The girl's bright spirits and unvarying tenderness to his father, for whom she was always buying Bath buns or finding snacks, made Tom desperately in love with her, but he had only received chaff as his amatory food in return. Tryphie meantime went on as a sort of upper servant, with the _entree_ of the drawing-room; and while Justine was the repository of much that was false in Lady Barmouth, she alone was admitted to the secrets of her aunt's first and second sets of teeth, which she had to clean in her own room with the door locked, it being supposed that it was her ladyship's diamond suite then undergoing a renovating brush, while poor Tryphie all the time was operating upon what looked like a ghastly grin without any softening smile given by overhanging lips. "I tell you what it is, Tryphie," said Tom one day, as he met her on the stairs--"but I say, what's that?" and he pointed to a little case which she tried to conceal. "Don't ask impertinent questions, sir," was the reply. "Now then, what is it?" "Well, I was going to say--oh, I say, how pretty you look this morning." "You were not going to say anything of the kind, sir." "Well then, I was going to say if I am worried much more, I shall hook it." "Slang!" cried Tryphie. "Well, I must slang somebody. I mustn't swear. I'm half mad, Tryphie." "Poor fellow! you have been smoking yourself so." "Nonsense!" he said, "a fellow must do something to keep off the blues." "Yes; smoke in bed." "I shouldn't if I was married. If I had a wife now--" "Married!" said Tryphie, "without any money, sir! What would you do? Keep a billiard table or open a cigar shop? I suppose I might sit behind the counter--" "Go it," said Tom. "How down you are on a fellow." "While my little liege lord wore his elegant shawl-pattern smoking trousers, dressing-gown and cap, and showed his prowess to customers at the billiard table." "Little, eh?" said Tom. "Well, I am little, but you must have some little fellows in the world, to sort up with. We can't all be great handsome black chaps like Captain Bellman." "Captain Bellman is not always smoking." "I don't care, I'm getting reckless. I own it all: I do go to sleep with a cigar in my mouth. I can smoke as many cigars for my size as any man in London and there are not many men who can beat me at billiards." "How is the new cue, Tom?" said Tryphie, mockingly. "All right," he said. "I tried it last night at the rooms, and played a game with an uncommonly gentlemanly Frenchman, who made the most delicious little cigarettes. I thought I'd met him before. Who do you think it was?" "Don't know, and--" "Don't care, eh? Well, it was Launay the barber." "Tom!"