1 6 MR. HENRY PAD WICK 



guilty of anything of the kind. For supposing, which is 

 quite possible, that instead of one horse he had in- 

 structed my brother to purchase ten horses at the same 

 or even a larger price, the latter would as undoubtedly 

 have faithfully executed the commission, as Mr. Greville 

 would as assuredly, I may take it, have repudiated the 

 whole transaction without regard to the result, which 

 might have been my brother's ruin. This is one instance, 

 of which I fear there may be too many, when the word 

 of a gentleman unfortunately is not always to be taken 

 in its bare simplicity; and proves that in this, as in 

 other things, ' the great ones of the earth ' will be found 

 very much like the rest of mankind. 



This was the first time I found Mr. Pad wick go from 

 his word, in which I had implicitly trusted ; for had he 

 not trusted me in the same frank way in the purchase of 

 Alvediston ? and could I let ' ingratitude so besmear me ' 

 as to be less confiding in him ? However, it taught me 

 a lesson that has been useful in after-life and to the 

 present day. We have all heard of ' A horse kicking 

 a dog biting, and a gentleman's word without his hand- 

 writing ;' and I should no doubt have had a proper 

 stamped agreement, attested by an independent witness. 

 The lesson, at all events, saved me 500 shortly after- 

 wards in another transaction I had with him, an account 

 of which will fitly find a place here. 



In my dealings with Mr. Padwick, I have been both 

 a borrower and a lender. His charge to strangers was 

 50 per cent., rising sometimes, as in the case of poor 

 Starkey, to 500 per cent. ; but to friends he would 

 charge the not very unreasonable rate of 20 per cent. 

 He was willing himself to pay 10 per cent, for the use 

 of the needful funds, and at this rate I once lent him 

 2,000 on his own bill of exchange. It was just after 



