nice and scrupulous in the punctilios of honour; and said it was pity that two gentlemen should forfeit each other's friendship, much less expose their lives, for such a frivolous cause. "My dear count!" cried the Westphalian, “I am charmed to find your sentiments so conformable to my own: in an honourable cause, I despise all danger; my courage, thank Heaven! has been manifested in many public engagements as well as in private rencountres; but, to break with my friend, whose eminent virtues I admire, and even to seek his life, on such a scandalous occasion, for a little insignificant we, who, I suppose, took the advantage of our intoxication, to foment the quarrel: by Heaven! my conscience cannot digest it." exchanged apologies, and renewed their former correspondence. Our adventurer thought he had good reason to congratulate himself upon the part he had acted in this pacification: he was treated by both with signal marks of particular affection and esteem. The count pressed him to accept, as a token of his attachment, a sword of very curious workmanship, which he had received in a present from a certain prince of the empire; the knight forced upon his finger a very splendid diamond ring, as a testimony of his gratitude and esteem: but there was still another person to be appeased, before the peace of the whole company could be established. This was no other than the abbe, from whom each of the reconciled friends received at dinner a billet couched in these words. Having expressed himself to this purpose, he waited impatiently for the reply of Ferdinand, who, after a pause of deliberation, "I have the honour to lament the infinite offered his services in the way of mediation; chagrin and mortification that compels me to though, he observed, it was a matter of great address myself in this manner to a person delicacy, and the event altogether uncertain. of your rank and eminence, whom I should "Nevertheless," added our adventurer, "I do myself the pleasure of waiting upon in will strive to appease the knight, who, I hope, person, were I not prevented by the misforwill be induced by my remonstrances to tune of my nose, which was last night most forget the unlucky accident, which hath so cruelly disarranged, by a violent contusion I disagreeably interrupted your mutual friend- had the honour to receive, in attempting to ship." The German thanked him for this compose that unhappy fracas, at the house proof of his regard, which yielded him more of Madam la Maquerelle; and what puts the satisfaction on account of the chevalier than finishing stroke to my mishap, is my being of himself:-" For, by the tombs of my rendered incapable of keeping three or four fathers!" cried he, "I have so little concern assignations with ladies of fashion, by whom for my personal safety, that, if my honour I have the honour to be particularly esteemed. were interested, I durst oppose myself singly The disfiguration of my nose, the pain I have to the whole ban of the empire; and I am undergone, with the discomposure of brain now ready, if the chevalier requires it, to give which it produced, I could bear as a philosohim the rendezvous in the forest of Senlis, pher; but the disappointment of the ladies, either on horseback or on foot, where this my glory will not permit me to overlook; contest may be terminated with the life of one and as you know the injury was sustained in r both of us." your service, I have the pleasure to hope you will not refuse to grant such reparation as will be acceptable to a gentleman, who has the honour to be, with inviolable attachment, sir, your most devoted slave, Count Fathom, with a view to chastise the Westphalian for this rhodomontade, told him, with a mortifying air of indifference, that if they were both bent upon taking the field, he would save himself the trouble of interposing farther in the affair; and desired to know the hour at which it would suit him to take the air with the baronet: the other not a little embarrassed by this question, said, with a faltering tongue, he should be proud to obey the chevalier's orders; but, at the same time, owned he should be much better pleased if our hero would execute the pacific proposal he had made. Fathom accordingly promised to exert himself for that purpose, returned to the knight, with whom he assumed the merit of having tranquillized the rage of an incensed barbarian, who was now disposed to a reconciliation upon equal terms: the baronet overwhelmed him with caresses and compliments upon his friendship and address; the parties met that same forenoon, as if by accident, in Fathom's apartment, where they embraced each other cordially, "PEPIN CLOTHIRE CHARLE Henri LOUIS BARNABE DE FUMIER." This epistle was so equivocal, that the persons to whom it was addressed, did not know whether or not they ought to interpret the contents into a challenge; when our hero observed, that the ambiguity of his expressions plainly proved there was a door left open for accommodation; and proposed they should forthwith visit the writer at his own apartment: they accordingly followed his advice, and found the abbe in his morning gown and slippers, with three huge night-caps on his head, and a crape hat-band tied over the middle of his face, by way of bandage to his nose. He received his visitors with the most ridiculous solemnity, being still a stranger to the purport of their errand; but soon as the Westphalian declared they were come in consequence of his billet, in order to While he thus enjoyed his pre-eminence, together with the fruits of his success at play, which he managed so discreetly, as never to incur the reputation of an adventurer, he one day chanced to be at the ordinary, when the company was surprised by the entrance of such a figure as had never apother than a person habited in the exact uniform of an English jockey. His leathern cap, cut bob, fustian frock, flannel waistcoat, buff breeches, hunting boots, and whip, were sufficient of themselves to furnish out a phenomenon for the admiration of all Paris: but these peculiarities were rendered still more conspicuous by the behaviour of the man who owned them. When he crossed the threshold of the outward door, he produced such a sound from the smack of his whip, as equalled the explosion of an ordinary cow-horn; and then broke forth into the halloo of a fox-hunter, which he uttered with all its variations, in a strain of vociferation, that seemed to astonish and confound the whole assembly, to whom he introduced himself and his spaniel, by exclaiming, in a tone something less melodious than the cry of mackarel or live cod,-" By your leave gentlevolks, I hope there's no offence, in an honest plain Englishman's coming with money in his pocket, to taste a bit of your Vrench frigasee and ragooze." ask pardon for the undesigned offence they had given, his features retrieved their natural vivacity, and he professed himself perfectly satisfied with their polite acknowledgement. Then they condoled him upon the evil plight of his nose, and seeing some marks upon his shirt, asked, with seeming concern, if he had lost any blood in the fray? To this interro-peared before in that place. This was no gation he replied, that he had still a sufficient quantity left for the occasions of his friends; and that he should deem it his greatest glory to expend the last drop of it in their service. Matters being thus amicably adjusted, they prevailed upon him to uncase his nose, which retained no signs of the outrage he had suffered; and the amusements of the day were concerted. It was in consequence of this plan, that, after the comedy, they were entertained at the count's lodgings, where quadrille was proposed by the abbe, as the most innocent pastime, and the proposal was immediately embraced by all present, and by none with more alacrity than by our adventurer, who, without putting forth a moiety of his skill, went home with twenty louis clear gain: though, far from believing himself greatly superior to the rest of the party in the artifices of play, he justly suspected that they had concealed their skill, with a view of stripping him on some other occasion; for he could not suppose, that persons of their figure and character should be, in reality, such novices as they affected to appear. CHAPTER XXIV. He overlooks the advances of his friends, and smarts severely for his neglect. STEELED with this cautious maxim, he guarded himself from their united endeavours, in sundry subsequent attacks, by which his first conjecture was confirmed, and still came off conqueror, by virtue of his unparalleled finesse and discretion: till at length they seemed to despair of making him their prey, and the count began to drop some hints, importing a desire of seeing him more closely united to the views and interest of their triumvirate. But Ferdinand, who was altogether selfish, and quite solitary in his prospects, discouraged all those advances; being resolved to trade upon his own bottom only, and to avoid all such connections with any person or society whatever; much more, with a set of raw adventurers whose talents he despised. With these sentiments, he still maintained the dignity and reserve of his first appearance among them, and rather enhanced than diminished that idea of importance which he had inspired at the beginning; because, besides his other qualifications, they gave him credit for the address with which he kept himself superior to their united designs. This declaration was made in such a wild fantastical manner, that the greatest part of the company mistook him for some savage monster or maniac, and consulted their safety by starting up from table, and drawing their swords. The Englishman, seeing such a martial apparatus produced against him, recoiled two or three steps, saying,-"Waunds, a believe the people are all bewitched: what, do they take me for a beast of prey? is there nobody here that knows Sir Stentor Stile, or can speak to me in my own lingo?" He had no sooner pronounced these words, than the baronet, with marks of infinite surprise, ran towards him, crying,-" Good Heaven! Sir Stentor, who expected to meet with you in Paris?" Upon which the other eyeing him very earnestly," Odds heartlikins," cried he, "my neighbour, Sir Giles Squirrel, as I am a living soul!" With these words, he flew upon him like a tiger, kissed him from ear to ear, demolished his periwig, and disordered the whole economy of his dress, to the no small entertainment of the company. Having well nigh stifled his countryman with embraces, and besmeared himself with pulville from head to foot, he proceeded in this manner:-"Mercy upon thee, knight, thou art so transmographied, and bedaubed, and bedizened, that thou mought rob thy own mother without fear of information. Look he here now, I will be trussed, if the very b― that was brought up in thy own bosom knows thee again. Hey, Sweetlips, here hussy, damn the tuoad, do'st n't know thy | knight would endeavour to reserve him for old measter. Ey, ey, thou may'st smell till his own game; but he was too conscious of christmas, I'll be bound to be hanged, knight, his own accomplishments to think he should if the creature's nose an't foundered by the find great difficulty in superseding the indamned stinking perfumes you have got fluence of Sir Giles. among you." These compliments being past, the two knights sat down by one another, and Sir Stentor being asked by his neighbour upon what errand he had crossed the sea, gave him to understand, that he had come to France, in consequence of a wager with 'squire Snaffle, who had laid a thousand pounds, that he, Sir Stentor, would not travel to Paris by himself, and for a whole month appear every day at a certain hour in the public walks, without wearing any other dress than that in which he saw him." The fellor has got no more stuff in his pate," continued this polite stranger, "than a jackass, to think I could not find my way hither, thof I could not jabber your French lingo. Ecod! the people of this country are sharp enough to find out your meaning, when you want to spend any thing among them: and as for the matter of dress, bodikins! for a thousand pounds I would engage to live in the midst of them, and show myself without any clothes at all. Odds heart! a true-born Englishman needs not be ashamed to show his face, nor his backside neither, with the best Frenchman that ever trod the ground. Thof we Englishmen don't beplaister our doublets with gold and silver, I believe as how we have our pockets better lined than most of our neighbours; and for all my bit of a fustian frock, that cost me in all but forty shillings, I believe, between you and me, knight, I have more dust in my fob, than all those powdered sparks put together. But the worst of the matter is this; here is no solid belly-timber in this country: one can't have a slice of a delicate sirloin, or nice buttock of beef, for love nor money. A pize upon them! I could get no eatables upon the ruoad, but what they call bully, which looks like the flesh of Pharaoh's lean kine stewed into rags and tatters; and then their peajohn, peajohn, rabbet them! one would think every old woman of this kingdom hatched pigeons from her own body." It is not to be supposed that such an original sat unobserved. The French and other foreigners who had never been in England, were struck dumb with amazement at the knight's appearance and deportment; while the English guests were overwhelmed with shame and confusion, and kept a most wary silence, for fear of being recognized by their countryman. As for our adventurer, he was inwardly transported with joy at sight of this curiosity. He considered him as a genuine, rich country booby, of the right English growth, fresh as imported: and his heart throbbed with rapture when he heard Sir Stentor value himself upon the lining of his pockets; he foresaw, indeed, that the other Meanwhile, the new comer was by his friend helped to some ragout, which pleased his palate so well, that he declared he should now make a hearty meal, for the first time since he had crossed the water; and, while his good humour prevailed, he drank to every individual around the table. Ferdinand seized this opportunity of insinuating himself into his favour, by saying in English, he was glad to find there was any thing in France that was agreeable to Sir Stentor. To this compliment the knight replied with an air of surprise,-" Waunds! I find here's another countryman of mine in this here company. Sir, I am proud to see you with all my heart.” So speaking, he thrust out his right hand across the table, and shook our hero by the fist, with such violence of civility, as proved very grievous to a French marquis, who, in helping himself to soup, was jostled in such a manner, as to overturn the dividing-spoon in his own bosom. The Englishman, seeing the mischief he had produced, cried,-" No offence, I hope," in a tone of vociferation, which the marquis in all probability misconstrued; for he began to model his features into a very sublime and peremptory look, when Fathom interpreted the apology, and at the same time informed Sir Stentor, that although he himself had not the honour of being an Englishman, he had always entertained a most particular veneration for the country, and learned the language in consequence of that esteem. "Blood!" answered the knight, "I think myself the more obliged to you for your kind opinion, than if you was my countryman in good earnest; for there be abundance of we English, no offence, Sir Giles, that seem to be ashamed of their own nation, and leave their homes to come and spend their fortunes abroad, among a parcel of-you understand me, sir-a word to the wise, as the saying is."-Here he was interrupted by an article of the second course, that seemed to give him great disturbance; this was a roasted leveret, very strong of the fumet, which happened to be placed directly under his nose. His sense of smelling was no sooner encountered by the effluvia of this delicious fare, than he started up from table, exclaiming,"Odds my liver! here's a piece of carrion, that I would not offer to e'er a hound in my kennel; 'tis enough to make any christian vomit both gut and gall;" and indeed by the wry faces he made while he ran to the door, his stomach seemed ready to justify this last assertion. The abbe, who concluded, from these symptoms of disgust, that the leveret was not sufficiently stale, began to exhibit marks of discontent, and desired that it might be brought to the other end of the table for his examination. He accordingly hung over it with the most greedy appetite, feasting his nostrils with the steams of animal putrefaction: and at length declared that the morceau was passable, though he owned it would have been highly perfect, had it been kept another week. Nevertheless, mouths were not wanting to discuss it, insipid as it was, for in three minutes there was not a vestige to be seen of that which had offended the organs of Sir Stentor, who now resumed his place, and did justice to the dessert. But what he seemed to relish better than any other part of the entertainment, was the conversation of our adventurer, whom, after dinner, he begged to have the honour of treating with a dish of coffee, to the seeming mortification of his brother knight, over which Fathom exulted in his own heart. In short, our hero, by his affability and engaging deportment, immediately gained possession of Sir Stentor's good graces, insomuch, that he desired to crack a bottle with him in the evening, and they repaired to an auberge, whither his fellow-knight accompanied them, not without manifest signs of reluctance. There the stranger gave a loose to jollity; though at first he damned the burgundy as a poor thin liquor, that ran through him in a twinkling, and, instead of warming, cooled his heart and bowels; however, it insensibly seemed to give the lie to his imputation; for his spirits rose to a more elevated pitch of mirth and good fellowship; he sung, or rather roared, the Early Horn, so as to alarm the whole neighbourhood, and began to slabber his companions with a most bear-like affection. Yet whatever haste he made to the goal of ebriety, he was distanced by his brother baronet, who from the beginning of the party had made little other use of his mouth than to receive the glass, and now sunk down upon the floor, in a state of temporary annihilation. He was immediately carried to bed by the direction of Ferdinand, who now saw himself in a manner possessor of that mine to which he had made such eager and artful advances. That he might, therefore, carry on the approaches in the same cautious manner, he gradually shook off the trammels of sobriety, gave a loose to that spirit of freedom which good liquor commonly inspires, and, in the familiarity of drunkenness, owned himself head of a noble family of Poland, from which he had been obliged to absent himself on account of an affair of honour, not yet compromised. Having made this confession, and laid strong injunctions of secrecy upon Sir Stentor, his countenance seemed to acquire from every succeeding glass a new symptom of intoxication; they renewed their embraces, swore eternal friendship from that day, and swallowed fresh bumpers, till both being in all appearance quite overpowered, they began to yawn in concert, and even nod in their chairs. The knight seemed to resent the attacks of slumber, as so many impertinent attempts to interrupt their entertainment; he cursed his own propensity to sleep, imputing it to the damned French climate; and proposed to engage in some pastime that would keep them awake.-" Odd's flesh!" cried the Briton, "when I'm at home, I defy all the devils in hell to fasten my eyelids together, if so be as I am otherwise inclined; for there's mother and sister Nan, and brother Numps and I, continue to divert ourselves at all-fours, brag, cribbage, tetotum, husslecup, and chuck-varthing, and tho'f I say it, that shouldn't say it, I won't turn my back to e'er a he in England at any of these pastimes; and so, count, if you are so disposed, I am your man, that is in the way of friendship, at which of these you shall please to pitch upon." To this proposal Fathom replied, he was quite ignorant of all the games he had mentioned; but, in order to amuse Sir Stentor, he would play with him at lansquenet, for a trifle, as he had laid it down for a maxim, to risk nothing considerable at play. "Wounds!" answered the knight, "I hope you don't think I come here in quest of money. Thank God! I have a good landed estate worth five thousand a-year, and owe no man a halfpenny, and I question whether there be many counts in your nation, no offence, I hope, that can say a bolder word. As for your lambskinnet, I know nothing of the matter; but I will toss up with you for a guinea, cross or pile, as the saying is; or, if there's such a thing in this country as a box and dice, I love to hear the bones rattle sometimes." Fathom found some difficulty in concealing his joy, at the mention of this last amusement, which had been one of his chief studies, and in which he had made such progress, that he could calculate all the chances with the utmost exactness and certainty. However, he made shift to contain himself within due bounds; and, with seeming indifference consented to pass away an hour at hazard, provided the implements could be procured. Accordingly, the landlord was consulted, and their desire gratified; the dice were produced, and the table resounded with the effects of their mutual eagerness. Fortune, at first, declared for the Englishman, who was permitted by our adventurer to win twenty broad pieces; and he was so elated with his success, as to accompany every lucky throw with a loud burst of laughter, and other savage and simple manifestations of excessive joy, exclaiming, in a tone something less sweet than the bellowing of a bul!,-"Now for the main, count,—odd! here they come here are the seven black stars, i'faiths. Come along my yellow boys-odds heart! I never liked the face of Lewis before." moralize upon, and accordingly it did not pass without his remarks. He found himself fairly foiled at his own weapons, reduced to indigence in a foreign land, and, what he chiefly regretted, robbed of all those gay expectations he had indulged from his own supposed excellence in the wiles of fraud; for, upon a little recollection, he plainly perceived he had fallen a sacrifice to the confederacy he had refused to join; and did not at all doubt that the dice were loaded for his destruction: but, instead of beating his head against the wall, tearing his hair, imprecating vain curses upon himself, or betraying other frantic symptoms of despair, he resolved to accommodate himself to his fate, and profit by the lesson he had so dearly bought. With this intention, he immediately dismissed his valet, quitted his lodgings, retired to an obscure street on the other side of the river, and, covering one eye with a large patch of black silk, presented himself in quality of a musician to the director of the opera, who, upon hearing a trial of his skill, received him into the band without further question. While he continued in this situa Fathom drew happy presages from these boyish raptures, and, after having indulged them for some time, began to avail himself of his arithmetic, in consequence of which the knight was obliged to refund the greatest part of his winning: then he altered his note, and became as intemperate in his chagrin, as he had been before immoderate in his mirth. He cursed himself and his whole generation, damned his bad luck, stamped with his feet upon the floor, and challenged Ferdinand to double stakes. This was a very welcome proposal to our hero, who found Sir Stentor just such a subject as he had long desired to encounter with; the more the Englishman laid, the more he lost, and Fathom took care to inflame his passions, by certain well-timed sarcasms upon his want of judgment, till at length he became quite outrageous, swore the dice were false, and threw them out at the window; pulled off his periwig, and committed it to the flames, spoke with the most rancorous contempt of his adversary's skill, insisted upon his having stripped many a bet-tion, he not only improved his taste and ter man, for all he was a count, and threatening that, before they parted, he should not only look like a Pole, but also smell like a pole-cat. This was a spirit which our adventurer industriously kept up, observing that the English were dupes to all the world; and that, in point of genius and address, they were no more than noisy braggadocios. In short, another pair of dice was procured, the stakes were again raised, and, after several vicissitudes, fortune declared so much in favour of the knight, that Fathom lost all the money in his pocket, amounting to a pretty considerable sum. By this time he was warmed into uncommon eagerness and impatience, being equally piqued at the success and provoking exultations of his antagonist, whom he now invited to his lodgings, in order to decide the contest. Sir Stentor complied with his request; the dispute was renewed with various success, till, towards day-light, Ferdinand saw this noisy, raw, inexperienced simpleton, carry off all his ready cash, together with his jewels, and almost every thing that was valuable about his person; and, to crown the whole, the victor at parting told him, with a most intolerable sneer, that so soon as the count should receive another remittance from Poland, he would give him his revenge. CHAPTER XXV. He bears his fate like a philosopher; and contracts acquaintance with a very remarkable personage. execution in music, but likewise found frequent opportunities to extend his knowledge of mankind; for, besides the employment he exercised in public, he was often concerned in private concerts that were given in the hotels of noblemen; by which means he became more and more acquainted with the persons, manners, and characters of high life, which he contemplated with the most industrious attention, as a spectator, who, being altogether unconcerned in the performance, is at more liberty to observe and enjoy the particulars of the entertainment. It was in one of those assemblies he had the pleasure of seeing his friend Sir Stentor, dressed in the most fashionable manner, and behaving with all the overstrained politesse of a native Frenchman. He was accompanied by his brother knight and the abbe; and this triumvirate, even in Fathom's hearing, gave a most ludicrous detail of the finesse they had practised upon the Polish count to their entertainer, who was ambassador from a certain court, and made himself extremely merry with the particulars of the relation. Indeed, they made shift to describe some of the circumstances in such a ridiculous light, that our adventurer himself, smarting as he was with the disgrace, could not help laughing in secret at the account. He afterwards made it his business to inquire into the characters of the two British knights, and understood they were notorious sharpers, who had come abroad for the good of their country, and now hunted in couple among a French pack, that dispersed themselves through the public ordinaries, walks, and spectacles, in order to make a prey of in THIS was a proper subject for our hero to cautious strangers. |