lower and hid his feet in their torn boots under the bench. Why should
he be comfortable? It was enough if the master and the Soltys were. He
ate his soup and listened with both ears.

'What makes you take the cow to Gryb?' asked the gospodyni.

'Because he wants to buy her.'

'We might buy her ourselves.'

'Yes, that might be so,' put in Slimak; 'the girl is here, the cow
should be here too.'

'That's right, isn't it, Maciek?' asked the woman.

'Oho, ho!' laughed Maciek, till the soup ran out of his spoon.

'What's true is true,' said Grochowski; 'even Gryb ought to understand
that the cow ought to be where the girl is.'

'Then sell her to us,' Slimak said quickly.

Grochowski dropped his spoon on the table and his head on his chest. He
reflected for a while, then he said in a tone of resignation:

'There's no help for it; as you are quite, decided I must sell you the
cow.'

'But you'll take off something for us, won't you?' hastily added the
woman in an ingratiating tone.