“So Ber-tha is not ... keep-ing on the house?”
“I should think not, indeed! They have nothing but debts.”
“Is it their bro-ther-in-law who is see-ing to things and ad-min-istering the es-tate?”
“Yes, the commissary in Overijssel.”[1]
“So they are not well off?”
“No, they haven’t a farthing.”
“Yes, as I al-ways used to say to Ka-rel, they al-ways lived on much too large a scale.”
“They squandered all they had.”
“Well, that’s not very pleas-ant for the children!”
“No. And there’s Emilie, who wants a divorce. But don’t mention that to Mamma: she doesn’t know about it.”