The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1861-02-09

clothes, and permitted him to continue.
No sooner WAS he gone than another
individual entered, who Immediately be-
gan:
My dear monsieur, you must do me
a great service. Buy my house. You
arc rich, very rieh-you want real estate.
Fifty thousand francs are nothing for
you-only the half Of your income; and
at present am in urgent want of money.
| expected Monsieur Felix to buy it;
but he does not decide, and have some
pressing engagements to settle"
81 buy your house what folly ~
{" 1t is no folly: 1t is safe invest
mcnt. After some repairs, in two years
it will be worth double. | have your
word - and he left without giving me
time to reply.
So we'll dld he propagate report of
my purchase, that in two hours after
wards Monsieur Felix came to me in
great hurry, apparently out of humour.
" You have cut the grass from under
my feet, monsieur, y said he on entering:
&c cannot do without that house, and
thought it was already mine, as l had
made an offer of forty-pine thousand
francs, believing that the owner would
surely come to my terms. But there is
no hope of starving you into an agree
ment SO, without further preamble, l
come to offer you an advance of fifteen
thousand francs upon your bargain"
| Fifteen thousand francs coming
know not how-to me, who had so much
troubles in earning my eight hundred
francs of salary as clerk to the registry
of the courts of law Although but lit
tie acquainted with business, saw the
advantage to be derived from my po-
sition, and replied
"It is impossible, monsieur, for me to
give you an answer at this moment; re-
turn at five o'clock; meantime will
consider the matter"
At quarter before the appointed
hour, Monsieur Felix was again at my
door.
Monsieur" said I, "I had no wish
for that house, and did not even think
about it, when the proprietor came to
beg me to purchase it; and it appears
the house is now mine. AS it suits you,
and any other will do as we'll for NE,
accept your offer"
" You shall be paid in a fortnight in
paper on Paris" exclaimed the pur-
chaser, delighted with my promptitudc
in business.
Paper on Paris, | was so little &C
customed to that currency, as to imagine
that it would be necessary to send it to
the capital for payment, and therefore
wrote to commercial house, the only
one whose address knew, as from that
| received regularly an annuity of five
hundred francs left me by one of my
uncles, and which formed welcome por-
ton of my income.
With what impotence l waited the
expiration of the time, when ! wrote to-
Messieurs Hughes and Bergcret that,
having certain funds to invest, | begged
their advice as to the safest mode. 1t
appeared that the words " certain funds"
have very different acceptations in COM
mcrce, according to the name and posi-
ton of him who uses them. The news
vi NY IllClllluSC hluSL IuNC
Paris. Certain funds, situated as | was.
was modest manner of specifyinga con-
siderable sum-at least | supposed so,
on receiving an answer from the firm that
my letter had been received just before
the close of the Cortes loan, in which
they had purchased to the amount of
twenty thousand dollars that, if l
thought it too much, large profit might
be Immediately realized, as the stock had
gone up. A postscript, in the hand of
the principal, congratulated Inc on my
accession of fortune.
Twenty thousand dollars. The let
ter fell from my hands the amount
frightened me. wrote instantly to my
correspondents, informing them that SO
large sum went beyond my means adj
ding that no remittances having been
received from Martinique, as they sup
posed, | was unable to satisfy their
claims.
The answer came in day or two,
stating that, as did not appear to have
confidence in the Cortes loan, they had
sold out my stock at profit of eighty
thousand francs and begged me not to
feel uneasy, as renittances were always
slow in coming from the distant planta-
f tions in the interim my signature would
furnish me with all the money | could
: want. The prospectus of German
bank was inclosed, in which fifty shares
had been secured for me.
> Eighty thousand francs Either
understood nothing Of commercial mat
. tcrs, or the clerk had written one or two
, naughts too many. My situation became
embarrassing. l was overwhelmed with
congratulations, especially when put on
my new suit of black. The editor Of
, the newspaper thought himself obliged
to give biography ofmy cousin Jacques,
| and asked me for additional particulars
: l was bescigcd with annoying questions
In what way would l furnish my house !
, what would l do for the public establish
ments Some benevolent ladies wrote
to recommend to my notice the institu-
tions under guardianship. | was ruined
: in hostages for in the midst of all rich
es, whctherreal or imaginary, had no
, money Fortunately, from the moment.
| was held to be rich, no one would take
sou from me, and tradesmen courted
the honour Of giving me credit.