Alfred; or, The Adventures of a French Gentleman — page 28: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

OF A FRENCH GENTLEMAN. 17 he remembered that he had drawn up a quantity of bills, to assist his partner as he had promised during the day, and he rose with the im- pression that La Motte had written at least the half of them. he did not however experience the slightest uneasiness—not a suspicion en- tered his mind—he knew that it was common to accept promissory notes by procuration for a correspondent —and he placed implicit re- liance on the integrity of La Motte. On the fallowing morning, while De Rosann was still in bed, having scarcely yet recovered from the debauchery which he sincerely re- gretted, being, as we before said, of temperate habits, a knock at his bed-room door aroused him from a reverie wherein Eloise was the chief actress, and La Motte entered the chamber. ‘‘T am come,” said that individual, when the usual salutations had passed, ‘“‘to inform you that pressing business obliges me to under- take a journey to Rotterdam; and that I must start this very day. I have given the head clerk orders to transact the affairs of the house, as if I were there; so you need not trouble yourself about them any more than you usually have done. In a fortnight I shall be here again.” ‘Try and keep your promise, my dear friend,” exclaimed De Ro- sann; ‘for I shall be anxious during your absence.” ‘* Calm yourself on that head, Alfred; all will go on well—and it 1s for. the interests of the establishment that I quit Paris.” ‘‘T wish you a prosperous journey; and at your return I hope to be able to name the wedding-day,”’ said Alfred. ‘‘ Nothing will give me greater joy than to witness your nuptials,”’ returned La Motte. ‘‘ In the meantime, farewell.” And with these words the villain departed, leaving his unconscious victim to bear the brunt of all the disasters that might ensue from the nefarious deeds soon to be brought to light, For some time La Motte had foreseen the certainty of the failure of their establishment; and when the crisis was nearly at hand, but before any one suspected the tottering situation of the firm, he resolved by a bold and desperate stroke to secure to himself a handsome for- tune, which it was his intention to enjoy in a foreign land. He there- tore turned to his own advantage the credulous and confiding ignorance of De Rosann in commercial matters; and he so arranged his damnable scheme, that had one of the discounters suspected the validity of the bills, or from any circumstance been aware that they were forgeries, he had an excellent excuse at hand ;—‘‘ It was my partner who drew them up—my partner placed them in my portfolio to be discounted— my partner received the procuration—it is his hand-writing—I am innocent of any foul proceedings in the affair.” Such would have been his apology; but the matter passed off without a com- ment on the part of the money-brokers; and La Motte’s scheme succeeded to the utmost of his wishes. Had his affairs always con- tinued in a flourishing condition, perhaps he would have remained an honest member of society. Many are driven by circumstances only to commit crime; while others are born with a natural predilection to evil. Itis not well for a virtuous man to be too proud of his ab- stinence irom moral delinquency, unless he can reply m the afhrmative to the question ‘‘ Whether he has ever been thrown in the way of temptation, so as to have had an opportunity of resisting it?” 3 CORNICE OOOLKS (EO)