resolutely to avoid those fascinations which in fact were fast deserting

him, and to spend his great powers on a worthy field, in which he, his

sovereign, would be his prop, his stay, and his pioneer. My father felt

this kindness; for a moment ambitious dreams floated before him; and he

thought that it would be well to exchange his present pursuits for nobler

duties. With sincerity and fervour he gave the required promise: as a

pledge of continued favour, he received from his royal master a sum of

money to defray pressing debts, and enable him to enter under good auspices

his new career. That very night, while yet full of gratitude and good

resolves, this whole sum, and its amount doubled, was lost at the

gaming-table. In his desire to repair his first losses, my father risked

double stakes, and thus incurred a debt of honour he was wholly unable to

pay. Ashamed to apply again to the king, he turned his back upon London,

its false delights and clinging miseries; and, with poverty for his sole

companion, buried himself in solitude among the hills and lakes of

Cumberland. His wit, his bon mots, the record of his personal attractions,

fascinating manners, and social talents, were long remembered and repeated

from mouth to mouth. Ask where now was this favourite of fashion, this

companion of the noble, this excelling beam, which gilt with alien

splendour the assemblies of the courtly and the gay--you heard that he

was under a cloud, a lost man; not one thought it belonged to him to repay

pleasure by real services, or that his long reign of brilliant wit deserved

a pension on retiring. The king lamented his absence; he loved to repeat

his sayings, relate the adventures they had had together, and exalt his

talents--but here ended his reminiscence.

The Last Man