ld tap him
with their fans, and ask him what he had been doing at St. Albans
on such and such days; and when he replied as to his whereabouts
with that easy grace of bearing which always characterized his
dealings with men and women alike, they would shake their heads,
flirt their fans, and call him by whimsical names incomprehensible
to Tom, but which he knew implied that he was suspected of being
concerned in very wild and lawless deeds.

Yet these suspicions on the part of the ladies raised this handsome
golden-haired Adonis to a higher pinnacle of favour than ever. It
seemed to Tom that so long as a crime was carried out with dash,
and verve, and success, it only brought a man fame and honour. He
shivered sometimes when he thought of his mother and sister, and
what they would think if they suspected that he had been led into
an open act of law breaking and robbery. But he felt a little
flattered in the society of these fine dames, when he saw that they
looked at him with interest and curiosity, and wondered if he had
played the part of lieutenant to their hero in the recent exploit.

He had been growing used to the strange ways of that portion of the
London world in which Lord Claud had his sphere, but even yet it
did seem strange, when he began to think about it, that a man
believed to be a notorious but exceedingly clever criminal, should
be received, courted, flattered, and made much of, as was Lord
Claud, just because of his handsome presence and dashing grace of
bearing, and because he had never been caught.

Tom wondered sometimes how these same faces would look at them,
were they to be carried in irons to Newgate; and he fancied that
under such circumstances they would wear a totally different
aspect.

But for the most part he sought to drown thought and reflection by
plunging into a vortex of gaiety. He was no longer laughed at as a
country bumpkin. He had been quick to pick up the airs of a man
about town. He dressed excellently, having toned down his first
fopperies; and finding that a rich and sober style best suited his
fine proportions, he adopted that, made his mark, and was treated
with respect and courtesy.

He had not learned the jargon of the day, and was a silent man in
company; but that was considered rather a distinguishing trait in
one who could handle the sword and lose his money at the gaming
tables with the aplomb that Tom had acquired. And a fine sum did he
lose, too, during the day