The Opposite House: A Novel — page 125: what you’re looking at

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

120 The Opposite Flouse. I can’t introduce you; neither your name nor your looks are suitable to present to such eyes. Addio / I’ll look you up to-morrow.” ‘Then he hastened on, and in a few minutes was standing before Baroness von Rotterswyl, who welcomed him with evident pleasure. Wikke shaded his eyes a moment with his hand, and gazed in the direction of the group, then turned obediently and strolled leisurely through the leafy avenue of Wilhelmstrasse. Otto Wikke was one of those persons whom we meet by hundreds at the present day—a broken- down genius, whose talents, under better guidance, even if they had won no distinguished place, would have secured their possessor a position in which he might have been useful to society. He had been educated, but on account of a debt of honor was compelled to leave the university, and thus had ruined his life. So he came by accident to Wiesbaden. He had two florins in his pocket—whence obtained he had long ceased to ask. But he went to the green table, staked them, and won four in exchange. Again he staked and won. He continued to play, still winning, and whether Dame Fortune had in- vested the two dirty coins with some sweet spell or Samiel had held them fast on vouge, Wikke won more than two hundred florins. ComicbooOoks.c©