I said nothing, but I bethought myself that if the mystery should be unknown to the Greek I might profit by it.

I felt that some cunning was necessary, and that he would not care for my secret if I proposed to sell it to him without preparing the way.

The best plan was to astonish my man with the miracle of the augmentation of the mercury, treat it as a jest, and see what his intentions would be.

Cheating is a crime, but honest cunning may be considered as a species of prudence.

True, it is a quality which is near akin to roguery; but that cannot be helped, and the man who, in time of need, does not know how to exercise his cunning nobly is a fool.