by T. Smollett
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
HE BEARS HIS FATE LIKE A PHILOSOPHER; AND CONTRACTS ACQUAINTANCE WITH AVERY REMARKABLE PERSONAGE.
This was a proper subject for our hero to moralise upon; and accordinglyit did not pass without his remarks; he found himself fairly foiled athis own weapons, reduced to indigence in a foreign land, and, what hechiefly regretted, robbed of all those gay expectations he had indulgedfrom his own supposed excellence in the wiles of fraud; for, upon alittle recollection, he plainly perceived he had fallen a sacrifice tothe confederacy he had refused to join; and did not at all doubt that thedice were loaded for his destruction. But, instead of beating his headagainst the wall, tearing his hair, imprecating vain curses upon himself,or betraying other frantic symptoms of despair, he resolved toaccommodate himself to his fate, and profit by the lesson he had sodearly bought.
With this intention, he immediately dismissed his valet, quitted hislodgings, retired to an obscure street on the other side of the river,and, covering one eye with a large patch of black silk, presented himselfin quality of a musician to the director of the opera, who, upon hearinga trial of his skill, received him into the band without furtherquestion. While he continued in this situation, he not only improved histaste and execution in music, but likewise found frequent opportunitiesto extend his knowledge of mankind; for, besides the employment heexercised in public, he was often concerned in private concerts that weregiven in the hotels of noblemen; by which means he became more and moreacquainted with the persons, manners, and characters of high life, whichhe contemplated with the most industrious attention, as a spectator, who,being altogether unconcerned in the performance, is at more liberty toobserve and enjoy the particulars of the entertainment.
It was in one of those assemblies he had the pleasure of seeing hisfriend Sir Stentor, dressed in the most fashionable manner, and behavingwith all the overstrained politesse of a native Frenchman. He wasaccompanied by his brother knight and the abbe; and this triumvirate,even in Fathom's hearing, gave a most ludicrous detail of the finessethey had practised upon the Polish Count, to their entertainer, who wasambassador from a certain court, and made himself extremely merry withthe particulars of the relation. Indeed, they made shift to describesome of the circumstances in such a ridiculous light, that our adventurerhimself, smarting as he was with the disgrace, could not help laughing insecret at the account. He afterwards made it his business to inquireinto the characters of the two British knights, and understood they werenotorious sharpers, who had come abroad for the good of their country,and now hunted in couple among a French pack, that dispersed themselvesthrough the public ordinaries, walks, and spectacles, in order to make aprey of incautious strangers.
The pride of Ferdinand was piqued at this information; and he was evenanimated with the desire of making reprisals upon this fraternity, fromwhich he ardently longed to retrieve his honour and effects. But theissue of his last adventure had reinforced his caution; and, for thepresent, he found means to suppress the dictates of his avarice andambition; resolving to employ his whole penetration in reconnoitring theground, before he should venture to take the field again. He thereforecontinued to act the part of a one-eyed fiddler, under the name ofFadini, and lived with incredible frugality, that he might save a pursefor his future operations. In this manner had he proceeded for the spaceof ten months, during which he acquired a competent knowledge of the cityof Paris, when his curiosity was attracted by certain peculiarities inthe appearance of a man who lived in one of the upper apartmentsbelonging to the house in which he himself had fixed his habitation.
This was a tall, thin, meagre figure, with a long black beard, anaquiline nose, a brown complexion, and a most piercing vivacity in hiseyes. He seemed to be about the age of fifty, wore the Persian habit,and there was a remarkable severity in his aspect and demeanour. He andour adventurer had been fellow-lodgers for some time, and, according tothe laudable custom in these days, had hitherto remained as muchestranged to one another, as if they had lived on opposite sides of theglobe; but of late the Persian seemed to regard our hero with particularattention; when they chanced to meet on the staircase, or elsewhere, hebowed to Ferdinand with great solemnity, and complimented him with thepas. He even proceeded, in the course of this communication, to open hismouth, and salute him with a good-morrow, and sometimes made the commonremarks upon the weather. Fathom, who was naturally complaisant, did notdiscourage these advances. On the contrary, he behaved to him with marksof particular respect, and one day desired the favour of his company tobreakfast.
This invitation the stranger declined with due acknowledgment, onpretence of being out of order; and, in the meantime, our adventurerbethought himself of questioning the landlord concerning his outlandishguest. His curiosity was rather inflamed than satisfied with theinformation he could obtain from this quarter; for all he learned was,that the Persian went by the name of Ali Beker, and that he had lived inthe house for the space of four months, in a most solitary andparsimonious manner, without being visited by one living soul; that, forsome time after his arrival, he had been often heard to groan dismally inthe night, and even to exclaim in an unknown language, as if he hadlaboured under some grievous affliction; and though the first transportsof his grief had subsided, it was easy to perceive he still indulged adeep-rooted melancholy; for the tears were frequently observed to trickledown his beard. The commissaire of the quarter had at first ordered thisOriental to be watched in his outgoings, according to the maxims of theFrench police; but his life was found so regular and inoffensive, thatthis precaution was soon set aside.
Any man of humane sentiments, from the knowledge of these particulars,would have been prompted to offer his services to the forlorn stranger;but as our hero was devoid of all these infirmities of human nature, itwas necessary that other motives should produce the same effect. Hiscuriosity, therefore, joined with the hopes of converting the confidenceof Ali to his own emolument, effectually impelled him towards hisacquaintance; and, in a little time, they began to relish theconversation of each other. For, as the reader may have alreadyobserved, Fathom possessed all the arts of insinuation, and haddiscernment enough to perceive an air of dignity in the Persian, whichthe humility of his circumstances could not conceal. He was, moreover, aman of good understanding, not without a tincture of letters, perfectlywell bred, though in a ceremonious style, extremely moral in hisdiscourse, and scrupulously nice in his notions of honour.
Our hero conformed himself in all respects to the other's opinions, andmanaged his discretion so as to pass upon him for a gentleman reduced bymisfortunes to the exercise of an employment which was altogetherunsuitable to his birth and quality. He made earnest and repeatedtenders of his good offices to the stranger, and pressed him to make useof his purse with such cordial perseverance, that, at length, Ali'sreserve was overcome, and he condescended to borrow of him a small sum,which in all probability, saved his life; for he had been driven to theutmost extremity of want before he would accept of this assistance.
Fathom, having gradually stole into his good graces, began to take noticeof many piteous sighs that escaped him in the moments of theirintercourse, and seemed to denote an heart fraught with woe; and, onpretence of administering consolation and counsel, begged leave to knowthe cause of his distress, observing, that his mind would be disburdenedby such communication, and, perhaps, his grief alleviated by some meanswhich they might jointly concert and execute in his behalf.
Ali, thus solicited, would often shake his head, with marks of extremesorrow and despondence, and, while the tears gushed from his eyes,declared that his distress was beyond the power of any remedy but death,and that, by making our hero his confidant, he should only extend hisunhappiness to a friend, without feeling the least remission of his owntorture. Notwithstanding these repeated declarations, Ferdinand, who waswell enough acquainted with the mind of man to know that such importunityis seldom or never disagreeable, redoubled his instances, together withhis expressions of
sympathy and esteem, until the stranger was prevailedupon to gratify his curiosity and benevolence. Having, therefore,secured the chamber door one night, while all the rest of the family wereasleep, the unfortunate Ali disclosed himself in these words.