Whom had I to blame but myself for the departure of the Armenian?
Would he have ever thought of attacking the Persians had I not put the idea into his head?
he had told me in his epistle that he was indebted to me for the idea.

But for that, he might at the present moment have been in London, increasing his fortune by his usual methods, and I might be commencing under his auspices the translation of the Haik Esop, with the promise, no doubt, of a considerable remuneration for my trouble; or I might be taking a seat opposite the Moldavian clerk, and imbibing the first rudiments of doing business after the Armenian fashion, with the comfortable hope of realizing, in a short time, a fortune of three or four hundred thousand pounds; but the Armenian was now gone, and farewell to the fine hopes I had founded upon him the day before.

What was I to do?
I looked wildly around, till my eyes rested on the Moldavian clerk, who was writing away in his ledger with particular vehemence.

Not knowing what to do or say, I thought I might as well ask the Moldavian clerk when the Armenian had departed, and when he thought that he would return.

It is true it mattered little to me when he departed, seeing that he was gone, and it was evident that he would not be back soon; but I knew not what to do, and in pure helplessness thought I might as well ask; so I went up to the Moldavian clerk, and asked him when the Armenian had departed, and whether he had been gone two days or three?
Whereupon the Moldavian clerk, looking up from his ledger, made certain signs, which I could by no means understand.