible happened." "Come, come," called Gud, shaking him by the shoulder, "you are babbling, speak up, what happened?"