A most unfair suggestion, for the only founded charge against young Stansfield was that he stared at everything going on; shops arrested him, sandwichmen proved an effective bar to progress. In waiting outside a leather merchant’s in St. Thomas’s Street, a detachment of Borough youths of about his own age came up with a threatening air. “Who you for?” they demanded menacingly. “Find out!” he answered. “Want your ’ead punched?” “Yes!” he said. Disinclined to comply with any request, they conferred amongst themselves. “What’s inside that parcel? What’s inside that parcel? Going to tell us, or ain’t you?” He began to feel terrified, and looked around for assistance. The people who were standing by did not seem to have any prejudices on one side or the other, and he was preparing to use his left arm as a guard and the parcel in his right hand as a weapon, when Mr. Cruttwell fortunately reappeared. The lads scampered off. “You’re a plucky little chap,” said Mr. Cruttwell, in good humour after his call and slightly more rosy in complexion. “Some country youngsters would have been afraid.” He proceeded to give a short political lecture as they strolled back under the arches to Tooley Street, asserting that the manner in which Stansfield had tackled the Borough lads should be the method adopted by Great Britain in dealing with Russia. Prince Gortschakoff might have counted himself clever, and was, no doubt, uncommonly wily, but we, too, had men just as ingenious, and this Gortschy had discovered, and others would discover to their cost. Mr. Cruttwell began to use oratorical gesture, and in one fine sweep of the arm sent the lad’s bowler hat into the roadway, restoring it with an apology that made the owner feel on a manly level with the best. “Don’t go out to lunch,” said Mr. Cruttwell, “in case anything crops up. Send for it, and charge it to the office!” * * * * * He awoke from these thoughts on hearing his name mentioned, but some one interrupted with a deferential, “Will you excuse me, my lord, if I—” Leaning back, he went on with the glance over his shoulder at the past. * * * * *