Villiers resumed his seat with a sigh, and seeing that it was quite
useless to quarrel with Vandeloup, owing to that young man's
coolness, resolved to make the best of a bad job, and held out his
hand with a view to reconciliation.

'It's no use fighting with you,' he said, with an uneasy laugh, as
the other took his hand, 'you are so deuced amiable.'

'I am,' replied Gaston, calmly examining his programme; 'I practise
all the Christian virtues.'

Here Barty, on whom the Frenchman's appearance and conversation had
produced an impression, requested Villiers, in a stage whisper, to
introduce him--which was done. Vandeloup looked the young man coolly
up and down, and eventually decided that Mr Barty Jarper was a
'cad', for whatever his morals might be, the Frenchman was a
thorough gentleman. However, as he was always diplomatic, he did not
give utterance to his idea, but taking a seat next to Barty's, he
talked glibly to him until the orchestra finished with a few final
bangs, and the curtain drew up on Act III.

The scene was the interior of a pawnshop, where the pawnbroker, a
gentleman of Hebraic descent (Mr Buckstone Wopples), sells the cruet
to the dishonest steward, who has come back from America disguised
as a sailor. The decayed family all rush in to buy the cruet stand,
but on finding it gone, overwhelm the pawnbroker with reproaches, so
that to quiet them he hides them all over the shop, on the chance
that the dishonest steward will come back. The dishonest steward
does so, and having found the will tears it up on the stage, upon