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The excerpt represents the core issue or deciding factor on which you must meditate, and is drawn from A Prince of Bohemia by Honore de Balzac: all her glory, squandered the fortunes of princes.
"How far did this sumptuous existence affect du Bruel? It is a
delicate question to ask, and a still more delicate one to answer. A
single incident will suffice to give you an idea of Tullia's
crotchets. Her bed-spread of Brussels lace was worth ten thousand
francs. A famous actress had another like it. As soon as Claudine
heard this, she allowed her cat, a splendid Angora, to sleep on the
bed. That trait gives you the woman. Du Bruel dared not say a word; he
was ordered to spread abroad that challenge in luxury, so that it
might reach the other. Tullia was very fond of this gift from the Duc
de Rhetore; but one day, five years after her marriage, she played
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