Cashel Byron's Profession

Cashel turned upon him curtly, and said, "Don't you make so free

with other people's names, or perhaps you may get into trouble

yourself."

The little man retreated hastily; hut the crowd responded with three

cheers as Cashel, with Lydia on his arm, withdrew through a lane of

disreputable-looking girls, roughs of Teddy's class, white-aproned

shopmen who had left their counters to see the fight, and a few pale

clerks, who looked with awe at the prize-fighter, and with wonder at

the refined appearance of his companion. The two were followed by a

double file of boys, who, with their eyes fixed earnestly on Cashel,

walked on the footways while he conducted Lydia down the middle of

the narrow street. Not one of them turned a somersault or uttered a

shout. Intent on their hero, they pattered along, coming into

collision with every object that lay in their path. At last Cashel

stopped. They instantly stopped too. He took some bronze coin from

his pocket, rattled it in his hand, and addressed them.

"Boys!" Dead silence. "Do you know what I have to do to keep up my

strength?" The hitherto steadfast eyes wandered uneasily. "I have to

eat a little boy for supper every night, the last thing before to

bed. Now, I haven't quite made up my mind which of you would be the

most to my taste; but if one of you comes a step further, I'll eat

HIM. So, away with you." And he jerked the coin to a considerable

distance. There was a yell and a scramble; and Cashel and Lydia

pursued their way unattended.

Lydia had taken advantage of the dispersion of the boys to detach

herself from Cashel's arm. She now said, speaking to him for the

first time since she had interceded for Teddy, "I am sorry to have given you so much trouble, Mr. Cashel Byron.

Thank you for interfering to protect me; but I was in no real

danger. I would gladly have borne with a few rough words for the

sake of avoiding a disturbance."

"There!" cried Cashel. "I knew it. You'd a deal rather I had minded

my own business and not interfered. You're sorry for the poor fellow

I treated so badly; ain't you now? That's a woman all over."

"I have not said one of these things."

"Well, I don't see what else you mean. It's no pleasure to me to

fight chance men in the streets for nothing: I don't get my living

that way. And now that I have done it for your sake, you as good as

tell me I ought to have kept myself quiet."