He has tried to put it into color--the miniature counter, the
show-case, the background of boxes, each with a button looking
mischievously at him, or a glove shaking its forefinger, or a shapely
pair of hose making him blush, and the daintiest child in the world,
flushing and flirting and gossiping before him; but the sketch recalls
matters which he would forget, his hands lose command, something makes
his eye very dim, and he lays aside his implements, and takes a long
walk, and wears a sober face all that day.
We may all follow up the sequence of a young man's thoughts in doing a
strange wrong for the first time. If Ralph's passions of themselves
could not mislead him, there were not lacking arguments and advisers to
teach him that this was no offence, or that the usage warranted the sin.
He became acquainted, through Terrapin, with dozens of his countrymen;
the youngest and the oldest and the most estimable had their open
attachments. So far as he could remark, the married and the unmarried
tradesmen's wives in Paris were nearly equal in consideration. How could
he become perfect in the language without some such incentive and
associate?
His income was not considerable, but they told him that to double his
expenses was certain economy.
Pages:
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113