In a letter dated Saturday (9 January 1796), Austen mentioned Lefroy.

“

You scold me so much in the nice long letter which I have this moment received from you, that I am almost afraid to tell you how my Irish friend and I behaved. Imagine to yourself everything most profligate and shocking in the way of dancing and sitting down together. I can expose myself however, only once more, because he leaves the country soon after next Friday, on which day we are to have a dance at Ashe after all. He is a very gentlemanlike, good-looking, pleasant young man, I assure you. But as to our having ever met, except at the three last balls, I cannot say much; for he is so excessively laughed at about me at Ashe, that he is ashamed of coming to Steventon, and ran away when we called on Mrs. Lefroy a few days ago. . . . After I had written the above, we received a visit from Mr. Tom Lefroy and his cousin George. The latter is really very well-behaved now; and as for the other, he has but one fault, which time will, I trust, entirely remove — it is that his morning coat is a great deal too light. He is a very great admirer of Tom Jones, and therefore wears the same coloured clothes, I imagine, which he did when he was wounded.

”

In a letter started on Thursday (14 January 1796), and finished the following morning, there is another mention of him.

“

Friday. — At length the day is come on which I am to flirt my last with Tom Lefroy, and when you receive this it will be over. My tears flow as I write at the melancholy idea.

”

Upon learning of Jane Austen’s death (on 18 July 1817), Thomas Langlois Lefroy traveled from Ireland to England to pay his respects to the British author.^[2] In addition, at an auction of Cadell's papers (possibly in London), Tom bought a Cadell publisher's rejection letter—for Austen’s early version of Pride and Prejudice (originally titled First Impressions).