"I will sign an agreement to pay you £1500 for the thousand, if you please; if that will not suit you, I will try elsewhere."
"Dat is very bad bargain. How old, you shay?"
"Twenty."
"Vell, I shuppose I must oblige you, and my very goot friend, de Major."
Mr Emmanuel drew out his spectacles, pen, and inkhorn, filled up a bond, and handed it to me to sign. I read it carefully over, and signed it; he then paid down the money, and took his leave.
It may appear strange to the reader that the money was obtained so easily, but he must remember that the Major was considered a person who universally attached himself to young men of large fortune; he had already been the means of throwing many profitable speculations into the hands of Emmanuel, and the latter put implicit confidence in him. The money-lenders also are always on the look out for young men with large fortunes, and have their names registered. Emmanuel had long expected me to come to him, and although it was his intention to have examined more particularly, and not to have had the money prepared, yet my refusal to sign the bond, bearing interest, and my disputing the terms of the second proposal, blinded him completely, and put him off his usual guard.
"Upon my word, Newland, you obtained better terms than I could have expected from the old Hunks."
"Much better than I expected also, Major," replied I; "but now, how much of the money would you like to have?"
"My dear fellow, this is very handsome of you; but, I thank Heaven, I shall be soon able to repay it: but what pleases me, Newland, is your perfect confidence in one whom the rest of the world would not trust with a shilling. I will accept your offer as freely as it is made, and take £500, just to make a show for the few weeks that I am in suspense, and then you will find, that with all my faults, I am rot deficient in gratitude." I divided the money with the Major, and he shortly afterwards went out.
"Well, sir," said Timothy, entering, full of curiosity, "what have you done?"