"Positively?"
"Yes, yes, yes,—a hundred times yes."
"Then, my dear Arthur, you will not reproach me if I profit by your decision?"
"How can that be? What do you mean?"
"This is my scheme. The life you are living in this earthly paradise has turned my head. Will you sell me all of these treasures,—palace, women, dogs, dwarfs, and parrots?"
I thought that he was joking, and looked at him incredulously.
"Is it a bargain? You will lose less than in selling everything piecemeal," said he, with a resolute air. "But what do you ask for the slaves and the furniture?"
"It is useless for you to ask the price of the slaves, for I will only leave them with you on condition that when you leave the island you will set them free."
"But how do you expect to get back to France?"
"I shall ask M. de Fersen to allow me to take your place on the frigate."