Not a penny
remains in my possession--so that my instructions have been
fulfilled. Spare yourself the trouble of making any fresh
demands; they will meet with no reply. In future you will not
receive a penny above your allowance, which in my opinion is
already too large a one for a young man of your age."
This letter proved a terrible blow to Wilkie. What should he do?
He felt that M. Patterson would not revoke his decision; and
indeed he wrote him several imploring letters, in vain. Yet never
had his need of money been so urgent. His creditors were becoming
uneasy; bills actually rained in upon his concierge; his next
quarterly allowance was not due for some time to come, and it was
only through the pawnbroker that he could obtain money for his
more pressing requirements. He had begun to consider himself
ruined. He saw himself reduced to dismissing his carriage, to
selling his third share of Pompier de Nanterre and losing the
esteem of all his witty friends.
He was in the depths of despair, when one morning his servant woke
him up with the announcement that the Viscount de Coralth was in
the sitting-room and wished to speak with him on very important
business. It was not usually an easy task to entice M. Wilkie
from his bed, but the name his servant mentioned seemed to have a
prodigious effect upon him. He bounded on to the floor, and as he
hastily dressed himself, he muttered: "The viscount here, at this
hour! It's astonishing! What if he's going to fight a duel and
wishes me to be his second? That would be a piece of grand good
luck and no mistake.
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