Antonius.  Your husband has his head full of political whims, and has a burgomastership on his brain.  He turns up his nose at working-people like me and my kind.  He imagines that he is cleverer than the notary public himself.

Geske.  The fool!  The idiot!  Will you heed him?  I believe he’s more likely to become a vagrant and have to beg his bread, than to become a burgomaster.  Dear Antonius! you mustn’t pay attention to him, and you mustn’t lose the affection you have for my daughter.

Antonius.  Von Bremen swears she shall take no one who is not a politician.

Geske.  I’ll wring her neck before I see her married to a politician.  In the old days they used to call a rogue a politician.

Antonius.  Nor do I wish to become one.  I want to earn my living honestly as a wheelwright.  That trade gave my honored father his daily bread, and I hope it will feed me, too.  But here comes a boy who seems to be looking for you.

Enter boy.

Geske.  What do you want, my boy?

Boy.  I want to talk to Master Herman.

Geske.  He’s not at home.  Won’t you tell me?

Boy.  I was to find out for my mistress, if the dish was done that she ordered three weeks ago.  We have sent after it twenty times, but they always put us off with talk.

Geske.  Ask your mistress, my son, please not to be angry.  It will surely be done to-morrow. [Exit Boy.

[Enter another Boy.]

Second boy.  I am to find out once and for all if the soup-plates will ever be finished.  They could have been made and worn out since we ordered them.  Mistress swore you shouldn’t do any work for us again in a hurry.

Geske.  Listen, my dear child, when you order anything again, order it from me.  At times my husband has bats in his belfry, and it does no good to talk to him.  Believe me, on my word, it will be done by Saturday.  Good-bye. (Exit Boy.) You see, my dear Antonius, how it goes in our house.  We lose one job after another from my husband’s neglect.

Antonius.  Is he never at home?

Geske.  Seldom; and when he is, he builds castles in the air so that he has no thought for work.  I ask nothing of him except that he keep an eye on the workmen, for if he does anything himself, the apprentices have to do it over again.  Here is Henrich:  he will tell you what I say is true.

SCENE 6

(Enter Henrich.)

Henrich.  There’s a man out here, mistress, who wants to be paid for the eight barrels of coal we got yesterday.

Geske.  Where can I get the money from?  He will have to wait till my husband comes home.  Can’t you tell me where my husband is all day long?

Henrich.  If you will keep quiet about it, I can tell you right enough.