"Ha! What could he have come to the Owl's Ear for?"
"They call this the Owl's Ear?"
"Yes."
"That's pretty near it," said I, raising my eyes. "This reversed vault forms the pavilion well enough; the under side of the steps makes the covering of the tympanum, and the winding of the staircase the cochlea, the labyrinth, and vestibule of the ear. That is the cause of the murmur which we hear: we are at the back of a colossal ear."
"It's very likely," said Hans Goerner, who did not seem to have understood my observations.
We started up again, and I had ascended the first steps when I felt something crush under my foot; I stopped to see what it could be, and at that moment perceived a white object before me. It was a torn sheet of paper. As for the hard object, which I had felt grinding up, I recognized it as a sort of glazed earthenware jug.
"Aha!" I said to myself; "this may clear up the burgomaster's story."
I rejoined Hans Goerner, who was now waiting for me at the edge of the pit.
"Now, sir," cried he, "where would you like to go?"
"First, let's sit down for a while. We shall see presently."