Virginie had only an objective view of things; and if she was not material, still she could best express herself through the medium of the senses.
There were others besides her who shed tears also--those who saw Jean Jacques' chief asset suddenly disappear in flame and smoke and all his other assets become thereby liabilities of a kind; and there were many who would be the poorer in the end because of it.

If Jean Jacques went down, he probably would not go alone.

Jean Jacques had done a good fire-insurance business over a course of years, but somehow he had not insured himself as heavily as he ought to have done; and in any case the fire-policy for the mill was not in his own hands.

It was in the safe-keeping of M.Mornay at Montreal, who had warned M.Fille of the crisis in the money-master's affairs on the very day that the crisis came.
No one ever knew how it was that the mill took fire, but there was one man who had more than a shrewd suspicion, though there was no occasion for mentioning it.

This was Sebastian Dolores.