girls,
women and other treasures that he would have liked to own all for
himself. Thus by a single formula he interpreted the whole world. His
manner was violent, combative and absolutely inconsiderate without an
inkling of deeper relations. He was a native of Switzerland.

Like a motley calf driven by a storm he stumbled one evening into the
garden of the Hoeflingers. He arrived at the fence on a Wanderer wheel,
rather new in its coat of white paint, sharply applied the brake,
jumped down before it had worked, threw the wheel with a careless
movement against the paling and approached before Spiele's wondering
eyes with big important stride. It was a week-day, but he wore his good
blue suit. Rakishly perched on his black hair was a sporting-cap with
green and brown pattern. Under his Adam's apple, like a burning heart
that had been pushed up, was a blood-red necktie, the ends of which
flared out from under his turned-back white collar. He had strapped his
trousers, so they bulged outward, but Spiele immediately noticed that
he had crooked legs and wore tan sandals over gray hose. Out of the
collar rose a neck, long, thin and bare as a vulture's, and crowned by
a round black wrangler's head of medium size.

In an offhand manner and with slight embarrassment he touched
his cap and said that he was Victor Pratteler. When Spiele did not
immediately reply, he asked with some discomfort, whether he was at the
Hoeflingers', and frowned. With laughing eyes Spiele answered that he
was right and told him to sit down on the garden bench and wait until
Hoeflinger came home. Then she continued to sprinkle the young lettuce
plants which she was growing in narrow beds; when she had finished
them, she turned her attention to the peas. She did not look at the
young workingman again; she had already a colored photograph of him in
her head which she could bring to life whenever she wished. When she
turned the corner of the cottage with her sprinkler, she began to hum.
The gay lad gave her cause for amusement and put her in a merry mood.
She read in his frown that attitude of unreasoning resignation without
which a waiting heart cannot maintain its elasticity for any length of
time.

When the day's work was over, Hoeflinger arrived on his wheel and took
charge of the new guest. He showed him the shed which already housed
Spiele's bicycle and which by a clever manipulation would hold all
three. At supper it appeared that Pratteler, who w