of his presence on the ship was so curious! Never before had he had so
strange a sense of being a will-less puppet in the hands of destiny.
Again dark and light illusions mingled in his brain. He thought of
Ingigerd, whom he had not yet seen; and when he touched the quivering
wall of the low room, he was penetrated by happiness, that the same walls
were protecting him as the little dancer and that the same bottom was
holding them up.

"It's not true. It's a lie," he repeated half aloud, referring to the
statement of the armless man, that Hahlström was exposing his daughter
to dishonour and was exploiting her.

Doctor Wilhelm's return aroused Frederick from his dreams with a painful
shock. Doctor Wilhelm laughed and continued to laugh, as he threw his cap
on the bed and said:

"I've just dragged our little Hahlström and her pet dog on deck. The
little imp has been giving a regular performance, in which her faithful
poodle, Achleitner, plays the part, one moment of the beaten cur, the
next moment of the spoiled darling."

Doctor Wilhelm's report made Frederick uneasy. The first time he had seen
Mara, she seemed to him the incarnation of childish purity and innocence.
But since then, rumours had reached his ears which shook his faith in her
chastity and caused him many agonised hours and sleepless nights. He had
even had an excellent opinion of her father, and that, too, was shaken.

Doctor Wilhelm, who also seemed to be extremely interested in Ingigerd,
began to speak of Achleitner.