The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition, Vol. 04

Prince Florizel of Bohemia, famed for his charm and generosity, tires of the predictable routines of London society. Seeking excitement, he calls on his trusted confidant, Colonel Geraldine, a young officer renowned for his talent at assuming any disguise. Together they slip into the city's night, hunting for the kind of daring escapade that their aristocratic lives rarely allow.

In a sudden March sleet they find themselves in a bustling oyster bar near Leicester Square, each dressed in a flamboyant costume that hides their true identities. Geraldine poses as a struggling member of the press while Florizel sports false whiskers and oversized eyebrows, a disguise both ridiculous and effective. Their quiet drink is interrupted when a young man, escorted by two commissionaires carrying trays of cream tarts, begins offering the pastries to everyone with exaggerated courtesy, eventually confronting the Prince with a puzzling challenge of mockery.