A Monte Cristo at 18!
Or, from slave to avenger
Allyn Draper
30 pages
Pluck and Luck n° 198 - 1902 - États-Unis
Roman
Intérêt: 0
Ce fascicule de la série Pluck and Luck porte le n° 198.
Il a été publié à New York le 19 mars 1902. Il raconte l’histoire édifiante
de Fred Haydon, richissime orphelin âgé de 14 ans et placé sous
la tutelle de son oncle Crafton. Malheureusement, ce dernier est très
méchant et convoite la fortune du neveu. Il profite d’un voyage à travers
le Sahara pour abandonner celui-ci. Il met la main sur l’héritage
et devient un riche banquier à New York.
Fred devient esclave dans une tribu de méchants Arabes. Ces épreuves
l’affectent tant que son aspect se transforme au point de le rendre
méconnaissable, ce qui se révélera bien pratique par
la suite.
Comme il a de la ressource, il s’enfuit au bout de quatre ans, avec
deux compagnons: un autre jeune Américain lui aussi prisonnier,
et Fatima, une ravissante esclave à la peau claire, tombée
folle amoureuse de lui.
Il a bien fait d’emmener celle-ci, car il se trouve qu’elle
a dans la poche le plan de la cachette des petites économies d’un
négociant capturé jadis par les Arabes. Celui-ci, qui avait
sans doute des lettres, a enfoui une malle pleine de diamants dans une
petite île de la Méditerranée, l’île de
Monte-Cristo. Si!
Du coup, Fred se retrouve encore plus riche que son méchant oncle.
Quelques mois de cours particuliers, et il fait irruption dans la bonne
société européenne, éblouissant tout le monde
par sa fortune et son omniscience. Quant à sa femme, Fatima, qui,
six mois plus tôt n’était jamais sortie du désert
et ne parlait que l’arabe – au point de se faire passer pour
muette à son arrivée en Europe – elle éblouit
les salons grâce à ses bonnes manières et sa maîtrise
de toutes les langues.
Fred retourne aux Etats-Unis, va voir son oncle et lui explique
qu’il
va lui en faire baver. De fait, il enlève ses enfants, cause la
faillite de sa banque et l’oblige à fuir. Crafton, qui a vraiment
un mauvais fond, tombe de plus en plus bas: il se fait voleur, mendiant,
tombe dans la misère noire et finit par se suicider. Le voilà bien
puni!
Fred, pour sa part, découvre finalement, en lisant les papiers de
son oncle, que bien des années auparavant, ce dernier avait fait
le même coup de la disparition d’un enfant qui lui était
confié. Cette fois, il s’agissait d’une jeune et riche
héritière. Où cela? Dans le Sahara. Et c’est… Fatima,
mais oui! Ouf, Fred aura donc évité la mésalliance.
Mal écrit, décousu, parfaitement incohérent, ce petit
roman destiné aux adolescents est d’une nullité absolue.
Heureusement qu’il y a la couverture!
Extrait du chapitre 10 Mr.
Auval
There was a new sensation in the social circles of
Europe, and every polite court was on the tiptoe of curiosity.
A new luminary had arisen which promised to eclipse all
the former society meteors in brilliancy, and set all
tongues to wagging,
discussing his
antecedents, his wealth and his claim to attention.
Some said that he was a prince in disguise; others
averred that he was an American millionaire seeking
recognition
and a polish
in Europe,
while
others declared that he was simply an impostor, and
that before long the bubble would burst, and the
new wonder
would be forgotten.
Who this Mr. Auval was or whence he came, no one
seemed to know, but it was certain that he lived
in the most
sumptuous style,
scattered money with the prodigality of a Fortunatus,
traveled in the most
magnificent
state, and had a greater retinue of servants than
an Eastern rajah.
He occupied two entire suites of rooms at the hotels
when he remained, if for a short time only, and
rented magnificent
villas if his
stay was at all protracted, his horses and carriages
were without
number,
and
his dinners were grander and more luxurious than
even those given by kings
and emperors.
He occupied a state box at the opera, appeared
at all the court receptions, drove in the parks
at the
fashionable
hours, entertained
most royally,
and left nothing undone that a man of distinction
should do.
Now he was in Paris, dazzling even that gay
capital, anon he appeared in Vienna, and
turned the heads
of all the
Austrian ladies; again
he was in
Berlin, captivating even the emperor and
his court, and then he was in St. Petersburg, outshining
the
magnificence of
czars
and
millionaire
princes.
From Rome to Copenhagen, from Athens to London,
from Moscow to Dublin, now here, now there,
but always
in sight, he
flashed like a meteor
across the heaven of high life, and in
six months' time his fame,
had spread
all over two continents, and was even now
on its way to a third.
This Mr. Auval was certainly no impostor
in the way of money matters, for all
his bills
were
paid promptly,
no matter
how large, and
often having
paid the rental of a house three months
in advance, he
would suddenly change his plans and go
away after an occupancy of less than
a week.
Wherever he went he was accompanied by
a lady whom he introduced as his wife,
a most
radiantly
beautiful
creature,
dressed
in the utmost
magnificence,
and yet with rare good taste, and whose
manners were most charming, except
that she never
spoke, and scarcely
seemed
to listen,
although her wondrous
eyes showed the delight she felt in
the attentions showered upon her husband.
Mr. Auval had stated that his wife
was a deaf mute, but that he entertained
hopes of teaching
her to
speak and
to converse
with
others, the difficulty
of his position being enhanced by
the fact that from no one but himself could
she
receive
instructions.
All the learned professors of Europe
had offered their services, but
they were declined
with
polite graciousness
and an acknowledgement
of the honor
due him by Mr. Auval, who certainly,
if his wife were not gifted with
speech, possessed a remarkable
fluency himself.
He conversed in all the languages
of Europe, and was reputed one
of the
best Arabic
scholars outside
of
Asia, his attainments
not
ceasing
with
his linguistic knowledge by any
means, for he danced, rode, drove,
hunted,
fenced and
did everything
that an accomplished
gentleman
should do better
than the best of them. |
