Mrs. Lesa knew that there had been rather odd members in the Lesa family from time to time and suddenly a new anxiety rose in her heart. If the father should really decide to send Vinzi to his father’s old farm in order to teach him interest in farm work, he naturally would find no other distractions there. Mightn’t the boy, who had always been different from other children, become more peculiar? He might in the exclusive company of his uncle get rather odd in his ways. People had told her that the old man who used to live in Leuk would sit by the hour before his barn staring straight in front of him. People used to call him Starri from Leuk.[C] Their brother in Freiburg was supposed to do the same. Such names easily become current, and as every one knew where the Lesa family originally came from, he, too, was called by the people the Starri of Leuk.
When Mrs. Lesa’s thoughts had travelled thus far, she felt still more worried. The father’s chief cause of complaint against the boy was that he always stared into the distance, not seeing and hearing what went on before his eyes. Would it be possible that her lively, splendid Vinzi should turn into the third Starri of Leuk?
Mrs. Lesa was suddenly roused from her disturbing thoughts by Stefeli’s entrance. The child told her that Mr. Delrick had already come back from his walk and was sitting in Vinzi’s room talking to the boy. Quickly she set about preparing his breakfast for as he had come back so much earlier than usual, she was not yet ready for him.
Mr. Delrick knew about Vinzi’s keen passion for music as well as the father’s wishes and desires for his son’s future, with the original cause of Vinzi’s stay on the mountain. But he had not understood from Stefeli’s words what had brought on Vinzi’s tears and the father’s anger so soon after the boy’s happy return. As he took the greatest interest in the weal and woe of the Lesa family, he wished to know if he could not help them somehow. His stay in the house was to be of very short duration, that was why he had come back so soon from his stroll. He had gone to the darkly brooding Vinzi and informed him that he was planning to go to the Italian lakes and in two days would travel across the Simplon. If Vinzi had any messages for friends there, he would be glad to deliver them, as he expected to spend the night there.
For a moment a ray of sunshine flitted over Vinzi’s face.
“Are you also going to see Pater Silvanus and the grandfather?” he asked, with burning eagerness.
“I don’t know who they are,” replied Mr. Delrick. “But tell me about all your friends there and what happened to you on the mountain. Then you can tell me what messages I am to take to them.”
To be able to speak about things which were in his inmost thoughts poured balm on Vinzi’s aching heart. Mr. Delrick’s deep sympathy and understanding of his joy in his music studies with Pater Silvanus made it possible for him to tell about everything that had made him so happy on the mountain. He was willing enough to do whatever work he was set to do, Vinzi concluded, but the idea of never playing any more or hearing more music was too dreadful. He had till now always had the hope that he could spend next summer on the mountain and could then continue his lessons with Pater Silvanus, but today his father had definitely told him that he was never to go back.
The matter began to grow clearer to Mr. Delrick.
“Tell me, Vinzi,” he said, after a pause, “did the Pater urge you to keep up your music at home or did he only mean to take it up again when you went back to him?”