"Do you think he will part with the blunt?"
"I am sure, my boy, he will shell out six hundred francs as easily as a penny; we shall handle the ready, that is the main thing, and we can afterwards leave him to his reflections."
"Well, but he will be enraged."
"Never mind, let him do his worst; but give yourself no trouble, I will provide for all. No black and white work (writing) mind; you know the proverb, 'Writings are men, words but women.'"
"True as gospel; no receipt for cash in hand, and yet we can safely pocket."
"Certainly, he who sows should reap; and no labour no profit. Meanwhile I will go and see how the land lies, and sound the old boy."
Goupil then took my hand, and, shaking it heartily, added, "I am now going straight to François, I will tell him you will call in the evening; I shall fix the hour for eight o'clock, but do not you come till eleven, because (as you must say) you will have been delayed; at midnight we shall be told to go out, you must appear to comply with this formality, and François will seize the opportunity of urging his request. You are a man of experience, and know how to play your cards. Farewell for the present."
"Adieu," I replied, and we separated. Scarcely, however, had we turned our backs on each other than Goupil returned.
"Oh!" said he, "you know that very frequently the feathers are more valuable than the bird; I want a pluck at the feathers, otherwise " and he assumed a peculiar attitude, opening his enormous mouth, holding his hands about six inches from the ground, as if he was about to scrape the pavement, and completing the menace by drawing back his body and advancing his legs, in which the mobility of his feet were not the least comical part of his attitude.
"All's right," said I to Goupil, "you shall not swallow me. We will divide,—it is a bargain."
