The Argosy, Volume XLIV — page 264: what you’re looking at

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

260 Naturally, in this green stage of my existence I thought that I had but to put my name up to secure a swarm of clients—I was no departure from the usual callow type. But my banking ac- count prompted economy. A man is a larger sized fool than I was who ignores the convincing tongue of his pass-book. When one’s balance does not quite reach four figures, 1t seems to whisper the policy of crawling before running. Ilence my combination of residence and office—crawling. This figurative reference to my bank balance is by way of announcing that I was not overburdened with money. Not that that troubled me—then Chents would soon begin to pour in, onee I started; the financial embarrass- ment would be but temporary. The average lawyer having made a successful exit from the Examination Hall—in the cub stage of his career has faith like that. Growi ing out of it is not usually the pleasantest time in his life. The advantages attending residence in that vortion of the Inn in which I had pitched my tent were well known to me. It is usual for the countryman to spend the last one of his five years in London. I had served that portion of my term of articles to a solicitor who had offices in the Buildings. For two months after I took posses- sion of my top floor all was peace. Then things happened. Some friends of mine were up from the country; were behaving as Frovin- cial men are prone to. The belief the countryman who has never been in London usually holds— that he can paint the town red in two nights—needs a lot of money to ade- quately support it. Apart from the fact that the condi- tion of my _ ypass-book precluded me from investing heavily in that way, I was alive to the fact that the dividends are not altogether of the satisfactory kind. So it was that I had borne with my provincial friends for two nights, and then “ sported my oak’ ’__that is, I closed the outer door of my rooms, to show that no visitors would he welcome. The dissipation of the two previous evenings had not left me with the rere gle THE ARGOSY. clearest of heads. Succumbing to the feeling of laziness and languor which had been endeavoring to get a grip of ine all day, I lay curled up and buried in my easy-chair. ] was permeated with a soulful, com- forting, half-awake, half-asleep feeling of contént. The dusk crept on and on, unti] 1t:' merged into darkness. So I half sat, half lay there; was deep in drowsy dreaming. suddenly I became very wide awake indeed. Was startled into that condi- tion by a sound which made me grip the arms of my chair and sit up. Yet so confident was I that imagina- tion must be playing me a trick, I half smiled to myself and fell back in my ceat. But the smile did not mature; what I heard was no figment of fancy. It was the sound of the careful insertion of a key in the lock of my outer entrance door! | The actuality was forced on me with convincing effect by the faint noise which followed. for want of use, the hinges of that outer door of mine had grown rusty. I had not troubled to oil them, as the door was only used morning and night. Consequently, when the door was moved there came forth a certain squeaking, rasping sound. That it was which removed any im- pression of a tricky imagination. It was a noise I immediately recognized: a plain, unvarnished—or perhaps I should say wungreased—unmistakable fact. Then ensued silence—broken by no movement of mine. Do not think this quietude due to fear; I was simply so astonished at such a curious happening that I was, in a measure, spellbound. The next sound which came to my ears was the rattling of a kev in the lock of the inner door. This time, of course, the noise was more distinct: the inner door opened into my chambers. Plainly, some one was endeavoring to gain entrance! The door of the room in which I was sitting was open. Consequently the sounds came to me now, in the resonant stillness of the late evening, with the GOHMGOOo SS (GO) Ul