首页 >出版文学> The Lesser Bourgeoisie>第27章
  "Itseemstome,"repliedTheodose,"thatbarristersatthePalaisarelikeTurksatConstantinople,whereafriendofmineaffirmedyoucouldseeagoodmany。ItisYOUwhomitisrathersurprisingtoseehere。"
  "Notatall,"saidThuillier,carelessly。"I’vecomeaboutthatcursedpamphlet。Isthereeveranyendtoyourlegalbothers?Iwassummonedherethismorning,butIdon’tregretit,asitgivesmethehappychanceofmeetingyou。"
  "I,too,"saidlaPeyrade,tyinguphisbundle。"Iamverygladtoseeyou,butImustleaveyounow;Ihaveanappointment,andIsupposeyouwanttodoyourbusinessatonce。"
  "Ihavedoneit,"saidThuillier。
  "DidyouspeaktoOlivierVinet,thatmortalenemyofyours?hesitsinthatcourt,"askedlaPeyrade。
  "No,"saidThuillier,naminganotherofficial。
  "Well,that’squeer!"saidthebarrister;"thatfellowmusthavethegiftofubiquity;hehasbeenallthemorninginthefifthcourt—room,andhasjustthisminutegivenajudgmentonacaseIpleaded。"
  Thuilliercolored,andgotoutofhishobbleasbesthecould。"Oh,hangit!"hesaid;"thosemeningownsareallalike,Idon’tknowonefromanother。"
  LaPeyradeshruggedhisshouldersandsaidaloud,butasiftohimself:"Alwaysthesame;crafty,crooked,neverstraightforward。"
  "Whomareyoutalkingabout?"askedThuillier,rathernonplussed。
  "Why,ofyou,mydearfellow,whotakemeforanimbecile,asifIandthewholeworlddidn’tknowthatyourpamphletbusinesscametoanendtwoweeksago。Why,then,summonyoutocourt?"
  "Well,Iwassentfor,"saidThuillier,withembarrassment;"somethingaboutregistryfees,——itisallGreektome,Ican’tcomprehendtheirscrawls。"
  "Andtheychose,"saidlaPeyrade,"preciselytheverydaywhentheMoniteur,announcingthedissolutionoftheChamber,madeyouthinkaboutbeingacandidateforthe12tharrondissement。"
  "Whynot?"askedThuillier,"whathasmycandidacytodowiththefeesIowetothecourt?"
  "I’lltellyou,"saidlaPeyrade,dryly。"Thecourtisathingessentiallyamiableandcomplaisant。’Tiens!’itsaidtoitself,’here’sthisgoodMonsieurThuilliergoingtobeacandidatefortheChamber;howhamperedhe’llbebyhisattitudetohisex—friendMonsieurdelaPeyrade,withwhomhewishesnowhehadn’tquarrelled。
  I’llsummonhimforfeeshedoesn’towe;thatwillbringhimtothePalaiswherelaPeyradecomesdaily;andinthatwayhecanmeethimbychance,andsoavoidtakingastepwhichwouldhurthisself—love。"
  "Well,thereyouaremistaken!"criedThuillier,breakingtheice。"I
  usedsolittlecraft,asyoucallit,thatI’vejustcomefromyourhouse,there!andyourportresstoldmewheretofindyou。"
  "Welldone!"saidlaPeyrade,"Ilikethisfrankness;Icangetonwithmenwhoplayabove—board。Well,whatdoyouwantofme?Haveyoucometotalkaboutyourelection?Ihavealreadybeguntoworkforit。"
  "No,really?"saidThuillier,"how?"
  "Here,"repliedlaPeyrade,feelingunderhisgownforhispocketandbringingoutapaper,"here’swhatIscribbledjustnowinthecourt—
  roomwhilethelawyerontheothersiderambledonlikeanexpert。"
  "Whatisitabout?"askedThuillier。
  "Readandyou’llsee。"
  Thepaperreadasfollows:——
  Estimateforanewspaper,smallsize,atthirtyfrancsayear。
  Calculatingtheeditionsat5,000thecostsare:——
  Paper,5reamsat12francs……1,860francs。
  Composition……2,400"
  Printing……450"
  Oneadministrator……250"
  Oneclerk……100"
  Oneeditor(alsocashier)……200"
  Onedespatcher……100"
  Folders……120"
  Oneofficeboy……80"
  Officeexpenses……150"
  Rent……100"
  Licenseandpostage……7,500"
  Reportingandstenographicnews……1,800"
  —————————
  Totalmonthly,15,110"
  "yearly,181,320"
  "Doyouwanttosetupapaper?"askedThuillier,indread。
  "I?"askedlaPeyrade,"Iwantnothingatall;youaretheonetobeaskedifyouwanttobeadeputy。"
  "UndoubtedlyIdo;because,whenyouurgedmetobecomeamunicipalcouncillor,youputtheideaintomyhead。Butreflect,mydearTheodose,onehundredandeightyonethousandthreehundredandtwentyfrancstoputout!HaveIafortunelargeenoughtomeetsuchademand?"
  "Yes,"saidlaPeyrade,"youcouldverywellsupportthatexpense,forconsideringtheendyouwanttoobtainthereisnothingexorbitantinit。InEnglandtheymakemuchgreatersacrificestogetaseatinParliament;butinanycase,Ibegyoutoobservethatthecostsareveryhighonthatestimate,andsomecouldbecutoffaltogether。Forinstance,youwouldnotwantanadministrator。You,yourself,anoldaccountant,andI,anoldjournalist,canverywellmanagetheaffairbetweenus。Alsorent,weneedn’tcountthat;youhaveyouroldapartmentintherueSaint—Dominiquewhichisnotyetleased;thatwillmakeafinenewspaperoffice。"
  "Allthatcostsofftwothousandfourhundredfrancsayear,"saidThuillier。
  "Well,that’ssomething;butyourerrorconsistsincalculatingontheyearlycost。Whendotheelectionstakeplace?"
  "Intwomonths,"saidThuillier。
  "Verygood;twomonthswillcostyouthirtythousandfrancs,evensupposingthepaperhadnosubscribers。"
  "True,"saidThuillier,"theexpenseiscertainlylessthanIthoughtatfirst。Butdoesanewspaperreallyseemtoyouessential?"
  "Soessentialthatwithoutthatpowerinourhands,Iwon’thaveanythingtodowiththeelection。Youdon’tseemtosee,mypoorfellow,thatingoingtoliveintheotherquarteryouhavelost,electorallyspeaking,animmenseamountofground。Youarenolongerthemanoftheplace,andyourelectioncouldbebalkedbythecryofwhattheEnglishcall’absenteeism。’Thismakesyourgameveryhardtoplay。"
  "Iadmitthat,"saidThuillier;"buttherearesomanythingswantedbesidesmoney,——anameforonething,amanager,editorialstaff,andsoforth。"
  "Aname,wehaveonemadetohand;editors,theyareyouandIandafewyoungfellowswhogrowoneverybushinParis。Asforthemanager,Ihaveamaninview。"
  "Whatnameisit?"askedThuillier。
  "L’EchodelaBievre。"
  "Butthereisalreadyapaperofthatname。"
  "Precisely,andthat’swhyIgivemyapprovaltotheaffair。DoyouthinkIshouldbefoolenoughtoadviseyoutostartanentirelynewpaper?’EchodelaBievre!’thattitleisatreasuretoamanwhowantssupportforhiscandidacyinthe12tharrondissement。Saythewordonly,andIputthattreasureintoyourhands。"
  "How?"askedThuillier,withcuriosity。
  "Parbleu!bybuyingit;itcanbehadforasong。"
  "Therenow,yousee,"saidThuillierinadiscouragedtone;"younevercountedinthecostofpurchase。"
  "Howyoudwellonnothings!"saidlaPeyrade,hunchinghisshoulders;
  "wehaveotherandmoreimportantdifficultiestosolve。"
  "Otherdifficulties?"echoedThuillier。
  "Parbleu!"exclaimedlaPeyrade;"doyousupposethatafterallthathastakenplacebetweenusIshouldboldlyharnessmyselftoyourelectionwithoutknowingexactlywhatbenefitIamtogetforit?"
  "But,"saidThuillier,ratherastonished,"Ithoughtthatfriendshipwasagoodexchangeforsuchservices。"
  "Yes;butwhentheexchangeconsistsinonesidegivingallandtheothersidenothing,friendshipgetstiredofthatsortofsharing,andasksforsomethingalittlebetterbalanced。"
  "But,mydearTheodose,whathaveItoofferyouthatyouhavenotalreadyrejected?"
  "Irejectedit,becauseitwasofferedwithoutheartiness,andseasonedwithMademoiselleBrigitte’svinegar;everyself—respectingmanwouldhaveactedasIdid。Giveandkeepdon’tpass,astheoldlegalsayingis;butthatispreciselywhatyoupersistindoing。"
  "I!——Ithinkyoutookoffenceveryunreasonably;buttheengagementmightberenewed。"
  "Sobeit,"repliedlaPeyrade;"butIwillnotputmyselfatthemercyofeitherthesuccessoftheelectionorMademoiselleCeleste’scaprices。Iclaimtherighttosomethingpositiveandcertain。Giveandtake;shortaccountsmakegoodfriends。"
  "Iperfectlyagreewithyou,"saidThuillier,"andIhavealwaystreatedyouwithtoomuchgoodfaithtofearanyoftheseprecautionsyounowwanttotake。Butwhatguaranteesdoyouwant?"
  "IwantthatthehusbandofCelesteshouldmanageyourelection,andnotTheodosedelaPeyrade。"
  "Byhurryingthingsasmuchaspossible,soBrigittesaid,itwouldstilltakefifteendays;andjustthink,withtheelectionsonlyeightweeksoff,tolosetwoofthemdoingnothing!"
  "Dayafterto—morrow,"repliedlaPeyrade,"thebannscanbepublishedforthefirsttimeatthemayor’soffice,intheintervalsofpublicationsomethingscouldbedone,forthoughthepublishingofthebannsisnotastepfromwhichthereisnoretreat,itisatleastapublicpledgeandalongsteptaken;afterthatwecangetyournotarytodrawthecontractatonce。Moreover,ifyoudecideonbuyingthisnewspaper,Ishouldn’tbeafraidthatyouwouldgobackonme,foryoudon’twantauselesshorseinyourstable,andwithoutmeIamcertainyoucan’tmanagehim。"
  "But,mydearfellow,"saidThuillier,goingbacktohisobjections,"supposethataffairprovestooonerous?"
  "There’snoneedtosaythatyouarethesolejudgeoftheconditionsofthepurchase。Idon’twishanymorethanyoudotobuyapiginapoke。Ifto—morrowyouauthorizeme,Iwon’tsaytobuy,buttoletthesepeopleknowthatyoumaypossiblymakethepurchase,I’llconferwithoneofthemonyourbehalf,andyoumaybecertainthatI’llstandupforyourinterestsasiftheyweremyown。"
  "Verygood,mydearfellow,"saidThuillier,"goahead!"
  "Andassoonasthepaperispurchasedwearetofixthedayforsigningthecontract?"
  "Yes,"repliedThuillier;"butwillyoubindyourselftouseyourutmostinfluenceontheelection?"
  "Asifitweremyown,"repliedlaPeyrade,"which,bythebye,isnotaltogetheranhypothesis。Ihavealreadyreceivedsuggestionsaboutmyowncandidacy,andifIwerevindictive——"
  "Certainly,"saidThuillier,withhumility,"youwouldmakeabetterdeputythanI;"butyouarenotoftherequiredage,Ithink。"
  "There’sabetterreasonthanthat,"saidlaPeyrade;"youaremyfriend;Ifindyouagainwhatyouoncewere,andIshallkeepthepledgesIhavegivenyou。Asfortheelection,Ipreferthatpeoplesayofme,’Hemakesdeputies,butwillbenonehimself。’NowImustleaveyouandkeepmyappointment。To—morrowinmyownrooms,comeandseeme;Ishallhavesomethingtoannounce。"
  Whosohaseverbeenanewspapermanwilleverbeone;thathoroscopeisassureandcertainasthatofdrunkards。Whoeverhastastedthatfeverishlybusyandrelativelylazyandindependentlife;whoeverhasexercisedthatsovereigntywhichcriticisesintellect,art,talent,fame,virtue,absurdity,andeventruth;whoeverhasoccupiedthattribuneerectedbyhisownhands,fulfilledthefunctionsofthatmagistracytowhichheisself—appointed,——inshort,whosoeverhasbeen,forhoweverbriefaspan,thatproxyofpublicopinion,looksuponhimselfwhenremandedtoprivatelifeasanexile,andthemomentachanceisofferedtohimputsoutaneagerhandtosnatchbackhiscrown。
  ForthisreasonwhenEtienneLousteauwenttolaPeyrade,aformerjournalist,withanofferoftheweaponentitledthe"EchodelaBievre,"allthelatter’sinstinctsasanewspapermanwerearoused,inspiteoftheveryinferiorqualityoftheblade。Thepaperhadfailed;laPeyradebelievedhecouldreviveit。Thesubscribers,onthevendor’sownshowing,werefewandfarbetween,buthewouldexerciseuponthema"compelleintrare"bothpowerfulandirresistible。Inthecircumstancesunderwhichtheaffairwaspresentedtohimitmightsurelybeconsideredprovincial。Threatenedwiththelossofhispositionatthebar,hewasthusacquiring,aswesaidbefore,anewpositionandthatofa"detachedfort";compelled,ashemightbe,todefendhimself,hecouldfromthatvantage—groundtaketheoffensiveandobligehisenemiestoreckonwithhim。
  OntheThuillierside,thenewspaperwouldundoubtedlymakehimapersonageofconsiderableimportance;hewouldhavemorepowerontheelection;andbyinvolvingtheircapitalinanenterprisewhich,withouthim,theywouldfeelagulfandasnare,heboundthemtohimbyself—interestssofirmlythattherewasnothingtofearfromtheircapriceoringratitude。
  Thishorizon,rapidlytakeninduringEtienneLousteau’svisit,hadfairlydazzledtheProvencal,andwehaveseentheperemptorymannerinwhichThuillierwasforcedintoacceptingwithsomeenthusiasmthediscoveryofthisphilosopher’s—stone。
  Thecostofthepurchasewasridiculouslyinsignificant。Abank—noteforfivehundredfrancs,forwhichEtienneLousteauneverclearlyaccountedtotheshare—holders,putThuillierinpossessionofthename,property,furniture,andgood—willofthenewspaper,whichheandlaPeyradeatoncebusiedthemselvesinreorganizing。
  CHAPTERX
  INWHICHCERIZETPRACTISESTHEHEALINGARTAND
  THEARTOFPOISONINGONTHESAMEDAY
  Whilethisregenerationwasgoingon,CerizetwentonemorningtoseeduPortail,withwhomlaPeyradewasnowmorethaneverdeterminedtoholdnocommunication。
  "Well,"saidthelittleoldmantothepoorman’sbanker,"whateffectdidthenewswegavetothepresidentofthebarproduceonourman?
  DidtheaffairgetwindatthePalais?"
  "Phew!"saidCerizet,whoseintercourse,nodoubtprettyfrequent,withduPortailhadputhimonafootingofsomefamiliaritywiththeoldman,"there’snoquestionofthatnow。Theeelhaswriggledoutofourhands;neithersoftnessnorviolencehasanyeffectuponthatdevilofaman。Hehasquarrelledwiththebar,andisinbetterodorthaneverwithThuillier。’Necessity,’saysFigaro,’obliteratesdistance。’ThuillierneedshimtopushhiscandidacyinthequartierSaint—Jacques,sotheykissedandmadeup。"
  "Andnodoubt,"saidduPortail,withoutmuchappearanceoffeeling,"themarriageisfixedforanearlyday?"
  "Yes,"repliedCerizet,"butthere’sanotherpieceofworkonhand。
  ThatcrazyfellowhaspersuadedThuilliertobuyanewspaper,andhe’llmakehimsinkfortythousandfrancsinit。Thuillier,onceinvolved,willwanttogethismoneyback,andinmyopiniontheyareboundtogetherfortherestoftheirdays。"
  "Whatpaperisit?"
  "Oh,acabbage—leafthatcallsitselfthe’EchodelaBievre’!"repliedCerizetwithgreatscorn;"apaperwhichanoldhackofajournalistonhislastlegsmanagedtosetupintheMouffetardquarterbythehelpofalotoftanners——that,youknow,istheindustryofthequarter。Fromapoliticalandliterarypointofviewtheaffairisnothingatall,butThuillierhasbeenmadetothinkitamasterlystroke。"
  "Well,forlocalservicetotheelectiontheinstrumentisn’tsobad,"
  remarkedduPortail。"LaPeyradehastalent,activity,andmuchresourceofmind;hemaymakesomethingoutofthat’Echo。’UnderwhatpoliticalbannerwillThuillierpresenthimself?"
  "Thuillier,"repliedthebeggars’banker,"isanoyster;hehasn’tanyopinions。Untilthepublicationofhispamphlethewas,likeallthosebourgeois,arabidconservative;butsincetheseizurehehasgoneovertotheOpposition。HisfirststagewillprobablybetheLeft—
  centre;butiftheelectionwindshouldblowfromanotherquarter,he’llgostraightbeforeittotheextremeleft。Self—interest,forthosebourgeois,that’sthemeasureoftheirconvictions。"
  "Dear,dear!"saidduPortail,"thisnewcombinationoflaPeyrade’smayassumetheimportanceofapoliticaldangerfromthepointofviewofmyopinions,whichareextremelyconservativeandgovernmental。"
  Then,afteramoment’sreflection,headded,"Ithinkyoudidnewspaperworkonceuponatime;Iremember’thecourageousCerizet。’"
  "Yes,"repliedtheusurer,"IevenmanagedonewithlaPeyrade,——aneveningpaper;andaprettypieceofworkwedid,forwhichwewerefinelyrecompensed。"
  "Well,"saidduPortail,"whydon’tyoudoitagain,——journalism,I
  mean,——withlaPeyrade。"
  CerizetlookedatduPortailinamazement。
  "Ahca!"hecried,"areyouthedevil,monsieur?Cannothingeverbehiddenfromyou?"
  "Yes,"saidduPortail,"Iknowagoodmanythings。ButwhathasbeensettledbetweenyouandlaPeyrade?"
  "Well,rememberingmyexperienceinthebusiness,andnotknowingwhomelsetoget,heofferedtomakememanagerofthepaper。"
  "Ididnotknowthat,"saidduPortail,"butitwasquiteprobable。
  Didyouaccept?"
  "Conditionally;Iaskedtimeforreflection。Iwantedtoknowwhatyouthoughtoftheoffer。"
  "Parbleu!Ithinkthatoutofanevilthatcan’tberemediedweshouldget,astheproverbsays,wingorfoot。Ihadratherseeyouinsidethanoutsideofthatenterprise。"
  "Verygood;butinordertogetintoitthere’sadifficulty。LaPeyradeknowsIhavedebts,andhewon’thelpmewiththethirty—
  three—thousandfrancs’securitywhichmustbepaiddowninmyname。I
  haven’tgotthem,andifIhad,Iwouldn’tshowthemandexposemyselftotheinsultsofcreditors。"
  "Youmusthaveagooddealleftofthattwenty—fivethousandfrancslaPeyradepaidyounotmorethantwomonthsago,"remarkedduPortail。
  "Onlytwothousandtwohundredfrancsandfiftycentimes,"repliedCerizet。"Iwasaddingituplastnight;theresthasallgonetopayoffpressingdebts。"
  "Butifyouhavepaidyourdebtsyouhaven’tanycreditors。"
  "Yes,thoseI’vepaid,butthoseIhaven’tpaidIstillowe。"
  "Doyoumeantotellmethatyourliabilitiesweremorethantwenty—
  fivethousandfrancs?"saidduPortail,inatoneofincredulity。
  "Doesamangointobankruptcyforless?"repliedCerizet,asthoughhewereenunciatingamaxim。
  "Well,IseeIamexpectedtopaythatsummyself,"saidduPortail,crossly;"butthequestioniswhethertheutilityofyourpresenceinthisenterpriseisworthtometheinterestononehundredandthirty—
  threethousand,threehundredandthirty—threefrancs,thirty—threecentimes。"
  "Hangit!"saidCerizet,"ifIwereonceinstallednearThuillier,I
  shouldn’tdespairofsoonputtinghimandlaPeyradeatloggerheads。
  Inthemanagementofanewspapertherearelotsofinevitabledisagreements,andbyalwaystakingthesideofthefoolagainstthecleverman,Icanincreasetheconceitofoneandwoundtheconceitoftheotheruntillifetogetherbecomesimpossible。Besides,youspokejustnowofpoliticaldanger;nowthemanagerofanewspaper,asyououghttoknow,whenhehastheintellecttobesomethingbetterthanamanofstraw,canquietlygivehissheetapushinthedirectionwanted。
  "There’sagooddealoftruthinthat,"saidduPortail,"butdefeattolaPeyrade,that’swhatIamthinkingabout。"
  "Well,"saidCerizet,"IthinkIhaveanothernicelittleinsidiousmeansofdemolishinghimwithThuillier。"
  "Saywhatitis,then!"exclaimedduPortail,impatiently;"yougoroundandroundthepotasifIwereamanitwoulddoyousomegoodtofinessewith。"
  "Youremember,"saidCerizet,comingoutwithit,"thatsometimeagoDutocqandIweremuchpuzzledtoknowhowlaPeyradewas,allofasudden,abletomakethatpaymentoftwenty—fivethousandfrancs?"
  "Ha!"saidtheoldmanquickly,"haveyoudiscoveredtheoriginofthatveryimprobablesuminourfriend’shands;andisthatoriginshady?"
  "Youshalljudge,"saidCerizet。
  AndherelatedinallitsdetailstheaffairofMadameLambert,——
  adding,however,thatonquestioningthewomancloselyattheofficeofthejustice—of—peace,afterthemeetingwithlaPeyrade,hehadbeenunabletoextractfromheranyconfession,althoughbyherwholebearingshehadamplyconfirmedthesuspicionsofDutocqandhimself。
  "MadameLambert,rueduVal—de—Grace,No。9;atthehouseofMonsieurPicot,professorofmathematics,"saidduPortail,ashemadeanoteoftheinformation。"Verygood,"headded;"comebackandseemeto—morrow,mydearMonsieurCerizet。"
  "Butpleaseremark,"saidtheusurer,"thatImustgiveananswertolaPeyradeinthecourseofto—day。Heisinagreathurrytostartthebusiness。"
  "Verywell;youmustaccept,askingadelayoftwenty—fourhourstoobtainyoursecurity。If,aftermakingcertaininquiriesIseeitismoretomyinterestsnottomeddleintheaffair,youcangetoutofitbymerelybreakingyourword;youcan’tbesenttothecourtofassizesforthat。"
  IndependentlyofasortofinexplicablefascinationwhichduPortailexercisedoverhisagent,heneverlostanopportunitytoremindhimoftheveryquestionablepointofdepartureoftheirintercourse。
  ThenextdayCerizetreturned。
  "Youguessedright,"saidduPortail。"ThatwomanLambert,beingobligedtoconcealtheexistenceofherbooty,andwantingtodrawinterestonherstolenproperty,musthavetakenitintoherheadtoconsultlaPeyrade;hisdevoutexteriormayhaverecommendedhimtoher。Sheprobablygavehimthatmoneywithouttakingareceipt。InwhatkindofmoneywasDutocqpaid?"
  "Innineteenthousand—francnotes,andtwelveoffive—hundredfrancs。"
  "That’spreciselyit,"saidduPortail。"Therecan’tbetheslightestdoubtleft。Now,whatusedoyouexpecttomakeofthisinformationbearinguponThuillier。"
  "IexpecttoputitintohisheadthatlaPeyrade,towhomheisgoingtogivehisgoddaughterandheiress,isoverheadandearsindebt;
  thathemakesenormoussecretloans;andthatinordertogetoutofhisdifficultieshemeanstognawthenewspapertothebone;andI
  shallinsinuatethatthepositionofamansomuchindebtmustbeknowntothepublicbeforelong,andbecomeafatalblowtothecandidatewhoserighthandheis。"
  "That’snotbad,"saidduPortail;"butthere’sanotherandevenmoreconclusiveusetobemadeofthediscovery。"
  "Tellme,master;I’mlistening,"saidCerizet。
  "Thuillierhasnotyetbeenable,hashe,toexplaintohimselfthereasonoftheseizureofthepamphlet?"
  "Yes,hehas,"repliedCerizet。"LaPeyradewastellingmeonlyyesterday,bywayofexplainingThuillier’sidioticsimplicity,thathehadbelievedamostridiculousbitofhumbug。The’honestbourgeois’ispersuadedthattheseizurewasinstigatedbyMonsieurOlivierVinet,substitutetotheprocureur—general。TheyoungmanaspiredforamomenttothehandofMademoiselleColleville,andtheworthyThuillierhasbeenmadetoimaginethattheseizureofhispamphletwasarevengefortherefusal。"
  "Good!"saidduPortail;"to—morrow,asapreparationfortheotherversionofwhichyouaretobetheorgan,ThuilliershallreceivefromMonsieurVinetaverysharpanddecideddenialoftheabuseofpowerhefoolishlygaveearto。"
  "Willhe?"saidCerizet,withcuriosity。
  "Butanotherexplanationmusttakeitsplace,"continuedduPortail;
  "youmustassureThuillierthatheisthevictimofpolicemachinations。Thatisallthepoliceisgoodfor,youknow,——
  machinations。"