fidence is all that saved me. Whether the money were in a
lawyer's hands or in mine until the day came to pay for the land, seemed
to us all a matter of no importance."

"It would have been better," said Lebas, "to have kept the money in the
Bank of France until the time came to make the payments."

"Roguin was the bank to me," said Cesar. "But he is in the speculation,"
he added, looking at Claparon.

"Yes, for one-fourth, by verbal agreement only. After being such a fool
as to let him run off with my money, I sha'n't be such a fool as to
throw any more after it. If he sends me my hundred thousand francs, and
two hundred thousand more for his half of our share, I shall then see
about it. But he will take good care not to send them for an affair
which needs five years' pot-boiling before you get any broth. If he has
only carried off, as they say, three hundred thousand francs, he will
want the income of all of that to live suitably in foreign countries."

"The villain!"

"Eh! the devil take him! It was a woman who got him where he is," said
Claparon. "Where's the old man who can answer for himself that he won't
be the slave of his last fancy? None of us, who think ourselves so
virtuous, know how we shall end. A last passion,--eh! it is the most
violent of all! Look at Cardot, Camusot, Matifat; they all have their
mistresses! If we have been gobbled up to satisfy Roguin's, isn't it
our own fault? Why didn't we distrust a notary who meddles with
speculations? Every notary, every broker, every trustee who speculates
is an object of suspicion. Failure for them is fraudulent bankruptcy;
they are sure to go before the criminal courts, and therefore they
prefer to run out of the country. I sha'n't commit such a stupid blunder
again. Well, well! we are too shaky ourselves in the matter not to let
judgment go by default against the men we have dined with, who have
given us fine balls,--men of the world, in short. Nobody complains; we
are all to blame."

"Very much to blame," said Birotteau. "The laws about failures and
insolvency should be looked into."

"If you have any need of me," said Lebas to Cesar, "I am at your
service."

"Monsieur does not need any one," said the irrepressible chatterbox,
whose floodgates du Tillet had set wide open when he turned on the
water,--for Claparon was now repeating a lesson du Tillet had cleverly
taught him. "His course is quite clear. Roguin's assets will give fifty
per cent to the