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But Woman, she was, as the wise aforetime knew, infinitely poor in mind, but rich in irresponsibility, in vanity, in wantonness. Like a child in many ways, but with nothing of its innocence. I stand by the guide-post where the road turns off to Ovrebo. There is no emotion in me.
When Petter came home the entire family set to work reckoning out whether he had gotten his full pay, and if he had lain sick at Ovrebo for the full time allowed him by law, or "provided by statute," as his father, the deputy, put it.
All things considered, then, it was senseless for Nils to think of leaving Ovrebo. But he must go home for a couple of days to his people they lived a little way north of us. So he gave himself two days' leave as soon as the potatoes were all out of the ground.
Then he comes back to us, wiping his fingers with his handkerchief. "Do you go ploughing with other people's horses, Nils?" Pause. "I'll not have it here; you understand?" "H'm! No," says Nils submissively. Then suddenly he flares up: "We've more need of horses this spring than any season ever at Ovrebo: we're taking up more ground than ever before.
I had lived too luxuriously these years past; I must work my way back to the peasant again. Three more days now to the goal my curious fancy had set before me: to Ovrebo, to Captain Falkenberg's. It was an opportune time to walk up there just now and ask for work; there would be plenty to do on a big place like that in the spring.
It was the first time Fru Falkenberg had spoken to me during my present stay at Ovrebo; it was something so new, I went up afterwards to my bedroom and sat there by myself, feeling as if something had really happened. I thought over one or two things a little as well. It was simply foolishness, I told myself to go on playing the stranger here and pretending nobody knew.
Relieved relieved the Captain was to hear it. As he was leaving he told Ragnhild to say I was not to go away from Ovrebo till he returned. No, I didn't go away. I worked on, tramped through the weariest days of my life to their end, and finished laying the pipes.
The fields were coming on nicely now, and you could see the change in the grassland from day to day; it was fine spring weather, and all things doing well that grew, but there was trouble and strife at Ovrebo. Fruen could be seen at times with a face that showed she had been crying; or other times with an air of exaggerated haughtiness, as if she cared nothing for any one.
I circled round all that day, keeping near to Ovrebo; looked in at one or two farms to ask for work, and wandered on again like an outcast, aimlessly. It was a chill, unkindly day, and I had need of all my walking to keep warm. Towards evening I made over to my old working place among the Captain's timber. I heard no sound of the ax; Falkenberg had gone home.
"End of it'll be you'll have to paint that again, too," he said. I told him how far I had got with the timber; there was not much left now. "Well, keep at it and do some more," was all he said. Then he went back to his duty again for another three weeks. But I did not care to stay another three weeks at Ovrebo as things were now.
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