“I am, then,” said Isaac, “only to be set at liberty, together with mine wounded friend?”

“Shall I twice recommend it,” said Front-de-Boeuf, “to a son of Israel , to meddle with his own concerns, and leave those of others alone?⁠—Since thou hast made thy choice, it remains but that thou payest down thy ransom, and that at a short day.”

“Yet hear me,” said the Jew⁠—“for the sake of that very wealth which thou wouldst obtain at the expense of thy⁠—” Here he stopped short, afraid of irritating the savage Norman. But Front-de-Boeuf only laughed, and himself filled up the blank at which the Jew had hesitated.

“At the expense of my conscience, thou wouldst say, Isaac; speak it out⁠—I tell thee, I am reasonable. I can bear the reproaches of a loser, even when that loser is a Jew. Thou wert not so patient, Isaac, when thou didst invoke justice against Jacques Fitzdotterel, for calling thee a usurious bloodsucker, when thy exactions had devoured his patrimony.”

“I swear by the Talmud,” said the Jew, “that your valour has been misled in that matter. Fitzdotterel drew his poniard upon me in mine own chamber, because I craved him for mine own silver. The term of payment was due at the Passover .”

“I care not what he did,” said Front-de-Boeuf; “the question is, when shall I have mine own?⁠—when shall I have the shekels, Isaac?”

“Let my daughter Rebecca go forth to York ,” answered Isaac, “with your safe conduct, noble knight, and so soon as man and horse can return, the treasure⁠—” Here he groaned deeply, but added, after the pause of a few seconds⁠—“The treasure shall be told down on this very floor.”