Short Stories From Austria- Ferdinand Von Saar

by Ferdinand Ludwig Adam

  His words had conjured in me a storm that shook everything forcibly oppressed and forgotten slumbering awake. Recently, my blood was raging and producing the most amazing, extravagant thoughts. But soon I managed to regain control of myself - and to remain so much longer, when I no longer saw Maruschka. She stayed away from the woods, and I, in order not to have to pass her home, always made a long detour through the upper part of the village. In the hurry I had once taken the usual path, and there she was standing on the bridge. She kept low over that Railing bent and looked down into the water. Maybe she had seen me coming and turned away as a result; but I noticed that she appeared to be better and more carefully dressed than usual, and in bright colors; around her brownish neck she wore a triple string of colored glass beads. Involuntarily, I wondered how she wanted to get to all of them.

  So several weeks passed, and the hunting season approached. The rule was now complete; also numerous guests appeared. At first there was a funny crack on the stubble fields, which was for the chickens and rabbits; but now the first shoot of deer was to take place in the forest. So I had to go up to the Heger the day before to arrange what was necessary with him, but did not find himHome. His young wife - he had already closed quite a high age - had a second marriage - was nursing on the threshold of her child and said that the husband must still be nearby, because he had left only recently. She told me the direction he was supposed to take, and so I entered the designated path that led into the grave gloom of tall firs. For a while he stayed flat, then rose to fall abruptly into a trough-shaped depression, which, covered with young larch and spruce shoots, lay in the full light of the clear autumn sun. I paused for a moment to see if the hunter was down there-then I saw a tender couple resting in intimate embrace between the low bushes. The surprised - for they, too, saw me now - drove off, hiding instinctively their faces in the grass as they moved quickly around. But I already knew it: it was Maruschka - and the son of the mayor, a beardless, not yet twenty-year-old boy, who would have been nice to name, if not a disgusting one His face would have been distorted by mental weakness and childish softness.

  Of course, I immediately turned back and walked back the path. But it was not long before somebody hurried after me. It was the boy, headless, his skirt thrown over his shoulders. Mr Adjunkt! Mr. Adjunkt! he shouted from a distance in a pleading voice.

  ,What the hell?' I asked, stopping.

  'Oh, Herr Adjunkt,' he stammered, laboriously using the unfamiliar German idiom, 'betray nothing! Do not tell anyone that you saw me up here with the - with the Maruschka. '

  'What does that matter to me? Am I an old woman? ' I harshly translated in his native language.

  'Oh, it would be terrible to know it,' he went on, whining. 'My father - and also the mother would be - -' He made gestures of being absentminded.

  'I think so,' I affirmed. But do you often come together up here? I went on involuntarily, ashamed of myself for feeling a twitching heartache at the question.

  “Of course,” grinned the boy, his mouth extending to his ears.,All days.'

  ,At the same spot?'

  'Once there, once there.'

  'And then how can you believe that no one will know you?'

  'Oh, no man is coming up there. At most people from the princely district over, and they do not know us.

  But the Heger? He should have met you already? '

  'Oh, the Pan Heger,' laughed the boy again, 'he does not harm us. He keeps his mouth shut. I got that - he made a significant pantomime that he put money into his hands.

  And that reassured me in the evil opinion that I, as well as the forester, had of the man. Although he appeared very useful in the service; he had prudence, courage and energy, but his other qualities did not inspire confidence. He liked to drink and had heavy family worries on his neck, as he had three children from his first marriage. He never got away with his salary, and the Count, with whom he had been a private servant for some time, and who showed a special fondness for him, had to support him constantly. I was annoyed.

  'I'll be grateful to you, too,' continued the lad with submissive confidence.

  'What are you under?' I startled. 'I saw nothing and heard nothing. As far as I'm concerned, you can be completely reassured. I'm telling you this, so that if the thing gets rascalable today or tomorrow, it does not mean I brought it to light '. I let him stand.

  I met the Heger at home. It came to me to confront him; but the whole thing was so disgusting to me that I did not want to touch her again. So I just gave my orders for the hunt and then went my way.

  IV.

  The forester only rarely went to the market towns; his suffering and the associated grudgingness prevented him from doing so. But if it had to happen every now and then for compelling reasons, it usually stayed down until late into the night. For he used to go to the dignitary tavern where the rare guest was received with great courtesy; good Bohemian beer and a tarot party did the rest to thaw the grumpy old man, who, once got into a flow, proved to be a very pleasant and amusing companion.

  That had once been the case during this time. I was still sitting with the forester, who always awaited him with some anxiety, by the light of the lamp at the table when he came home. He looked very cheerful, and while he made himself comfortable, he said, 'Do you know the latest? The whole place is full of it. The son of the mayor has a love affair with the young Kratochwil. '

  ,What you do not say!' exclaimed the forester, astonished.

  But I knew it, so I only shrugged my shoulders.

  'A nice present for Herr Papa,' continued the old man. “Now he can easily curse and rant and swear he wants to bring the entire family to the penitentiary. He should have thought of that earlier, now it's too late. '

  'Well, it will not be so bad,' said the woman.

  , Arg it is, very bad. The weak-headed Lali, who as a boy was always after the women and was constantly fooled by them, has finally come before the right blacksmith. Of course, the useless person immediately received him with open arms. And now that he has tasted the roast, he howls and whispers and threatens that he will kill himself if he takes the Maruschka. '

  , Jesus Mary! The rascal! ' The forester, half-flushed, folded her hands.

  Of course he will not do it, but her dear distress will be with her parents; The spoiled fellow was always used to enforcing his will. Now, of course, they no longer let him cross the street alone, but otherwise they paid no attention, despite all the monkey love for the only one, to the fact that the day-thief was constantly away from the house on the pretext of looking out for the fields. Otherwise you would have had to find out sooner. Strange it is at all, that also otherwise No one fell for it, although it was generally wondered that the Maruschka went very neat and clean and her father could not get out of the intoxication. But you know, Pernett, 'continued the forester, looking sternly at me,' do you know that we are actually involved in the story? Because guess what, where the clean couple held their meetings? In our district - upstairs with the Heger, who grants them the shelter in the forest. Probably the boy had given him some money for a while, but eventually it might have seemed more advantageous to the old rascal to reveal the secret by a round sum. Miserable Lump! But since it happened, I really enjoy it. '

  We had not gone to bed for long, when suddenly the dogs broke out in a furious barking and the doorbell was hastily pulled several times in a row. As I was not yet asleep, I was soon at my window, which was next to the gate, and looked out, opening one wing. Out in the dark stood two men. They were workers who were used in a new building outside the village and, as they said, had spent the night in an open shed. From there they would have noticed a strong firelight rising from the upper part of the forest towards the sky. They would have come to notify us and to make themselves available in case of need.

  No sooner had the forester sat up in bed than heard this news, when he was already standing on the ground with a sentence. 'A forest fire?' he shouted, driving into his clothes with
unaccustomed speed., A forest fire? But how is that possible? ' he added, remembering., In this humid fog weather? Also, the night was completely calm when I returned home. '

  'It's still her,' I replied, looking more recently. 'In my opinion, at most the Hegerhaus could burn.'

  ,You're right; so will it be. And then the young Kratochwil set fire to avenge himself on the man. '

  This idea immediately crossed my heart.

  'Just hurry up,' continued the forester, and look. The men can take you for precaution; I'll follow you as soon as I'm dressed warmer. '

  'I think you can spare yourself,' I said, getting ready quickly. There can be no particular danger here; The little house is in an extensive clearing. By the way, you may be on standby, and if necessary, I'll send for you. '

  This was also evident to the forester, who had already picked out the old man's high felt boots, and he agreed as I went off with the men. We had taken two lanterns and took the shortest, if the hardest, path at night and fog. It was not long before we felt a slight burning smell, which became more and more intense, and when we finally stepped out into the clearing, the reddish glow of glowing beams surrounding the house shimmered through the darkness. The fire was already extinguished and no further danger to get; even the damage proved not very significant. Only the attic had burned down; the walls were intact; even a little, The nearby wooden stable was spared from the flames. I asked the Heger people, who were just busy, to give back some belongings made in the open, in what way the fire had broken out? The woman replied hastily and reasonably confused, she could only believe that evil people had laid it. There are some poachers who have long since sworn revenge on their husband; it would also be possible - she was suddenly stuck in her speech, because the hawker, as I noticed, gave her a grim look. The discussion was evidently unpleasant to him, and he said with a certain defiance, 'We can not accuse anyone. The October nights are already very cold, and there, because of the children, we heated late in the evening. But the stove is old and damaged - and it probably bears the blame for the fire. Incidentally, the horror we endured was the worst; everything else is hardly worth mentioning. Rafters and shingles were already rotten and weathered, and would soon have to be replaced by new ones.

  This explanation, as well as the whole behavior of the people seemed sufficient to relieve Maruschka in my eyes of the iniquity which I have to do with her; However, on my return, the forester, with his own doggedness, clung to his suspicions and thought that the hunter had his good reasons for putting the blame on the stove, so that the role he played in the love trade was not discussed any further would. But it was not only the old man who was convinced that the girl had set the fire: the news spread like wildfire in the place itself and immediately became an undoubted fact. There was talk of nothing else, and she wondered indignantly how it came that the criminal was still free and undisturbed. As a result, the court was also to take action on the matter and to subject Maruschka to severe interrogation. But as the latter was in the strictest denial of their guilt, and the shadow of a real proof against them could not be brought forward, the court director, foreseeing this outcome, had to let go of everything else, but showed himself to be tormented calm down, happy to accept the request The Mayor, now fostered by the circumstances, was determined to address the Lieutenancy, namely Marie Cratochwil, who had already been convicted of burglary, and who, remaining in incorrigible work shyness, was dangerous to public morality as well as to general security may be determined for delivery to a correctional institution. And since the local council, understandably, went to work with full sails, went to the provincial capital in order to personally set all levers in motion, the decision soon came down that the girl was to be put into one-year forced labor. Maruschka, until then held in custody, became so one day without my seeing her,

  The wife of the mayor, meanwhile, had gone to distant relatives with her son, who, having behaved like a madman for some time, had sunk into apathetic melancholy, hoping that the change of place and surroundings would have a salutary influence on him Mood of the guy would not miss. This remedy did not seem to have struck; for on his return one was surprised at how bad and dilapidated he looked, and since then he has wished to notice that he was leading an introverted, treacherous lunge life. Soon it was also said that he had made friends with the brother of Maruschka, in his company in remote places around, and both have been seen several times in a disreputable inn next to the highway. Yes, one even claimed that he would visit the family in her cave at dusk, regain her with brandy, and swear by drinking: he and Maruschka would still be a couple. Although he was facing recruitment in the spring, it would have been him, despite his father's intention to buy him off, quite right to serve for a few years in the military. When he returns, he is a major and no one can command or forbid him, not even his parents, whom, incidentally, he believes should not live too long. At least that's how they told each other; I confess, however, that I always had a peculiar sensation when the lad met me now and then, pale, hollow-cheeked and stupidly staring into space.

  V.

  The year 66 had come, and his summer brought worry, confusion, and deep suffering. Today more than two decades have passed over it, and the insight that those events have been the starting point of the great Germanic empire has reconciled us all to the fate that struck us then, even if since then the Germans in Austria, by the nationality strife harassed from all sides, always feeling lonelier and more abandoned. But I get into reflections that are not part of my story.

  The war had also struck our province and housed the city advancing Prussian troops. When they left after peace negotiations, the former everyday mood seemed to have returned; The momentous events had left no external traces. Soon, however, much painful things became apparent. Some of the inhabitants had lost their sons in the bloody battles, or saw them mutilated in their parents' home. Among those who had to weep for the dead was the mayor. The boy had gotten his way and got himself assassinated, or rather, the parents who had no idea of the impending war liked a welcome remedy in a short military service have suspected for her son. He had thus entered the native regiment, where he, in the name of the protection of a well-known captain, seemed indeed to live up to some degree; But the war brought a quick end to it. Although he had escaped from Hradec Kralove, he was missed after the hasty and confused retreat across the Elbe, and his trail was lost forever; he must have found his grave in the floodwaters of the river. The two old men, unhappy with their rich possessions, lived in desolate abandonment, and finally took a young, orphaned relative to their place of infancy.

  Also in the troglodyte family some things had changed. The father, finally succumbing to the fate of the drunkard, was one day in delirium tremensdied, and the mother now lived alone on the river with her youngest son. He seemed to have absorbed himself and at least approached a profession by profession: he had become a goose-shirt. And he held this office with surprising zeal, astonishing circumspection, and unimaginable honesty. So it happened that almost the whole community gradually entrusted to him the waddling poultry, which in the past they could not have taken enough precautions against the wretched attacks of the Kratochwil. An unmistakable herd was now chattering on the freshly bristled pasture, giving the earthen hut that surrounded it a very idyllic character. In between, the mighty, spiked, red-haired boy moved and mated with a long, funny curved whip his wards,

  So the year went by, and probably only a few people thought that the time was approaching, about which Maruschka from the compulsory institution would be dismissed. Almost every memory of her was gone; By now I had a beautiful, gentle girl, the daughter of a neighbor Försters, who later became my wife. In fact, I was greatly astonished when I saw the one returning on a bridge on a gloomy, stormy November day. She leaned her back against the railing and stared at me blankly and blankly; At last she turned away slowly. But I was startled by the change that took place in her appearance. The once so strong, slender figure had developed an unhealthy, formles
s fullness, and in that pale, bloated face lay that indescribable draft of dull stupidity peculiar to most convicts. There was no sign of her hair, a dirty headscarf wrapped the whole head deep into her forehead. An unspeakable horror changed me as I passed her now, and later I avoided it,

  There are days when everything coincides so as not to arouse pleasure in man. Such a day was also today. Already in the early morning there had been some discord and annoyance with the wood-thieves in the forest; Now, after the unpleasant meeting, I had to go to court on behalf of the government, because of a driver who was shot while hunting; In the forest house the old man lay with his gout to bed, which also brought the forester to her mood. After hastily eating lunch I had to go out to the wood-clubs again, and in the evening I was about to finish the research, which I used to postpone for as long as possible.

  So, about nine o'clock, I retired to my room to start my work. But I was distracted, restless, and the demonized black numbers danced before my eyes by the lamplight. My dog also did not seem comfortable; He repeatedly turned around under the table and found himself unable to find a comfortable position. That bothered me too; I put the quill out of my hand, lit a pipe for me, and went up and down for a while. I did not think about anything, and yet I felt strangely occupied by something. But time was pressing, I sat down again and by forcibly adjusting myself, I began to add. Now it went, and more and more I got into the work. Stop, too, had finally found peace; he slept.

  In this way, about two hours passed. At times, I paused and listened involuntarily to the November storm that raged through the forest. Stop seemed to feel him; he shivered slightly and struck now and then in the dream short and soft.