So now I had to tell Grindhusen myself, and prepare him for the new
arrangement. And lest he should turn suspicious, I threw all the blame
on the priest, saying it was his idea, but that I had backed him up.
Grindhusen had no objection; he saw at once it meant more work for us
since we should have the well to dig in any case, and the bed for the
pipes besides.
As luck would have it, the priest came out on Monday morning, and said
to Grindhusen half jestingly:
“Your mate here and I have decided to have the well up on the hill, and
lay down a pipe-line to the house. What do you think of it? A mad idea?”
Grindhusen thought it was a first-rate idea.
But when we came to talk it over, and went up all three to look at the
site of the well, Grindhusen began to suspect I'd had more to do with it
than I had said. We should have to lay the pipes deep down, he said, on
account of the frost....
“One metre thirty's plenty,” I said.
... and that it would cost a great deal of money.
“Your mate here said about a couple of hundred Kroner in all,” answered
the priest.
Grindhusen had no idea of estimates at all, and could only say:
“Well, well, two hundred Kroner's a deal of money, anyway.”