"And the young gentleman pays?" asked the host.
Sten nodded assent, and the blacksmith continued, "It is all the same who pays. '_Commune bonum_,' as we say in the shop. To-day it is my turn, to-morrow yours."
"Sit down, sir, and let us talk," said Sten. "You are a blacksmith, I hear."
"Banner-bearer to the worshipful company of blacksmiths in Stockholm, thanks to St Michael and St Loyus, with your permission!"
"Hard! Well, it is not for anyone. It is the hardest work there is. It is a trade which the world cannot dispense with. No one can get on without a blacksmith. Believe me when I say it. The Emperor of Rome had a councillor whose name was Vulcant and it was he who invented the blacksmith's art. And you ask if it is difficult!"
"Yes, but one could learn it," said Sten, who felt more amused than convinced.
"I! With me it is another matter," answered the blacksmith, contemplating the bottom of his mug.
"Well, why cannot it be another matter with me also?" objected Sten.
"Show me your fists, if you please, sir."
Sten laid two small white hands on the table.
The smith grinned. "They are no use. Look at mine." He took the pewter pot in a giant's grasp and squeezed it till it became as slender as an hour-glass.
Sten was still not convinced. "But you were not born with such fists," he said.
"Yes, sir, I was. I was born to be a blacksmith, just as you were born--to do nothing, if you will allow me to say so. What do you expect to do in the world with such mere pegs? You had better not depend on them or you will be disappointed."
"And yet I am thinking of becoming a blacksmith," said Sten innocently.
"You must not make a jest of that worshipful fraternity, sir. Besides, I should like to say that the times are different to what they were formerly; a blacksmith may become mayor or councillor, and Sir Vulcan, whom I mentioned just now, was one of the Emperor of Austria's councillors. One should not be proud, even if one is of high birth. King Karl Knutsson was King one day and the next day he was nothing. If he had learnt something, he would have been something."
"That is just what I wanted to say, dear smith. And I may as well say that I am not a gentleman though I have a velvet jacket."