Volume III Part 19 (1/2)
”Just so,” said Esther, with a wicked smile, ”but you admit a likeness, don't you?”
”I confess I was struck with it, though of course I cannot judge so well as you”
After the concert M d'O---- arrived, and giving back his daughter to his care I betookdown to a dish of oysters, before going to bed, when Therese h I had not expected her to visit , I was nevertheless not reet her, when all at once she fell fainting on the sofa, though whether the fainting fit was real or assuht be really ill I playedher with cold water and putting rette to her nose As soon as she ca a word At last, tired of her silence, I asked her if she would take any supper; and on her replying in the affirood supper for three, which kept us at the table till seven o'clock in theover our various fortunes and misfortunes She was already acquainted withat all about hers, and she entertained me with a recital of theirl, slept inthe best of her tale to the last, told hter, and shewed me her baptismal certificate The birth of the child fell in with the period at which I had been intimate with Therese, and her perfect likeness to myself left no room for doubt I therefore raised no objections, but told thein a position to give the child a good education, I was ready to be a father to her
”She is too precious a treasure in ht; if ere separated I should die”
”You are wrong; for if I took charge of the little girl I should see that she ell provided for”
”I have a son of twelve to whoe of him instead of Sophie”
”Where is he?”
”He is boarding, or rather in pawn, at Rotterdam”
”What do you mean by in pawn?”
”I mean that he will not be returned to ot hihty florins You have already given ive me four ducats more; you can then take my son, and I shall be the happiest of ue next week, as I think you will be there”
”Yes, my dear Therese; and instead of four ducats, here are twenty”
”We shall see each other again at the Hague”
She was grateful to excess, but I only felt pity for her and a sort of friendly interest, and kept quite cool, despite the ardour of her ehed, shed sohter, she bidonce more to send me her son
Therese o years older than I She was still pretty, and even handsoer retained their first beauty, andbeen a er any attraction forthe six years in which I had lost her would certainly interestepisode in my book, and I would tell the tale if it were a true one; but not being a romance writer, I a but the truth Convicted by her aarve of infidelity, she had been sent about her business She was separated from her husband Pompeati, had followed a new lover to Brussels, and there had caught the fancy of Prince Charles de Lorraine, who had obtained her the direction of all the theatres in the Austrian Low Countries She had then undertaken this vast responsibility, entailing heavy expenditure, till at last, after selling all her diamonds and lace, she had fled to Holland to avoid arrest
Her husband killed himself at Vienna in a paroxysm caused by internal pain--he had cut open his sto at his entrails
My business left me no tiMillionaires are as plentiful as blackberries, and anyone who is not worth more than a hundred thousand florins is considered a poor man
I found M d'O---- there, and was asked by hi day at a small house he had on the Areatest courtesy After reading ree he went for his own, and found it exactly the sahed, and see in that respect froree, and treated me with such politeness on that account Nevertheless, he badeto business if I did anything in that way I thought his daughter pretty, but neither her charhts were taken up with Esther, and I talked so much about her at dinner that at last my cousin declared that she did not consider her pretty Oh, you women! beauty is the only unpardonable offence in your eyes Mdlle Casanova was Esther's friend, and yet she could not bear to hear her praised
On ain after dinner, he told me that if I cared to take fifteen per cent on my shares, he would take theood one, and I accepted it, taking a bill of exchange on Tourton & Baur At the rate of exchange at Ha I found I should have seventy-two thousand francs, although at five per cent I had only expected sixty-nine thousand This transaction won h favour with Madame d'Urfe, who, perhaps, had not expectedI ith M Pels to Zaandah and impelled by a sail It was an extraordinary, but at the sa The as strong, and we did fifteen h the air as swiftly as an arrow A safer and ined; it would be an ideal way of journeying round the world if there were such a thing as a frozen sea all round The wind, however,no rudder I was pleased and astonished at the skill of our two sailors in lowering sail exactly at the proper tiood way, from the impetus it had already received, and we stopped just at the bank of the river, whereas if the sail had been lowered a ht have been broken to pieces We had soth of the wind prevented us froain, but as Zaandam is well known as the haunt of the millionaire merchants who retire and enjoy life there in their oay, I will say no h drawn by two horses, belonging to M Pels, and he kept me to supper This worthy man, whose face bore witness to his entire honesty, told me that as I was now the friend of M d'O---- and hi whatever to do with the Jews, but should address myself to them alone
I was pleased with this proposal, which ood many of my difficulties disappear, and the reader will see the results of this course
Next day snow fell in large flakes, and I went early to M d'O----'s, where I found Esther in the highest of spirits She gavespent the whole night with Madaht confusion, but her father said an honesttalent Then, turning to me, he said,
”Tell me, M Casanova, who this woman is?”