The Confidence-Man The Miser Quotes

The Miser

Quote 1

"Nay, back, back—receipt, my receipt! Ugh, ugh, ugh! Who are you? What have I done? Where go you? My gold, my gold! Ugh, ugh, ugh!"

But, unluckily for this final flicker of reason, the stranger was now beyond ear-shot, nor was any one else within hearing of so feeble a call. (15, 51-52)

Too late, the miser realizes he has slipped up. In his greedy hopes of tripling his money, he lost sight of the fact that he didn't complete any paperwork. This "aha" moment is immediate. Not everyone in the novel comes to such knowledge so quickly.

"Don't, don't leave me, friend; bear with me; age can't help some distrust; it can't, friend, it can't. Ugh, ugh, ugh! Oh, I am so old and miserable. I ought to have a guardian. Tell me, if——"

"If? No more!"

"Stay! how soon—ugh, ugh!—would my money be trebled? How soon, friend?"

"You won't confide. Good-bye!"

"Stay, stay," falling back now like an infant, "I confide, I confide; help, friend, my distrust!"

From an old buckskin pouch, tremulously dragged forth, ten hoarded eagles, tarnished into the appearance of ten old horn-buttons, were taken, and half-eagerly, half-reluctantly, offered.

"I know not whether I should accept this slack confidence," said the other coldly, receiving the gold, "but an eleventh-hour confidence, a sick-bed confidence, a distempered, death-bed confidence, after all. Give me the healthy confidence of healthy men, with their healthy wits about them. But let that pass. All right. Good-bye!" (15, 44-50)

Tassel changes his tune again. Now he's demanding confidence from his victims—er, clients. He pretty much gets the miser to beg him to him to sell him stock by shaming him about having a lack of confidence. It's icky. Impressive, but icky.