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Then on the way home with his father, Eleseus had to carry that spring coat of his openly, though he managed to hide the stick in one of the sleeves. All went well till they had to cross the water in a boat; then his father sat down unexpectedly on the coat, and there was a crack. "What was that?" asked Isak. "Oh, nothing," said Eleseus.
"You've money outstanding besides, maybe?" said Eleseus. "In a bank, or so?" For so report had said. "H'm," said the old man. "That's as it may be. But, anyhow, with the fishery, the farm and buildings and stock, red cows and white cows and all don't you worry about that, Eleseus, my boy."
True, on going through the inventory after, it was found that Aronsen's wife had converted most of the cotton print to her own use; but trifles of that sort were nothing to a man like Eleseus. It didn't do to be mean, he said. Nevertheless, Eleseus was not exactly delighted with things as they had turned out his future was settled now, he was to bury himself in the wilds.
Oh, but it was pleasant to find oneself appreciated here in the wilds! "Why, I'm afraid my hands aren't much good at that sort of work," said Eleseus delicately. "Let me look," said Barbro, and took his hand. Axel dropped out of the conversation again, and went out, leaving the two of them alone.
One thought leading to another: Eleseus breaks off his talk with Brede and goes out into the shed to look at the horse. And there he takes out a letter from his pocket and opens it. He had put it away at once, never troubling to look what money was in it; he had had letters of that sort from home before, and always a deal of notes inside something to help him on the way. What was this?
It was for Eleseus to begin. He began with Leopoldine. Well and good, she said good-bye in return, and managed it very well. Likewise Jensine the servant-maid, she sat carding wool and answered good-bye but both girls stared at him, confound them! and all because he might perhaps be the least bit red about the eyes.
He used it very carefully, and rarely lent it to his brother, but for all that the walls were covered with blue and red drawings as time went on, and the pencil got smaller and smaller. At last Eleseus was simply forced to put Sivert on rations with it, lending him the pencil on Sunday only, for one drawing.
And his father agrees at once: "Ay, the very thing." They work at their stones again in silence. Then asks Isak: "Eleseus, he's not come home, I suppose?" And Sivert answers evasively: "He'll be coming home soon." 'Twas that way with Eleseus: he was all for staying away, living away on journeys. Couldn't he have written for the goods? But he must go round and buy them on the spot.
Sivert himself is all taken aback; first of all it was a surprise to see Jensine again, and now here's Eleseus going to leave the place altogether, not to say the world. "What about Storborg?" says he. "What'll you do with it?" "Andresen can have it," says Sivert. "Andresen have it? How d'you mean?" "Isn't he going to have Leopoldine?" "Don't know about that. Ay; perhaps he is."
When he had finished, he said: "There now, Eleseus, and you, Sivert, 'tis your mother herself has written that letter and learned all these things. Even that little tiny sister of yours, she knows more than all the rest of us here. Remember that!" The boys sat still, wondering in silence. "Ay, 'tis a grand thing," said Oline. And what did she mean by that?
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