The brother and his wife
told it themselves, people said, and they ought to know.
Not long afterward Uli drove to market with a horse, but soon saw that
he could not sell it for what he was instructed to get, so, as it was
bad weather, he took it from the market-place and stabled it in an inn.
Turning a corner to enter the inn, he bumped into his old master. With
unconcealed joy Uli held out his hand and told him how glad he was to
see him and to be with him for a while. The master was somewhat cool and
spoke of much business, but finally named a place where they could drink
a bottle in peace. There, after they were seated in a corner fairly well
out of sight, they began the preliminaries. Johannes asked whether there
had been much hay, and Uli said yes, and asked whether his grain had
fallen too; the first wind had felled theirs. "You're doing well,"
continued the master after some further talk, "and what do I hear? Folks
say you're soon to be farmer at Slough Farm."
"Why, who says that?" asked Uli.
"Oh, folks say it's being talked about far and wide, and they say it's
surely true."
"Folks always know more than those concerned," said Uli.
"There must be something in it," answered the master. "Oh," said Uli, "I
wouldn't say that it might not be some time, but it's a long way off
yet; nothing has been said about it and it might turn out either way.
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