I remained at the gate of the hotel for some time, looking at
everyone who passed by, and forming conjectures upon them, till my
attention got fixed upon a single object, which confounded all kind
of reasoning upon him.
It was a tall figure of a philosophic, serious adult look, which
passed and repassed sedately along the street, making a turn of
about sixty paces on each side of the gate of the hotel. The man
was about fifty-two, had a small cane under his arm, was dressed in
a dark drab-colored coat, waistcoat, and breeches, which seemed to
have seen some years' service. They were still clean, and there
was a little air of frugal propriete throughout him. By his
pulling off his hat, and his attitude of accosting a good many in
his way, I saw he was asking charity; so I got a sous or two out of
my pocket, ready to give him as he took me in his turn. He passed
by me without asking anything, and yet he did not go five steps
farther before he asked charity of a little woman. I was much more
likely to have given of the two. He had scarce done with the
woman, when he pulled his hat off to another who was coming the
same way. An ancient gentleman came slowly, and after him a young
smart one. He let them both pass and asked nothing. I stood
observing him half an hour, in which time he had made a dozen turns
backward and forward, and found that he invariably pursued the same
plan.
There were two things very singular in this which set my brain to
work, and to no purpose; the first was, why the man should only
tell his story to the sex; and secondly, what kind of a story it
was and what species of eloquence it could be which softened the
hearts of the women which he knew it was to no purpose to practice
upon the men.
There were two other circumstances which entangled this mystery.
The one was, he told every woman what he had to say in her ear, and
in a way which had much more the air of a secret than a petition;
the other was, it was always successful--he never stopped a woman
but she pulled out her purse and immediately gave him something.