"I am ashamed to confess
that I have sat at home and cursed all afternoon!"
"Indeed!" answered Coldevin.
"Don't you hear that Paulsberg asked if you were shaken?" said the
Journalist sharply across the table.
Coldevin murmured:
"Shaken? One can, of course, not avoid feeling disappointed when such
things happen. But the climax to-day was hardly unexpected by me. As I see
it, it was only a last rite."
"Oh, you are a pessimist."
"Indeed, no, you are mistaken. I am not that."
Beer and sandwiches were served, afterward coffee. Coldevin glanced at
those present; he met Aagot's eyes looking at him very gently, and this
agitated him so that he suddenly spoke out loudly what was on his mind:
"Did this decision to-day surprise you so very much, then?" And when he
received a qualified affirmation he continued, in order to make himself
understood: "To me it appears to be entirely in harmony with conditions
otherwise prevailing.--People are saying to themselves: 'We have our
liberty; the constitution guarantees it, and now we want to enjoy it for a
while!' Behold--the sons of Norway have become freemen and the peers of
anybody.
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