WAGER. 97 



then frequently associated, that he would 

 tell any man's calling, however much a 

 stranger he might be, by his conversa- 

 tion, when and wherever he came in 

 contact with him. 



The wager was closed, and he met 

 the individual selected to be the object 

 of his experiment at a grand dinner- 

 party. The cloth was cleared, and the 

 company, consisting of the greatest wits 

 of the day, were eager to witness the skill 

 and penetration of their friend. The con- 

 versation became general, and the stranger 

 acquitted himself like a man of rank 

 and fashion, seemingly possessed of every 

 accomplishment ; every topic he discussed 

 with apparent ease and eloquence so 

 much so, that the wit, who had tried 

 every means that the shrewdest intel- 

 lect could devise to extract the kernel 

 from the shell, found himself beat at his 

 own weapons. 



VOL. n. H 



