In the whirl of his thoughts Grobstock grasped at the word "repay" as a swimmer in a whirlpool grasps at a straw.
"I will repay your money!" he cried. "Here are your two guineas. You will get another salmon, and more cheaply. As you pointed out, you could have got this for twenty-five shillings."
"Two guineas!" ejaculated Manasseh contemptuously. "Why you offered Jonathan, the fishmonger, three!"
Grobstock was astounded, but it was beneath him to bargain. And he remembered that, after all, he would enjoy the salmon.
"Well, here are three guineas," he said pacifically, offering them.
"Three guineas!" echoed Manasseh, spurning them. "And what of my profit?"
"Profit!" gasped Grobstock.
"Since you have made me a middle-man, since you have forced me into the fish trade, I must have my profits like anybody else."
"Here is a crown extra!"
"And my compensation?"