"Quality Hill," of
which Mr. Clinton Scollard sang:

"Quality Hill! Lo! It flourishes still,
And who can deny that forever it will?
A blending of breeding with puff and with plume;
A strange sort of mixture of rick and mushroom.
Some amble, some scramble, (some gamble), to fill
The motley and medley of Quality Hill."

CHAPTER XV

_Giant Strides of Commerce_

Giant Strides of Commerce--The Reasoning of M. Honore de Balzac--The
Aristocracy of Trade--The Story of a New York Shop--When Fifth Avenue
Began to Rival Bond Street and the Rue de la Paix--Shopping in
1901--Publishing Houses at the Beginning of the Century--Prices of
Real Estate--Some Great Houses of the Present.

Once upon a time, so the story goes, a French publisher, planning an
elaborate volume on the streets of Paris, went to Honore de Balzac, then
at the height of his fame, to ask him to contribute the chapter on a
particular thoroughfare--let us say, the Rue Une Telle, or the Avenue
Quelque-Chose. The idea appealed to the fancy of the great man, and
matters were going along swimmingly, until it came to the point of
settling upon a price to be paid the novelist for his labour. "And now,
_cher maitre,_ we must consider the painful triviality of emolument."
Without hesitation Balzac mentioned a figure that was simply staggering.
It was a minute or two before the astonished publisher could gather his
wits together sufficiently to protest and bargain. But Balzac was not to
be moved. He explained that the sum named was not merely for the work
but also for expenses that would be unavoidable in carrying on the
work. "It is this way, _cher Monsieur_. To write about a street it is
necessary to know it thoroughly. It is not enough to glance at the
_etalage,_ one must investigate the shop behind. Let us consider the
street that you wish me to describe. As I recall it, first on the right
is the establishment of B., the gunsmith. In studying his premises it
will, of course, be necessary for me to purchase a rifle or a revolver
and a box of cartridges. Next door to B., as you may remember, is the
business of X., the perfumer. Luckily for you, Monsieur, a bottle of
perfume is not expensive. But beyond that shop there is the one of Y.,
the furrier, and furs just now, as you doubtless know, are rather high.
Of course, proceeding in my investigation, I shall be obliged to buy a
ring at the jeweller's, a _chapeau de forme_ at the hatter'