“Ja, Ja,” he said, “it is the Herr Counselor, himself! It is an honor you come to my place of business.”
Mason shook hands, perched himself on the edge of a counter and said, “I haven’t much time, Karl. I want to find out something.”
“Ja, ja! About the Fräulein who came in with the canary, eh? She said that you had sent her. You perhaps want to know something about that canary?”
Mason nodded.
“It is a good canary,” Helmold said. “It is worth a good price. He has a fine voice.”
“He seems to have a sore foot,” the lawyer said.
“Ja. It is nothing. The claws on the right foot have been cut too short. Today he is lame. Tomorrow he is lame. The next day, nothing. And the day after that, you could never tell.”
“How about the left foot?” Mason asked.
“On the left foot the claws are cut nicely, all except one claw, and that claw, it is not cut at all. I do not understand.”
“The claws were cut today?” Mason asked.