A Shawl from India on an 8,000-Franc IOU

He borrowed 4,000 francs and signed for 8,000. The catch was an Indian cashmere shawl he never wanted. In Labiche and Delacour's 1862 Paris comedy Les Petits Oiseaux, spoiled Tiburce hides his debts, lands in Clichy debtors' prison, and finally confesses how the money-lenders worked him, shawl and all. Jay tells the story, Meera and Soons react, and Soons gives her Court Report on the dealers. Source: Eugène Labiche and Alfred Delacour, Les Petits Oiseaux: comédie en trois actes, with English notes by Ferdinand Böcher (New York: Henry Holt and Company, © 1864). Public domain. All images are public domain or CC0.