"I thought we'd make the place too hot for him at last!" "Yes, it was a job, though, to get rid of him." "Bless you," said Horncastle, with the air of a hero, "a man doesn't like hurting a fellow's feelings, you know, or we could have told him straight off he was a beast.

It was much better to let him see we didn't fancy him, and let him clear out of his own accord." "Yes, much better," answered a toady friend; "you managed it very well, Horn, so you did." "You see, when a fellow's a sneak and a cad he's sure to be uncomfortable among a lot of gentlemen," said Horncastle, by way of enlarging on the interesting topic.
If I had not been so miserable I should have felt amused at this edifying conversation.

As it was I was rather tempted to break into it more than once, but I remembered with a pang that, though I had a friend to stand up for yesterday, I had none to-day.
"I suppose now he's gone," sneered some one of the same set, "his precious chum will be going too." "I don't know," said Horncastle, pretending not to be aware that I was in the room.

"Batchelor's got some good points about him, and now the other's gone he might improve if he stayed with us." "Besides, he's got his lodgings paid for him, so I've heard," said another.
"Yes, there's something in that.

And on the whole he's a pretty decent--hullo, Batchelor, I never knew you were here.