"But then I shall lose all my country. I shall lose my papers. I shall be outcast. I must go."
"I suppose a man should go with his own country," Mr. Britling reflected.
"If there was only one language in all the world, none of such things would happen," Herr Heinrich declared. "There would be no English, no Germans, no Russians."
"Or Idoists," said Herr Heinrich. "I am not convinced of which. In some ways Ido is much better."
"Perhaps there would have to be a war between Ido and Esperanto to settle it," said Teddy.
"Who shall we play skat with when you have gone?" asked Mrs. Britling.
"All this morning," said Herr Heinrich, expanding in the warmth of sympathy, "I have been trying to pack and I have been unable to pack. My mind is too greatly disordered. I have been told not to bring much luggage. Mrs. Britling, please."
"If I could leave much of my luggage, my clothes, some of them, and particularly my violin, it would be much more to my convenience. I do not care to be mobilised with my violin. There may be much crowding. Then I would but just take my rucksack...."
"If you will leave your things packed up."
But he did not leave them packed up. The taxi-cab, to order which he had gone to the junction in the morning on Teddy's complaisant machine, came presently to carry him off, and the whole family and the first contingent of the usual hockey players gathered about it to see him off. The elder boy of the two juniors put a distended rucksack upon the seat. Herr Heinrich then shook hands with every one.
"Write and tell us how you get on," cried Mrs. Britling.
"Write to Reynolds--let me give you his address; he is my agent in New York," said Mr. Britling, and wrote it down.
"We'll come to the village corner with you, Herr Heinrich," cried the boys.
"No," said Herr Heinrich, sitting down into the automobile, "I will part with you altogether. It is too much...."
"_Auf Wiedersehen!_" cried Mr. Britling. "Remember, whatever happens there will be peace at last!"
"Then why not at the beginning?" Herr Heinrich demanded with a reasonable exasperation and repeated his maturer verdict on the whole European situation; "_Verdammte Bummelei!_"
"Go," said Mr. Britling to the taxi driver.
The taxi started with a whir, and Herr Heinrich passed out of the gates and along the same hungry road that had so recently consumed Mr. Direck. "Give him a last send-off," cried Teddy. "One, Two, Three! _Auf Wiedersehen!_"