Paul. What extraordinary fancies she has sometimes! I really can’t make out whether it’s from stupidity or from love for me. For that matter, it’s a very good thing that she’s so much in love with me. The idea of her asking me what I want! What I want? Why, money, of course. It seems it’s quite a true saying that women’s hearts are much tenderer than ours. I confess I used not to believe that; but now I see that, once love has taken a firm hold upon them, you can get anything you like out of them.... And then, she’s so pretty! Even if you look at it from quite another point of view—it’s delightful, there certainly is nothing else to be said about it.... I’d better ask her for a big sum at once; I must take advantage of her momentary exaltation. (Re-enter Serafìma.) Ah! Serafima! I wanted to speak to you.
Serafima. And I wanted to speak to you, Paul.
Paul. Very well; what is it?
Serafima. No, you speak first.
Paul. No, you, Serafima.
Serafima. No, you.
Paul. I give the precedence to you, as a lady, Serafima.
Serafima. This is what I wanted to say, my Paul: you change your shirt every day; that is rather extravagant.
Paul. Are you gone off your head! You can’t call that an extravagance, in our position! No; I wanted to talk to you about something altogether different.
Serafima. All the same, my dear (kisses him), we must think about economy; there’s nothing unreasonable in that.