"Now, my dear love, it is for you to choose. These two offers are equally advantageous. Monsieur de la Bérinière makes you a countess, with thirty thousand francs a year—that is very attractive. To be sure, he is sixty years old, which lessens the attraction. Monsieur Anatole de Raincy is not a count; but he is of a very old family; he has only fifteen thousand francs a year, but he is only twenty-seven, and that's a valuable asset. Now, you are fully posted as to these two aspirants to your hand. Reflect and choose."
"Oh! the reflecting is all done, father! I want neither of them."
"What! you refuse?"
"I refuse them both."
"But you are unreasonable, my child!—Either of the two marriages would be honorable; it would be hard to find a better match in respect to fortune; indeed, I am afraid that you'll never do so well."
"You know, don't you, father, that I care nothing about money?"
"My dear girl, it isn't well, perhaps, to love money as your sister loves it; but it isn't well to despise it, either. It is a great help to happiness. Come, between ourselves, why do you refuse both of these two offers? The count, I can understand; he's too old for you; but Monsieur Anatole is young, not a bad-looking fellow——"
"I refuse them, father, because I want to love my husband, and I shall never love Monsieur de la Bérinière or Monsieur de Raincy."
"So you are quite determined, are you?"
"Absolutely. You can tell them that I don't want to marry now. A well-bred man understands that that's a polite way of refusing."