Slightly older than James, Perry Mandeville is the risk-taking and reckless, but loyal head of the Danger Society, the secret club at Eton for James and his daredevil friends.
“Outside on Keate’s Lane Perry ambled over. He was a big, gangling lad who was always in a state of fidgety excitement. He talked very fast, his mouth running ahead of his brain, so that his words tumbled over each other and fell out in a stammer.‘Filthy day,’ he said. ‘Roll on Christmas, God rest ye m-merry gentlem-men and all that, I’ve had enough of school for one year, all this studying is m-making m-my brain ache. What did you want to talk to m-me about?’”