"De Neufville has
failed!"

A cry of horror escaped Gotzkowsky's lips; he staggered, and was
obliged to support himself by a chair to keep himself from falling.
This was the last, decisive blow, and it had wounded him mortally. "De
Neufville has failed!" he muttered low to himself.

"Yes, he is bankrupt!" said Ephraim with scarcely suppressed malice.
"The proud Christian merchant, whose greatest pleasure it was to
look down with contempt upon the Jew Ephraim, he is bankrupt. The Jew
stands firm, but the Christian merchant is broken." And as he spoke,
he broke into a scornful laugh, which brought back to Gotzkowsky his
composure and self-possession.

"You triumph!" he said, "and on your brow is marked your rejoicing
over our fall. Yes! you have conquered, for De Neufville's failure
is your deed. It was you who persecuted him so long, and by cunning
suspicions and calumny undermined his credit until it was destroyed,
and the whole edifice of his honorable industry fell together."

"It _is_ my work," cried Ephraim exultingly, "for he stood in my way,
and I have pushed him out of it--what more? Life is but a combat;
whoever is the strongest--that is, has the most money--is conqueror."

"De Neufville has fallen--that is a hard blow," muttered Gotzkowsky;
and as his wandering eye met Ephraim's, he added with an expression
of complete prostration: "Enjoy my suffering; you have succeeded--I am
hurt unto death!"

"Listen to me, Gotzkowsky," said Ephraim, approaching nearer to him;
"I mean well by you."

"Oh, yes!" said Gotzkowsky, bitterly; "after you have hastened my
downfall, you condescend to love me. Yes, indeed! I believe in your
friendship; for none but a friend would have had the heart to bring
such a Job's message."

Ephraim shook his head. "Listen to me," said he; "I will be quite
candid with you. Formerly I hated you, it is true, for you were more
powerful and richer than I was; you were renowned for being honest and
punctual, and that hurt me. If a large bargain was to be made, they
were not satisfied unless Gotzkowsky was concerned in it, and if your
name stood at the bottom of a contract, every one was pleased. Your
name was as good as gold, and that vexed me."

"And for that reason you wished to overthrow me, and worked
unceasingly for my downfall; because you knew that I expected this
remittance of light money from Hamburg!"

"I procured the decision that the light money should be declared
uncurrent,