sree tucats on me which my Mamma hat sewn in my shirt of flannel. Nopoty
fount zem.
"I liket not long to stay in ze fortresses, ant resoluted to ron away.
Von day, von pig holitay, says I to the sergeant which hat to look after
us, 'Mister Sergeant, to-day is a pig holitay, ant me vants to celeprate
it. Pring here, if you please, two pottle Mateira, ant we shall trink
zem wis each oser.' Ant ze sergeant says, 'Goot!' Ven ze sergeant pring
ze Mateira ant we trink it out to ze last trop, I taket his hant
ant says, 'Mister Sergeant, perhaps you have still one Vater and one
Mutter?' He says, 'So I have, Mister Mayer.' 'My Vater ant Mutter not
seen me eight year,' I goes on to him, 'ant zey know not if I am yet
alive or if my bones be reposing in ze grave. Oh, Mister Sergeant, I
have two tucats which is in my shirt of flannel. Take zem, ant let me
loose! You will pe my penefactor, ant my Mutter will be praying for you
all her life to ze Almighty Got!'
"Ze sergeant emptiet his glass of Mateira, ant says, 'Mister Mayer, I
loaf and pity you very much, pot you is one prisoner, ant I one soldat.'
So I take his hant ant says, 'Mister Sergeant!'
"Ant ze sergeant says, 'You is one poor man, ant I will not take your
money, pot I will help you. Ven I go to sleep, puy one pail of pranty
for ze Soldaten, ant zey will sleep. Me will not look after you.' Sis
was one goot man. I puyet ze pail of pranty, ant ven ze Soldaten was
trunken me tresset in one olt coat, ant gang in silence out of ze doon.
"I go to ze wall, ant will leap down, pot zere is vater pelow, ant I
will not spoil my last tressing, so I go to ze gate.
"Ze sentry go up and town wis one gon, ant look at me. 'Who goes zere?'
ant I was silent. 'Who goes zere ze second time?' ant I was silent.
'Who goes zere ze third time?' ant I ron away, I sprang in ze vater,
climp op to ze oser site, ant walk on.
"Ze entire night I ron on ze vay, pot ven taylight came I was afrait
zat zey woult catch me, ant I hit myself in ze high corn. Zere I kneelet
town, zanket ze Vater in Heaven for my safety, ant fall asleep wis a
tranquil feeling.
"I wakenet op in ze evening, ant gang furser. At once one large German
carriage, wis two raven-black horse, came alongside me. In ze carriage
sit one well-tresset man, smoking pipe, ant look at me. I go slowly,
so zat ze carriage shall have time to pass me, pot I go slowly, ant ze
carriage go slowly, ant ze man look at me. I go quick, ant ze carriage
go quick, ant ze man stop its two horses, ant look at me. 'Young man,'
says he, 'where go you so late?' I says, 'I go to Frankfort.' 'Sit in ze
carriage--zere is room enough, ant I will trag you,' he says. 'Bot
why have you nosing about you? Your boots is dirty, ant your beart not
shaven.' I seated wis him, ant says, 'Ich bin one poor man, ant I would
like to pusy myself wis somesing in a manufactory. My tressing is dirty
because I fell in ze mud on ze roat.'
"'You tell me ontruse, young man,' says he. 'Ze roat is kvite dry now.'
I was silent. 'Tell me ze whole truse,' goes on ze goot man--'who you
are, ant vere you go to? I like your face, ant ven you is one honest
man, so I will help you.' Ant I tell all.
"'Goot, young man!' he says. 'Come to my manufactory of rope, ant I will
give you work ant tress ant money, ant you can live wis os.' I says,
'Goot!'
"I go to ze manufactory of rope, ant ze goot man says to his voman,
'Here is one yong man who defented his Vaterland, ant ron away from
prisons. He has not house nor tresses nor preat. He will live wis os.
Give him clean linen, ant norish him.'
"I livet one ant a half year in ze manufactory of rope, ant my lantlort
loaft me so much zat he would not let me loose. Ant I felt very goot.
"I were zen handsome man--yong, of pig stature, with blue eyes and
romische nose--ant Missis L-- (I like not to say her name--she was ze
voman of my lantlort) was yong ant handsome laty. Ant she fell in loaf
wis me."
Here Karl Ivanitch made a long pause, lowered his kindly blue eyes,
shook his head quietly, and smiled as people always do under the
influence of a pleasing recollection.
"Yes," he resumed as he leant back in his arm-chair and adjusted his
dressing-gown, "I have experiencet many sings in my life, pot zere is
my witness,"--here he pointed to an image of the Saviour, embroidered
on wool, which was hanging over his bed--"zat nopoty in ze worlt can say
zat Karl Ivanitch has been one dishonest man, I would not repay black
ingratitude for ze goot which Mister L-- dit me, ant I resoluted to ron
away. So in ze evening, ven all were asleep, I writet one letter to my
lantlort, ant laid it on ze table in his room. Zen I taket my tresses,
tree Thaler of money, ant go mysteriously into ze street. Nopoty have
seen me, ant I go on ze roat."
X. CONCLUSION OF KARL'S NARRATIVE
"I had not seen my Mamma for nine year, ant I know not whether she lived
or whether her bones had long since lain in ze dark grave. Ven I come to
my own country and go to ze town I ask, 'Where live Kustaf Mayer who was
farmer to ze Count von Zomerblat?' ant zey answer me, 'Graf Zomerblat
is deat, ant Kustaf Mayer live now in ze pig street, ant keep a
public-house.' So I tress in my new waistcoat and one noble coat which
ze manufacturist presented me, arranged my hairs nice, ant go to ze
public-house of my Papa. Sister Mariechen vas sitting on a pench, and
she ask me what I want. I says, 'Might I trink one glass of pranty?'
ant she says, 'Vater, here is a yong man who wish to trink one glass of
pranty.' Ant Papa says, 'Give him ze glass.' I set to ze table, trink my
glass of pranty, smoke my pipe, ant look at Papa, Mariechen, ant Johann
(who also come into ze shop). In ze conversation Papa says, 'You know,
perhaps, yong man, where stants our army?' and I say, 'I myself am come
from ze army, ant it stants now at Wien.' 'Our son,' says Papa, 'is a
Soldat, ant now is it nine years since he wrote never one wort, and we
know not whether he is alive or dead. My voman cry continually for him.'
I still fumigate the pipe, ant say, 'What was your son's name, and where
servet he? Perhaps I may know him.' 'His name was Karl Mayer, ant he
servet in ze Austrian Jagers.' 'He were of pig stature, ant a handsome
man like yourself,' puts in Mariechen. I say, 'I know your Karl.'
'Amalia,' exclaimet my Vater. 'Come here! Here is yong man which knows
our Karl!'--ant my dear Mutter comes out from a back door. I knew her
directly. 'You know our Karl?' says she, ant looks at me, ant, white all
over, trembles. 'Yes, I haf seen him,' I says, without ze corage to look
at her, for my heart did almost burst. 'My Karl is alive?' she cry. 'Zen
tank Got! Vere is he, my Karl? I woult die in peace if I coult see him
once more--my darling son! Bot Got will not haf it so.' Then she cried,
and I coult no longer stant it. 'Darling Mamma!' I say, 'I am your son,
I am your Karl!'--and she fell into my arms."
Karl Ivanitch covered his eyes, and his lips were quivering.
"'Mutter,' sagte ich, 'ich bin ihr Sohn, ich bin ihr Karl!'--und sie
sturtzte mir in die Arme!'" he repeated, recovering a little and wiping
the tears from his eyes.
"Bot Got did not wish me to finish my tays in my own town. I were