uch a huge and
teeming place. All the ships in the world seemed to lie there, and the
quays were thick with sailor-men. The streets rang with noise. I
suddenly found that I was a young gentleman from the country.

I followed my luggage to the best inn, and it was very splendid, fit
to be a bishop's palace. It was filled with handsomely dressed people
who all seemed to be yelling, "Landlord! landlord!" And there was a
little fat man in a white apron who flew about as if he were being
stung by bees, and he was crying, "Coming, sir! Yes, madam! At once,
your ludship!" They heeded me no more than if I had been an empty
glass. I stood on one leg, waiting until the little fat man should
either wear himself out or attend all the people. But it was to no
purpose. He did not wear out, nor did his business finish, so finally
I was obliged to plant myself in his way, but my speech was decent
enough as I asked him for a chamber. Would you believe it, he stopped
abruptly and stared at me with sudden suspicion. My speech had been so
civil that he had thought perhaps I was a rogue. I only give you this
incident to show that if later I came to bellow like a bull with the
best of them, it was only through the necessity of proving to
strangers that I was a gentleman. I soon learned to enter an inn as a
drunken soldier goes through the breach into a surrendering city.

Having made myself as presentable as possible, I came down from my
chamber to seek some supper. The supper-room was ablaze with light and
well filled with persons of quality, to judge from the noise that they
were making. My seat was next to a garrulous man in plum-colour, who
seemed to know the affairs of the entire world. As I dropped into my
chair he was saying--

"--the heir to the title, of course. Young Lord Strepp. That is
he--the slim youth with light hair. Oh, of course, all in shipping.
The Earl must own twenty sail that trade from Bristol. He is posting
down from London, by the way, to-night."

You can well imagine how these words excited me. I half arose from my
chair with the idea of going at once to the young man who had been
indicated as Lord Strepp, and informing him of my errand, but I had a
sudden feeling of timidity, a feeling that it was necessary to be
proper with these people of high degree. I kept my seat, resolving to
accost him directly after supper. I studied him with interest. He was
a young man of about twenty years, with fair unpowdered hair