it. And he could not call his girls away from the great
world, for fear of spoiling their prospects.

Just at that very time a country squire was courting the eldest, whose
acquaintance he had made at last year's dances. He was pretty sure to
marry her, as any other connection with the daughter of a man of good
repute would not be honourable; and then no doubt the bridegroom would
advance "papa" a couple of thousand florins or so to relieve him from
his embarrassments.

But the acquaintance of these squires was certainly very costly. Public
entertainments, frippery, and splendour made frightful inroads; and when
the domestic table was spread, the invisible shapes of tailors,
bootmakers, milliners, mercers, and hairdressers sat down and helped to
consume poor pater-familias' dinner.

As for the mistress of the house, she was the worst manager it is
possible to imagine. Understanding nothing herself, she left everything
to the servants. Whenever she was in a difficulty she ran up debts right
and left (it never entered into her calculations that she would one day
have to pay them back), and often when there was only just enough money
left to pay for kitchen requisites for another couple of days, she had a
pleasant little trick of posting off to the fruiterer's and bringing
back a pine-apple.

One day it happened that the directors suddenly, and, as is their wont,
without any previous notification, visited and examined the cashier's
department, and Meyer was found to be six thousand florins short in his
cash--the natural result of papa's frivolity. Meyer was incontinently
dismissed from his post, and the little property he possessed was
seized; there was even some talk of locking him up. For a whole
fortnight this catastrophe was the sole talk of the town.

Now, Meyer had an elder sister living in the city, an old maid who had
withdrawn from the world, and in happier times had been the butt of the
family's sarcasms. She did nothing all day but go to church, say her
prayers, and caress her cat; and whenever she and her cronies came
together they would gossip and abuse the younger generation, possibly
because they themselves were past enjoying what their juniors liked. But
towards nobody was she so venomously spiteful as towards her own family,
because they walked about fashionably dressed, lived well, and went to
balls, while she herself had to crouch beside the fire all the winter,
wear the same dress for twelve years