Well, I wandered about to pass the time; every now and then coming round
to the south side of the house, I could hear Falkenberg at work on the
piano in the parlour, and forcibly he dealt with it. He could not strike
a decent chord, but he had a good ear; whenever he screwed up a string,
he was careful to screw it back again exactly where it was before, so
the instrument at any rate was none the worse.
I got into talk with one of the farm-hands, a young fellow. He got two
hundred Kroner a year, he said, besides his board. Up at half-past six
in the morning to feed the horses, or half-past five in the busy season.
Work all day, till eight in the evening. But he was healthily content
with his life in that little world. I remember his fine, strong set of
teeth, and his pleasant smile as he spoke of his girl. He had given her
a silver ring with a gold heart on the front.
“And what did she say to that?”
“Well, she was all of a wonder, you may be sure.”
“And what did you say?”
“What I said? Why, I don't know. Said I hoped she'd like it and welcome.
I'd like to have given her stuff for a dress as well, but....”
“Is she young?”
“Why, yes. Talk away like a little jews' harp. Young--I should think
so.”
“And where does she live?”
“Ah, that I won't say. They'd know it all over the village if I did.”
And there I stood like another Alexander, so sure of the world, and half
contemptuous of this boy and his poor little life. When we went away, I
gave him one of my rugs; it was too much of a weight to go carrying two.
He said at once he would give it to his girl; she would be glad of a
nice warm rug.
And Alexander said: If I were not myself I would be you....
When Falkenberg had finished and came out, he was grown so elegant in
his manners all at once, and talked in such a delicate fashion, I could
hardly understand him. The daughter of the house came out with him. We
were to pass on without delay, he said, to the farm adjacent; there
was a piano there which needed some slight attention. And so _“Farvel,
Frøken, Farvel.”_
“Six Kroner, my boy,” he whispered in my ear. “And another six at the
next place, that's twelve.”
So off we went, and I carried our things.