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"For fifteen thousand francs?"

"Yes"

"Sir, you alar me?"

"Just so; fifteen thousand francs, do you understand?"

"Sir, let ht-hand correspondent"

"On the contrary, do not look at him, but at this"

"What is it?"

"What? Do you not know these bits of paper?"

"Bank-notes!"

"Exactly; there are fifteen of them"

"And whose are they?"

"Yours, if you like"

"Mine?" exclaimed the man, half-suffocated

"Yes; yours--your own property"

"Sir, nal"

"Sir, you have distracted me; I shall be fined"

"That will cost you a hundred francs; you see it is your interest to take ht-hand correspondent redoubles his signals; he is impatient"

"Never mind--take these;" and the count placed the packet in the man's hands "Now this is not all," he said; "you cannot live upon your fifteen thousand francs"

"I shall still haveto alter your correspondent's ?"

"A jest"

"Sir, unless you force me"-"I think I can effectually force you;" and Monte Cristo drew another packet from his pocket "Here are ten thousand more francs," he said, "with the fifteen thousand already in your pocket, they will make twenty-five thousand With five thousand you can buy a pretty little house with two acres of land; the re you in a thousand francs a year"