"On that morning you shall get my daughter--without fail. Surely that will be enough for one day!" "Vell, ven do I get de money your daughter gets from de Synagogue?" "When she gets it from the Synagogue, of course." "How much vill it be?" "It may be a hundred and fifty pounds," said Manasseh pompously. Yankelé's eyes sparkled. "And it may be less," added Manasseh as an after-thought. "How much less?" enquired Yankelé anxiously. "A hundred and fifty pounds," repeated Manasseh pompously. "D'you mean to say I may get noting?" "Certainly, if she gets nothing. What I promised you was the money she gets from the Synagogue. Should she be fortunate enough in the _sorteo_--" "De _sorteo_! Vat is dat?" "The dowry I told you of. It is accorded by lot. My daughter has as good a chance as any other maiden. By winning her you stand to win a hundred and fifty pounds. It is a handsome amount. There are not many fathers who would do as much for their daughters," concluded Manasseh with conscious magnanimity. "But about de Jerusalem estate!" said Yankelé, shifting his standpoint. "I don't vant to go and live dere. De Messiah is not yet come." "No, you will hardly be able to live on it," admitted Manasseh. "You do not object to my selling it, den?" "Oh, no! If you are so sordid, if you have no true Jewish sentiment!" "Ven can I come into possession?" "On the wedding day if you like." "One may as vell get it over," said Yankelé, suppressing a desire to rub his hands in glee. "As de Talmud says, 'One peppercorn to-day is better dan a basketful of pumpkins to-morrow.'" "All right! I will bring it to the Synagogue." "Bring it to de Synagogue!" repeated Yankelé in amaze. "Oh, you mean de deed of transfer." "The deed of transfer! Do you think I waste my substance on solicitors? No, I will bring the property itself." "But how can you do dat?" "Where is the difficulty?" demanded Manasseh with withering contempt. "Surely a child could carry a casket of Jerusalem earth to Synagogue!" "A casket of earth! Is your property in Jerusalem only a casket of earth?" "What then? You didn't expect it would be a casket of diamonds?" retorted Manasseh, with gathering wrath. "To a true Jew a casket of Jerusalem earth is worth all the diamonds in the world." "But your Jerusalem property is a fraud!" gasped Yankelé. "Oh, no, you may be easy on that point. It's quite genuine. I know there is a good deal of spurious Palestine earth in circulation, and that many a dead man who has clods of it thrown into his tomb is nevertheless buried in unholy soil. But this casket I was careful to obtain from a Rabbi of extreme sanctity. It was the only thing he had worth _schnorring_." "I don't suppose I shall get more dan a crown for it," said Yankelé, with irrepressible indignation.