beginning of his career. The whole fruit of their investigation amounted
to no more than a certainty that there was no family of any consideration
in Europe known by the denomination of Fathom; and this discovery they
did not fail to divulge for the benefit of our adventurer, who had by
this time taken such firm root in the favour of the great, as to set all
those little arts at defiance; and when the report reached his ear,
actually made his friends merry with the conjectures which had been
circulated at his expense.

His adversaries, finding themselves disappointed in this effort, held a
consultation to devise other measures against him, and came to a
resolution of ending him by the sword, or rather of expelling him from
the kingdom by the fear of death, which they hoped he had not courage
enough to resist, because his deportment had always been remarkably mild
and pacific. It was upon this supposition that they left to the
determination of the dice the choice of the person who should execute
their plan; and the lot falling upon a Swiss, who, from the station of a
foot soldier in the Dutch service, out of which he had been drummed for
theft, had erected himself into the rank of a self-created chevalier,
this hero fortified himself with a double dose of brandy, and betook
himself to a certain noted coffee-house, with an intent to affront Count
Fathom in public.

He was lucky enough to find our adventurer sitting at a table in
conversation with some persons of the first rank; upon which he seated
himself in the next box, and after having intruded himself into their
discourse, which happened to turn upon the politics of some German
courts, "Count," said he to Ferdinand, in a very abrupt and disagreeable
manner of address, "I was last night in company with some gentlemen,
among whom a dispute happened about the place of your nativity; pray,
what country are you of?" "Sir," answered the other, with great
politeness, "I at present have the honour to be of England." "Oho!"
replied the chevalier, "I ask your pardon, that is to say, you are incog;
some people may find it convenient to keep themselves in that situation."
"True," said the Count, "but some people are too well known to enjoy that
privilege." The Swiss being a little disconcerted at this repartee,
which extracted a smile from the audience, after some pause, observed,
that persons of a certain class had good reason to drop the remembrance
of what they have b