m?" asked Ursula.

"Ah, mademoiselle," cried La Bougival. "I'd give the rope to hang him."

Bongrand was already at Goupil's, now the appointed successor of Dionis,
but he entered the office with a careless air. "I have a little matter
to verify about the Minoret property," he said to Goupil.

"What is it?" asked the latter.

"The doctor left one or more certificates in the three-per-cent Funds?"

"He left one for fifteen thousand francs a year," said Goupil; "I
recorded it myself."

"Then just look on the inventory," said Bongrand.

Goupil took down a box, hunted through it, drew out a paper, found the
place, and read:--

"'Item, one certificate'--Here, read for yourself--under the number
23,533, letter M."

"Do me the kindness to let me have a copy of that clause within an
hour," said Bongrand.

"What good is it to you?" asked Goupil.

"Do you want to be a notary?" answered the justice of peace, looking
sternly at Dionis's proposed successor.

"Of course I do," cried Goupil. "I've swallowed too many affronts not to
succeed now. I beg you to believe, monsieur, that the miserable
creature once called Goupil has nothing in common with Maitre
Jean-Sebastien-Marie Goupil, notary of Nemours and husband of
Mademoiselle Massin. The two beings do not know each other. They are no
longer even alike. Look at me!"

Thus adjured Monsieur Bongrand took notice of Goupil's clothes. The new
notary wore a white cravat, a shirt of dazzling whiteness adorned with
ruby buttons, a waistcoat of red velvet, with trousers and coat of
handsome black broad-cloth, made in Paris. His boots were neat; his
hair, carefully combed, was perfumed--in short he was metamorphosed.

"The fact is you are another man," said Bongrand.

"Morally as well as physically. Virtue comes with practice--a practice;
besides, money is the source of cleanliness--"

"Morally as well as physically," returned Bongrand, settling his
spectacles.

"Ha! monsieur, is a man worth a hundred thousand francs a year ever
a democrat? Consider me in future as an honest man who knows what
refinement is, and who intends to love his wife," said Goupil; "and
what's more, I shall prevent my clients from ever doing dirty actions."

"Well, make haste," said Bongrand. "Let me have that copy in an hour,
and notary Goupil will have undone some of the evil deeds of Goupil the
clerk."

After asking the Nemours doctor to lend him his horse and cabriolet, he
went back to Ursu