'Are you going to ruin my life for a paltry sum?'
'Wait…wait,' cried Gryb, seeing that the Soltys was in earnest. He took Slimak aside.
'Neighbour, if there is to be peace between us,' he said, 'I'll tell you what you will have to do.'
'What?'
'You'll have to marry my sister. You are a widower, she is a widow. You have ten acres, she has fifteen. I shall take her land, because it is close to mine, and give you fifteen acres of Hamer's land. You will have a gospodarstwo of twenty-five acres all in one piece.'
Slimak reflected for a while.
'I think,' he said at last,' Gawdrina's land is better than Hamer's.'
'All right! You shall have a bit more.'
Slimak scratched his head. 'Well, I don't know,' he said.
'It's agreed, then,' said Gryb, 'and now I'll tell you what you will have to do in return. You will pay a hundred and fifty roubles to Grochowski and a hundred to Josel.'