“First thing you’ve got to realize,” Big Hersh started out, “was that Hershie’s father was a bought son-in-law, so you know there had to be major problems with the marriage.”

“Bought son-in-law?” Decker said. “I’m not familiar with the term.”

Hersh told him to ask Rina—she’d know exactly what he meant—but he explained it anyway. Bought sons-in-law were men purchased by rich couples to marry their daughters. They were all very similar. Had some education but were usually not professionals. They were handsome. They dressed well. Spent some time in a proper yeshiva but rarely did they go into the Torah education for their parnassah—their livelihood. Usually, they worked in the lucrative businesses of their fathers-in-law. The main purposes of these marriages-for-money were to give some physical presence to their Plain Jane brides and to sire good-looking children—grandchildren for the bride’s parents.

Okay, so there was nothing wrong with a handsome dowry. But so many of these men were gonifs—scoundrels. They cheated in business; often they cheated on their wives as well. They were ostentatious, lived for the finer things in life—the fanciest home, the finest mink for their shtreimel hats, the best silk and wool for their suits. They demanded respect—kavod—and if they couldn’t earn it, they’d buy it.

In short, Hersh Berger said, they represented everything wrong with society, sacrificing spiritualism for gashmius—crass materialism.

Today, the going rate for a good one with education was about a half-million. Grooms who didn’t have heads for learning, but had looks and some business sense, could be had for a quarter-million. The precise financial arrangements were worked out between the individual parties before the wedding. The original prenuptial contract.

Hersh Schaltz’s father had been bought for a half-million twenty years ago. Why so much? Peretz Schaltz had been very handsome—a big man, over six feet with powerful shoulders. He had also graduated from college with a degree in chemistry, but that wasn’t important to Mr. Kornitski. Uncle Perry was very learned in Talmud. That was important to Mr. Kornitski. Even so, Mr. Kornitski hadn’t paid that much because Uncle Perry was learned. He paid that much because his daughter, Bracha, was crazy.