he used to," said Jock laconically.

"The music here does not seem of a high class," said MTutor. "I hope she
will sing. Italians, though their music is sensuous, generally know
something about the art."

To this Jock made no reply, but hunched his shoulders a little higher,
and dug his hands down deeper into his pockets.

"By the way, is the--young lady who was with Madame di Forno-Populo
here no longer?" said MTutor in a sort of accidental manner, as if that
had for the first time occurred to him. He raised his eyes to Jock's
face, which was foolish, and they both reddened in spite of themselves;
Mr. Derwentwater with sudden confusion, and Jock with angry dismay.

"Not that I know of," said the boy. "I haven't heard anything." Then he
went on hurriedly: "No more than I know what Montjoie's doing here.
What's he been asked here for I wonder? He can't amuse anybody much."
These words, however, were contradicted practically as soon as they were
said by a peal of laughter which rose from the Contessa's little corner,
all caused as it was evident by some pleasantry of Montjoie's.

"It seems that he does, though," said Mr. Derwentwater; and then he
added with a smile, "We are novices in society, you and I. We do best in
our own class; not to know that Montjoie will be in the very front of
society, the admired of all admirers at least for a season or two! Isn't
he a favourite of fortune, the best _parti_, a golden youth in every
sense of the word----"

"Why, he was a scug!" cried Jock, with illimitable disdain. This
mysterious and terrible monosyllable was applied at school to a youth
hopelessly low down and destitute of any personal advantages to
counterbalance his inferiority. Jock launched it at the Marquis,
evidently now in a very different situation, as if it had been a stone.

"Hush!" said MTutor blandly. "You will meet a great many such in
society, and they will think themselves quite as good as you."

Then the mother of the young ladies in blue approached and disturbed
this _tete-a-tete_.

"I think you were talking of Lord Montjoie," she said. "I hear he is so
clever; there are some comic songs he sings, which, I am told, are quite
irresistible. Mr. Trevor, don't you think you could induce him to sing
one?--as you were at school with him, and are a sort of son of the
house?"

At this Jock glowered with eyes that were alarming to see under the deep
cover of his eyebrows, and MTutor laughed out. "We had not