Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1859-05-04
"Tie up the money in your pocket.hand-

are too heavy for any breeches pockets tina
ever were sewed. There that's it!-shove
them in, notes aud all crelie what luck i
Stop! another Napoleon on the floor! All
sacie petit poiisson de Napoleon! have l founc
thee at last? Now then, sir-two tight double
knots each way with your honorable permits
sion and the mouey's safe. Feel it! feel it
fortunate sir hard and round as a cannon
ball-Ah, Jah if they had only fred sucl
cannon balls ut US at Austerlitz-nom dun
pipe! if they only had And now, as an an
cent grenadier, as an ex-brave of the French
army, what remains for me to do? / asl
what? Simply this to entreat my valued
English friend to drink q bottle of champaign
with me, and toast the goddess Fortune ii
foaming goble:s before we part! ~
Excellent eX-brare Convivial ancient gre
nader! Champagne by all means! An Eng
lish cheer for an old soldier! Hurrah hur
rah Another English cheer for the GOODIES
Fortune! Hurrah hurrah hurrah
Bravo! the Englishman the amiahle
gracious Englishman, in whose veins circulate
the vivacious blood of France Another lass
4Ah, Jah the bottle is empty. Never mind
IIre ls Gin! !, the oil soldier, order anothe
bottle, and halfa.pound of Jonbons with it !
No no. eybrave; never-ancient grena
der! Your bottle last time; mA bottle this
Behold it! Toast away The French Army
the great Napoleon the present company
the crOupier! the honest croupiers wife ane
daughtcrs-if he he has any! the Ladies gen
erally! Everybody in the world =
BY the time the second bottle of champagne
was emptied. felt as if | had been drinkin!
liquid tire-my braiu seemed all a flame. NJ
excess in wine had ever had this effect on Int
before in my life. Was it the res:lt of stimu
liant acting upon my system when was III
highly excited state? Was my stomach in {
particularly dsordered condition? Or wa:
the champagne amazingly strong?
"Ex.brave OF the French Army!' criel I
in mad state of exhilaration, l am on fire
how are y.m2 You have set me on fire d.
you hear, my hero of Austerlitz Let vi
have third bottle Of champagne to put ths
fame out"
The old soldier wagged his heal, rolled his
google eyes, until l expected to see them slF
out of their sockets placed his dirty forehn
ger by the side OF his broken nose; solemn!y
calculated Coffee = and immediately ran
! oil into an inner room.
The word pronounced by the eccentric vet
eran seemel to have magical effect ON the
rest of the company present. With one &C
cord they all rose 10 depart. Probably they
had expected to profit by my inIoxication
but finding that my new friend was benevo
lently bent on preventing me from getting
dead drunk, had now abandoned all hope Of
thriving pleasantly on my winnings. What
ever their motive might ba, at any rate they
went away in body. When the old soldier
returned, anl sat down again opposite to ME
at the table, We had the room to ourselves.
could see the croupier, in sort OF vestibue
which opened ont Of it, eating his supper i'll
solitude. Tue silence was nuw deeper than
ever.
A sudden change. too, had come over the
"ex. brave" He assumed portentously so
lemn look; and when he spoke to me again
his speech was ornamented 10y no oalhs, eli
forced by no fnger.snapping, enlivened by nt
apostrophes or exclamationS.
Listen, my dear sill" said he, in mvstcri
| ously confidential tones" listen to au old
,ldiers advice. l have been to the mistress
of the house Ia very charming woman, with
a genius for cookery TO impress en- her the
necessity of making Us Some particularly
strong and good coffee. You must drink this
cotfee in order to get rid of your little amia
BILE exaltation OF spirits before you think o.
ling home-you must, my good and gracious
friend With all tina; money to take home
tonight it is sacred duty to yourself to have
your wits about you. You are known to be 6
winner to an enormous extent by several gen
tlemen present tonight, who, in certain
point of view, are very worthy and excellent
fellows; but they are mortal men, my dear
sir, and they have their amiable weaknesses
Need l say more? All, no, no! you under
stand mel Now, this is what you must do
send for cabriolet when you feel quite well
again--draw up all the windows when you
get into it-and tell the driver to take you
home only through the large and well.lighted
thoroughlares. DO this and You and youl
money will be safe. DO this; and tomorrow
you will thank an old soldier for giving you q
word of honest advice"
Just as the ex-brave ended his Grafton in
very lachrymose tones, the coffee came in
ready poured out in two cups. My attentive
friend handed me one Of the cups with a bow
l was parched with thirst, and drank il off at
draugh1. Almost Instantly afterwards,
was seized with fit of giddiness, and felt
more completely intoxicated than ever. The
room whirled round and round furiousy; he
old soldier seemed to be regularly bobbing up
and down before me like the piston of the
steam.engine. | was half deafened by VIC
lent singing in my ears; feeling of utter
bewilderment, helplessness, idiocy, ovcrcame
me. l rose from my chain holding on by the
table to keep my balance; and stammered
out, that l felt dreadfully unwell--so unwell
that did not know how / was to get home.
"My dear FRIEND" answered the old soldier,
aud even his voice seemed to be bobbing up
and down es he spoke" my dear friend, it
would be madness tt 50 home i'll yp'!r state
you would be sure to lose your money, you
might be robbed and murdered with the great.
est ease. am going to sle.p here dJ yot
sleep here, too--they make up capital beds in
this house-take one; sleep off the effects oi
the wine, aud 80 home safely with your win,
nings o.morrow--to-morrOw, in broad day
light"
had but two ideas left one, that must
never let go hold Of my handkerchief full oi
money; the other. that must lie down some
wHeFe lnliieulateIV, anu lail OIL lnlo 10 Il com
Portable sleep. So agreed to the proposal
about the bed, aud took the offered arm OF
the old soldier, carrying my money with my
disengagcd hand. Preceded by the crou;ier
we passed along some passages and up q
flight of stairs into the bedroom which WAS
To occupy. The ex,brave shook me warmly
by the hand; proposed that we should break
fast together. and then, followed by the crou
pier, Left ME for the night.
ran to the wasll-stand; drank some Of the
water in my jug; poured the rest out, and
plunged my face into it-then sat down in i;
chair and tried to compose myself. soor
felt better. The change for my lungs, from
the ietil atmosphere of the galnbling.room tc
The cool air OF the apartment now occupied
the almost equally refreshing change for m,
eyes, from the glaring gas.lights Of the " Sa
lon to the dim, quiet Kicker of one bel.roon
candle; aided wonderfully the rastorAtiv,
effects OF cold water. The giddiness left me
and began to feel n little like REASONABLE,
being a.ain- My first thought was Of til,
risk of sleeping all night in samjling.housc