good fortune against any person who entertained the smallest doubt of
his honour.

The young Count, surprised at this address, rejected his offer with
disdain, and desired to know the meaning of such an unexpected
declaration. Upon which, the other produced Ferdinand's billet, and
threatened, in very high terms, to meet the stripling according to his
invitation, and chastise him severely for his presumption. The
consequence of this explanation is obvious. Renaldo, imputing the
officiousness of Fathom to the zeal of his friendship, interposed in the
quarrel, which was amicably compromised, not a little to the honour of
our adventurer, who thus obtained an opportunity of displaying his
courage and integrity, without the least hazard to his person; while, at
the same time, his confederate recommended himself to the esteem of the
young Count, by his spirited behaviour on this occasion; so that Renaldo
being less shy of his company for the future, the Tyrolese had the fairer
opportunities to prosecute his designs upon the young gentleman's purse.

It would be almost superfluous to say, that these were not neglected.
The son of Count Melvil was not deficient in point of penetration; but
his whole study was at that time engrossed by the care of his education,
and he had sometimes recourse to play as an amusement by which he sought
to unbend the severity of his attention. No wonder then that he fell a
prey to an artful gamester, who had been regularly trained to the
profession, and made it the sole study of his life; especially as the
Hungarian was remarkable for a warmth of temper, which a knight of the
post always knows how to manage for his own advantage.

In the course of these operations, Fathom was a very useful
correspondent. He instructed the Tyrolese in the peculiarities of
Renaldo's disposition, and made him acquainted with the proper seasons
for profiting by his dexterity. Ferdinand, for example, who, by the
authority derived to him from the injunctions of the old Count, sometimes
took upon himself the office of an adviser, cunningly chose to counsel
the son at those conjunctures when he knew him least able to bear such
expostulation. Advice improperly administered generally acts in
diametrical opposition to the purpose for which it is supposed to be
given; at least this was the case with the young gentleman, who, inflamed
by the reproof of such a tutor, used to obey the dictates of his
resentment in an imm