"Let us move on a bit."
Gyuri led him out of the crowd to the village pump, near which grew an elder-tree. This tree, round which they had put some palings, was also a part of the future greatness of Bábaszék, for the green, evil-smelling insects which housed in its branches, and which are used in various medicines (Spanish flies), induced them to believe that they might, once upon a time, have a chemist in Bábaszék. The young girls of the town used to collect the insects, and sell them to the chemist at Zólyom for a few kreutzers; but that was forbidden now, for the people had decided: "Near that tree there will once be a chemist's shop, so we will not have the insects taken away."
They evidently considered them the foundation of the future chemist's store.
Gyuri told the Jew what he wanted; that he was interested in his father's favorite umbrella, and would buy it if he could find it. Did Móricz know anything about it?
"Yes, I do," was the disappointed answer, for now he knew what a trifle it was, he saw the price fall in proportion.
"I will give you fifty florins for any information that will lead to its discovery."
Móricz quickly took off his cap, which until now he had not considered it necessary to remove. Fifty florins for an old umbrella! Why, this young man must be the Prince of Coburg himself from Szent-Antal! Now he noticed for the first time how very elegantly he was dressed.
"The umbrella can be found," he said; and then added more doubtfully, "I think."
"Tell me all you know."
"Let me see, where shall I begin? It is now about fourteen years since my father disappeared, and I have forgotten most of the details, but this much I remember, that I started to look for him with my brother Sámi, and in Podhrágy I found the first trace of him, and following this up, I was told that when there he was still quite in his right mind, had sold a few trifles to the villagers, slept at the inn, and had bought a very old seal from a certain Raksányi for two florins. He must have had all his senses about him then, for when we took him out of the Garam, he had the seal in his coat pocket, and we sold it for fifty florins to an antiquary, as it turned out to be the seal of Vid Mohorai, of the time of King Arpád."