United States or Uganda ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
"That I will," cried the little horror, grabbing at everything simultaneously with both hands. "Oh, fie, fie!" said grandpapa gently. "Take Maksi out for a ride and let the lacquey go with him instead of his tutor!"
Madame Langai's elder brother, John, was notoriously the greatest bore in the town, whom nobody, from the members of his own family down to his coffee-house acquaintances, could endure for a moment. Only his father made much of him. For all his great wealth, he was very stingy and greedy; he even lent money at usury to his best friends. Our amusing little friend Maksi was this man's son.
The little favourite was wearing a complete Uhlan costume, even the four-cornered chako was stuck on the side of his head; he was flourishing a zinc sword and grumbling bitterly. "What's the matter with little Maksi? Has anybody been annoying him?"
"Why did you irritate him when he was mad enough already?" he cried. "What will you gain by his death? He has a son who will inherit everything, you know. Yes, everything will belong to little Maksi." Madame Langai calmly went on tying her bonnet strings. "I know what fiery blood he has," mumbled the old man. "When he is angry he will listen to nobody, and is capable of facing a whole army.
They might have replied that he had ordered all these things himself yesterday; but nobody took the trouble to contradict him any longer, so gradually the storm died away of its own accord and the old man, turning towards Maksi, tenderly invited him to partake of the disparaged dishes. "Come and eat with me, Maksi, my darling."
Maksi will be a great soldier one of these days!" "Yes," replied the lad defiantly, "I'll be a general!" "Yes, Maksi shall be a general; nothing less than a general, of course. But come, my boy, take your finger out of your mouth." The English governess here thought she saw an opportunity of insinuating a professional remark. "He who would be a general, must, first of all, learn a great deal."
This was the little grandson, the old gentleman's spoiled darling little Maksi. "Why don't you let in little Maksi?" cried the old gentleman, when he heard him. "Open the door for little Maksi; don't you know that he is not tall enough to reach the door-handle? Why don't you let him come to me when he wants to come?"
Still that was no reason why Koloman should not learn, but as the tutor had his hands full already with little Maksi, Koloman was obliged to go to the national school in order to become a wiser man than his forbears.
So the family medicament had to be fetched at once; but Maksi, snatching it from the worthy spinster's hand, threw it violently to the ground, so that the whole carpet was bespattered with it. Nobody was allowed to scold him for this, however, as grandpapa was instantly ready with an excuse: "Maksi must not be vexed," said he. "Does not Maksi wear a sword by his side already?
Grandpapa, in a terrible to do, began to question him: "Come here! Where did you hit yourself? On the head, eh! Let us see! Why, it is swollen up quite red in fact! Put some opodeldoc on it! Clementina, do you hear? some opodeldoc for Maksi!"
Word Of The Day