“You can go into her room and see for yourself; you know the way!” said Karna tartly.
“And what’s become of the pupil to-day, as he hasn’t rung?” said Karl Johan. “Have any of you girls seen him?”
“No, I expect he’s overslept himself,” cried Bengta from the wash-house. “And so he may! I don’t want to run up and shake life into him every morning!”
“Don’t you think you’d better go up and wake him, Gustav?” said Anders with a wink. “You might see something funny.” The others laughed a little.
“If I wake him, it’ll be with this rabbit-skinner,” answered Gustav, exhibiting a large knife. “For then I think I should put him out of harm’s way.”
At this point the farmer himself came down. He held a piece of paper in his hand, and appeared to be in high good humor. “Have you heard the latest news, good people? At dead of night Hans Peter has eloped with Bodil!”
“My word! Are the babes and sucklings beginning now?” exclaimed Lasse with self-assurance. “I shall have to look after Pelle there, and see that he doesn’t run away with Karna. She’s fond of young people.” Lasse felt himself to be the man of the company, and was not afraid of giving a hit at any one.
“Hans Peter is fifteen,” said Kongstrup reprovingly, “and passion rages in his heart.” He said this with such comical gravity that they all burst into laughter, except Gustav, who sat blinking his eyes and nodding his head like a drunken man.
“You shall hear what he says. This lay upon his bed.” Kongstrup held the paper out in a theatrical attitude and read:
“When you read this, I shall have gone forever. Bodil and I have agreed to run away to-night. My stern father will never give his consent to our union, and therefore we will enjoy the happiness of our love in a secret place where no one can find us. It will be doing a great wrong to look for us, for we have determined to die together rather than fall into the wicked hands of our enemies. I wet this paper with Bodil’s and my own tears. But you must not condemn me for my last desperate step, as I can do nothing else for the sake of my great love.