Page:Karl Gjellerup - Minna, A novel - 1913.djvu/187

 I closed her lips with a kiss—truly not a very logical argument, but in this case, perhaps, more convincing than any other.

Her mother came in with tea and white bread, for which, as a treat, she had bought honey in the comb and fresh butter. When we had finished eating she placed herself in a corner in a queer triangular arm-chair with straight sides. It had originally been the end of a sofa, and the disjecta membra of this piece of furniture were scattered about in the flat. In a very few minutes the old lady was fast asleep.

Minna was also tired after the journey, and when the hideous alabaster-columned clock on the chest of drawers, after a long threatening rumble, had made up its mind to strike four strokes, which echoed in the piano with a long note, thereby calling our attention to the fact that the time was really ten o'clock, I insisted that she should go to bed.

Without waking up her mother, Minna lighted me out. To her great terror I went "with my chin on my back"—as she expressed it down the steep spiral stairs, without being able to take my eyes off her, while she stood bending over the balusters, with a smiling face strongly lit up by the outstretched lamp.

Down below I stood for a long time sending kisses up to her, until she began to scold me, and as that had no effect she suddenly began to make faces and produce such dreadful caricatures à la Wilhelm Busch that at last I broke out into loud laughter and fled.