made free to send up a jug of claret without my asking; and charged,
you may be sure, pretty handsomely for it in the bill. No gentleman
in those good old days went to bed without a good share of liquor to
set him sleeping, and on this my first day's entrance into the
world, I made a point to act the fine gentleman completely; and, I
assure you, succeeded in my part to admiration. The excitement of
the events of the day, the quitting my home, the meeting with
Captain Quin, were enough to set my brains in a whirl, without the
claret; which served to finish me completely. I did not dream of the
death of Quin, as some milksops, perhaps, would have done; indeed, I
have never had any of that foolish remorse consequent upon any of my
affairs of honour: always considering, from the first, that where a
gentleman risks his own life in manly combat, he is a fool to be
ashamed because he wins. I slept at Carlow as sound as man could
sleep; drank a tankard of small beer and a toast to my breakfast;
and exchanged the first of my gold pieces to settle the bill, not
forgetting to pay all the servants liberally, and as a gentleman
should. I began so the first day of my life, and so have continued.
No man has been at greater straits than I, and has borne more
pinching poverty and hardship; but nobody can say of me that, if I
had a guinea, I was not free-handed with it, and did not spend it as
well as a lord could do.

I had no doubts of the future: thinking that a man of my person,
parts, and courage, could make his way anywhere. Besides, I had
twenty gold guineas in my pocket; a sum which (although I was
mistaken) I calculated would last me for four months at least,
during which time something would be done towards the making of my
fortune. So I rode on, singing to myself, or chatting with the
passers-by; and all the girls along the road said God save me for a