chapotraphouse

Once, when he asked her how much she wished him to contribute, she shrugged and said, "I don't know. What does your conscience tell you, Howard? But, a man of true compassion would do better than you usually do, considering that you have more than you fair share of wealth, and the need is so great."

He sighed. "How much do you and your friends need?"

"It is not me and my friends who need it, Howard, but the masses of humanity crying out for help. Our fellowship simply struggles to meet the need."

"How much?" he repeated.

She said, "Five hundred gold crowns," as if the number were a club she had been hiding behind her back, and, seeing the opening she had been waiting for, she suddenly brandished it to bully him.

With a gasp, Father staggered back a step. "Do you have any idea of the work required to make a sum of that size?"

"You do no work, Howard - your slaves do it for you."

"Slaves! They are the finest craftsmen!"

"They should be. You steal the best workers from all over the land."

"I pay the best wages in the land! They are eager to work for me!"

"They are the poor victims of your tricks. You exploit them. You charge more than anyone else. You have connections and make deals to cut out other armorers. You steal the food from the mouths of working people, just to line your own pockets."

"I offer the finest work! People buy from me because they want the best. I charge a fair price for it."

"No one charges as much as you and that's the simple fact. You always want more. Gold is your only goal."

"People come to me willingly because I have the highest standards. That is my goal! The other shops produce haphazard work that doesn't proof out. My tempering is superior. My work is all proofed to a double-stamp standard. I won't sell inferior work. People trust me; they know I create the best pieces."

"Your workers do. You simply rake in the money."

"The profits go to wages and to the business - I just sank a fortune into the new battering-mill!"

"Business, business, business! When I ask you to give a little something back to the community, to those in need, you act as if I wanted you to gouge out your eyes. Would you really rather see people die than to give a pittance to save them? Does money really mean more to you, Howard, than people's lives? Are you that cruel and unfeeling a man?"