De la Brive My dear friend! In every profession, whether of art, science or literature, a man needs intellectual capital, special knowledge and capacity. But in politics, my dear fellow, a man wins everything and attains to everything by means of a single phrase—
Mericourt
What is that?
De la Brive "The principles of my friends, the party for which I stand, look for—"
Mericourt
Hush! Here comes the father-in-law!
SCENE FIFTH
The same persons and Mercadet.
Mercadet Good-day, my dear Mericourt! (To De la Brive) The ladies have kept you waiting, sir. Ah! They are putting on their finery. For myself, I was just on the point of dismissing—whom do you think?—an aspirant to the hand of Mlle. Julie. Poor young man! I was perhaps hard on him, and yet I felt for him. He worships my daughter; but what could I do? He has only ten thousand francs' income.
De la Brive
That wouldn't go very far!
Mercadet
A mere subsistence!
De la Brive
You're not the man to give a rich and clever girl to the first comer—