The town life, the furnishing of the house, and the necessary claims of society, of course increased the outgoings.
And so it came to pass that the baron, after having paid a visit to his property to settle the yearly accounts, returned to town much out of tune.

He had become aware that the expenditure of the last year had exceeded the income, and that the income of the next year gave no promise of balancing the existing deficit of two thousand dollars.

The thought occurred that the sum must be taken from the white parchments; and the man who would have stood calm beneath a shower of bullets, broke out into a cold perspiration at the idea of the debts thus to be incurred.

It was plain that there had been an error in his calculations.
He who wishes to raise a sum by small yearly savings must not increase, but lessen his expenditure.

True, the increase in his case had been unavoidable; but still, a most unlucky coincidence.