"stoker-dracula-168" - читать интересную книгу автора (Stoker Bram)

diary seems horribly like the beginning of the "Arabian Nights," for
everything has to break off at cockcrow- or like the ghost of Hamlet's
father.)

12 May.- Let me begin with facts- bare, meagre facts, verified by
books and figures, and of which there can be no doubt. I must not
confuse them with experiences which will have to rest on my own
observation, or my memory of them. Last evening when the Count came
from his room he began by asking me questions on legal matters and
on the doing of certain kinds of business. I had spent the day wearily
over books, and, simply to keep my mind occupied, went over some of
the matters I had been examined in at Lincoln's Inn. There was a
certain method in the Count's inquiries, so I shall try to put them
down in sequence; the knowledge may somehow or some time be useful
to me.

First, he asked if a man in England might have two solicitors or
more. I told him he might have a dozen if he wished, but that it would
not be wise to have more than one solicitor engaged in one
transaction, as only one could act at a time, and that to change would
be certain to militate against his interest. He seemed thoroughly to
understand, and went on to ask if there would be any practical
difficulty in having one man to attend, say, to banking, and another
to look after shipping, in case local help were needed in a place
far from the home of the banking solicitor. I asked him to explain
more fully, so that I might not by any chance mislead him, so he
said:-

"I shall illustrate. Your friend and mine, Mr. Peter Hawkins, from
under the shadow of your beautiful cathedral at Exeter, which is far
from London, buys for me through your good self my place at London.
Good! Now here let me say frankly, lest you should think it strange
that I have sought the services of one so far off from London
instead of some one resident there, that my motive was that no local
interest might be served save my wish only; and as one of London
resident might, perhaps, have some purpose of himself or friend to
serve, I went thus afield to seek my agent, whose labours should be
only to my interest. Now, suppose I, who have much of affairs, wish to
ship goods, say, to Newcastle, or Durham, or Harwich, or Dover,
might it not be that it could with more ease be done by consigning
to one in these ports?" I answered that certainly it would be most
easy, but that we solicitors had a system of agency one for the other,
so that local work could be done locally on instruction from any
solicitor, so that the client, simply placing himself in the hands
of one man, could have his wishes carried out by him without further
trouble.

"But," said he, "I could be at liberty to direct myself. Is it not
so?"