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Gyuri's room was at the other end of the house, which was built in the shape of an L. It used to be the schoolroom before the new school was built. (Widow Adamecz had learnt her A

"How I have misjudged them!" he thought to himself. "There are no better people in the world. And how they love the child!" At tea-time Widow Adamecz appeared on the scene; until now she had not troubled much about the new priest.

The hands of the parish clock pointed to the Roman figure II., and the chimes rang out on the air; the servants laid the table for dinner, Mrs. Adamecz brought in the soup, and his reverence led his guests into the dining-room, and placed them right and left of Madame Krisbay, when all at once they noticed that Veronica was missing.

Sztolarik was impressed by the apparent sincerity of Gyuri's sorrow. "That's quite another thing," he said. "If that is how you feel I will stay here with you. Let us go and look for the girl ourselves, and find out what she thinks on the subject." When they went out, they found great confusion reigning in the courtyard, but Mrs. Adamecz was loudest in her lamentations.

At this moment Widow Adamecz rushed in from the kitchen, flourishing an immense wooden spoon in the air. "Yes, your reverence, Srankó was a good, pious man; not all the gossip you hear about him is true. And even if it were, it would touch Mrs. Gongoly as much as him, may God rest her soul. If the holy umbrella was used at her funeral, it can be used at his too.

Gyuri gave no answer to this cruel thrust, and went into the kitchen, where the widow was frying pancakes. "I say, Mrs. Adamecz, where have you put the old handle of the church umbrella?" Widow Adamecz finished frying her pancake, put it on a wooden platter with those she had already fried, and then turned round to see who was speaking to her. "What have I done with the old handle, my dear?

Sztolarik said all he could think of to console Gyuri, but the young lawyer was quite cast down at the thought that his dreams would never now be realized; his whole life was before him, dark and threatening. But the world was the same as of old, and everything went just the same as though Widow Adamecz had never burned the handle of the umbrella.

Adamecz," he called out to the old woman, who was plucking a fowl at the kitchen door, "will you bring me out the key of the church, please?" She did as she was asked, and the priest, going on in front, led his visitors through the church. "This way, gentlemen, into the sacristy." As they stepped in there it was before them!

When they were outside, and the priest had gone in with the keys, the old lawyer took the two rings out of the paper they were wrapped in and pressed them into Gyuri's palm, saying quaintly: "According to your logic of half an hour ago, you must now marry old Mrs. Adamecz, so go and ask for her hand at once."

"I asked you about the handle of the umbrella, not about the child." Mrs. Adamecz tossed her head. "Well, that's just what I am talking about. I tell you, they persisted in admiring Matykó, and the poor little angel was fading away.