As a general thing, his weekly allowance was spent by the middle of the week.

Ben had refused to lend money, and there was no one else he could call upon.

Even if our hero was dismissed, there seemed likely to be no improvement in this respect.
At this juncture, Conrad was, unfortunately, subjected to a temptation which proved too strong for him.
Mrs.Hamilton was the possessor of an elegant opera glass, which she had bought some years previous in Paris at a cost of fifty dollars.
Generally, when not in use, she kept it locked up in a bureau drawer.
It so happened, however, that it had been left out on a return from a matinee, and lay upon her desk, where it attracted the attention of Conrad.
It was an unlucky moment, for he felt very hard up.

He wished to go to the theater in the evening with a friend, but had no money.
It flashed upon him that he could raise a considerable sum on the opera glass at Simpson's, a well-known pawnbroker on the Bowery, and he could, without much loss of time, stop there on his way down to business.
Scarcely giving himself time to think, he seized the glass and thrust it into the pocket of his overcoat.

Then, putting on his coat, he hurried from the house.
Arrived at the pawnbroker's, he produced the glass, and asked: "How much will you give me on this ?" The attendant looked at the glass, and then at Conrad.
"This is a very valuable glass," he said.