Explore "The Bird of Paradise" by E. Phillips Oppenheim on Textopian. Read with annotations and highlights.
Rumours of an unlimited baccarat bank presided over by the fabulously wealthy Belgian banker, Baron de Brett, filled the Sporting Club that evening. With rolls of notes in front of him and stacks of the famous hundred thousand franc plaques, making the small space immediately around him at the end of the table look rather like a remote comer of Aladdin's cave, the Baron himself--bland unruffled, with a large cigar in his mouth and a gleam of pleasure in his eyes--won and lost millions on the turn of a card. There were many very distinguished people amongst the crowd, but the great French statesman, of whom everyone had hoped to catch a glimpse, and who had been a guest at the Royal dinner party, was absent, as was also another visitor to the rooms, who was always a great attraction, the Princess de Fantany.
"Most disappointing," an English Cabinet Minister complained to his host. "I don't care a fig about this spectacular gambling--it may be a put-up job for all anyone knows--but if there was one man in this world with whom I wished for five minutes' conversation before I leave for Italy to-morrow it was Edouard Mermillon."