My teacher also told me that one of the leading
merchants had sent me an invitation to repair to his house and to
consider myself his guest for as long a time as I chose. "He is a
delightful man," continued the interpreter, "but has suffered terribly
from" (here there came a long word which I could not quite catch, only it
was much longer than kleptomania), "and has but lately recovered from
embezzling a large sum of money under singularly distressing
circumstances; but he has quite got over it, and the straighteners say
that he has made a really wonderful recovery; you are sure to like him."
CHAPTER IX: TO THE METROPOLIS
With the above words the good man left the room before I had time to
express my astonishment at hearing such extraordinary language from the
lips of one who seemed to be a reputable member of society. "Embezzle a
large sum of money under singularly distressing circumstances!" I
exclaimed to myself, "and ask _me_ to go and stay with him! I shall do
nothing of the sort--compromise myself at the very outset in the eyes of
all decent people, and give the death-blow to my chances of either
converting them if they are the lost tribes of Israel, or making money
out of them if they are not! No.
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