these things. Perhaps I can avoid sinking any of my fortune in an
annuity."

"What a beautiful pearl necklace!" said Natalie.
"He ought to give it to you, if he loves you," replied her mother;

"and I think he might have all my other jewels reset and let you keep
them. The diamonds are a part of your property in the contract. And

now, good-night, my darling. After the fatigues of this day we both
need rest."

The woman of luxury, the Creole, the great lady, capable" target="_blank" title="a.无能力的；不能的">incapable of
analyzing the results of a contract which was not yet in force, went

to sleep in the joy of seeing her daughter married to a man who was
easy to manage, who would let them both be mistresses of his home, and

whose fortune, united to theirs, would require no change in their way
of living. Thus having settled her account with her daughter, whose

patrimony was acknowledged in the contract, Madame Evangelista could
feel at her ease.

"How foolish of me to worry as I did," she thought. "But I wish the
marriage were well over."

So Madame Evangelista, Paul, Natalie, and the two notaries were
equally satisfied with the first day's result. The Te Deum was sung in

both camps,--a dangerous situation; for there comes a moment when the
vanquished side is aware of its mistake. To Madame Evangelista's mind,

her son-in-law was the vanquished side.
CHAPTER IV

THE MARRIAGE CONTRACT--SECOND DAY
The next day Elie Magus (who happened at that time to be in Bordeaux)

obeyed Madame Evangelista's summons, believing, from general rumor as
to the marriage of Comte Paul with Mademoiselle Natalie, that it

concerned a purchase of jewels for the bride. The Jew was, therefore,
astonished when he learned that, on the contrary, he was sent for to

estimate the value of the mother-in-law's property. The instinct of
his race, as well as certain insidious questions, made him aware that

the value of the diamonds was included in the marriage-contract. The
stones were not to be sold, and yet he was to estimate them as if some

private person were buying them from a dealer. Jewellers alone know
how to distinguish between the diamonds of Asia and those of Brazil.

The stones of Golconda and Visapur are known by a whiteness and
glittering brilliancy which others have not,--the water of the

Brazilian diamonds having a yellow tinge which reduces their selling
value. Madame Evangelista's necklace and ear-rings, being composed

entirely of Asiatic diamonds, were valued by Elie Magus at two hundred
and fifty thousand francs. As for the "Discreto," he pronounced it one

of the finest diamonds in the possession of private persons; it was
known to the trade and valued at one hundred thousand francs. On

hearing this estimate, which proved to her the lavishness of her
husband, Madame Evangelista asked the old Jew whether she should be

able to obtain that money immediately.
"Madame," replied the Jew, "if you wish to sell I can give you only

seventy-five thousand for the brilliant, and one hundred and sixty
thousand for the necklace and earrings."

"Why such reduction?"
"Madame," replied Magus, "the finer the diamond, the longer we keep it

unsold. The rarity of such investments is one reason for the high
value set upon precious stones. As the merchant cannot lose the

interest of his money, this additional sum, joined to the rise and
fall to which such merchandise is subject, explains the difference

between the price of purchase and the price of sale. By owning these
diamonds you have lost the interest on three hundred thousand francs

for twenty years. If you wear your jewels ten times a year, it costs
you three thousand francs each evening to put them on. How many

beautiful gowns you could buy with that sum. Those who own diamonds
are, therefore, very foolish; but, luckily for us, women are never

willing to understand the calculation."
"I thank you for explaining it to me, and I shall profit by it."

"Do you wish to sell?" asked Magus, eagerly.
"What are the other jewels worth?"

The Jew examined the gold of the settings, held the pearls to the
light, scrutinized the rubies, the diadems, clasps, bracelets, and

chains, and said, in a mumbling tone:--
"A good many Portuguese diamonds from Brazil are among them. They are

not worth more than a hundred thousand to me. But," he added, "a
dealer would sell them to a customer for one hundred and fifty

thousand, at least."
"I shall keep them," said Madame Evangelista.

"You are wrong," replied Elie Magus. "With the income from the sum
they represent you could buy just as fine diamonds in five years, and

have the capital to boot."
This singularconference became known, and corroborated certain rumors

excited by the discussion of the contract. The servants of the house,
overhearing high voices, supposed the difficulties greater than they

really were. Their gossip with other valets spread the information,
which from the lower regions rose to the ears of the masters. The

attention of society, and of the town in general, became so fixed on
the marriage of two persons equally rich and well-born, that every

one, great and small, busied themselves about the matter, and in less
than a week the strangest rumors were bruited about.

"Madame Evangelista sells her house; she must be ruined. She offered
her diamonds to Elie Magus. Nothing is really settled between herself

and the Comte de Manerville. Is it probable that the marriage will
ever take place?"

To this question some answered yes, and others said no. The two
notaries, when questioned, denied these calumnies, and declared that

the difficulties arose only from the official delay in constituting
the entail. But when public opinion has taken a trend in one direction

it is very difficult to turn it back. Though Paul went every day to
Madame Evangelista's house, and though the notaries denied these

assertions continually, the whispered calumny went on. Young girls,
and their mothers and aunts, vexed at a marriage they had dreamed of

for themselves or for their families, could not forgive the Spanish
ladies for their happiness, as authors cannot forgive each other for

their success. A few persons revenged themselves for the twenty-years
luxury and grandeur of the family of Evangelista, which had lain

heavily on their self-love. A leading personage at the prefecture
declared that the notaries could have chosen no other language and

followed no other conduct in the case of a rupture. The time actually
required for the establishment of the entail confirmed the suspicions

of the Bordeaux provincials.
"They will keep the ball going through the winter; then, in the

spring, they will go to some watering-place, and we shall learn before
the year is out that the marriage is off."

"And, of course, we shall be given to understand," said others, "for
the sake of the honor of the two families, that the difficulties did

not come from either side, but the chancellor refused to consent; you
may be sure it will be some quibble about that entail which will cause

the rupture."
"Madame Evangelista," some said, "lived in a style that the mines of

Valencia couldn't meet. When the time came to melt the bell, and pay
the daughter's patrimony, nothing would be found to pay it with."

The occasion was excellent to add up the spendings of the handsome
widow and prove, categorically, her ruin. Rumors were so rife that

bets were made for and against the marriage. By the laws of worldly
jurisprudence this gossip was not allowed to reach the ears of the

parties concerned. No one was enemy or friend enough to Paul or to
Madame Evangelista to inform either of what was being said. Paul had

some business at Lanstrac, and used the occasion to make a hunting-