“By a mere chance,” remarked Tantaine carelessly. “I go about a good deal, and hear many things. For instance, you have taken every precaution here, and though you are really the proprietor, yet the husband of your cook and housekeeper, Butor, is supposed to be the owner of the house--at least it stands in his name. Now, if anything untoward happened, you would vanish, and only Butor would remain a prey for the police.” Tantaine paused for a moment, and then slowly added, “Such tactics usually succeed unless a man has some secret enemy, who would take advantage of his knowledge, to do him an injury by obtaining irrefragable proofs of his complicity.” The ex-cook easily perceived the threat that was hidden under these words. “They know something,” muttered he, “and I must find out what it is.” “If a man has a clear conscience,” said he aloud, “he is all right. I have nothing to conceal, and therefore nothing to fear. You have now seen my establishment; what do you think of it?” “It seems to me a very well-conducted one.” “It may have occurred to you that a factory at Roubaix might have been a better investment, but I had not the capital to begin with.” Tantaine nodded. “It is not half a bad trade,” said he. “I agree with you. In the Rue St. Marguerite you will find more than one similar establishment; but I never cared for the situation of the Faubourg St. Antoine. My little angels find this spot more salubrious.” “Yes, yes,” answered Tantaine amicably, “and if they howl too much when they are corrected, there are not too many neighbors to hear them.” Perpignan thought it best to take no notice of this observation. “The papers are always pitching into us,” continued he. “They had much better stick to politics. The fact is, that the profits of our business are tremendously exaggerated.” “Well, you manage to make a living out of it?” “I don’t lose, I confess, but I have six little cherubs in hospital, besides the one in the kitchen, and these, of course, are a dead loss to me.” “That is a sad thing for you,” answered Tantaine gravely. Perpignan began to be amazed at his visitor’s coolness. “Damn it all,” said he, “if you and Mascarin think the business such a profitable one, why don’t you go in for it. You may perhaps think it easy to procure the kids; just try it. You have to go to Italy for most of them, then you have to smuggle them across the frontier like bales of contraband goods.” Perpignan paused to take a breath, and Tantaine asked,-- “What sum do you make each of the lads bring in daily?” “That depends,” answered Perpignan hesitatingly. “Well, you can give an average?” “Say three francs then.” “Three francs!” repeated Tantaine with a genial smile, “and you have forty little cherubs, so that makes one hundred and twenty francs per day.” “Absurd!” retorted Perpignan; “do you think each of the lads bring in such a sum as that?” “Ah! you know the way to make them do so.”