"Well, sister, it is all the same. Every body knows that the young Herr is in great pecuniary embarrassment; Pomuchelskopp gave him notice for his money, and did not get it at St. Anthony's day, and has now sued him; Moses has given him notice for St. John's day, and will not get his money either, for in such times, and under such circumstances, he can raise nothing, and then his estate must be sold, and it will go very cheap, and Pomuchelskopp will buy it. In better times, and under the right sort of management, the estate would bring a good price. You will help the gracious Frau and so will I, I will gladly give up my little capital, if the young Herr will consent to a sensible management; but that would not go far. You must do something also; and I will talk seriously to Moses, and it will be a sin and a shame if we honest people cannot get the better of that old rascal, who muddied the water in the first place, that he might catch his carp the easier!"
"Yes, Karl, if he would manage sensibly, and have you for inspector again, then--"
"No, child," interposed Habermann, decidedly, "I shall never go there again. But there are plenty of skilful farmers in the country,--thank God!--and he must get such an one, and leave the management to him, we will make that a condition."
"Yes, Karl, that is all very well; but now we have the outfit for Mining,--Kurz might have done more about it, and for his only son, but he is always filling one's ears with complaints, and, Karl, it might make us trouble with Rudolph; and we must take care that we have something to live upon, in our old age, and then our money is all tied up in mortgages."
"Moses can arrange all that. You see, sister, you have promised the Frau you would help her, and I know you meant what you said; now is the time for you to help!"
"Yes, Karl, but Jochen! what will Jochen say?"
"Eh, Jochen! Jochen has done whatever you wanted for this five and twenty years, he will do so still."
"Karl, you are right; he must do so. I have always managed for his good, and would he set himself against me now? But he is always making trouble; it is very hard to control him," and Frau Nüssler sprang up from her chair, and struck her fist against the table, as if that were Jochen.
"My dear child," said Habermann, "you have brought about a great deal of good, in these long years; you will bring this about too. May God help you! and now, adieu!" and he gave his sister a kiss, and departed.
What a pleasant walk he had! His restlessness of yesterday and that morning were quite gone, such a sure hope had sprung up in him, and all that he saw, the blue sky and the green earth, harmonized with his mood, harmonized with the peace which had entered his heart. And as he arrived at home, and his daughter scolded him, and the Frau Pastorin wondered why he had not come home to dinner, which they had kept waiting for him, he looked so bright and cheerful, that Bräsig gazed at him in astonishment, and said to himself, "Karl must have found out some new indicium," for he had learned several new Latin phrases that morning. And he sat there, and made the most frightful faces at Habermann, until the old man finally understood them as signs that he should go out, and went with him up-stairs to his room.