Daniel Defoe: The Friendly Daemon, or the Generous Apparition

The Despondency I was now under of any Assistance from humane Art, and the slender Opinion you seem'd to entertain of my Recovery, made my Intervals as Melancholy as my Fits were troublesome; oppress'd with these hard Circumstances, I supported a burthensome Life, and drag'd on the tedious Hours till the latter end of the Year – 25, about which Time, as I was slumbering one Morning in my Bed, after a restless Night, my good Genius or Guardian Angel, Cloth'd in a white Surplice like a singing Boy, appear'd before me, holding a Scrowle or Label in his right Hand, whereon the following Words were wrote in large Capitals.

READ, BELIEVE AND PRACTISE, THE LOADSTONE SHALL BE YOUR CURE, WITH AN ADDITION OF THE POWDER HERE PRESCRIB'D YOU; BUT KEEP THE LAST AS A SECRET; FOR WITH THAT AND THE MAGNET YOU SHALL RELIEVE NUMBERS IN DISTRESS, AND LIVE TO DO GREATER WONDERS THAN YOU HAVE HITHERTO PERFORM'D; THEREFORE BE OF GOOD CHEAR, FOR YOU HAVE A FRIEND UNKNOWN, WHO, IN THE TIME OF TROUBLE, WILL NEVER FAIL YOU.

This comfortable News, tho' deliver'd to me after so surprizing a manner, yet, was it very welcome to a languishing Person under a complication of Misfortunes, notwithstanding I had a great struggle with my natural Reason, before I could convince my self of what I was yet confident my very Eyes had seen, or at least had been represented to me after an extraordinary manner, for betwixt really seeing what we call a Vision or verily believing we do see it, there is but a slender difference; however, the intire Confidence I had put in Providence, and the great desire I had to be reliev'd, were to me convincing Arguments, beyond all Objection, that my Guardian Angel had actually appear'd and communicated to my Eyes the very Scrowle that I had read, the Words of which, lest my Memory should have prov'd treacherous, I enter'd in my Pocket-Book as they are before recited, the Recipe only excepted.

Having thus subjected my Reason to my Senses, or at least my Faith, for I either saw or believ'd I saw what I have here reported, I had nothing else to do, but to put in Practice the Receipt which my good Genius had imparted to me, tho' how to come at a Loadstone, seem'd to me as difficult as to find out the Philosopher's Stone, having but a slender Knowledge of the thing it self, and much less of its Virtues; however, upon enquiry, I soon found out a certain Virtuoso, near Moorfields

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.