Pelle the Conqueror, Vol. 4

army of the unemployed grew larger every day. He stayed at home, worked when there was anything to do, and for the rest minded the children for Ellen while she washed. He talked

sorrow being that the boy could not talk yet

om the wash-house to look after them, with her arms bare and tiny dro

lf only grew smaller by reading. It was impossible in any case to obtain any reassuring view of the whole. The world followed its own crooked course

dreds of empty places. With chilling punctuality they whirled away from station to station. Heaven knows how many thousand empty seats the trains had run with to Jutland during the years in which the old woman longed to see her h

the journey so terribly vivid-as though the devil himself were harnessed to the train and, panting with wantonness, dragging it along through the country t

yards that had something to say now-depressing, like almost everything his understanding mastered. All she wanted was sunshine, and all the summer it had been poured down in open-handed generosity, only it went over the heads of poor people like everything else. It had been a splendid year for stra

n enormous rolling stock, only meant for a few, and to a great extent running empty; and from the empty places accusing eyes gazed out,

s in which trains were used according to the need for them, and not according to the purse, where the

from the unseen had called him and his out into the day, a

ee him. The old librarian

er come in to u

e shortly. "The poor man has no use for

for such as he. He made no attempt to conceal his ill humor, but Brun took no notice. The latter had moved out into Frederiksberg Avenue in October, and drop

tinually; but even that was requiring too much! All that could be scraped together went every month to the money-lender, and they were no nearer the end. On the one hundred and eighty krones (￡10) that Pelle had received they had now in all paid off one hundred and twenty (￡7), and yet they still owed two hundred an

Brun and pay off that money-lender," said Ellen, "or else he'll only come down on us and take our furniture." But Pelle was obstinate and would not listen to reason. T

st he took everything with the calmness of resignation; but when the subject cropped up, he fir

elle was taking no notice, but bent over his work with the expression of a madman who is afraid of being spoken to. His work did not interest him as it had fo

some money trouble, but dared not offer his assistance; every time he tried to begin a conversation Pelle repelled him with a cunning look which said: "You'r

Ellen burst into the workshop. "Pelle!" she cried, without noticing Brun, "they've come to take away our

between his teeth in a low tone as he moved toward the door. He

m by the arm a

mething called Prison!" he

t looked as if he were going to strike the old man; th