returned home as right as nine-pins, giving
their arms to the ladies. In the evening before going to bed, the two
families made up accounts and each paid half the expenses; and there was
never the least quarrel about a sou more or less.

The Lorilleuxs became jealous of the Goujets. It seemed strange to
them to see Young Cassis and Clump-clump going places all the time with
strangers instead of their own relations. But, that's the way it was;
some folks didn't care a bit about their family. Now that they had saved
a few sous, they thought they were really somebody. Madame Lorilleux
was much annoyed to see her brother getting away from her influence and
begin to continually run down Gervaise to everyone. On the other hand,
Madame Lerat took the young wife's side. Mother Coupeau tried to get
along with everybody. She only wanted to be welcomed by all three of her
children. Now that her eyesight was getting dimmer and dimmer she only
had one regular house cleaning job but she was able to pick up some
small jobs now and again.

On the day on which Nana was three years old, Coupeau, on returning home
in the evening, found Gervaise quite upset. She refused to talk about
it; there was nothing at all the matter with her, she said. But, as she
had the table all wrong, standing still with the plates in her hands,
absorbed in deep reflection, her husband insisted upon knowing what was
the matter.

"Well, it is this," she ended by saying, "the little draper's shop in
the Rue de la Goutte-d'Or, is to let. I saw it only an hour ago, when
going to buy some cotton. It gave me quite a turn."

It was a very decent shop, and in that big house where they dreamed of
living in former days. There was the shop, a back room, and two other
rooms to the right and left; in short, just what they required. The
rooms were rather small, but well placed. Only, she considered they
wanted too much; the landlord talked of five hundred francs.

"So you've been over the place, and asked the price?" said Coupeau.

"Oh! you know, only out of curiosity!" replied she, affecting an air
of indifference. "One looks about, and goes in wherever there's a bill
up--that doesn't bind one to anything. But that shop is altogether too
dear. Besides, it would perhaps be foolish of me to set up in business."

However, after dinner, she again referred to the draper's shop. She drew
a plan of the place on the margin of a newspaper. And, little by little,
she talked it