Clearing My Name by Oath
Seeing an opportunity to vindicate his reputation, the narrator agrees to help Mrs. Gawky only if she will swear an oath before a magistrate detailing the full conspiracy against him. Once she signs a written declaration to that effect, he gives her 5 guineas, a sum far larger than she expected.
Vindication and Reconciliation with Lavement
The narrator sends the signed declaration to Lavement, who immediately recognizes the narrator’s innocence. Lavement visits with the schoolmaster Mr. Concordance to apologize for the false accusation, and the narrator pleads Mrs. Gawky’s case so effectively that Lavement agrees to pay her a small lifetime annuity, though he refuses to take her home due to his wife’s lasting anger toward her.
CHAPTER LIII
After resolving his financial affairs to his own satisfaction, the narrator purchased new clothes and a gold watch, while disposing of his old wardrobe for half its value, and then took the opportunity to confront both Strutwell and Straddle about the disappointments they had caused him. Banter soon observed the change in the narrator’s circumstances and proposed a new matrimonial scheme involving his kinswoman’s daughter, an invalid heiress with a fortune of twenty thousand pounds, offering to arrange a marriage in exchange for a bond of five hundred pounds payable six months after the wedding. Having accepted these advantageous terms, the narrator set out for Bath in the same stage coach as Miss Snapper and her mother, where he witnessed a spirited exchange of witty barbs between Miss Snapper and a boasting lieutenant, whose military exploits and attempts at singing a fashionable air were met with devastating sarcasm from the clever lady.
Purchasing New Clothes
The narrator sells his old clothes at a loss to buy new suits and a plain gold watch, despairing of recovering the watch he had given to Strutwell. He remains at ease and grows more gay, viewing the gaming-table as a certain resource.
Confronting Strutwell and Straddle
After the ambassador departs with his own secretary, the narrator feels at liberty to write to Strutwell, treating him with great freedom in a letter about amusing the narrator with vain hopes. He reproaches Straddle in person for misrepresenting Strutwell’s character, calling it infamous. Straddle seems enraged, talks about quality and honour, makes injurious comparisons, and when demanded an explanation, equivocates and condescends in a manner that leaves the narrator with hearty contempt.
Banter’s Matrimonial Scheme
Banter observes a sudden alteration in the narrator’s appearance and disposition. When inquired, the narrator invents a story about receiving a small supply from a relation in the country. Banter then proposes another matrimonial scheme involving his kinswoman’s daughter, who has a fortune of twenty thousand pounds. The daughter is sickly and decrepit, and her mother manages her fortune. Banter explains a breach between himself and the mother over a borrowed sum and a threatening letter that led to a writ against him. Banter proposes the narrator marry the girl for five hundred pounds to be paid six months after marriage. The narrator accepts these advantageous terms.
Departure for Bath
Banter gives notice of the time and stage coach in which the travelers will set out. The narrator bespeaks a place in the same convenience and hires a horse for Strap, who is chagrined with the prospect. They set forward for Bath.
Fellow Travellers Described
Before daybreak, the narrator embarks but cannot see Miss Snapper or perceive the number and sex of fellow travellers until seating himself with difficulty. The coach contains an officer, a lawyer, Miss Snapper, and a grave matron.
A Sharp Dialogue with the Captain
The officer, impatient of silence, attempts to engage conversation. Miss Snapper engages in witty repartee with him, comparing his conversation to a meeting of Quakers. When he swears he has got into a meeting of Quakers, she replies that the spirit of folly begins to move. Their sharp dialogue continues with witty exchanges about midwifes and folly, with Miss Snapper landing the final blow that leaves the warrior’s powder spent.
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