"Yes," said Maurice, regarding Geneviève with great attention; "but you have not told me how Monsieur Morand came to be associated with your husband."
"Oh, that is very simple," said Geneviève. "Monsieur Dixmer had, as I have told you, some fortune, but still not sufficient to engage alone in a large concern like this. The son of Monsieur Morand, his protector, as I have already mentioned,—this friend of my father, you will remember,—provided half the funds, and as he possesses a good knowledge of chemistry, he devotes himself to various improvements with the energy you have remarked, and, thanks to which, the business of Monsieur Dixmer, who has charge of all the practical part, has extended immensely."
"Monsieur Morand is also a great friend of yours, is he not, Madame?" said Maurice.
"Monsieur Morand is a noble-hearted being, one of the worthiest men in existence," gravely replied Geneviève.
"If he has given you no other proofs," said Maurice, a little piqued at the importance accorded by Geneviève to the young man, the partner of her husband, "than dividing the expenses of this establishment with Monsieur Dixmer, and inventing a new dye for morocco, allow me to say that you rather over-rate his merits."
"He has given me many other proofs, sir," said Geneviève.
"He is young, is he not?" said Maurice. "His green spectacles render it difficult to tell his age."
"He is thirty-five."
"You have known him then a long time?"
"From infancy."