In the abstract it may seem rather a pleasant occupation for a married couple to reckon up a million of money as their joint property; but, in this concrete instance, to spend the wedding-night in a study, making pecuniary computation, is the pinnacle of pedantry.
At last it was done; and, as I computed it, I made the total to be one million and twenty-five thousand florins.
"How is that possible?" she asked.
I had to explain to her the fluctations of the market price in relation to the nominal value, which was the basis of our computation.
"Then let us look for the market-price of the bonds as it is at present. I know it is to be found in every newspaper," and with that she took one up from the table, looked for the exchange report, and dictated again, "Hungarian real estate bonds, 85; Lower-Austrian, 88; Transylvanian, 82, etc."
This time we have thirty thousand florins less than the million.
"How is that possible?" she asked again.
"Dearest," said I, "let that be! What does it matter if—"
"But it does matter. My grandfather left me exactly one million; neither more nor less. So I must find out this balance of thirty thousand, also."
"Maybe, at the time when he bequeathed this money to you the price of these securities was higher than at present," I suggested.