out the indignant Colonel. "Because I never could have believed that
Englishmen could meet together and allow a man, and an old man, so to
disgrace himself. For shame, you old wretch! Go home to your bed, you
hoary old sinner! And for my part, I'm not sorry that my son should see,
for once in his life, to what shame and degradation and dishonour,
drunkenness and whisky may bring a man. Never mind the change, sir!--
Curse the change!" says the Colonel, facing the amazed waiter. "Keep it
till you see me in this place again; which will be never--by George,
never!" And shouldering his stick, and scowling round at the company of
scared bacchanalians, the indignant gentleman stalked away, his boy after
him.

Clive seemed rather shamefaced; but I fear the rest of the company looked
still more foolish.

"Aussi que diable venait--il faire dans cette galere?" says King of
Corpus to Jones of Trinity; and Jones gave a shrug of his shoulders,
which were smarting, perhaps; for that uplifted cane of the Colonel's had
somehow fallen on the back of every man in the room.




CHAPTER II

Colonel Newcome's Wild Oats


As the young gentleman who has just gone to bed is to be the hero of the
following pages, we had best begin our account of him with his family