So that was it.

But certainly what she had told me was nonetheless true.




X


The news has leaked out that the master of the homestead here owes a huge
debt, and that because he needs cash he has sold new, valuable plots of
land to his cotters. I am finding out many things now. Mrs. Brede with the
handsome, well-modeled head knows something about everything, for her many
summers at the farm have given her knowledge. When she talks about
conditions here, she need not grope for words.

The master has taken a large mortgage.

No one would believe that all is not well here; the many new buildings and
flagpoles, the curtains at the windows and the red-painted well house--all
give an impression of great prosperity. The rooms, too, make a good
impression. I shall not speak of the piano, but here are pictures on the
walls and photographs of the farm seen from all angles; good newspapers
are kept and there is a selection of novels on the tables; though guests
sometimes take books away with them, the books are never missed. Or take a
thing like this: you get your bill on a handsomely printed paper, with a
picture at the top of the farm and the Tore range in the background. In
short, no one would doubt for a moment that there is a fortune here. And