"That's just what I don't want you to do! He kept half of it, the miserly old screw!"
"Kept it! You told me yourself that he was an honest man; and you say that he kept money belonging to you!"
"He claimed that I owed him for loans, and food, and carrying letters—mere trifles!"
"If you owed him, you should pay him."
"I'd have paid him later; he had no right to pay himself. Oh! I know the law, don't I? You ought to know about it, as you studied to be an advocate."
"What do you want to-day? Why did you come here?"
"I wanted to tell you that I am going to move! I can't stay in a house where the concierge has no sense of delicacy. By the way, you haven't a glass of anything to give me, have you? I came out without my breakfast this morning; I've done a good deal of running around, and it makes a man hollow. Come, Charlot, be a good fellow! Don't scowl at Fanfinet! You know that I'm a good friend."
I made no reply, but opened a cupboard containing several bottles of different liqueurs. I took out one of them and a small glass, and placed them in front of Ballangier; who instantly pounced on the bottle and filled the glass to the brim, saying:
"Won't you drink with me?"
"No; I never drink liqueur in the morning."