The Universal Anthology (Volume 24); A Collection of the Best Literature, Ancient, Mediaeval and Modern, with Biographical and Explanatory Notes (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: de Marville; she must keep her word with me. If she did not, she would lose the property." At daybreak, when Re'monencq had taken down his shutters and left his sister in charge of the shop, he came, after his wont of late, to inquire for his good friend Cibot. The portress was contemplating the Metzu, privately wondering how a little bit of painted wood could be worth such a lot of money. " Aha ! " said he, looking over her shoulder, " that is the one picture which M. Elie Magus regretted; witli that little bit of a thing, he says, his happiness would be complete." " What would he give for it ? " asked La Cibot. " Why, if you will promise to marry me within a year of widowhood, I will undertake to get twenty thousand francs for it from llie Magus; and unless you marry me you will never get a thousand francs for the picture." " Why not ? " "Because you would be obliged to give a receipt for the money, and then you might have a lawsuit with the heirs at law. If you were my wife, I myself should sell the thing to M. Magus, and in the way of business it is enough to make an entry in the daybook, and I should note that M. Schmucke sold it to me. There, leave the panel with me. ... If your husband were to die you might have a lot of bother over it, but no one would think it odd that I should have a picture in the shop. . . . You know me quite well. Besides, I will give you a receipt if you like." The covetous portress felt that she had been caught; she agreed to a proposal which was to bind her for the rest of her life to the marine-store dealer. " You are right," said she, as she locked the picture away in a chest; "bring me the bit of writing." A FOOLS'-PARADISE A REAL PARADISE. By WALTER SAVAGE LANDOR. You smiled, you spoke, and I believed, By ev...