The clergyman, without any ceremony, asked the price of the crystal egg.  Mr. Cave glanced nervously towards the door leading into the parlour, and said five pounds.  The clergyman protested that the price was high, to his companion as well as to Mr. Cave—­it was, indeed, very much more than Mr. Cave had intended to ask when he had stocked the article—­and an attempt at bargaining ensued.  Mr. Cave stepped to the shop door, and held it open.  “Five pounds is my price,” he said, as though he wished to save himself the trouble of unprofitable discussion.  As he did so, the upper portion of a woman’s face appeared above the blind in the glass upper panel of the door leading into the parlour, and stared curiously at the two customers.  “Five pounds is my price,” said Mr. Cave, with a quiver in his voice.

The swarthy young man had so far remained a spectator, watching Cave keenly.  Now he spoke.  “Give him five pounds,” he said.  The clergyman glanced at him to see if he were in earnest, and when he looked at Mr. Cave again, he saw that the latter’s face was white.  “It’s a lot of money,” said the clergyman, and, diving into his pocket, began counting his resources.  He had little more than thirty shillings, and he appealed to his companion, with whom he seemed to be on terms of considerable intimacy.  This gave Mr. Cave an opportunity of collecting his thoughts, and he began to explain in an agitated manner that the crystal was not, as a matter of fact, entirely free for sale.  His two customers were naturally surprised at this, and inquired why he had not thought of that before he began to bargain.  Mr. Cave became confused, but he stuck to his story, that the crystal was not in the market that afternoon, that a probable purchaser of it had already appeared.  The two, treating this as an attempt to raise the price still further, made as if they would leave the shop.  But at this point the parlour door opened, and the owner of the dark fringe and the little eyes appeared.

She was a coarse-featured, corpulent woman, younger and very much larger than Mr. Cave; she walked heavily, and her face was flushed.  “That crystal is for sale,” she said.  “And five pounds is a good enough price for it.  I can’t think what you’re about, Cave, not to take the gentleman’s offer!”

Mr. Cave, greatly perturbed by the irruption, looked angrily at her over the rims of his spectacles, and, without excessive assurance, asserted his right to manage his business in his own way.  An altercation began.  The two customers watched the scene with interest and some amusement, occasionally assisting Mrs. Cave with suggestions.  Mr. Cave, hard driven, persisted in a confused and impossible story of an inquiry for the crystal that morning, and his agitation became painful.  But he stuck to his point with extraordinary persistence.  It was the young Oriental who ended this curious controversy.  He proposed that they should call again in the course of two days—­so as to give the alleged inquirer a fair chance.  “And then we must insist,” said the clergyman.  “Five pounds.”  Mrs. Cave took it on herself to apologise for her husband, explaining that he was sometimes “a little odd,” and as the two customers left, the couple prepared for a free discussion of the incident in all its bearings.