congratulate me on my winnings of the night before.

"Three thousand sequins!" he exclaimed, "that is a grand haul indeed."

"Quite so."

"The funny part of it is that the man who keeps the bag is in the pay of
the others."

"What strikes you as funny in that?"

"Why, he gained half without any risk, otherwise he would not have been
likely to have entered into an agreement with you."

"You think, then, that it was a case of connivance?"

"Everybody says so; indeed what else could it be? The rascal has made his
fortune without running any risk. All the Greeks in Genoa are applauding
him and you."

"As the greater rascal of the two?"

"They don't call you a rascal; they say you're a great genius; you are
praised and envied."

"I am sure I ought to be obliged to them."

"I heard it all from a gentleman who was there. He says that the second
and the third time the man with the bag gave you the office."