wn through
the globe, and covered up the holes again after.

They kept at it till noon, talking it over this way and that, and at
last began to look at their watches. They had brought Geissler down to
half a million now, but not a hair's breadth farther. No; they must
have put him out sorely some way or other. They seemed to think he was
anxious to sell, obliged to sell, but he was not--ho, not a bit; there
he sat, as easy and careless as themselves, and no mistaking it.

"Fifteen, say twenty thousand would be a decent price anyway," said
they.

Geissler agreed that might be a decent price enough for any one sorely
in need of the money, but five-and-twenty thousand would be better.
And then one of the gentlemen put in--saying it perhaps by way of
keeping Geissler from soaring too far: "By the way, I've seen your
wife's people in Sweden--they sent their kind regards."

"Thank you," said Geissler.

"Well," said the other gentleman, seeing Geissler was not to be won
over that way, "a quarter of a million ... it's not gold we're buying,
but copper ore."

"Exactly," said Geissler. "It's copper ore."

And at that they lost patience, all of them, and five watch-cases were
opened and snapped to again; no more time to fool away now; it was
time for dinner. They did not ask for food at Sellanraa, but rode back
to the mine to get their own.

And that was the end of the meeting.

Geissler was left alone.

What would be in his mind all this time--what was he pondering and
speculating about? Nothing at all, maybe, but only idle and careless?
No, indeed, he was thinking of something, but calm enough for all
that. After dinner, he turned to Isak, and said: "I'm going for a long
walk over my land up there; and I'd have liked to have Sivert with me,
same as last time."

"Ay, so you shall," said Isak at once.

"No; he's other things to do, just now."

"He shall go with you at once," said Isak, and called to Sivert to
leave his work. But Geissler held up his hand, and said shortly: "No."

He walked round the yard several times, came back and talked to the
men at their work, chatting easily with them and going off and coming
back again. And all the time with this weighty matter on his mind, yet
talking as if it were nothing at all. Geissler had long been so long
accustomed to changes of fortune, maybe he was past feeling there was
anything at stake now, whatever might be in the air.

Here he was, the man he was, by the m