“’Recollect, Monsieur le Chevalier, what I have said, this money will never thrive with you.  It is, perhaps, but four hundred? three? two? well if it be but one hundred louis d’or, continued he, seeing that I shook my head at every sum which he had named, there is no great mischief done; one hundred pistoles will not ruin him, provided you have won them fairly.’  ‘Friend Brinon,’ said I, fetching a deep sigh, ’draw the curtains; I am unworthy to see daylight’ Brinon was much affected at these melancholy words, but I thought he would have fainted, when I told him the whole adventure.  He tore his hair, made grievous lamentations, the burden of which still was, ‘What will my lady say?’ And, after having exhausted his unprofitable complaints, ’What will become of you now, Monsieur le Chevalier?’ said he, ‘what do you intend to do?’ ‘Nothing,’ said I, ’for I am fit for no thing.  After this, being somewhat eased after making him my confession, I thought upon several projects, to none of which could I gain his approbation.  I would have had him post after my equipage, to have sold some of my clothes.  I was for proposing to the horse-dealer to buy some horses of him at a high price on credit, to sell again cheap.  Brinon laughed at all these schemes, and after having had the cruelty of keeping me upon the rack for a long time, he at last extricated me.  Parents are always stingy towards their poor children; my mother intended to have given me five hundred louis d’or, but she had kept back fifty, as well for some little repairs in the abbey, as to pay for praying for me.  Brinon had the charge of the other fifty, with strict injunctions not to speak of them, unless upon some urgent necessity.  And this you see soon happened.

“Thus you have a brief account of my first adventure.  Play has hitherto favoured me; for, since my arrival, I have had, at one time, after paying all my expenses, fifteen hundred louis d’or.  Fortune is now again become unfavourable:  we must mend her.  Our cash runs low; we must, therefore, endeavour to recruit.”

“Nothing is more easy,” said Matta; “it is only to find out such another dupe as the horse-dealer at Lyons; but now I think on it, has not the faithful Brinon some reserve for the last extremity?  Faith, the time is now come, and we cannot do better than to make use of it!”

“Your raillery would be very seasonable,” said the Chevalier, “if you knew how to extricate us out of this difficulty.  You must certainly have an overflow of wit, to be throwing it away upon every occasion as at present.  What the devil! will you always be bantering, without considering what a serious situation we are reduced to.  Mind what I say, I will go tomorrow to the head-quarters, I will dine with the Count de Cameran, and I will invite him to supper.”  “Where?” said Matta.  “Here,” said the Chevalier.  “You are mad, my poor friend,” replied Matta.  “This is some such project as you formed at Lyons:  you know we have neither money nor credit; and, to re-establish our circumstances, you intend to give a supper.”