Japhet In Search Of A Father Part 1 - Frederick Marryat (best summer reads of all time .txt) 📗
- Author: Frederick Marryat
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When The Music Ceased, A Smart Parley Between Melchior And Me, And
Philotas, And Timothy, As The Two Fools, Would Take Place; And Melchior
Declared, After The Performance Was Over, That We Conducted Ourselves To
Admiration.
"Pray, Mr Philotas, Do Me The Favour To Tell Me How Many People You
Think Are Now Present?" Said Melchior To Num, In an Imperative Voice.
"I Don'T Know," Said Num, Looking Up With His Idiotical, Melancholy
Face.
"Ha! Ha! Ha'" Roared The Crowd At Num'S Stupid Answer.
"The Fellow'S A Fool'" Said Melchior, To The Gaping Audience.
"Well, Then, If He Can'T Tell, Perhaps You May, Mr Dionysius," Said I,
Addressing Tim.
"How Many, Sir? Do You Want To Know Exactly And Directly?"
"Yes, Sir, Immediately."
"Without Counting, Sir?"
Part 1 Chapter 11 Pg 59
"Yes, Sir, Without Counting."
"Well Then, Sir, I Will Tell, And Make No Mistake; There'S _Exactly As
Many Again As Half_."
"Ha! Ha! Ha!" From The Crowd.
"That Won'T Do, Sir. How Many May Be The Half?"
"How Many May Be The Half? Do You Know Yourself, Sir?"
"Yes, Sir, To Be Sure I Do."
"Then There'S No Occasion For Me To Tell You."
"Ha! Ha! Ha!"
"Well Then, Sir," Continued Melchior To Philotas, "Perhaps You'Ll Tell
How Many Ladies And Gentlemen We May Expect To Honour Us With Their
Company To-Night."
"How Many, Sir?"
"Yes, Sir, How Many."
"I'M Sure I Don'T Know," Said Num, After A Pause.
"Positively You Are The Greatest Fool I Ever Met With," Said Melchior.
"Well, He Does Act The Fool As Natural As Life," Observed The Crowd.
"What A Stupid Face He Does Put On!"
"Perhaps You Will Be Able To Answer That Question, Mr Dionysius," Said I
To Tim.
"Yes, Sir, I Know Exactly."
"Well, Sir, Let'S Hear."
"In The First Place, All The Pretty Women Will Come, And All The Ugly
Ones Stay Away; And As For The Men, All Those Who Have Got Any Money
Will Be Certain To Come; Those Who Haven'T, Poor Devils, Must Stay
Outside."
"Suppose, Sir, You Make A Bow To The Ladies."
"A Very Low One, Sir?"
"Yes, Very Low Indeed."
Tim Bent His Body To The Ground, And Threw A Somerset Forward. "There,
Sir; I Bowed So Low, That I Came Up On The Other Side."
Part 1 Chapter 11 Pg 60
Ha! Ha! Capital!" From The Crowd.
"I'Ve Got A Round Turn In My Back, Sir," Continued Tim, Rubbing Himself.
"Hadn'T I Better Take It Out Again?"
"By All Means."
Tim Threw A Somerset Backwards. "There, Sir, All'S Right Now. One Good
Turn Deserves Another. Now I'Ll Be Off."
"Where Are You Going To, Sir?"
"Going, Sir!! Why, I Left My Lollipop In The Tinder-Box, And I'M Going
To Fetch It."
"Ha! Ha! Ha!"
"Strike Up, Music!" And Master Jumbo Commenced Tumbling.
Such Was The Elegant Wit With Which We Amused And Attracted The
Audience. Perhaps, Had We Been More Refined, We Should Not Have Been So
Successful.
That Evening We Had The Room As Full As It Could Hold. Signor Velotti
_Alias_ Melchior Astonished Them. The Cards Appeared To Obey His
Commands--Rings Were Discovered In Lady'S Shoes--Watches Were Beat To A
Powder And Made Whole--Canary Birds Flew Out Of Eggs. The Audience Were
Delighted. The Entertainment Closed With Fleta'S Performance On The
Slack Wire; And Certainly Never Was There Anything More Beautiful And
Graceful. Balanced On The Wire In a Continual, Waving Motion, Her Eyes
Fixed Upon A Point To Enable Her To Maintain Her Position, She Performed
Several Feats, Such As The Playing With Five Oranges, Balancing Swords,
&C. Her Extreme Beauty--Her Very Picturesque And Becoming Dress--Her
Mournful Expression And Downcast Eyes--Her Gentle Manner, Appeared To
Win The Hearts Of The Audience; And When She Was Assisted Off From Her
Perilous Situation By Melchior And Me, And Made Her Graceful Courtesy,
The Plaudits Were Unanimous.
When The Company Dispersed I Went To Her, Intending To Praise Her, But I
Found Her In Tears. "What Is The Matter, My Dear Fleta?"
"O Nothing! Don'T Say I Have Been Crying--But I Cannot Bear It--So Many
People Looking At Me. Don'T Say A Word To Melchior--I Won'T Cry Any
More."
Part 1 Chapter 12 Pg 61
It Is Very Easy To Humbug Those Who Are So Eager To Be Humbugged As
People Are In This World Of Humbug--We Show Ourselves Excessively
Disinterested, Which Astonishes Everybody.
I Kissed And Consoled Her; She Threw Her Arm Round My Neck, And Remained
There With Her Face Hid For Some Time. We Then Joined The Others At
Supper. Melchior Was Much Pleased With Our Success, And Highly Praised
The Conduct Of Timothy And Myself, Which He Pronounced Was, For The
First Attempt, Far Beyond His Expectations.
We Continued To Astonish All The Good People Of ---- For Five Days, When
We Discovered The Indubitable Fact, That There Was No More Money To Be
Extracted From Their Pockets, Upon Which We Resumed Our Usual Clothes
And Smock Frocks, And With Our Bundles In Our Hands, Set Off For Another
Market Town, About Fifteen Miles Distant. There We Were Equally
Successful, And Melchior Was Delighted With Our Having Proved Such A
Powerful Acquisition To His Troop: But Not To Dwell Too Long Upon One
Subject, I Shall Inform The Reader That, After A Trip Of Six Weeks,
During Which We Were Very Well Received, We Once More Returned To The
Camp, Which Had Located Within Five Miles Of Our Last Scene Of Action.
Every One Was Content--We Were All Glad To Get Back And Rest From Our
Labours. Melchior Was Pleased With His Profits, Poor Little Fleta
Overjoyed To Be Once More In The Seclusion Of Her Tent, And Nattee Very
Glad To Hear Of Our Good Fortune, And To See Her Husband. Timothy And I
Had Already Proved Ourselves So Useful, That Melchior Treated Us With
The Greatest Friendship And Confidence--And He Made Us A Present Out Of
The Gains, For Our Exertions; To Me He Gave Ten, And To Timothy Five,
Pounds.
"There, Japhet, Had You Hired Yourself I Should Not Have Paid You More
Than Seven Shillings Per Week, Finding You In Food; But You Must
Acknowledge That For Six Weeks That Is Not Bad Pay. However, Your
Earnings Will Depend Upon Our Success, And I Rather Think That We Shall
Make A Much Better Thing Of It When Next We Start, Which Will Be In
About A Fortnight; But We Have Some Arrangements To Make. Has Timothy A
Good Memory?"
"I Think He Has."
"That Is Well. I Told You Before That We Are To Try The 'Wise Man,'--But
First We Must Have Nattee In Play. To-Morrow We Will Start For ----,"
Mentioning A Small Quiet Town About Four Miles Off.
We Did So, Early The Next Morning, And Arrived About Noon, Pitching Our
Tents On The Common, Not Far From The Town; But In This Instance We Left
All The Rest Of Our Gang Behind. Melchior'S Own Party And His Two Tents
Were All That Were Brought By The Donkeys.
Melchior And I, Dressed As Countrymen, Went Into The Town At Dusk, And
Part 1 Chapter 12 Pg 62Entered A Respectable Sort Of Inn, Taking Our Seats At One Of The Tables
In The Tap-Room, And, As We Had Already Planned, After We Had Called For
Beer, Commenced A Conversation In The Hearing Of The Others Who Were
Sitting Drinking And Smoking.
"Well, I Never Will Believe It--It'S All Cheat And Trickery," Said
Melchior, "And They Only Do It To Pick Your Pocket. Tell Your Fortune,
Indeed! I Suppose She Promised You A Rich Wife And Half-A-Dozen
Children."
"No, She Did Not," Replied I, "For I Am Too Young To Marry; But She Told
Me What I Know Has Happened."
"Well, What Was That?"
"Why, She Told Me That My Mother Had Married Again, And Turned Me Out Of
Doors To Work For My Bread."
"But She Might Have Heard That."
"How Could She? No, That'S Not Possible; But She Told Me I Had A Mole On
My Knee, Which Was A Sign Of Luck. Now How Could She Know That?"
"Well, I Grant That Was Odd--And Pray What Else Did She Promise You?"
"Why, She Said, That I Should Meet With My Dearest Friend To-Night. Now
That Does Puzzle Me, For I Have But One In The World, And He Is A Long
Way Off."
"Well, If You Do Meet Your Friend, Then I'Ll Believe Her; But If Not,
It Has Been All Guess-Work; And Pray What Did You Pay For All This--Was
It A Shilling, Or Did She Pick Your Pocket?"
"That'S What Puzzles Me,--She Refused To Take Anything. I Offered It
Again And Again, And She Said,'No; That She Would Have No Money--That
Her Gift Was Not To Be Sold.'"
"Well, That Is Odd. Do You Hear What This Young Man Says," Said
Melchior, Addressing The Others, Who Had Swallowed Every Word.
"Yes," Replied One; "But Who Is This Person?"
"The Queen Of The Gipsies, I Am Told. I Never Saw Such A Wonderful Woman
In My Life--Her Eye Goes Right Through You. I Met Her On The Common,
And, As She Passed, She Dropped A Handkerchief. I Ran Back To Give It
Her, And Then She Thanked Me, And Said, 'Open Your Hand And Let Me See
The Palm. Here Are Great Lines, And You Will Be Fortunate;' And Then She
Told Me A Great Deal More, And Bid God Bless Me."
"Then If She Said That, She Cannot Have Dealings With The _Devil_,"
Observed Melchior.
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