----, his father, was not rich, and therefore could not do much
for his son; the consequence was that owing to his outrageous
prodigality the son was sorely pinched for means to keep up his
position; he exhausted his credit, and was soon overwhelmed with
debt. Among the companions of his dissipation was a young man
whose abundant means filled him with admiration and envy; he
lived like a prince and had not a single creditor. One day he
asked his friend to explain the mystery of the fact that, without
possessing any fortune, he could gratify all his tastes and
fancies, whilst he himself, with certain resources, was compelled
to submit to privations, still getting into debt.

Chauvignac--such was the name of the friend thus addressed--was a
card-sharper, and he instantly seized the opportunity to make
something out of the happy disposition of this modern prodigal
son, this scion of gentility. With the utmost frankness he
explained to the young man his wonderful method of keeping his
pockets full of money, and showed that nothing could be easier
than for Olivier to go and do likewise in his terrible
condition;--in short, on one hand there were within his grasp,
riches, pleasure, all manner of enjoyment; on the other, pitiless
creditors, ruin, misery, and contempt. The tempter, moreover,
offered to initiate his listener in his infallible method of
getting rich. In his frame of mind Olivier yielded to the
temptation, with the full determination, if not to get money by
cheating at cards, at any rate to learn the method which might
serve as a means of self-defence should he not think proper to
use it for attack--such was the final argument suggested by the
human Mephistopheles to his pupil.