"This man is a suspicious character," he exclaimed. "In the first place, he has the audacity to fear war; in the next place, he sat from seven o'clock until half-past nine, two whole hours and a half, without opening his lips; and, finally, he was impious enough to give a public toast to a certain Master Slimak, who is probably quite as suspicious a character as himself."
"Who is this Master Slimak?" asked the stout, red-faced gentleman, sternly.
"Nobody, indeed," replied the trembling Viennese, "but my former master, an honest nailsmith, whom I served four years, and would be serving still, had his wife not beaten me."
"Impossible!" ejaculated the fat, red-faced gentleman. "It is not customary to give public toasts to such personages."
"But I don't know what the custom is here."
"If you wished to give a toast, why did you not drink to constitutional liberty, to the upper and lower Danube armies, or to freedom of the press, and such toasts?"
"Hyay, sir! I could not learn all that in a month!"
"But in three months I daresay you will be able to learn it well enough. Master Janos, take that man into custody."
The humane Master Janos again seized the delinquent by the collar, _ut supra_, and escorted him to the place appropriated to such malefactors, where he had time to consider why he was put there.
The three months passed slowly enough to the nailsmith. It was now the middle of March.
Master Janos punctually released his prisoner, and the honest man, in order to prove the reform in his sentiments, and thereby rise in Master Janos's opinion, greeted him with, "Success to liberty, and the Hungarian arms!"
Master Janos stumbled against the wall in speechless horror, and as soon as he had regained his equilibrium, he seized the astonished nailsmith, who, when he had recovered his terrified senses, found himself again in the narrow, ominous chamber; but now, instead of the stout, red-faced gentleman, he stood before a lean, black gentleman, who, when he understood the charge against the prisoner, without permitting any explanation, condemned him to three months' imprisonment, informing him that henceforth, unless he wished to fare worse, he would exclaim, "Success to the imperial armies, the great constitution, and the one and powerful Austria!"