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Escrocevitch, rubbing his hands; and for greater security he turned the key in the door. "Take whichever piece of charcoal you please, your excellency; but, not to soil your hands, you had better let me take it myself, and you sprinkle some of the dust on it," and he humbled himself before the prince.
Prince Shadursky was just up, when his footman announced to him that a Mr. Valyajnikoff wished to see him. The prince put on his dressing gown and went into the drawing-room, where the tolerably presentable but strangely dressed person of Mr. Escrocevitch presented itself to him.
They went together to one of the best-known jewelers, who, in their presence, made a test and announced that the gold was chemically pure, without any alloy, and therefore of the highest value. On their return to the hotel, Mr. Escrocevitch weighed the bags, which turned out to weigh forty-eight pounds. Allowing three pounds for the weight of the bags, this left forty-five pounds of pure gold.
Mr. Escrocevitch was a person of general utility and was especially good at all kinds of conjuring tricks. Watches, snuff-boxes, cigar-cases, silver spoons, and even heavy bronze paper-weights acquired the property of suddenly vanishing from under his hands, and of suddenly reappearing in a quite unexpected quarter. This valuable gift had been acquired by Mr.
The "chemist" who makes the experiments must make himself familiar with the distinctive appearance of the charcoal, so as to pick it out from among several pieces, and must remember exactly where the crevice is. On this first occasion, Escrocevitch had prepared all four pieces of charcoal, which were brought by the servant in the passage.
Both Kallash and Kovroff were too cautious to take an immediate, personal part in the gold-dust sale. There was a certain underling, Mr. Escrocevitch by name, at Sergei Kovroff's beck and call a shady person, rather dirty in aspect, and who was, therefore, only admitted to Sergei's presence by the back door and through the kitchen, and even then only at times when there were no outsiders present.
"It will make exactly nine thousand, your excellency. Just exactly nine," Escrocevitch obsequiously helped him out.
Try the globules on the touch-stone physically, and, so to speak, with the nitric acid chemically. And if you wish to make even more certain, this is what we shall do. What quantity of gold does your excellency wish to take?" "The more the better. I am ready to buy all these bags." "Very much obliged to your excellency, as this will suit me admirably," said Escrocevitch, bowing low.
"Take the globule, your excellency, and place it, for greater security, in your pocketbook," said Escrocevitch; "you may even wrap it up in a bit of paper; and keep the sack of gold dust yourself, so that there can be no mistake." Shadursky gladly followed this last piece of advice.
The "chemist" who makes the experiments must make himself familiar with the distinctive appearance of the charcoal, so as to pick it out from among several pieces, and must remember exactly where the crevice is. On this first occasion, Escrocevitch had prepared all four pieces of charcoal, which were brought by the servant in the passage.
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