k before, why does he do so now?"

He looked at his stepmother inquiringly; he felt as though he must
demand an explanation of her. How could she allow him to drink so much?
And it was not only beer and wine, for a short time before, when he had
gone to the pig-market in Gnesen, he had brought gin back with him, a
whole keg of clear gin, some bad stuff made of potatoes, like that
given to reapers at harvest-time. And he drank it off as if it were
small beer. "Tell me how it is that father has so changed," he
continued, in a voice that sounded quite rough. "He used to be so
lively formerly. He has always been fond of a drink--who wouldn't
be?--but still he never took more than he could stand. But now!" He
shook his head, and his glance seemed to Mrs. Tiralla to have suddenly
grown suspicious. "I don't know how it's happened."

"I don't know either," said she, as she cast her eyes around. Where had
those two crept to? They had both gone, and probably together. Nothing
else was of any consequence to her at the present moment. Let Mikolai
think what he liked, it was perfectly immaterial to her. "Where can
Becker be?" she asked impatiently.

Mikolai's thoughts were still with his father, and he kept staring at
the pavement with a heavy frown, which was not at all in keeping with
his round, innocent [Pg 203] face. It grieved him very much to think
that his old father, of whom he was so fond, should drink like that. It
was fortunate that his mother had not lived to see it. It seemed to be
quite immaterial to his stepmother. Or was he wrong? She was looking
quite pale all at once, positively distraught. He must be wrong, she
took it, no doubt, just as much to heart as he did. He felt sorry that
he had wronged her if only in thought, and held out his hand to her
with a good-natured laugh. "Well, what do you say to breaking the old
man of this bad habit in good time? Anyhow, it won't kill him yet."

"Anyhow, it won't kill him yet," she repeated absent-mindedly. But she
could not stand it any longer, she must know where the two were. "Where
can Rosa be? _Psia krew!_" she cried in a furious voice.

Her stepson stared at her in amazement. How mad she was; it amused him
to see her. She had always been so very refined, but now she could
never make a wry face again when his father rapped out an oath or
two. Besides, he never meant any harm by it, but she was furious
to-day--ugh! He put his arm round her waist and said jokingly, "H'