Garman And Worse A Norwegian Novel by Alexander Lange Kielland (best ereader for pdf and epub txt) 📕

Nothing Remarkable That Fanny Should Have Her Attention Taken Up In

Finding A Suitable _Parti_ For The Chaplain. The Whole Congregation Was,

In Fact,  Busy In The Same Direction; For Martens Was A Man Of About

Thirty,  Not Otherwise Than Prepossessing In appearance,  And It Was Now

More Than A Year And A Half Since He Had Lost His First Wife,  So That

Nothing Could Be More Natural Than That He Should Be Thinking About

Another.

"Good Morning,  Ladies; Good Morning,  Miss Garman. I Hope You Are Both

Well," Said The Chaplain,  As He Came Into The Room. "I Could Not Resist

Your Kind Invitation,  Although I Knew By Experience That A Visit To You

Is Far Too Agreeable To Be Of Very Short Duration."

"You Are Really Too Kind,  Mr. Martens; And Your Complaisance To Such A

Child Of The World As I Am,  Always Causes Me Great Astonishment," Said

Fanny,  Giving Madeleine A Look.

"A Great Many People Are Astonished At It," Answered The Chaplain,  Not

Understanding Her Meaning.

"No,  Really! Who? Who?" Cried Fanny,  Curiously.

"Ah,  You Can Scarcely Understand," Martens Began To Explain,  "To What An

Extent We Poor Clergymen Are Observed By The Hundred Eyes Of Our

Congregation; And The Fact Is,  There Are Several Most Respectable Old

Ladies Who Have Taken Offence At My Frequent Visits To Sandsgaard And To

Yourself."

"No! How Amusing! Do Listen,  Madeleine!" Cried Fanny,  Beaming.

"It'S All Very Well For You To Laugh," Said The Chaplain,  Good

Humouredly; "But It Might Be Very Embarrassing For Me,  Were It Not That

I Can Rely On The Support Of The Good Dean."

"So Dean Sparre And You Get On Now. I Was Under The Impression That The

Relation--"

"Yes,  At First; Only Just At First. But I Am Not Ashamed To Confess That

The Fault Was On My Side. You See,  When I First Came I Took Up With Some

Of Our So-Called Evangelical Neighbours; Respectable,  Worthy People,

Too--I Should Be Sorry To Say Otherwise--But Still,  Not Exactly

Such--Such--"

"_Comme Il Faut_?" Suggested Fanny.

"Well," Answered He,  Smiling,  "That Was Not Exactly The Expression I Was

Looking For; But Still,  You Understand What I Mean."

"Perfectly!" Said Fanny,  Laughing,  As She Took The Cup Of Chocolate

Which Madeleine Had Poured Out For Her.

"I Am Sorry To Say I Took Up A False Position With Regard To The Dean,

Which Led To Many Annoyances Until I Learnt To Know Him; Then Everything

Smoothed Itself Down So Nicely That,  If I May Venture To Say So,  The

Relations Between Us Became Almost That Of Father And Son. He Is An

Extraordinary Man," Repeated The Chaplain Several Times.

"Yes,  Is He Not?" Said Fanny. "I Think He Is The Nicest Clergyman I Have

Ever Seen; And If One Did Not Understand A Word Of His Sermon,  It Would

Still Be Most Edifying Only To Hear Him Read The Service. Then The

Charming Poems He Writes!"

"Yes. For My Part,  I Consider His Last Poem,  'Peace And Reconciliation,'

The Best Thing Of The Kind That Has Appeared In Our Literature For The

Last Ten Years. Can You Imagine Anything More Charming Than The Lines--

     "'I Sat,  In Silent Peace Of Even,

     On Humble Bench Before My Cot'?"

"Was He Poor Once?" Asked Madeleine,  Quickly.

Fanny Laughed; But The Chaplain Explained,  In a Clear And Good-Natured

Way,  That The Poem Had Been Written After Sparre Had Become Dean,  And

That The Cottage Was Merely A Poetical Way Of Expressing His Great

Simplicity.

Madeleine Felt That She Had Asked A Foolish Question,  And Went To The

Window And Looked Out Into The Street.

"Yes," Continued The Chaplain,  "There Is Something About The Dean I Can

Never Quite Understand. I Never Can Quite Make Up My Mind Exactly Where

It Lies; But When You Are Face To Face With Him,  You Feel His Power And

Superiority. I Might Almost Say He Seems To Fascinate You. When He Is

Made A Bishop--"

"A Bishop?" Asked Fanny.

"Yes,  Indeed; There Is No Doubt That The Dean Will Have The First

Bishopric That Becomes Vacant. I Have Heard It Publicly Mentioned."

"No,  Really! I Should Never Have Thought Of It," Said Fanny. "But You

Are Quite Right. Won'T He Look Noble With His Imposing Figure And White

Hair,  And The Gold Cross Shining On His Breast? It Is A Pity Ours Is Not

A Cathedral Town; A Bishop Is Really So Interesting. For Instance,  In

'Leonardo.' Madeleine,  Have You Ever Seen A Bishop?"

Madeleine Turned Towards Her With A Deep Blush On Her Face,  As She

Stammered Out,  "What Were You Asking,  Fanny?"

But Fanny'S Quick Eye Had Already Caught Sight Of Delphin,  Who Was

Coming Over From The Other Side Of The Street. She Returned His Bow,

And,  Observing Madeleine Closely,  Said To Her,  "Will You Be So Good As

To Go And Get A Cup For Mr. Delphin?"

"Is He Coming In?" Said The Chaplain,  Looking For His Hat.

"Yes. But I Have Not Given You Leave To Go,  Mr. Martens; We Were Getting

On So Nicely."

Delphin Came In,  And Fanny Gave Him A Friendly Nod,  And Continued,  "Now,

In Your Position As Clergyman,  You Really Must Assist Us To Effect Mr.

Delphin'S Conversion."

"No Necessity! No Necessity,  I Assure You,  Mrs. Garman," Said Delphin,

Gaily. "My Conversion Is Already About As Perfect As It Can Be. Mr.

Johnsen And I Have Been Conversing On The Subject In a Most Serious

Manner For The Last Half-Hour."

"We Were Also Talking On Religious Subjects," Said Fanny.

"Have You Just Left Mr. Johnsen?" Asked The Chaplain,  Who Had Got His

Hat,  And Was On The Point Of Taking His Leave.

"I Walked With Him A Little Way On The Road To Sandsgaard. It Appears

That He Had An Invitation To Go There," Answered Delphin.

"To-Day,  Again!" Said Fanny.

"Good Morning,  Ladies,  Good Morning! No,  You Really Must Allow Me. I

Have Already Been Here Longer Than I Ought. Good Morning,  Miss Garman."

Madeleine Was Just Coming Into The Room,  And The Chaplain Took A Step

Towards Her In Order To Shake Her Hand; But,  As She Was Carrying The

Tray With The Cups Upon It,  He Was Obliged To Content Himself With

Giving Her A Warm And Respectful Look. As He Went Downstairs,  He Thought

How Unfortunate It Was That Delphin Should Always Be Coming In His Way.

Severin Martens Was Naturally Very Good-Natured,  But Delphin Was A Man

He Could Not Bear. If The Two Got Into Conversation,  Everything Seemed

To Go Wrong For The Chaplain. The Other Had A Particular Way Of Taking

Up His Words,  Turning Them Into Ridicule,  And Exciting Laughter Among

The Hearers,  Which Was Most Unpleasant. The Chaplain Did Not Care Very

Much,  Either,  For Mr. Johnsen. That Apparently Helpless Young Man Had

Shown That He Knew How To Look After Himself Only Too Well. "Invited

Nearly Every Day To Sandsgaard! Hum!" Muttered Martens,  As He Went Down

The Street.

No Sooner Had Delphin Taken The Clergyman'S Place,  Than The Conversation

Changed Its Tone.

"Our Worthy Chaplain Did Not Much Like Johnsen'S Going To Sandsgaard,"

Said Fanny.

"That Was Just The Reason I Mentioned It," Said Delphin.

"Yes,  I Could See That Very Well. You Are Always So Dreadfully

Mischievous. But Can You Make Out What Is The Matter With My Learned

Sister-In-Law? Rachel,  Who Is Generally As Cold And Unsympathetic As An

Iceberg,  Becomes All At Once Quite Taken Up With What Appears To Me The

Most Unlikely Person."

"Your Sister-In-Law Always Appears Attracted Towards Any One Who Shows

Originality."

"Well," Objected The Lady,  "I Don'T See Much In Him; At First I Thought

He Was Rather Interesting. He Reminded Me Somewhat Of Brand In Ibsen'S

Play,  Or Something Of That Sort; But Really,  How Tiresome He Is,  With

His Short,  Cutting Remarks,  Which Come Plump Into The Middle Of A

Conversation Like So Many Stones!"

"I Am A Man Of The People! My Place Is Among The People!" Said Delphin,

Imitating Johnsen'S Voice And Manner.

Fanny Laughed,  And Clapped Her Hands. Madeleine Laughed Too; She Could

Not Help It When Delphin Said Anything Amusing. It Is True She Liked Him

Better When He Was Serious,  As He Was When They Were Alone; He Had Then

A Frank,  Genuine Manner That She Found Particularly Attractive. She

Could Talk To Mr. Delphin On Many Subjects Which She Would Never Have

Had The Courage To Mention To Others. It Was Plain Enough--That Is To

Fanny,  Though Not To Madeleine--That He Always Paid His Visits,  Quite

Accidentally,  Of Course,  Whenever Madeleine Was In The Town.

As They Sat Chatting Merrily On Different Subjects,  Fanny,  Who Always

Kept Her Eye On Passers-By,  Suddenly Cried,  "Just Look! There Is Jacob

Worse. I Declare,  He Is Passing The House Without Looking Up; But I Saw

Him Speak To Some One At The Door. I Wonder Who It Could Have Been?"

And,  With A Woman'S Curiosity,  She Hurried Over To The Window.

"Ah!" Said She,  Laughing,  "I Declare It Was My Little Frederick He Was

Talking To. Freddy," She Cried,  Looking Out Of The Window,  "Come Up To

Mother,  And You Shall Have Some Chocolate."

Little Christian Frederick,  A White-Haired,  Sturdy Little Fellow Of

Between Six And Seven,  Came Scrambling Up The Stairs. The Maid Opened

The Door For Him,  And His Mother Asked,  As She Poured Him Out Some

Chocolate,  "Who Was It My Freddy Was Talking To Downstairs There By The

Door?"

"It Was The Big Man," Answered The Child,  Looking At The Cup With Eager

Eyes.

"The Big Man Is Jacob Worse,  And The Little Man Is Yourself,  Mr.

Delphin," Explained Fanny,  Laughing. "My Son'S Manners Are Not Yet Quite

Perfect. Did The Big Man Ask Who Was Up Here With Mother?"

"He Asked If Aunt Rachel Was In Town," Answered The Child,  Putting Out

His Hand For The Cup.

Madeleine Did Not Exactly See What The Others Found So Amusing,  But She

Joined In The Laugh,  Because Little Freddy Was Her Darling.

"You Are A Dangerous Woman," Said George Delphin,  As He Took His Leave;

"I Must Go And Warn My Friend Worse."

"Yes,  You Dare!" Cried Fanny,  Holding Up Her Taper Finger Threateningly

At Him.

There Was Something Which Madeleine Could Not Exactly Define,  That She

Did Not Quite Like,  About Fanny. She Noticed It Most When They Were In

The Society Of Men,  But Even When They Were Alone The Same Unpleasant

Manner Would Sometimes Appear. She Was Not Accustomed To All These

Questions,  Innuendoes,  And Allusions,  Which Always Seemed To Take The