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 Toff held out his hand and appeared pleased to meet them, it was not so certain that they were pleased to meet him.

"Horace Allwright, Philip, the very first Pickles I ever played to—and the best."

"Oh, go hon, John Willie," said the Star of the North, blushing to the roots of his hair, which was red and, therefore, made his pleasure the more conspicuous. But he wasn't going to stand any swank from Eton and Ch: Ch:; and the rather fierce eye of this fine natural comedian said so pretty distinctly.

Mary was undefeated, though, and Johnny Dubosque not being so great a man as Horace Allwright, and consequently having less in the way of dignity to look after, was soon behaving as if nothing had happened.

"But I expect you'll never come to the provinces again, Polly," said Johnny Dubosque sadly. "I said to Horace it was all up with us as soon as you got to the Lane. But you'll be turning up the perfession altogether now."

Mary said it might be so, and Johnny Dubosque sighed deeply, and informed the Toff in a burst of confidence that her place could never be filled. And the Toff—for all that the Twin Brethren were not a little discomposed by hearing one who was not a fellow alumnus speak of the wife as Polly—apologized so nicely to the Perfession for having done what it had