by T. Smollett
CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
THE ART OF BORROWING FURTHER EXPLAINED, AND AN ACCOUNT OF A STRANGEPHENOMENON.
In this manner did the artful incendiary work upon the passions of thecredulous unsuspecting Hungarian, who pressed him to his breast with themost cordial expressions of friendship, calling him his guardian, hissaviour, his second father, and gave himself up wholly to his advice.
Next morning, according to the plan they had laid overnight, theyrepaired to a tavern in the neighbourhood of the person to whom ouradventurer had been directed, and were fortunate enough to find him inthe house, transacting a money affair with a young gentleman who treatedhim with his morning's whet.
That affair being negotiated, he adjourned into another room with Renaldoand his companion, who were not a little surprised to see this ministerof Plutus in the shape of a young sprightly beau, trimmed up in all thefoppery of the fashion; for they had hitherto always associated with theidea of an usurer old age and rusty apparel. After divers modishcongees, he begged to know to what he should attribute the honour oftheir message; when Ferdinand, who acted the orator, told him, that hisfriend Count Melvil, having occasion for a sum of money, had beendirected to a gentleman of his name, "and, I suppose," added he, "you arethe son of the person with whom the affair is to be negotiated."
"Sir," said this petit-maitre, with a smile, "I perceive you aresurprised to see one of my profession in the appearance of a gentleman;and perhaps your wonder will not cease, when I tell you, that myeducation was liberal, and that I once had the honour to bear acommission in the British army. I was indeed a first lieutenant ofmarines, and will venture to say, that no officer in the service was moredelicate than myself in observing all the punctilios of honour. Ientertained the utmost contempt for all the trading part of the nation,and suffered myself to be run through the body in a duel, rather thanroll with a brother-lieutenant, who was a broker's son. But, thankHeaven! I have long ago conquered all those ridiculous prejudices. Isoon observed, that without money there was no respect, honour, orconvenience to be acquired in life; that wealth amply supplied the wantof wit, merit, and pedigree, having influence and pleasure ever atcommand; and that the world never failed to worship the flood ofaffluence, without examining the dirty channels through which it commonlyflowed.
"At the end of the war, finding my appointments reduced to two shillingsand fourpence per day, and being addicted to pleasures which I could notpossibly purchase from such a fund, I sold my half-pay for two hundredpounds, which I lent upon bond to a young officer of the same regiment,on condition that he should insure his life, and restore one-fourth partof the sum by way of premium. I happened to be lucky in this firstessay; for the borrower, having in six weeks expended the money, made anexcursion on the highway, was apprehended, tried, convicted of felony,and cut his own throat, to prevent the shame of a public execution; sothat his bond was discharged by the insurers.
"In short, gentlemen, when I engaged in this business, I determined tocarry it on with such spirit, as would either make my fortune, orentirely ruin me in a little time; and hitherto my endeavours have beentolerably successful. Nor do I think my proceedings a whit more criminalor unjust than those of other merchants, who strive to turn their moneyto the best account. The commodity I deal in is cash; and it is mybusiness to sell it to the best advantage. A London factor sends a cargoof goods to market, and if he gets two hundred per cent upon the sale, heis commended for industry and address. If I sell money for one-fourthpart of that profit, certain persons will be so unjust as to cry, Shameupon me, for taking such advantage of my neighbour's distress; notconsidering, that the trader took four times the same advantage of thosepeople who bought his cargo, though his risk was not half so great asmine, and although the money I sold perhaps retrieved the borrower fromthe very jaws of destruction. For example, it was but yesterday I saveda worthy man from being arrested for a sum of money, for which he hadbailed a friend who treacherously left him in the lurch. As he did notforesee what would happen, he had made no provision for the demand, andhis sphere of life secluding him from all sorts of monied intercourse, hecould not raise the cash by his credit in the usual way of borrowing; sothat, without my assistance, he must have gone to jail; a disgrace whichwould have proved fatal to the peace of his family, and utterly ruinedhis reputation.--Nay, that very young gentleman, from whom I am just nowparted, will, in all probability, be indebted to me for a very genteellivelihood. He had obtained the absolute promise of being provided forby a great man, who sits at the helm of affairs in a neighbouringkingdom; but, being destitute of all other resources, he could not haveequipped himself for the voyage, in order to profit by his lordship'sintention, unless I had enabled him to pursue his good fortune."
Renaldo was not a little pleased to hear this harangue, to which Fathomreplied with many florid encomiums upon the usurer's good sense andhumane disposition; then he explained the errand of his friend, which wasto borrow three hundred pounds, in order to retrieve his inheritance, ofwhich he had been defrauded in his absence.
"Sir," said the lender, addressing himself to Count Melvil, "I pretend tohave acquired by experience some skill in physiognomy; and though thereare some faces so deeply disguised as to baffle all the penetration ofour art, there are others, in which the heart appears with such nakednessof integrity, as at once to recommend it to our goodwill. I own yourcountenance prepossesses me in your favour; and you shall beaccommodated, upon those terms from which I never deviate, provided youcan find proper security, that you shall not quit the British dominions;for that, with me, is a condition sine qua non."
This was a very disagreeable declaration to Renaldo, who candidly owned,that, as his concerns lay upon the Continent, his purpose was to leaveEngland without delay. The usurer professed himself sorry that it wasnot in his power to oblige him; and, in order to prevent any furtherimportunity, assured them, he had laid it down as a maxim, from which hewould never swerve, to avoid all dealings with people whom, if needshould be, he could not sue by the laws of this realm.
Thus the intervention of one unlucky and unforeseen circumstance blastedin an instant the budding hopes of Melvil, who, while his visageexhibited the most sorrowful disappointment, begged to know, if there wasany person of his acquaintance who might be less scrupulous in thatparticular.
The young gentleman directed them to another member of his profession,and wishing them success, took his leave with great form andcomplaisance. This instance of politeness was, however, no more than ashift to disengage himself the more easily from their entreaties; for,when the case was opened to the second usurer, he blessed himself fromsuch customers, and dismissed them with the most mortifying and boorishrefusal. Notwithstanding these repulses, Renaldo resolved to make onedesperate push; and, without allowing himself the least respite,solicited, one by one, not fewer than fifteen persons who dealt in thiskind of traffic, and his proposals were rejected by each. At last,fatigued by the toil, and exasperated at the ill success of hisexpedition, and half mad with the recollection of his finances, whichwere now drained to half-a-crown, "Since we have nothing to expect,"cried he, "from the favour of Christians, let us have recourse to thedescendants of Judah. Though they lie under the general reproach ofnations, as a people dead to virtue and benevolence, and wholly devotedto avarice, fraud, and extortion, the most savage of their tribe cannottreat me with more barbarity of indifference, than I have experiencedamong those who are the authors of their reproach."
Although Fathom looked upon this proposal as an extravagant symptom ofdespair, he affected to approve of the scheme, and encouraged Renaldowith the hope of succeeding in another quarter, even if this expeditionshould fail; for, by this time, our adventurer was half resolved toexport him at his own charge, rather than he should be much longerrestricted in his designs upon Monimia.
Meanwhile, being resolved to try the experiment upon the children ofIsrael, they betook themselves to the house of a rich Jew, whose wealththey considered as a proo
f of his rapaciousness; and, being admitted intohis counting-house, they found him in the midst of half a dozen clerks,when Renaldo, in his imagination, likened him unto a minister of darknesssurrounded by his familiars, and planning schemes of misery to beexecuted upon the hapless sons of men. In spite of these suggestions,which were not at all mitigated by the forbidding aspect of the Hebrew,he demanded a private audience; and, being ushered into anotherapartment, he explained his business with manifest marks of disorder andaffliction. Indeed, his confusion was in some measure owing to the looksof the Jew, who, in the midst of this exordium, pulled down his eyebrows,which were surprisingly black and bushy, so as, in appearance, totally toextinguish his visage, though he was all the time observing our youthfrom behind those almost impenetrable thickets.
Melvil, having signified his request, "Young gentleman," said theIsraelite, with a most discordant voice, "what in the name of goodnesscould induce you to come to me upon such an errand? Did you ever hearthat I lent money to strangers without security?" "No," replied Renaldo,"nor did I believe I should profit by my application; but my affairs aredesperate; and my proposals having been rejected by every Christian towhom they were offered, I was resolved to try my fate among the Jews, whoare reckoned another species of men."
Fathom, alarmed at this abrupt reply, which he supposed could not fail todisgust the merchant, interposed in the conversation, by making anapology for the plain dealing of his friend, who, he said, was soured andruffled by his misfortunes; then exerting that power of eloquence whichhe had at command, he expostulated upon Renaldo's claim and expectations,described the wrongs he had suffered, extolled his virtue, and drew amost pathetic picture of his distress.
The Jew listened attentively for some time; then his eyebrows began torise and fall alternately; he coughed, sneezed, and winking hard, "I'mplagued," said he, "with a salt rheum that trickles from my eyes withoutintermission." So saying, he wiped the moisture from his face, andproceeded in these words: "Sir, your story is plausible; and your friendis a good advocate; but before I give an answer to your demand, I mustbeg leave to ask if you can produce undeniable evidence of your being theidentical person you really assume? If you are really the Count deMelvil, you will excuse my caution. We cannot be too much on our guardagainst fraud; though I must own you have not the air of an impostor."
Renaldo's eyes began to sparkle at this preliminary question; to which hereplied, that he could procure the testimony of the Emperor's minister,to whom he had occasionally paid his respects since his first arrival inEngland.
"If that be the case," said the Jew, "take the trouble to call hereto-morrow morning, at eight o'clock, and I will carry you in my owncoach to the house of his excellency, with whom I have the honour to beacquainted; and, if he has nothing to object against your character orpretensions, I will contribute my assistance towards your obtainingjustice at the Imperial court."
The Hungarian was so much confounded at this unexpected reception, thathe had not power to thank the merchant for his promised favour, but stoodmotionless and silent, while the streams of emotion of the heart was ofmore weight with the Jew, than the eloquent acknowledgment whichFerdinand took the opportunity of making for his friend; and he was fainto dismiss them a little abruptly, in order to prevent a second dischargeof that same rheum of which he had already complained.
Melvil recollected all that had happened as a dream, which had nofoundation in truth, and was all day long in a sort of delirium, producedby the alternate gusts of hope and fear that still agitated his bosom;for he was not yet without apprehension of being again disappointed bysome unlucky occurrence.
He did not, however, fail to be punctual to the hour of his appointment,when the Jew told him, there would be no occasion for visiting theambassador, because Renaldo had been, the preceding day, recognised byone of the clerks who had been employed as a purveyor in the Imperialarmy; and who, knowing his family, confirmed everything he had alleged."After breakfast," continued this benevolent Israelite, "I will give youan order upon my banker for five hundred pounds, that you may be enabledto appear at Vienna as the son and representative of Count Melvil; andyou shall also be furnished with a letter of recommendation to a personof some influence at that court, whose friendship and countenance may beof some service to your suit; for I am now heartily engaged in yourinterest, in consequence of the fair and unblemished character which Ifind you have hitherto maintained."
The reader must appeal to his own heart, to acquire a just idea ofRenaldo's feelings, when every tittle of these promises was fulfilled,and the merchant refused to take one farthing by way of premium,contenting himself with the slender security of a personal bond. He was,in truth, overwhelmed with the obligation, and certainly disposed tobelieve that his benefactor was something more than human. As forFathom, his sentiments took a different turn; and he scrupled not toimpute all this kindness to some deep-laid interested scheme, the scopeof which he could not at present comprehend.
After the tumults of the young gentleman's joy had subsided, and he foundhimself eased of that burdensome poverty under which he had groaned solong, his thoughts, which before were dissipated upon the variouscircumstances of distress, began to collect themselves in a body, and toresume their deliberations upon a subject which they had been longaccustomed to consider; this was no other than the forlorn Monimia, whoseidea now emerged in his bosom, being disencumbered of one part of theload by which it had been depressed. He mentioned her name to Fathomwith marks of the most melting compassion, deplored her apostasy, and,while he protested that he had divorced her for ever from his heart,expressed an inclination to see her once more before his departure, thathe might in person exhort her to penitence and reformation.
Our adventurer, who dreaded such an interview as the infallible means ofhis own ruin, resisted the proposal with the whole power of hiselocution. He affirmed, that Renaldo's desire was a manifest proof thathe still retained part of the fatal poison which that enchantress hadspread within his veins; and that the sight of her, softened by hisreproaches into tears and affected contrition, would dispel hisresentment, disable his manhood, and blow the embers of his formerpassion to such a rage, as would hurry him on to a reconciliation, whichwould debase his honour, and ruin his future peace. In a word, Ferdinanddescribed the danger that would attend the meeting in such emphaticterms, that the Hungarian started with horror at the picture which hedrew, and in this particular conformed with the admonition of his friend.
One hundred pounds of the Jew's money was immediately appropriated forthe payment of his most urgent debts; the like sum he presented to hisfriend Fathom, with a solemn promise of sharing with him whatever goodfortune might await him in Germany. And though Monimia had forfeited alltitle to his regard, so ill could he bear the prospect of her distress,that he entrusted his dear companion with the half of what remained, tobe expended for her use, fully resolving to screen her from the shocksand temptations of want, as the circumstances of his future fate wouldallow.
Fathom, far from opposing, applauded his generosity with marks of extremewonder and admiration, assuring him, that she should be put in possessionof his bounty immediately after his departure, he being unwilling to makeher acquainted with her good fortune before that period, lest, findinghis affairs in a fair way of being retrieved, she should be base enoughto worship his returning prosperity, and, by false professions, andartful blandishments, seek to ensnare his heart anew.