Father Knows Whom to Ask
The King's authorization is on Father's desk before our new dye vats reach Lyon. It is 1837. Our family has the money to enlarge its silk dye works. Just as useful, Father knows whom to ask in Paris.
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We are a noble family, and Father is received at the Tuileries. When he decides the new works should be a société anonyme, an old acquaintance introduces him to a banker who has helped form one. The banker recommends a lawyer who knows the questions the ministry will ask. The lawyer tells our notary what must be in the deed before we send it.
Father summons me to his study. The plans for the dye house cover one table; the accounts cover another. Our subscribers have agreed to their shares. The lawyer has checked the papers. I take them to Paris, where he can answer the ministry's questions without waiting for a letter to find us in Lyon. The Council of State gives its opinion. Before summer, the royal ordinance authorizes our company and approves its articles.
When the silk merchant brings his bales, he accepts the company's signature. The new vats begin to turn. We meet our orders and pay him on time. He returns with more silk, and Father asks the mason where we might put a second dye house.