d begin to drive round again. He went up to the farm and
demanded his horse.

"Certainly!" The inn-keeper followed him out and ordered the horse
to be harnessed. "Here's your horse, cart and everything belonging
to it--is there anything more of yours?"

Lars Peter was somewhat taken aback. He had expected opposition and
here was the inn-keeper quite friendly, in fact almost fawning on
him. "I wanted to cart some things home," said he, rather
crestfallen.

"Certainly, Lars Peter Hansen," said the inn-keeper, preceding him
into the shop. He weighed out all Lars Peter ordered, reminded him
of one thing after another, laying the articles in a heap on the
counter. "Have you raisins for the Christmas cakes?" he asked.
"Ditte bakes herself." He knew every one's doings and was thoughtful
in helping them.

When Lars Peter was about to carry the things out to the cart, he
said smilingly, "That will be--let me see, how much do you owe for
last time?"

"I'd like to let it wait a bit--till I get settled up after the
auction!"

"Well, I'm afraid it can't. I don't know anything about you yet."

"Oh, so you're paying me out." Lars Peter began to fume.

"Paying you out? Not at all. But I like to know what sort of a man
I'm dealing with before I can trust him."

"Oh, indeed! It's easy enough to see what sort of a fellow you are!"
shouted Lars Peter and rushed out.

The inn-keeper followed him out to the cart. "You'll have a
different opinion of me some day," said he gently, "then we can talk
it over again. Never mind. But another thing--where'll you get food
for the horse?"

"I'll manage somehow," answered Lars Peter shortly.

"And stabling? It's setting in cold now."

"You leave that to me!"

Lars Peter drove off at a walking pace. He knew perfectly well that
he could find neither food nor stabling for the horse without the
inn-keeper's help. Two or three days afterwards he sent Kristian
with the horse and cart back to the farm.

He had done this once, but he was wiser now--or at all events more
careful. When occasionally he felt a longing for the road and wanted
to spend a day on it in company with Klavs, he asked politely for
the loan of it, and he was allowed to have it. Then he and the horse
were like sweethearts who seldom saw each other.

He was no wiser than before. The inn-keeper he couldn't make
out--with his care for others and his desire to rule.

His partners and the other men he didn't understand eit