Richmond daily times. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1853, 1853-01-01

tioHSJ tney eHueaVOur TO excite Htte cOnVerSa-
ton, beginning with the weather, gradually ex-
panding to remark upon the state of business,
and perhaps ending with sympathsing inquiry
as to the prospects which the worthy shopkeep-
er himself may have Of succeeding in his present
situation. At length, having laid down what
painters call pruning. they como in some day,
in hurried fddle.faddle kind of way, and
hastily and confdentially ask across the counter:
MIR. - victims are always particular in say
ing Mtster,] have you got such thing as four
pence i'll pence Just want to pay porter,
and happen to have no change The specifica-
ton ofsfourpence in ha pence though in reality
nonsense, carries the day: it gives plausbiity
and credit worthiness to the demand that could
not otherwise be obtained. The unfortunate
shopkeepec, carried away by the contagious bus
tie of the victim, plunges his hand into the till to
fulfil the request and next instant finds himself
standing alone in the shop, in pensive meditation
on the folly of mankind, and the transformers of
all earthly possessions
The subsistence of victim is the most preca-
rious thing perhaps in the world. He s a man
with no continuing dinner place. He dimes, as
the poor old Earl of Findlater used to say at the
sign of the Mouth. 1t is very strange thing,
and what no one could suppose beforehand, that
the necesstous are greatly indebted to the ne
cessitous. People of this sort form kind of
community by themselves, and are more kind to
each other mutually than is any other particular
branch Of the public to them as a class. Thus,
the little that any one has will be shared by q
great many companions, so that all have mouth
full. The necessitous are also very much the
dupes of the necessitOus: they all, as it
were, creatures of prey, the stronger constant
ly eating up the weaker. Thus, victim in
the last stage preyS upon men who are enter
ing the set; and all prey more or less upon
poor tradesmen, such as the above Walter
Brown or James Gewans, who are only liza
Bile to such spoliation because they are poor
nd NJ for huc | nfna rh1ra yi1fiu
who had long passed the condition of being Jail
,rorthy, and who lived in a great measure upon
man who had just begun q career of victimisa.
ton by being thrown into jail. This creature
was content to be kind of voluntary prisoner,
for the sake of sharing the victuals and bed Of
bis patron. 1t would astonish any man, aceus-
toned, day after day, to go home to spread ia
BILE at regular hour, to know the strange shifts
which victims have to make in order to satisfy
hunger-how much is done by raising small hard
wrung subsidies from former acquaintance-how
much by duping-how much by what the Scotch
people very expressively call sornang-how
much by subdivision of mites among themselves.
The victim is often witty, sing one good COM
ic song, has a turn for minicry, or at least an
amusing smack of worldly knowledge; and he
is sometimes so lucky to fall in with patrons
little above himself in fortune, but still having
something to give, who afford him their protec-
ton on account of such qualifications.
Natural gifts, and the force of habit put it in
the power of persons in the most wretched cir
cumstances to exercise fascinating influence
over the veneration of some still humber
ture Hence it is not surprising that there are
such beings as tdg-U,cttnns
| Nsbet of ---, in Lanarkshre originally
| landed gentleman, and an advocate at the Scot
fish bal, was blood of the 6rst-water in the
dssolute decade 10000. He had coat edged
round with gold-ace; wore gold watch on each
side-an extravagant fashion then prevalent ;
and with his cane, bag-wig, and gold-buckled
shoes, was really fine figure of the pre-revolu-
tionary era. His house was in the Cannongate--
good flat in Chessels's Court -garrisoned only
by a female servant called Nanny. Aisbet at
length squandered away the whole 'of s1is es-
tate, and became victim. All the world fell
away from him; but Nanny still remained. From
the entailed family fat in Chesses's Court, he
had to remove to den somewhere about the Ne
therbow: Nanny went with him. Then came
the period of wretchedness. Nanny, however,
still stuck fast. The unfortunate gentleman could
not himself appear in his wo-begone attire upon
those streets where he had formerly shone
Respondent sun; neither could he bring his we'll
born face to solicit his former friends for subs-
dies Nanny did all that was necessary. Foul
day and fair day, she was to be gliding
about the streets, either petitioning tradesmen
for goods to her master on credit or collecting
food and money from the houses of his acquent-
ance. II liquid aims was offered, she had a
white tankard, streaked with smoky-looking
cracks for its reception if the proffered article
was mass Of flesh, she had plate towel.
There never was such forager. Nisbet himself
used to call her True and Irusty, by way of a
compliment to her collective powers; and he
finally found so much reason to appreciate her
disinterested attachment that, on reaching the
usual fatal period of fifty, he made her his wife
! What was the catastrophe Of their story have
! not heard.
second instance of the fag-uictina is of still
more touching character. Some years ago, there
flourished, in one of the principal thoroughfares
of Edinburgh, fashionable perfumer, the inhe-
ritor of an old business, and a man of respecta-
BILE connections, who, falling into dissolute ha-
bits, became of course very much embarrassed,
and finally unfortunate In his shop,
, sFrom youth to age reverend prentice grew
, a man, at the time of his masters failure, adj
vanced to nearly middle life, but who having me-
) yer been anywhere else since he was ten or
twelve years of age, than behind Finlay's coun
ter-Sundays and meal hours only excepted
was still looked upon by his master as 'the boy
of the Shop and so styled accordingly. This
worthy creature had, in the course of time, be-
come as mere piece of furniture in the shop;
his soul had amalgamated with his stuation---
: The drawers and shottles, the combs, brushes,
and bottles, had entered into and become part
/, of his own existence He was On the best terms
with everything about the shop the handles of all
things fitted to his hand; everything came
to him, like the instructive use of his own men,
:, bers. Such being was, as may be supposed, y
useful servant. He knew all the customers; he
. knew his masters whole form of practice,
|, = all his habits, and every popularity of his
temper. And then his fidelity; but that
was chiefly shewn in the latter evil days
:, ;, Of the shop, and during the vietimhood of
d his master. AS misfortune came on, the friend
- ssakn