The History Of The Life Of The Late Mr. Jonathan Wild The Great(Fiscle Part 3) by Henry Fielding (best books to read for young adults txt) 📖

Book 2 Chapter 1 Pg 51

Than The Husband.

 

When Breakfast Was Ended,  And The Wife Retired To Her Household

Affairs,  Wild,  Who Had A Quick Discernment Into The Weaknesses Of

Men,  And Who,  Besides The Knowledge Of His Good (Or Foolish)

Disposition When A Boy,  Had Now Discovered Several Sparks Of

Goodness,  Friendship,  And Generosity In His Friend,  Began To

Discourse Over The Accidents Which Had Happened In Their

Childhood,  And Took Frequent Occasions Of Reminding Him Of Those

Favours Which We Have Before Mentioned His Having Conferred On

Him; He Then Proceeded To The Most Vehement Professions Of

Friendship,  And To The Most Ardent Expressions Of Joy In This

Renewal Of Their Acquaintance. He At Last Told Him,  With Great

Seeming Pleasure,  That He Believed He Had An Opportunity Of

Serving Him By The Recommendation Of A Gentleman To His Custom,

Who Was Then On The Brink Of Marriage. "And,  If He Be Not Already

Engaged,  I Will," Says He,  "Endeavour To Prevail On Him To Furnish

His Lady With Jewels At Your Shop."

 

Heartfree Was Not Backward In Thanks To Our Hero,  And,  After Many

Earnest Solicitations To Dinner,  Which Were Refused,  They Parted

For The First Time.

 

But Here,  As It Occurs To Our Memory That Our Readers May Be

Surprised (An Accident Which Sometimes Happens In Histories Of

This Kind) How Mr. Wild,  The Elder,  In His Present Capacity,

Should Have Been Able To Maintain His Son At A Reputable School,

As This Appears To Have Been,  It May Be Necessary To Inform Him

That Mr. Wild Himself Was Then A Tradesman In Good Business,  But,

By Misfortunes In The World,  To Wit,  Extravagance And Gaming,  He

Had Reduced Himself To That Honourable Occupation Which We Have

Formerly Mentioned.

 

Having Cleared Up This Doubt,  We Will Now Pursue Our Hero,  Who

Forthwith Repaired To The Count,  And,  Having First Settled

Preliminary Articles Concerning Distributions,  He Acquainted Him

With The Scheme Which He Had Formed Against Heartfree; And After

Consulting Proper Methods To Put It In Execution,  They Began To

Concert Measures For The Enlargement Of The Count; On Which The

First,  And Indeed Only Point To Be Considered,  Was To Raise Money,

Not To Pay His Debts,  For That Would Have Required An Immense Sum,

And Was Contrary To His Inclination Or Intention,  But To Procure

Him Bail; For As To His Escape,  Mr. Snap Had Taken Such

Precautions That It Appeared Absolutely Impossible.

 

Book 2 Chapter 2 Pg 52

Great Examples Of Greatness In Wild,  Shewn As Well By His

Behaviour To Bagshot As In A Scheme Laid,  First,  To Impose On

Heartfree By Means Of The Count,  And Then To Cheat The Count Of

The Booty.

 

 

 

 

 

Wild Undertook Therefore To Extract Some Money From Bagshot,  Who,

Notwithstanding The Depredations Made On Him,  Had Carried Off A

Pretty Considerable Booty From Their Engagement At Dice The

Preceding Day. He Found Mr. Bagshot In Expectation Of His Bail,

And,  With A Countenance Full Of Concern,  Which He Could At Any

Time,  With Wonderful Art,  Put On,  Told Him That All Was

Discovered; That The Count Knew Him,  And Intended To Prosecute Him

For The Robbery,  "Had Not I Exerted (Said He) My Utmost Interest,

And With Great Difficulty Prevailed On Him In Case You Refund The

Money--" "Refund The Money!" Cryed Bagshot,  "That Is In Your

Power: For You Know What An Inconsiderable Part Of It Fell To My

Share." "How!" Replied Wild,  "Is This Your Gratitude To Me For

Saving Your Life? For Your Own Conscience Must Convince You Of

Your Guilt,  And With How Much Certainty The Gentleman Can Give

Evidence Against You." "Marry Come Up!" Quoth Bagshot; "I Believe

My Life Alone Will Not Be In Danger. I Know Those Who Are As

Guilty As Myself. Do You Tell Me Of Conscience?" "Yes,  Sirrah!"

Answered Our Hero,  Taking Him By The Collar; "And Since You Dare

Threaten Me I Will Shew You The Difference Between Committing A

Robbery And Conniving At It,  Which Is All I Can Charge Myself

With. I Own Indeed I Suspected,  When You Shewed Me A Sum Of Money,

That You Had Not Come Honestly By It." "How!" Says Bagshot,

Frightened Out Of One Half Of His Wits,  And Amazed Out Of The

Other,  "Can You Deny?" "Yes,  You Rascal," Answered Wild,  "I Do

Deny Everything; And Do You Find A Witness To Prove It: And,  To

Shew You How Little Apprehension I Have Of Your Power To Hurt Me,

I Will Have You Apprehended This Moment."--At Which Words He

Offered To Break From Him; But Bagshot Laid Hold Of His Skirts,

And,  With An Altered Tone And Manner,  Begged Him Not To Be So

Impatient. "Refund Then,  Sirrah," Cries Wild,  "And Perhaps I May

Take Pity On You." "What Must I Refund?" Answered Bagshot. "Every

Farthing In Your Pocket," Replied Wild; "Then I May Have Some

Compassion On You,  And Not Only Save Your Life,  But,  Out Of An

Excess Of Generosity,  May Return You Something." At Which Words

Bagshot Seeming To Hesitate,  Wild Pretended To Make To The Door,

And Rapt Out An Oath Of Vengeance With So Violent An Emphasis,

That His Friend No Longer Presumed To Balance,  But Suffered Wild

To Search His Pockets And Draw Forth All He Found,  To The Amount

Of Twenty-One Guineas And A Half,  Which Last Piece Our Generous

Book 2 Chapter 2 Pg 53

Hero Returned Him Again,  Telling Him He Might Now Sleep Secure.

But Advised Him For The Future Never To Threaten His Friends.

 

Thus Did Our Hero Execute The Greatest Exploits With The Utmost

Ease Imaginable,  By Means Of Those Transcendent Qualities Which

Nature Had Indulged Him With,  Viz.,  A Bold Heart,  A Thundering

Voice,  And A Steady Countenance.

 

Wild Now Returned To The Count,  And Informed Him That He Had Got

Ten Guineas Of Bagshot; For,  With Great And Commendable Prudence,

He Sunk The Other Eleven Into His Own Pocket,  And Told Him With

That Money He Would Procure Him Bail,  Which He After Prevailed On

His Father,  And Another Gentleman Of The Same Occupation,  To

Become,  For Two Guineas Each,  So That He Made Lawful Prize Of Six

More,  Making Bagshot Debtor For The Whole Ten; For Such Were His

Great Abilities,  And So Vast The Compass Of His Understanding,

That He Never Made Any Bargain Without Overreaching (Or,  In The

Vulgar Phrase,  Cheating) The Person With Whom He Dealt.

 

The Count Being,  By These Means,  Enlarged,  The First Thing They

Did,  In Order To Procure Credit From Tradesmen,  Was The Taking A

Handsome House Ready Furnished In One Of The New Streets; In Which

As Soon As The Count Was Settled,  They Proceeded To Furnish Him

With Servants And Equipage,  And All The Insignia Of A Large Estate

Proper To Impose On Poor Heartfree. These Being All Obtained,  Wild

Made A Second Visit To His Friend,  And With Much Joy In His

Countenance Acquainted Him That He Had Succeeded In His

Endeavours,  And That The Gentleman Had Promised To Deal With Him

For The Jewels Which He Intended To Present His Bride,  And Which

Were Designed To Be Very Splendid And Costly; He Therefore

Appointed Him To Go To The Count The Next Morning,  And Carry With

Him A Set Of The Richest And Most Beautiful Jewels He Had,  Giving

Him At The Same Time Some Hints Of The Count's Ignorance Of That

Commodity,  And That He Might Extort What Price Of Him He Pleased;

But Heartfree Told Him,  Not Without Some Disdain,  That He Scorned

To Take Any Such Advantage; And,  After Expressing Much Gratitude

To His Friend For His Recommendation,  He Promised To Carry The

Jewels At The Hour And To The Place Appointed.

 

I Am Sensible That The Reader,  If He Hath But The Least Notion Of

Greatness,  Must Have Such A Contempt For The Extreme Folly Of This

Fellow,  That He Will Be Very Little Concerned At Any Misfortunes

Which May Befal Him In The Sequel; For To Have No Suspicion That

An Old Schoolfellow,  With Whom He Had,  In His Tenderest Years,

Contracted A Friendship,  And Who,  On The Accidental Renewing Of

Their Acquaintance,  Had Professed The Most Passionate Regard For

Him,  Should Be Very Ready To Impose On Him; In Short,  To Conceive

That A Friend Should,  Of His Own Accord,  Without Any View To His

Own Interest,  Endeavour To Do Him A Service,  Must Argue Such

Weakness Of Mind,  Such Ignorance Of The World,  And Such An

Artless,  Simple,  Undesigning Heart,  As Must Render The Person

Possessed Of It The Lowest Creature And The Properest Object Of

Contempt Imaginable,  In The Eyes Of Every Man Of Understanding And

Discernment.

Book 2 Chapter 2 Pg 54

 

Wild Remembered That His Friend Heartfree's Faults Were Rather In

His Heart Than In His Head; That,  Though He Was So Mean A Fellow

That He Was Never Capable Of Laying A Design To Injure Any Human

Creature,  Yet Was He By No Means A Fool,  Nor Liable To Any Gross

Imposition,  Unless Where His Heart Betrayed Him. He Therefore

Instructed The Count To Take Only One Of His Jewels At The First

Interview,  And Reject The Rest As Not Fine Enough,  And Order Him

To Provide Some Richer. He Said This Management Would Prevent

Heartfree From Expecting Ready Money For The Jewel He Brought With

Him,  Which The Count Was Presently To Dispose Of,  And By Means Of

That Money,  And His Great Abilities At Cards And Dice,  To Get

Together As Large A Sum As Possible,  Which He Was To Pay Down To

Heartfree At The Delivery Of The Set Of Jewels,  Who Would Be Thus

Void Of All Manner Of Suspicion And Would Not Fail To Give Him

Credit For The Residue.

 

By This Contrivance,  It Will Appear In The Sequel That Wild Did

Not Only Propose To Make The Imposition On Heartfree,  Who Was

(Hitherto) Void Of All Suspicion,  More Certain; But To Rob The

Count Himself Of This Sum. This Double Method Of Cheating The Very

Tools Who Are Our Instruments To Cheat Others Is The Superlative

Degree Of Greatness,  And Is Probably,  As Far