Gentle and indolent by nature, desirous of peace and quietness before anything else, she was incapable of deceiving her husband, as he well knew.

But the trouble was that an addition to the family would upset the whole economy of the household.
"_Mon Dieu_!" said Madame Theodore at last, "you brought up the others, and you'll bring up this one too." At this an explosion of anger dried the other's eyes; and she rose, exclaiming: "You are good, you are! One can see that our purse isn't yours.

How are we to bring up another child when we can scarcely make both ends meet as it is ?" And thereupon, forgetting the _bourgeois_ pride which usually prompted her to silence or falsehood, she freely explained their embarrassment, the horrid pecuniary worries which made their life a perpetual misery.
Their rent amounted to 700 francs,* so that out of the 3000 francs** which the husband earned at his office, barely a couple of hundred were left them every month.

And how were they to manage with that little sum, provide food and clothes, keep up their rank and so forth?
There was the indispensable black coat for monsieur, the new dress which madame must have at regular intervals, under penalty of losing caste, the new boots which the children required almost every month, in fact, all sorts of things that could not possibly be dispensed with.

One might strike a dish or two out of the daily menu, and even go without wine; but evenings came when it was absolutely necessary to take a cab.