The Voice in the Fog — Harold MacGrath

Thomas Webb, a modest haberdashery clerk in London, finds out that he has inherited a small sum, plus the title of Lord Monction. He celebrates with his next-door neighbor, Mason, who tricks him into a poker game. Webb comes out the loser, and Mason even wins the use of his title for three months. As Lord Monction he proceeds to both court and rob Kitty Killigrew. All three characters wind up in America, and Webb is finally able to put a halt to Mason's wrongdoings on the evening of a ball, when the three months have just expired.