Escape- Almost more than a thief, Mount seems to be a skilled escape artist. Somehow, he manages to escape from several jails. Instead of lying and pretending to repent and welcome punishment, Mount says “when i see that every attempt to break gaol is unsuccessful, and that every effort to prevent my suffering an ignominious death, is like to be fruitless, I Thomas Mount, in conformity to the custom of publishing a last speech or dying words, for benefit of my survivors, do hereby declare this to be my last speech and dying words.” He really does not seem to care about anything.
Women- Like Levi Ames, Mount tries to blame his life of crime on the company of bad women. He says that these women are “the first seducers of all evil, and if their extravegancies are not gratified to the full, become our betrayers. He has a lot in common with Powers (impulsivity, lack of conscience) and, like Powers, he believes seduction by women made him corrupt.
Flash Phrases- Just as Mountain’s gang was reminiscent of modern crime, the code used by the Flash society seems very modern. It is more of a slang than a code. Some of the words are still used. Snitch is used everywhere and peepers is a pretty common word for eyes. Grub and quid are also still used. It’s interesting to know that some of the slang we use now came from thieves in the late 1700s. I think my favorite flash phrase is sucky, for drunk.