The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, 1725-1798. Volume 23: EnglishCasanova, Giacomo
History
The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, 1725-1798. Volume 23: English
Casanova, Giacomo
Casanova, Giacomo, 1725-1798; Europe -- History -- 18th century -- Biography
I thanked God from the bottom of my heart, and soon found myself in the
presence of the blind magistrate. My bail consisted of Pegu, my tailor,
and Maisonneuve, my wine merchant, who said they were happy to be able to
render me this slight service. In another part of the court I noticed the
infamous Charpillon, Rostaing, Goudar, and an attorney. They made no
impression on me, and I contented myself with giving them a look of
profound contempt.
My two sureties were informed of the amount in which they were to bail
me, and signed with a light heart, and then the magistrate said,
politely,--
"Signor Casanova, please to sign your name for double the amount, and you
will then be a free man again."
I went towards the clerk's table, and on asking the sum I was to answer
for was informed that it was forty guineas, each of my sureties signing
for twenty. I signed my name, telling Goudar that if the magistrate could
have seen the Charpillon he would have valued her beauty at ten thousand
guineas. I asked the names of the two witnesses, and was told that they
were Rostaing and Bottarelli. I looked contemptuously at Rostaing, who
was as pale as death, and averting my face from the Charpillon out of
pity, I said,--
"The witnesses are worthy of the charge."
I saluted the judge with respect, although he could not see me, and asked
the clerk if I had anything to pay. He replied in the negative, and a
dispute ensued between him and the attorney of my fair enemy, who was
disgusted on hearing that she could not leave the court without paying
the costs of my arrest.
Just as I was going, five or six well-known Englishmen appeared to bail
me out, and were mortified to hear that they had come too late. They
begged me to forgive the laws of the land, which are only too often
converted into a means for the annoyance of foreigners.
At last, after one of the most tedious days I have ever spent, I returned
home and went to bed, laughing at the experience I had undergone.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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