Simon Eichelkatz; The Patriarch. Two Stories of Jewish LifeFrank, Ulrich
Religion
Simon Eichelkatz; The Patriarch. Two Stories of Jewish Life
Frank, Ulrich
Jewish fiction; Jews -- Fiction
remained at home with his family, doubly alive to the blessing of life
in the face of this enigmatic death, and relishing the breaking of the
fast with heightened appetite. For not a soul had lived through a fast
day such as this before. When late in the evening the full moon hung
above the houses, casting its white light on the open square and the
streets, and the evening coolness had freshened the sultry air of the
day, the people's spirits were re-animated, and they came out of their
narrow dwellings into the open. All thronged to the Ring, the market
place.
They felt the need of talking over the day's event. Before their doors
sat the fathers of families, on green-painted benches, smoking their
pipes, and discussing all the circumstances of the case. The women
collected in groups, sympathizing with Frau Sandberg and breaking their
heads over the problem as to what she would do, nebbich, now she was
robbed of her supporter. The young people promenaded up and down,
chatted in an undertone, and tried to be serious, in accord with the
gravity of the situation, though they did not always succeed in
banishing their youthful spirits. On the corner of Tarnowitzer Street
stood Reb Shmul Eisner, the wit of the congregation. Half aloud he said
to his neighbor: "Everybody is certainly happy not to be so famous as
Teacher Sandberg is to-day."
The rabbi also came to the Ring, and with him the Rebbetzin. He wanted
to go once again to the wife of the unfortunate man, and the Rebbetzin
would not absent herself from a place where help and comfort were
needed. Near the great fountain, called the _Kashte_, next to the city
hall, the rabbi was detained by some members of his congregation.
Everyone was eager to hear something about the day's happenings directly
from his mouth. At the same time the mayor and two aldermen came down
the steps of the city hall. When they noticed Dr. Merzbach, they went up
to him to tell him that it had just been decided to let the water off at
the dam early the next morning, through the large sluice, in order, if
possible, to recover the corpse of Teacher Sandberg; for it was not
likely that with the water so shallow, the body had been carried down
stream; it had probably been caught somewhere in the canal. A shudder
ran through the crowd. Those standing near the mayor listened to what he
said with bated breath and passed on his words to their neighbors. Like
wildfire it spread through the crowd: "To-morrow they'll recover the
body of Teacher Sandberg." From the Kashte rose the primitive figure of
a Neptune, trident in hand; and the silver moonlight gleamed on the
large fountain and the listening throngs about it.
"To-morrow they'll recover the body of Teacher Sandberg."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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