occasion for a sum of money.

Ferdinand, seeing it would be impracticable to derive any succour from
this quarter, sneaked homewards, in order to hold a consultation with his
own thoughts; and the first object that presented itself to his eyes when
he entered his apartment, was a letter from the tradesman, with his
account inclosed, amounting to forty-five pounds, which the writer
desired might be paid without delay. Before he had time to peruse the
articles, he received a summons, in consequence of a bill of indictment
for bigamy, found against him in Hicks' Hall, by Sarah Muddy, widow; and,
while he was revolving measures to avert these storms, another billet
arrived from a certain attorney, giving him to understand, that he had
orders from Doctor Buffalo, the quack, to sue him for the payment of
several notes, unless he would take them up in three days from the date
of this letter.

Such a concurrence of sinister events made a deep impression upon the
mind of our adventurer. All his fortitude was insufficient to bear him
up against this torrent of misfortunes; his resources were all dried up,
his invention failed, and his reflection began to take a new turn. "To
what purpose," said he to himself, "have I deserted the paths of
integrity and truth, and exhausted a fruitful imagination, in contriving
schemes to betray my fellow-creatures, if, instead of acquiring a
splendid fortune, which was my aim, I have suffered such a series of
mortifications, and at last brought myself to the brink of inevitable
destruction? By a virtuous exertion of those talents I inherit from
nature and education, I might, long before this time, have rendered
myself independent, and, perhaps, conspicuous in life. I might have
grown up like a young oak, which, being firmly rooted in its kindred
soil, gradually raises up its lofty head, expands its leafy arms,
projects a noble shade, and towers the glory of the plain. I should have
paid the debt of gratitude to my benefactors, and made their hearts sing
with joy for the happy effects of their benevolence. I should have been
a bulwark to my friends, a shelter to my neighbours in distress. I
should have run the race of honour, seen my fame diffused like a
sweet-smelling odour, and felt the ineffable pleasure of doing good.
Whereas I am, after a vicissitude of disappointments, dangers, and
fatigues, reduced to misery and shame, aggravated by a conscience loaded
with treachery and guilt. I