… A betting book was placed on display for all club members to view, and thus acted as a ‘semi-official receptacle of gossip.’ 12 Amy Milne-Smith, a specialist of the London Victorian clubland, considers male gossip as a prominent practice in gentlemen’s clubs and confirms that the betting book inevitably fuelled conversation … expectations of gentlemanly politeness and aristocratic honour and the potential dangers of addictive gaming, excessive gossip, and other types of unruly behaviour. 12 . Amy Milne-Smith, ‘Club Talk: Gossip, Masculinity and Oral Communities …