Даниэль Дефо - Roxana

This, with some other Securities, made me a very handsome Estate, of above a Thousand Pounds a Year; enough, one wou’d think, to keep any Woman in England from being a Whore.

I Lay in at —, about four Miles from London , and brought a fine Boy into the World; and according to my Promise, sent an Account of it to my Friend at Paris , the Father of it; and in the Letter, told him how sorry I was for his going away, and did as good as intimate, that if he wou’d come once more to see me, I should use him better than I had done: He gave me a very kind and obliging Answer, but took not the least Notice of what I had said of his coming Over , so I found my Interest lost there for ever: He gave me Joy of the Child, and hinted, that he hop’d I wou’d make good what he had begg’d for the poor Infant, as I had promis’d; and I sent him word again, that I wou’d fullfil his Order to a Tittle; and such a Fool, and so weak I was in this last Letter, notwithstanding what I have said of his not taking Notice of my Invitation, as to ask his Pardon almost, for the Usage I gave him at Rotterdam , and stoop’d so low, as to expostulate with him for not taking Notice of my inviting him to come to me again, as I had done; and which was still more, went so far, as to make a second sort of an Offer to him, telling him almost in plain Words, that if he wou’d come Over now, I wou’d have him; but he never gave me the least Reply to it at-all, which was as absolute a Denial to me, as he was ever able to give; so I sat down, I cannot say contented, but vex’d heartily that I had made the Offer at-all; for he had, as I may say, his full Revenge of me, in scorning to answer, and to let me twice ask that of him, which he with so much Importunity begg’d of me before.

I was now up again, and soon came to my City Lodging, in the Pall-mall ; and here I began to make a Figure suitable to my Estate, which was very great; and I shall give you an Account of my Equipage in a few Words, and of myself too.

I paid 60 l . a Year for my new Apartments, for I took them by the Year; but then, they were handsome Lodgings indeed, and very richly furnish’d; I kept my own Servants to clean and look after them; found my own Kitchen-Ware, and Firing; [189] Firing : fuel. my Equipage was handsome, but not very great: I had a Coach, a Coachman, a Footman, my Woman, Amy , who I now dress’d like a Gentlewoman, and made her my Companion, and three Maids; and thus I liv’d for a time: I dress’d to the height of every Mode; went extremely rich in Cloaths; and as for Jewels, I wanted none; I gave a very good Livery lac’d with Silver, and as rich as any-body below the Nobility, cou’d be seen with: And thus I appear’d, leaving the World to guess who or what I was, without offering to put myself forward.

I walk’d sometimes in the Mall [190] the Mall : a fashionable walk in St James’s Park. with my Woman, Amy ; but I kept no Company, and made no Acquaintances, only made as gay a Show as I was able to do, and that upon all Occasions: I found however, the World was not altogether so unconcern’d about me, as I seem’d to be about them; and first, I understood that the Neighbours begun to be mighty inquisitive about me; as who I was? and what my Circumstances were?

Amy was the only Person that cou’d answer their Curiosity, or give any Account of me, and she a tattling Woman, and a true Gossip, took Care to do that with all the Art that she was Mistress of; she let them know, that I was the Widow of a Person of Quality in France ; that I was very rich; that I came over hither to look after an Estate that fell to me by some of my Relations who died here; that I was worth 40000 l . all in my own Hands, and the like .

This was all wrong in Amy , and in me too, tho’ we did not see it at first; for this recommended me indeed, to those sort of Gentlemen they call Fortune-Hunters , and who always besieg’d Ladies, as they call’d it , on purpose to take them Prisoners, as I call’d it ; that is to say, to marry the Women, and have the spending of their Money: But if I was wrong in refusing the honourable Proposals of the Dutch Merchant , who offer’d me the Disposal of my whole Estate, and had as much of his own to maintain me with; I was right now, in refusing those Offers which came generally from Gentlemen of good Families, and good Estates, but who living to the Extent of them, were always needy and necessitious, and wanted a Sum of Money to make themselves easie, as they call it ; that is to say, to pay off Incumbrances, Sisters’ Portions, and the like ; and then the Woman is Prisoner for Life, and may live as they please to give her Leave: This Life I had seen into clearly enough, and therefore I was not to be catch’d that way; however, as I said, the Reputation of my Money brought several of those sort of Gentry about me, and they found means, by one Stratagem or other, to get access to my Ladyship; but in short, I answer’d them all well enough; that I liv’d single, and was happy ; that as I had no Occasion to change my Condition for an Estate , so I did not see, that by the best Offer that any of them cou’d make me, I cou’d mend my Fortune; that I might be honour’d with Titles indeed, and in time rank on publick Occasions with the Peeresses; I mention that, because one that offer’d at me, was the eldest Son of a Peer: But that I was as well without the Title , as long as I had the Estate; and while I had 2000 l . a Year of my own, I was happier than I cou’d be in being Prisoner of State to a Nobleman ; for I took the Ladies of that Rank to be little better.

As I have mention’d Sir Robert Clayton , with whom I had the good Fortune to become acquainted, on account of the Mortgage which he help’d me to, it is necessary to take Notice, that I had much Advantage in my ordinary Affairs, by his Advice, and therefore I call it my good Fortune; for as he paid me so considerable an annual Income as 700 l . a Year, so I am to acknowledge myself much a Debtor, not only to the Justice of his Dealings with me, but to the Prudence and Conduct which he guided me to, by his Advice, for the Management of my Estate; and as he found I was not inclin’d to marry, he frequently took Occasion to hint, how soon I might raise my Fortune to a prodigious Height, if I wou’d but order my Family-Oeconomy so far within my Revenue, as to lay-up every Year something, to add to the Capital.

I was convinc’d of the Truth of what he said, and agreed to the Advantages of it; you are to take it as you go, that Sir Robert suppos’d by my own Discourse, and especially, by my Woman, Amy , that I had 2000 l . a Year Income; he judg’d, as he said, by my way [of] Living, that I cou’d not spend above one Thousand; and so, he added, I might prudently lay-by 1000 l . every Year, to add to the Capital; and by adding every Year the additional Interest, or Income of the Money to the Capital, he prov’d to me, that in ten Year I shou’d double the 1000 l . per Annum , that I laid by; and he drew me out a Table, as he call’d it, of the Encrease, for me to judge by; and by which, he said, if the Gentlemen of England wou’d but act so, every Family of them wou’d encrease their Fortunes to a great Degree, just as Merchants do by Trade; whereas now, says Sir Robert , by the Humour of living up to the Extent of their Fortunes, and rather beyond, the Gentlemen, says he , ay, and the Nobility too, are, almost all of them, Borrowers, and all in necessitous Circumstances.