Joseph Wilmot, or, The Memoirs of a Man-Servant — page 394: what you’re looking at

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

a a ee Le A nets eens ee eee eer i ~~ mm ne ee ee mee st JOSEPH WILMOT; OR, THE MEMOIRS OF A MAN-SERVANT. 51 ES Lo Car apeinyerpnie fo re nee i RAE eR wit ae 2a Amos SY HT err rnent,—and he was instructed to enter the ad. joining office. was previously well aware such would be the re- sponse, and that he had purposely sought it to give a colour to his proceedings; so that the clerk himself might not think it odd he should leave me waiting while he passed into the adjacent office. All this was done evidently to gain time to enable him. to effect kis escape with the money of which he had plundered me. “ This young man informs me,” said the aristocratic-looking individual to the governor— with whom, I should observe, be had cordially shaken hands; so that they were evidently on a most friendly footing together,-—“ that it is his all which he has lost. Really Iam disposed to do something for him, if the worst should happen and his money is not recovered.” _ “Tt would only be consistent with your wonted generosity, my dear Duke,” responded the go- vernor; and they were both speaking in English, with the characteristic politeness of Frenchmen in the presence of one who imperfectly understood their own language. “ If you prove unfortunate enough to lose your money altogether,” said the Duke—for such ap- peared to be his high rank—and he addressed me in a kind and affable manner,—“ you will perhaps call upon me P” Thus speaking, he gave me his card; and as I took it, I expressed my heartfelt thanks for the compassionate sympathy which my case had ex- cited both with himself and the governor. I then bowed and left the room. As I issued forth, in a wretched state of mind, from the gateway, I ob- served a splendid equipage standing there. It was a yellow barouche, with armorial bearings emblazoned on the panels: a coachman in a splendid livery held the reins of the two handsome and elegantly caparisoned horses; and a chasseur —or lacquey wearing a sort of military uniform, with a cocked hat and feathers—stood near the door, ready to open it when the personage for whom the carriage was evidently waiting, should come forth from the Bank. That this was the Duke’s equipage I had not the slightest doubt; and as I slowly and despondingly passed it by, I caught a glimpse of a lady of a grand beauty who was seated inside. I retraced my way to Meurice’s Hotel, where the circumstance of the robbery was already known,—not merely from the inquiries first made by the clerk whom the governor had despatched thither, but also from a visit which the commissary had himself paid immediately after he received my depositions. I need hardly add that the swindler had not returned to the hotel: but from the examination of his trunk it was discovered through the medium of letters found in it, that his name was not really Dowton, but Dorchester. My suspicion was therefore realized; and a second time hal I become the victim of that consummate impostor. But it was really no won- der that I was «eceived by the appearance he had assumed. The stoop in the gait altered the gene- ral air of his figure most materially: but evenif he had held himself upright, I should still have failed to penetrate his disguise, so fully artistic was it. That brown wig and those green spectacles were almost alone sufficient to conceal his identity: but There could be no doubt that he | when to these were added the circumstances of his whiskers shaven off, and of the florid complexion so well laid on that it seemed all but natural, I could scarcely blame, myself any longer at the thought of how I was duped. There can be no doubt that on recognising me at the table @héte he had adopted the additional precaution of keep- ing his cambrie handkerchief as much as possibie up to his mouth, so that not even the lower part of his countenance should be too carefully studied by my gaze: and furthermore, for a similar reason, the scoundrel tied the black kerchief under his chin the more completely to disguise himself when bent upon swindling me. As for the notes which he had counted over and which he affected to trust to my charge, they were doubtless flash ones, which he had in readiness to be used as a means of cheating the first dupe whom he could contrive to ensnare. In a conversation with the proprietor of Meurice’s Hotel, I learnt that he was totally unknown there previous to this visit,—though he might certainly have honoured the establishment with his presence on a former occasion when per- haps passing undisguised in the world. My case excited so much sympathy in the hotel that the proprietor generously assured me I need not at all trouble myself about my bill, and that if I did not succeed in recovering my money—of which he seemed but little sanguine—I might remain free of all expense until I could otherwise provide for myself. This was a generosity which I did not however mean to abuse; and I assured the landlord that he might rely on eventual pay- ment. <A few days passed, and nothing was heard of Mr. Dorchester: so that I was at length com- pelled to renounce all hope of recovering my little fortune. I had in my purse asum equivalent to about four pounds of English money—but much too small to liquidate the bill I had incurred. . I therefore resolved to trespass no longer on the kindness of the proprietor, but to take some decisive step towards extricating myself from my present embarrassment. I seriously deliberated whether £ should write to Sir Matthew Heseltine, explain tie whole truth, and refer him to the French authorities for the corroboration of my tale. But then I reflected that he had given me a certain sum of money to last me for two years, during which two years I was strictly enjoined to forbear from all communication with him. I understood the meaning of his conduct towards me full well. He had thrown me upon the world for a couple of years that at the end of the period he might judge by the condition in which I returned to him, of the use I had made of the opportunities placed within my reach. If on the very threshold of this probationary term I were to write and confess that, like an inexperienced idiot, I had suffered myself to be defrauded and cheated in so simple a manner, he would form but a mean opinion of my intelligence and capacity to fight the great battle of life. He might even disbelieve my tale altogether: he might fancy that I had gambled away my money, or else been robbed of it in improper society and amongst females of loose character — and that I was artfully concocting a history which should serve the various purposes of concealing my bad conduct, exciting sympathy, and eliciting fresh pecuniary supplies. Indeed, Sir Matthew was so singular r GiIyoo <S co AA