The Firm of Nucingen | Page 7

up in his cravat,
"anywhere else, I should say, with the 'gentlemen'; but here, I think----"
"With the scoundrelly scapegraces with whom you have the honor to
associate?" said Bixiou.
"Upon my word, yes."
"And you?" asked Bixiou, turning to Couture.
"Stuff and nonsense!" cried Couture. "The woman that will not make a
stepping-stone of her body, that the man she singles out may reach his
goal, is a woman that has no heart except for her own purposes."
"And you, Blondet?"
"I do not preach, I practise."
"Very good," rejoined Bixiou in his most ironical tones. "Rastignac was
not of your way of thinking. To take without repaying is detestable, and
even rather bad form; but to take that you may render a hundred-fold,
like the Lord, is a chivalrous deed. This was Rastignac's view. He felt
profoundly humiliated by his community of interests with Delphine de
Nucingen; I can tell you that he regretted it; I have seen him deploring
his position with tears in his eyes. Yes, he shed tears, he did
indeed--after supper. Well, now to OUR way of thinking----"
"I say, you are laughing at us," said Finot.
"Not the least in the world. We were talking of Rastignac. From your
point of view his affliction would be a sign of his corruption; for by
that time he was not nearly so much in love with Delphine. What would
you have? he felt the prick in his heart, poor fellow. But he was a man
of noble descent and profound depravity, whereas we are virtuous
artists. So Rastignac meant to enrich Delphine; he was a poor man, she
a rich woman. Would you believe it?--he succeeded. Rastignac, who
might have fought at need, like Jarnac, went over to the opinion of

Henri II. on the strength of his great maxim, 'There is no such thing as
absolute right; there are only circumstances.' This brings us to the
history of his fortune."
"You might just as well make a start with your story instead of drawing
us on to traduce ourselves," said Blondet with urbane good humor.
"Aha! my boy," returned Bixiou, administering a little tap to the back
of Blondet's head, "you are making up for lost time over the
champagne!"
"Oh! by the sacred name of shareholder, get on with your story!" cried
Couture.
"I was within an ace of it," retorted Bixiou, "but you with your
profanity have brought me to the climax."
"Then, are there shareholders in the tale?" inquired Finot.
"Yes; rich as rich can be--like yours."
"It seems to me," Finot began stiffly, "that some consideration is owing
to a good fellow to whom you look for a bill for five hundred francs
upon occasion----"
"Waiter!" called Bixiou.
"What do you want with the waiter?" asked Blondet.
"I want five hundred francs to repay Finot, so that I can tear up my I. O.
U. and set my tongue free."
"Get on with your story," said Finot, making believe to laugh.
"I take you all to witness that I am not the property of this insolent
fellow, who fancies that my silence is worth no more than five hundred
francs. You will never be a minister if you cannot gauge people's
consciences. There, my good Finot," he added soothingly, "I will get on
with my story without personalities, and we shall be quits."
"Now," said Couture with a smile, "he will begin to prove for our
benefit that Nucingen made Rastignac's fortune."
"You are not so far out as you think," returned Bixiou. "You do not
know what Nucingen is, financially speaking."
"Do you know so much as a word as to his beginnings?" asked Blondet.
"I have only known him in his own house," said Bixiou, "but we may
have seen each other in the street in the old days."
"The prosperity of the firm of Nucingen is one of the most
extraordinary things seen in our days," began Blondet. "In 1804
Nucingen's name was scarcely known. At that time bankers would have

shuddered at the idea of three hundred thousand francs' worth of his
acceptances in the market. The great capitalist felt his inferiority. How
was he to get known? He suspended payment. Good! Every market
rang with a name hitherto only known in Strasbourg and the Quartier
Poissonniere. He issued deposit certificates to his creditors, and
resumed payment; forthwith people grew accustomed to his paper all
over France. Then an unheard-of-thing happened--his paper revived,
was in demand, and rose in value. Nucingen's paper was much inquired
for. The year 1815 arrives, my banker calls in his capital, buys up
Government stock before the battle of Waterloo, suspends payment
again in the thick of the crisis, and meets his engagements with shares
in the Wortschin mines, which he himself issued