upon Karin stuck in her throat. There was an air of lofty dignity
about Karin that disarmed people; therefore, no one had the courage
to upbraid her. When they were on the broad step in front of the
porch, Mother Stina tapped Karin on the shoulder.

"Have you noticed who is standing over there?" she asked, and
pointed to Ingmar.

Karin winced a little, but was careful not to look over at her
brother. "The Lord will find a way out for him," she murmured. "The
Lord will surely find away out."

To all appearances the living-room was not much changed by reason
of the auction, for in there the seats and cupboards and bedsteads
were stationary. But shining copper utensils no longer adorned the
walls, the built-in bedsteads looked bare, stripped of their
coverings and hangings, and the doors of the blue-painted
cupboards, which in the old days were always left standing half
open, to let visitors see the great silver jugs and beakers that
filled its shelves, were now closed; which meant that there was
nothing inside worth showing. The only wall decoration the room
boasted was the Jerusalem canvas, which on that day had a fresh
wreath around it.

The large room was thronged with relatives and coreligionists of
Halvor and Karin. One after another, they were conducted with much
ceremony to a large, well-spread table, for refreshments.

The door to the inside room was closed. In there negotiations for
the sale of the farm itself were pending. The talking was loud and
heated, especially on the part of the pastor.

In the living-room, on the other hand, the people were very quiet,
and when any one spoke, it was in hushed tones; for every one's
thoughts were in the little room where the fate of the farm was
being settled.

Mother Stina turned to Gabriel, saying: "I suppose there's no
chance of Ingmar getting the farm?"

"The bidding has gone far beyond his figure by now," Gabriel
replied. "The innkeeper from Karmsund is said to have offered
thirty-two thousand, and the Company's bid has been raised to
thirty-five. The pastor is now trying to persuade Karin and Halvor
to let it go to the innkeeper rather than to the Company."

"But what about Berger Sven Persson?"

"It seems that he has not made any bid to-day."

The pastor was still talking. He was evidently pleading with some
one. They could not hear what he said, but they knew that no
decision had been reached or the pastor would not have gone on
talking.

Then c