"How much for this necklace?" asked D'Harville.
"Your lordship will remark that the stones are of splendid cutting, and the purest water, almost all of the same size."
"Here are some wordy precautions most menacing for your purse," said
Saint Remy, laughing; "expect now, D'Harville, some exorbitant price."
"Come, M. Baudoin, your lowest price?" said D'Harville.
"I do not wish to make your lordship haggle, so I say the lowest is forty-two thousand francs."
"Gentlemen!" cried Lucenay, "let us admire D'Harville in silence. To arrange a surprise for his wife for forty-two thousand francs! The devil! don't go and noise that abroad; it will be a detestable example."
"Laugh as much as you please, gentlemen," said the marquis, gayly. "I am in love with my wife, I do not conceal it; I boast of it!"
"That is easily seen," said Saint Remy; "such a present speaks more than all the protestations in the world."
"I take this necklace, then," said D'Harville, "if you approve of the black enamel setting, Saint Remy."
"It sets off to advantage the brilliancy of the stones; they are beautifully arranged."