Richmond daily times. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1853, 1852-05-19

orgotten my family and my religion. Here is
thy money. In the name of Heaven, restore me
the plate which have wrongfully sold thee ~
But the pawnbroker grinned, and said, NAY,
fMr. Gambouge, will sell that plate for thou
sand francs to you, or never will sell it at ALL
"Well, " cried Gambouge. "thou art an inexora-
Bile rufian. Trosboules: but will give thee all |
am worth" And here he produced billet OF
five hundred francs. Look" said he, "this
money is all own: it is the payment of two
wears lodging. To raise it, | have toed for ma
ny months; and, failing, | have been criminal
oh, Heaven | stole that plate, that | might pay
my debt, and keep my dear wife from wander
ing houSeless. But cannot bear this load of lg-
nominy-I will go to the person to whom | did
wrong. ! will starve, will confess; but Will, L
will do right!''
The broker was alarmed ''Give me my note"
he cried; there is the plate.
Give me an acquittal first" cried Simon,
almost broken-hearted: sign me paper, and the
money is yours" So Troisboules wrote accord
ing to Gambouge's dictation: Received, for
thirteen ounces of plate, twenty pounds"
sMonster ofiniquity!' cried the painter ''fend
of wickedness! thou art caught in thine own
snare. Hast thou not not sold me five pounds
worth of plate for twenty; Art thou not con-
victed dealer in stolen goods Yield, scoundrel,
yield thy money, or | will bring thee to JUS
tce!"
The frightened pawnbroker bulled and battled
for awhile but he gave up his money at last, and
the dispute ended. Thus it will be seen that
Diabolus had rather hard bargain in the willy
Gambouge. He had taken victim prisoner,
but he had assuredly caught Tartar. Simon
now returned home, and to do him Justice
paid the bill for his dinner, and restored the
plate.
s. And now may add land the reader should
ponder upon this, profound picture of hui
hat Ia,1L N,,, L Ill
rich, grew likewise abundantly moral. He was
a most exemplary father. He fed the poor, and
was loved by them. He seorned a base action
And have no doubt that Mr.. Thurtel, or the
late lamented Mr.. Greenacre, in similar circum-
stances, would have acted like the worthy Simon
Gambouge.
There was but one blot upon his character
he hated Mrs. Gambouge worse than ever As
he grew more benevolent she grew more
vrulent when he went to plays, she went
to bible societies, and vice versa: in fact
she led him sch life as Xantppe led
Socrates, or as dog leads cat in the same
kitchen. With all his fortune--for, as NAV be
supposed, Simon prospered in all worldly things
he was the most miserable dog in the whole
city of Paris. Only in the point of drinking
did he and Mrs. Simon agree and for many
years, and during considerable number of hours
in each day, he thus dissipated partially, his do
mestc chagrin Oh, philosophy we may talk
cup, where thou Hest like truth in a we'll, where
shall we find thee!
He lived so long, and in his worldly matters
prospered so much, there was so little sign OF
devilment in the accomplishment of his wishes,
and the increase of his prosperity, that Simon, at
the end of six years. began to doubt whether he
made any such bargain at all, as that which we
have described at the commencement of this his
tory. He had grown, as we said, very pious and
moral. He went regularly to mass, and had a
confessor into the bargain. He resolved, there.
fore, to consult that reverend gentleman, and to
lay before him the whole matter.
II am inclined to think, holy sir,' said Gam.
bouge after he Lad concluded his history, and
shown how, in some miraculous way, all his de-
sres accomplished, 'that, after all, this de-
mon was no other than the creation of my own
brain, heated by the effects of that bottle OF
wine, the cause of my crime and my pros
perity"
The confessor agreed with him, and they
walked out of church comfortably together; and
entered afterwards a cafe, where they safe down
to refresh themselves after the fatigues of their
devotion.
A respectable old gentleman, with a number
OF orders at his button hole, presently entered
the room, and sauntered up to the marble table,
before which reposed Simon and his clerical
friend. ''Excuse me, gentlemen" he said, as he
took place opposite them, and began reading
the papers of the day.
'Bahl' said he at last; ''sont-ils grands ces
journaux Angais? Look SIR" he said, handing
over an immense sheet of the TinarS to Mr.. Gam
bouge, {" was ever anything so monstrous?"
Gambouge smiled politely, and examined the
profered page. at is enormous" he said; "but
I do not read English"
''Nay,'' said the man with the orders, sslook
closer at it, Signor Gambouge; it is astonishing
how easy the language is"
Wondering, Simon took the sheet of paper
He turned pale as he looked at it, and began to
curse the ices and the waiter. ''Come, M. lAb-
be, he said; ''the heat and glare of this place
are intolerabe.''
The stranger rose with them. eau plaser de
vous revoir, mon cher monsieur" said he; 81 do
not mind speaking before the able here, who will
be my very good friend one of these days; but
thought it necessary to refresh your memory,
concerning our little business transaction six years
slnce and could not exactly talk of it at church,
as you may fancy"
Simon Gambouge had seen, in the double
sheeted Times, the paper signed by himself,
which the little devil had pulled out of his fob.
There was no doubt on the subject; and Simon,
who had but a year to live grew more pious, and
more careful than ever. He had consultations
with all the doctors of the Sorbonne, and all the
lawyers of the Palais But his magnifcence grew
as wearisome to him as his poverty had been be-
fore; and not one of the doctors whom he con-
suited could give him pennyworth of consola.
ton.
Then he grew outrageous in his demands upon
the devil, and put him to all sorts of absurd and
ridiculous tasks but they were all punctually
performed, until Simon could invent no new ones,
and the devil safe all day with his hands in his
pockets doing nothing.
One day, Simon's confessor came bounding in
to the room with the greatest glee "My friend"
said he, II have it Eureka II have found it.
Send the pope hundred thousand crowns,
build a new Jesuit college at Rome, give a hum
dred gold candlesticks to st. Peters; and tell
his hnlinass Won will donhle all IL he will give