the debtor appoints
his assignees, audits his own accounts, and draws up the certificate of
bankruptcy himself.

Given these premises, it is easy to imagine the devices of Frontin, the
trickeries of Sganarelle, the lies of Mascarille, and the empty bags
of Scapin which such a system develops. There has never been a failure
which did not generate enough matter to fill the fourteen volumes of
"Clarissa Harlowe," if an author could be found to describe them. A
single example will suffice. The illustrious Gobseck,--ruler of Palma,
Gigonnet, Werbrust, Keller, Nucingen, and the like,--being concerned in
a failure where he attempted to roughly handle the insolvent, who had
managed to get the better of him, obtained notes from his debtor for an
amount which together with the declared dividend made up the sum total
of his loss. These notes were to fall due after the _concordat_. Gobseck
then brought about a settlement in the _concordat_ by which sixty-five
per cent was remitted to the bankrupt. Thus the creditors were swindled
in the interests of Gobseck. But the bankrupt had signed the illicit
notes with the name of his insolvent firm, and he was therefore able
to bring them under the reduction of sixty-five per cent. Gobseck, the
great Gobseck, received scarcely fifty per cent on his loss. From that
day forth he bowed to his debtor with ironical respect.

As all operations undertaken by an insolvent within ten days before his
failure can be impeached, prudent men are careful to enter upon certain
affairs with a certain number of creditors whose interest, like that
of the bankrupt, is to arrive at the _concordat_ as fast as possible.
Skilful creditors will approach dull creditors or very busy ones, give
an ugly look into the failure, and buy up their claims at half what
they are worth at the liquidation; in this way they get back their money
partly by the dividend on their own claims, partly from the half, or
third, or fourth, gained on these purchased claims.

A failure is the closer, more or less hermetically tight, of a house
where pillage has left a few remaining bags of silver. Lucky the man who
can get in at a window, slide down a chimney, creep in through a cellar
or through a hole, and seize a bag to swell his share! In the general
rout, the _sauve qui peut_ of Beresina is passed from mouth to mouth;
all is legal and illegal, false and true, honest and dishonest. A man is
admired if he "covers" himself. To "cover" hi