The Adventurous Simplicissimus: being the description of the Life of a Strange vagabond named Melchior Sternfels von FuchshaimGrimmelshausen, Hans Jakob Christoph von
General
The Adventurous Simplicissimus: being the description of the Life of a Strange vagabond named Melchior Sternfels von Fuchshaim
Grimmelshausen, Hans Jakob Christoph von
German fiction -- Translations into English; Thirty Years' War, 1618-1648 -- Fiction
once found out who I was, and had caught me at the toilet with his fair
wife. What should I do? I resolved at length the same night to reveal
myself to the servant as soon as 'twas day, for I thought, "his desires
will then cease, and if thou art free with thy ducats to him he will
help thee to man's clothes again and so out of all thy straits." Which
was all well devised enough if luck would have had it so: but that
was against me. For my friend Hans took day to begin just after
midnight, and came to get his "Yes" from me, and began to hammer on the
carriage-cover even then when I was soundest asleep, calling out a
little too loud, "Sabina, Sabina, oh my beloved, rise up and keep your
promise to me," and so waked the captain before me, who had his tent
close by the carriage. And now he saw green and yellow before his eyes,
for jealousy had already got a hold of him: yet he came not out to
disturb us, but only got up, to see how the thing would end. At last
the servant woke me with his importunities, and would force me either
to come out of the carriage to him or to let him in to me, but I
rebuked him and asked did he take me for a whore? My promise of
yesterday was on condition of marriage, without which he should have
nought to do with me. He answered I must in any case rise, for it began
to grow light, to prepare the food for the family in good time: then he
would fetch wood and water and light the fire for me. "Well," said I,
"if thou wilt do that I can sleep the longer: only go away and I will
soon follow." Yet as the fool would not give over, I got up, more to
do my work than to pleasure him, for methought his desperate madness of
yesterday had left him. I should say that I would pass pretty well for
a maid-servant in the field, for with the Croats I had learned how to
boil, bake, and wash: as for spinning, soldiers' wives do it not on a
campaign. All other women's work which I could not do, such as brushing
and braiding hair, my mistress gladly forgave me, for she knew well I
had never learned it.
But as I came out of the coach with my sleeves turned up, my Hans was
so inflamed by the sight of my white arms that he could not refrain
himself, but must kiss me; and I not greatly resisting that, the
captain, before whose eyes this took place, could bear it no longer,
but sprang with drawn sword out of the tent to give my poor lover a
thrust: but he ran off and forgot to come back; so says the captain to
me, "Thou whore in grain," says he, "I will teach thee ..." and more he
could not say for very rage, but struck at me as if he were mad. But I
beginning to cry out, he must needs stop lest he should alarm the camp:
for both armies, Saxon and Imperialist, lay close together expecting
the approach of the Swedes under Banér.
_Chap. xxvi._: HOW HE WAS IMPRISONED FOR A TRAITOR AND ENCHANTER
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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