"At any rate," replied the young advocate, "one's enemies are much the more useful--they can be counted on to advertise us behind our backs, whereas our friends merely flatter us to our faces." "How tasteless is the soup unless flavoured by the sauce of our enemies," said Marcel. "You seem to be taking a very pessimistic view of mankind," exclaimed Villebois. "I believe there is a sub-stratum of good in all bad people, and if one makes enemies it is to a great degree one's own fault." "From all our enemies, and most of our friends, good Lord deliver us," added Riche. "To my mind," said Villebois, "bad and good men are only a matter of degree. It entirely depends upon the point of view, and there is a great deal more in the point of view than is generally admitted." "Yes," said Marcel, "our weaknesses we regard as misfortunes from which we cannot escape; whereas the weaknesses of others we consider to be shocking crimes. While we all pretend to hate sin, we are only charitable to the sinner when we happen to be the one in question." "Ah, well, the devil is never so black as he is painted, in fact he is far more like us than we care to admit," said Delapine. "I feel sure," he added, "if we saw ourselves as others see us, we should refuse to believe our own eyes. If we could only combine what others think of us with what we think of ourselves we should probably get at the truth." "Good and bad are only abstracts," interrupted Pierre, "but money, good solid tangible money, is, after all, the only thing of real importance in this world." "But surely there are things of more value than money," said Riche enquiringly. "Of course there are," replied Pierre, "and that is why I need all the money I can get to acquire them. Take lovely woman, for example. A man with money can marry any girl he pleases." "Ah! you are right there," interrupted Marcel. "I for one believe that women only admire the gilded youth because he is a golden calf!" "Important things are out of fashion," said Delapine. "People now-a-days will argue for hours about such things as the flavour of wines, the latest novel, or a new way of driving a golf ball; but deadly serious matters, such as being married or hanged, or the chances of a future life in Heaven or Hell are treated as a huge joke, if they are ever referred to at all." "I still maintain that money comes before everything," said Duval. "With money one can buy everything worth having: pleasures, friendship, and even love. As Goethe says: "Ja! wenn zu Sol sich Luna fein gesellt, Zum Silber, Gold, dann ist es heitre Welt; Das Ubrige ist alles zu erlangen; Paläste, Gärten, Brüstlein, rote Wangen."