The unhappy Jew eyed their countenances and that of Front-de-Boeuf, in hope of discovering some symptoms of relenting; but that of the Baron exhibited the same cold, half-sullen, half-sarcastic smile which had been the prelude to his cruelty; and the savage eyes of the Saracens, rolling gloomily under their dark brows, acquiring a yet more sinister expression by the whiteness of the circle which surrounds the pupil, evinced rather the secret pleasure which they expected from the approaching scene, than any reluctance to be its directors or agents.
The Jew then looked at the glowing furnace, over which he was presently to be stretched, and seeing no chance of his tormentor's relenting, his resolution gave way.
"I will pay," he said, "the thousand pounds of silver--That is," he added, after a moment's pause, "I will pay it with the help of my brethren; for I must beg as a mendicant at the door of our synagogue ere I make up so unheard-of a sum .-- When and where must it be delivered ?" "Here," replied Front-de-Boeuf, "here it must be delivered--weighed it must be--weighed and told down on this very dungeon floor .-- Thinkest thou I will part with thee until thy ransom is secure ?" "And what is to be my surety," said the Jew, "that I shall be at liberty after this ransom is paid ?" "The word of a Norman noble, thou pawn-broking slave," answered Front-de-Boeuf; "the faith of a Norman nobleman, more pure than the gold and silver of thee and all thy tribe." "I crave pardon, noble lord," said Isaac timidly, "but wherefore should I rely wholly on the word of one who will trust nothing to mine ?" "Because thou canst not help it, Jew," said the knight, sternly.

"Wert thou now in thy treasure-chamber at York, and were I craving a loan of thy shekels, it would be thine to dictate the time of payment, and the pledge of security.

This is MY treasure-chamber.

Here I have thee at advantage, nor will I again deign to repeat the terms on which I grant thee liberty." The Jew groaned deeply.--"Grant me," he said, "at least with my own liberty, that of the companions with whom I travel.

They scorned me as a Jew, yet they pitied my desolation, and because they tarried to aid me by the way, a share of my evil hath come upon them; moreover, they may contribute in some sort to my ransom." "If thou meanest yonder Saxon churls," said Front-de-Boeuf, "their ransom will depend upon other terms than thine.