nforced," cried Cesar, lashing himself up.
"Out of every hundred merchants there are more than fifty who never
realize seventy-five per cent of the whole value of their business, or
who sell their merchandise at twenty-five per cent below the invoice
price; and that is the destruction of commerce."

"Monsieur is very right," said Molineux; "the law leaves a great deal
too much latitude. There should either be total relinquishment of
everything, or infamy."

"Damn it!" said Cesar, "at the rate things are going now, a merchant
will soon be a licensed thief. With his mere signature he can dip into
anybody's money-drawer."

"You have no mercy, Monsieur Birotteau," said Lourdois.

"He is quite right," said old Ragon.

"All insolvents are suspicious characters," said Cesar, exasperated by
his little loss, which sounded in his ears like the first cry of the
view-halloo in the ears of the game.

At this moment the late major-domo brought in Chevet's account, followed
by a clerk sent by Felix, a waiter from the cafe Foy, and Collinet's
clarionet, each with a bill.

"Rabelais' quarter of an hour," said Ragon, smiling.

"It was a fine ball," said Lourdois.

"I am busy," said Cesar to the messengers; who all left the bills and
went away.

"Monsieur Grindot," said Lourdois, observing that the architect was
folding up Birotteau's cheque, "will you certify my account? You need
only to add it up; the prices were all agreed to by you on Monsieur
Birotteau's behalf."

Pillerault looked at Lourdois and Grindot.

"Prices agreed upon between the architect and contractor?" he said in a
low voice to his nephew,--"they have robbed you."

Grindot left the shop, and Molineux followed him with a mysterious air.

"Monsieur," he said, "you listened to me, but you did not understand
me,--I wish you the protection of an umbrella."

The architect was frightened. The more illegal a man's gains the more he
clings to them: the human heart is so made. Grindot had really studied
the appartement lovingly; he had put all his art and all his time into
it; he had given ten thousand francs worth of labor, and he felt that in
so doing he had been the dupe of his vanity: the contractors therefore
had little trouble in seducing him. The irresistible argument and
threat, fully understood, of injuring him professionally by calumniating
his work were, however, less powerful than a remark made by Lourdois
about the lands near the Madeleine. Birottea