Seed-time and Harvest

late to render the last honors to his remains. The postillion blew lustily on his horn, as he drove into the court-yard, a

ng in good or evil times. He was quite beside himself. His nature was one to be easily excited even by less serious causes than the present. He wept and mourned and lamented, and kept asking how this and that had happened, and, when he heard from Franz that the last words of his fath

but he would not resign from the army immediately, and take up the study of farming, as Habermann advised; he was too old for that, and it did not suit his position as an officer, and there was really no necessity. When he came by and b

es, he stretched his wide open, and raised his eyebrows, and as Habermann passed by, he grasped his coat-sleeve, and, shaking his head, asked impressively, "Karl, what is human life?" but he said nothing more, and Jochen Nüssler, standing by his side, said softly to himself, "Yes, what shall we do about it?" And the laborers stood around, all the Pegels and Degels, and P?sels and D?sels, an

tiff and motionless as if he were set up for a monument at his master's grave. Then came the carriage with the four children, then the Herr Count, then Pastor Behrens and Franz, w

uched Habermann, and whispe

ve you,

e it to me, paragraph for paragraph: two hundred and fifty thalers in gold, a living, rent free, in the mil

ou have such a comfortable

est from the capital which I have laid up, I shall wan

e turned to the laborers, "Kegel, P?sel! you must come now and carry the coffin.

test friendliness and compassion, although she had hitherto held herself rather aloof from them, on account of the difference in rank. But death and sympathy bring all to a level, the lofty bow themselves under the hand of God, knowing that they are as

"There!" she cried, with a deep sob, pressing into her hand a bunch of red and whi

urns green after a warm rain, are they buds still which it bears, or are they leaves? And for the human

dfastly at the child. "Who is that young maiden, Fr

"do you mean that child? That i

, when the Kammerrath was dying. "No," said he again, "the good Lord will not suffer it." Stra

m these gloomy thoughts. "Truly! Just look, Ka

departed--hope for a future good understanding between Pumpelhagen and Gurlitz"--in short, whatever he could think of at the moment, and, as the lieutenant thanked him for his friendly interest, he felt as light as if he had discharged himself of all the sympathy that was in him. He looked around over the com

ly have remained on the sofa by the three daughters, endeavouring to comfort them, the other would be fluttering about the room, offering her guests bread-and-butter and wine, and, when Louise assumed the latter of

the last, and, when he had bowed awkwardly to the lieutenant, he went up to the Frau Pastorin, and took her hand and pre

y upon the thought of the love and protection which they had lost, and turning to what should come next, plans for the future, what would be most reasonable to do, and where they should live, so that when the three ladies went back w

rdock and nettles and henbane shot up also, and the golden daisies bloomed in strange company. Whoever would harvest here must not be afraid of a little poison, or mind being pricked by the briars and nettles. He who

lls of exchange, and processes and procurations, until he should be fat enough, and then knock him on the head. Or, could he do better? Malchen was a pretty girl, or Salchen either,--Herr von Zwippe

would not meddle with this. To be sure, it might do, in case of

to him. Did he think it was for Pomuchelskopp to speak first? To a servant? What was he but a

or! Oh, the Herr Pastor! I shall go round to his house to-morrow, and we shall be so friendly--oh, I know his friendliness! there lies the pastor's field before my eyes! To pretend friendship under such circumstances! Well, only wait a little, I will be even with him yet, fo

d Pomuchelskopp gently, damped

otary, and old

a hop-pole,--"but just look over at Pumpelhagen and that beautiful field. Is it not a sin and a shame it shou

in and talk to the people. Such plans as you have

and sure!" said Pomuchelskopp, as h

back to the window, Philipping had spied the ring on his finger, and Nanting the watch-chain knotted across his vest, and they darted on him like a couple of ravens, tugging at the ring, and pulling at the chain, and Nanting trod on poor David's corns, and Phil

t represented a long barn and a plum-tree thickly set with blue plums, and before the barn hens were scratching, and a wonderful brigh

Rahnstadt,--exception being made of those who were so fortunate as to have a share in David's "produce business,"--he had grayish-yellow c

tiness, rather than the stupidity of other people? Was the notary to blame if his wisdom was too great to be concealed under a bushel? It had increased to such an extent, indeed, that he was able to ac

nd how on every journey to see the lady, he had plucked from the poor cock now a wing-feather, and now a tail-feather, until

e you, Herr Notary!

oward the door, so she gathered up her plums, chickens, geese and pigs, and saying, "C

ame about the hides, and I wanted to a

You can talk about those afterward. We came for

ld dispense with preliminaries, he took the bull by the horns, and

motioned him to the sofa. "Yes," said he, "it

d much harder case's. David has a bill for two thousand five hundred; I myself len

ently and composedly, and he stood up and

ve mine too?

e added, "I take them on this condition. Make out a bill, in my name, that you are indebted to me for the amount, and keep these notes and worr

nd; we can manage the business; but

iment, from Marcus Seelig, who writes me that he can buy up about two thousan

a good deal to take at one time;

, too," said David. "Yo

ily treading on Pomuchelskopp's t

might go and examine the wool, and, when he returned and seated himself on th

lskopp, feeling as if he had step

I have known all along what you wanted, and, if you will pull

a sly fox! Pomuchel

ry, I don'

ompound interest, and I--ah, I could manage the business myself, but it is a little too much for me to undertake,--I wil

matter. It torments me too much to look over at that beautiful

e at him, as if to say,

lskopp, "what do you

You don't think that you can bring such an estate as Pumpelhagen to bankruptcy with a trumpery thousand thal

opp, "but there is Moses, with his sev

hat you must do. You must get on good terms with the lieutenant; as a friend, you can assist him in some temporary embarrassment, and then, in a temporary emb

it all; but I must have him here first. You must go to him dire

thing; if there i

, as if he feared being betrayed by a listener, "there is that Habermann; and

like Habermann? I take it, the lieutenant is not different from the rest of the world. No, Habermann may stay at Pumpelhagen, for all that; but yet, if it is possible,

He didn't manage ver

mustn't undervalue th

w can we bri

Lieutenant with the bright dollars under his eyes, it will be easy to get

tone of annoyance; "but all that takes

long Pumpelhagen has been in the Rambow family; the change cannot take place in a hurry. But now, stop! David

ad been telling the best joke in the world. But David was not so stupid as he appeared at the moment; he knew very well that he had been made an April fool of; and that his two colleagues had been discussin

quired Pom

ders, "you say it has been washed, and

e? Do you mean to say it i

's-down it may be sw

e you dr

Hamburg; the great L?wenthal house in Hambur

u are always writing

?wenthals doesn't w

n't business, this looks like a quarrel. Pomuche

, he said in a very friendly and pleasant way, for he was always pleasant in his own house, and especially to the w

id merely sipped at his. As the notary finished his glass, he said, "Now, gentlemen, let me tell you so

kopp"--here he trod on his toes again--"you don't care for ready money

remarks, "if you can get me the Pumpelhagen bonds from you

David, "but how

d Pomuchelskopp. "We

"you can settle about the kno

" said Da

otary said softly and very jokingly to Pomuchelskopp, "To-morrow David can

ith his H?nning, and cut and clipped contentedly at the web of the future, and the notary sat in the wagon highly pleased, well satisfied with him

ys, over his shoulder, and said, "So! If you have been with that notary, that cut-throat, and that Pomuchelskopp,--he is another cut-throat,--and b

favorable for Da