CONSUL. Was it men or women you saw?
STARCK. Both, I guess—but now I must get back to my pots. [He disappears into the gateway.
MASTER. [Still inside, has risen from the table and lighted a cigar; he is now standing at the open window, talking to his brother outside] I'll be ready in a moment. Louise is only going to sew a button on one of my gloves.
CONSUL. Then you mean to go down-town?
MASTER. Perhaps we'll take a turn in that direction—Whom were you talking with?
CONSUL. Just the confectioner——
MASTER. Oh, yes—a very decent fellow—and, for that matter, my only companion here during the summer.
CONSUL. Have you really stayed at home every night—never gone out?
MASTER. Never! Those light evenings make me timid. They are pleasant in the country, of course, but here in the city they produce the effect of something unnatural—almost ghastly. But no sooner has the first street lamp been lighted than I feel calm once more and can resume my evening walks. In that way I can get tired and sleep better at night. [LOUISE hands him the glove] Thank you, my child. You can just as well leave the windows open, as there are no mosquitoes. [To the CONSUL] Now I'm coming.
A few moments later he can be seen coming out of the house on the side facing the square; he stops at the corner to drop a letter in the mail-box; then he comes around the corner to the front of the house and sits down on the bench beside his brother.