I knew very well that a note of hand was as good as money, and was quite satisfied with the trade—only, the time of payment was too long distant to suit me.
"It is a Hamburg custom, my son," replied Master Meyer when I mentioned my objections. "The money must have time to mature."
I was obliged to be satisfied, besides, fifty doubloons would be quite enough to keep me in food and raiment for three months.
The supper Master Meyer now placed before me was of a sort I would not have believed his larder capable of supplying—judging from the fare he had offered me first. There were pasties of all sorts, game, confections and a choice selection of wines. Of the last I took special care not to imbibe too freely. Master Meyer's family joined us at the repast; there were three daughters, comely, and of marriageable age; and a son. The latter, I was informed, was a student at the university. I thought him rather advanced in years for a student!
There was not the least resemblance between the three young women; no one would have taken them to be sisters. They were merry creatures, sang and played on the harp and the guitar.
One of them, a blonde, was very pretty. I noticed that she stole frequent glances toward me, and when her eyes met mine she would blush and smile enchantingly.
I was still young, and not at all averse to a flirtation. Moreover, I was a widower. I had had enough experience with the fairer sex, however, to teach me that it would be well to be on my guard.
Master Meyer had introduced me to his family as "Junker Hermann." The blonde daughter's name was Agnes. She was a sentimental and romantic maid. I sat by her side at supper, and was so flustered by the glances from her blue eyes, I could think of nothing more sensible to say to her than: "that when the dear Lord should bestow on me a family, I would have just such spoons as her father's"—with which we were eating the chocolate cream—and that my own and my wife's crests should be engraved on the handles. This remark led me to observe further that I thought the initial letters of Hermann and Agnes would form a pretty monogram. My fair neighbor could not see just how the letters might be arranged. I told her it was very simple: the A need only be inserted between the two uprights of the H to make the union perfect.
I wanted the Meyers to believe that I was a genuine cavalier, so I said to the father—after I had emptied my third glass of wine:
"That ring on your finger pleases me very much. I should like to buy it."