Part 17 (2/2)

Then the magistrate turned to her ladys.h.i.+p, to thank her for her kind hospitality.

To do so he sought the young lady's hand with intention to kiss it; but before he could fulfill his intention, her ladys.h.i.+p suddenly threw her arms around his neck and imprinted as healthy a kiss on his face as anyone could possibly wish for.

The magistrate was rather frightened than rejoiced at this unexpected present. Her ladys.h.i.+p had indeed peculiar habits. He scarcely knew how he arrived in the road; true, the wine had affected his head a little, for he was not used to it.

From Topandy's castle to Sarvolgyi's residence one had to cross a long field of clover.

The lawyer led his colleague as far as the gate of this field by the arm, sauntering along by his side. But, as soon as they were within the garden, Mr. Buczkay said to the magistrate:

”Please go in front, I will follow behind; I must remain behind a little to laugh myself out.”

Thereupon he sat down on the ground, clasped his hands over his stomach, and commenced to guffaw; he threw himself flat upon the gra.s.s, kicking the earth with his feet, and shouting with merriment the while.

The young officer of the law was beside himself with vexation, as he reflected: ”This man is horribly tipsy; how can I enter the house of such a righteous man with a drunken fellow?”

Then when Mr. Buczkay had given satisfaction to the demands of his nature, according to which his merriment, repressed almost to the bursting point, was obliged to break loose in a due proportion of laughter, he rose again from the earth, dusted his clothes, and with the most serious countenance under the sun said, ”Well, we can proceed now.”

Sarvolgyi's house was unlike Magyar country residences, in that the latter had their doors night and day on the latch, with at most a couple of bulldogs on guard in the courtyard--and these were there only with the intention of imprinting the marks of their muddy paws on the coats of guests by way of tenderness. Sarvolgyi's residence was completely encircled with a stone wall, like some town building: the gate and small door always closed, and the stone wall crowned with a continuous row of iron nails:--and,--what is unheard of in country residences--there was a bell at the door which he who desired to enter had to ring.

The gentlemen rang for a good quarter of an hour at that door, and the lawyer was convinced that no one would come to open it; finally footsteps were heard in the hall, and a hoa.r.s.e, shrill woman's voice began to make enquiries of those without.

”Who is there?”

”We are.”

”Who are 'we'?”

”The guests.”

”What guests?”

”The magistrate and the lawyer.”

Thereupon the bolts were slipped back with difficulty, and the questioner appeared. She was, as far as age was concerned, a little ”beyond the vintage.” She wore a dirty white kitchen ap.r.o.n, and below that a second blue kitchen ap.r.o.n, and below that again a third dappled ap.r.o.n. It was this woman's custom to put on as many dirty ap.r.o.ns as possible.

”Good day, Mistress Boris,” was the lawyer's greeting. ”Why, you hardly wished to let us in.”

”I crave your pardon. I heard the bell ring, but could not come at once.

I had to wait until the fish was ready. Besides, so many bad men are hereabouts, wandering beggars, 'Arme Reisenden,'[36] that one must always keep the door closed, and ask 'who is there?'”

[Footnote 36: Poor travellers.]

”It is well, my dear Boris. Now go and look after that fish, that it may not burn; we shall soon find the master somewhere. Has he finished his devotions?”

”Yes; but he has surely commenced anew. The bells are ringing the death-toll, and at such times he is accustomed to say one extra prayer for the departed soul. Don't disturb him, I beg, or he will grumble the whole day.”

Mistress Boris conducted the gentlemen into a large room, which, to judge from the table ready laid, served as dining room, though the intruder might have taken it for an oratory, so full was it of pictures of those hallowed ones, whom we like to drag down to ourselves, it being too fatiguing to rise up to them.

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