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fellows might not have the best of intentions for me, and this misgiving increased when I clearly made out the words: "There's nothing to be done here, we must go further on". - "I will not set foot outside this house again today", said I to myself, "I still have some money!" My companions left the room.

I sat down at the table. The gentleman walked up and down the room and from time to time glanced in my direction. Near me a great lout of a fellow was snoring on a bench, it seemed that in drink he had soiled his breeches, so that one might hardly endure it. When the gentleman went out of the room for a moment, I took the chance to ask the serving-maid who this fellow might be. "Just a country fellow," said she, "only today the gentleman hired him as a servant, and now he has pissed himself blind already and is making such a stink, ugh!" - "Ha!", said I, just as the gentleman came in again, "maybe I could be a servant like him". Hearing this, he turned to me and said: "You would like that, would you?" - "Depends on the terms", I answered. "Nine batzen a day", he went on, "and clothing, as much as you need". - "And what should I do to earn it?" I rejoined. He: "Be my servant." I: "Yes, if I can do it". He: "I'll soon teach you. Lad, I like the look of you. We shall make trial of a fortnight". I: "Agreed." So the bargain was struck. He asked me my name, then called for food and drink for me, and asked me all kinds of questions in a friendly manner.

Meanwhile my companions (as I afterwards learnt) had gone to several other Prussian recruiting officers (for there were at that time five in Schaffhausen at once), and when they returned they stared to see me thus well entertained. "What's this!" said Laurenz. "Come on, quick! We have found you a master". "I already have one", answered I. And he: "What, what, get along with you". And he tried to pull me away. "That won't do, you!" said my master. "The lad stays with me!" "That he shall not", rejoined Laurenz. "He was trusted to us by his parents". "Fiddlesticks!" replied the gentleman. "He has bound himself to me and there's an end to it!" After exchanging some more fairly emphatic words they all went into an antechamber, where Laurenz and the man from Herisau (as I heard tell later) allowed themselves to be bought off with three ducats, one of which was to go to my father, but he never got a sight of it. With that they went off quite in a rage, without saying a single word of farewell to me. At first, so I heard, they had demanded as much as twenty louis d'ors for me

30

.

On the following day my master sent for a tailor, who took my measure for a suit of livery, and all the rest of my equipment arrived without delay. There I stood, booted and spurred, everything bright as a new pin from top to toe, a handsome braided hat, velvet cravat, a green frock-coat, white cloth waistcoat and breeches, new boots and two pairs of shoes, all fitting to a hair - egad! I thought myself no end of a fine fellow. My master too encouraged me to show myself off a little. "Ollrich"

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, said he, "when you walk up and down in the city, you must step out in a fine stately manner, with your head held high and your hat a little to one side. "With his own hand he girded on a sword at my side. When thus attired I went out into the street, I felt as though all Schaffhausen were mine. Every man took off his hat to me. The people of the house treated me as if I were a gentleman. In our lodging we had handsomely furnished chambers, I too had a fine one. At all hours of the day I would look out of the window at the happy, bustling throng of people going in and out of the water-gate, with horses, carts, coaches and chaises, and, (which flattered my vanity not a little), they saw and took notice of me. My master, who was soon as fond of me as if I had been his own son, taught me to dress my hair, doing it himself at first, and plaiting me a splendid pigtail. I had nothing to do but serve him at table, brush his clothes, attend him when he walked abroad, go fowling with him, and so on. Ah! That was the life for me. For much of the time I might wander by myself wherever I pleased. Every day I traversed almost every one of fair Schaffhausen's alleys, for excepting Lichtensteig I had never seen a city before, nor any river greater than the Thur. So almost every evening I went out to

30

In his Kleine Lebensgeschichte [Chronik, p 21] Bräker states that at this time he did not know that Markoni was a recruiting officer. Twenty louis d'ors was a lot of money, about £300.


31

Bräker indicates his new master's accent, which would have sounded very strange to him.



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