Guy Mannering.

GUY 3rANNERING. 307
thought was of the gipsy's purse. He had accepted it
without hesitation, though with something like a feeling
of degradation, arising from the character of the person
by whom he was thus accommodated. But it relieved
him from a serious, though temporary, embarrassment.
His money, excepting a very few shillings, was in his portmanteau, and that was in possession of Maeg's friends.
Some time was necessary to write to his agent, or even to
apply to his good host, at Charlies-hope, who would gladly
have supplied him. In the mean time, he resolved to
avail himself of XMeg's subsidy, confident that he should
have a speedy opportunity of replacing it with a handsome gratuity. "It can be but a trifling sum," he said to
himself, " and I dare say the good lady may have a share
of my bank-notes to make amends."
With these reflections he opened the leathern purse,
expecting to find at most three or four guineas. But
how much was he surprised to discover that it contained
besides a considerable quantity of gold pieces, of different
coinages and various countries, the joint amount of which
could not be short of a hundred pounds, several valuable
rings and ornaments set with jewels, and, as appeared
from the slight inspection he had time to give them, of
very considerable value.
Brown was equally astonished and embarrassed by the
circumstances in which he found himself, possessed, as he
now appeared to be, of property to a much greater amount
than his own, but which had been obtained in all probability by the same nefarious means through which he had
himself been plundered. His first thought was to inquire
after the nearest justice of peace, and to place in his hands
the treasure of which he had thus unexpectedly become
the depositary, telling, at the same time, his own remark-'~'"'r~'"v'J ""'O