The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs (14 page)
Von Igelfeld bristled. ‘Whatever gave you that idea?’ he said sharply. ‘I might well have quite different ideas.’
Unterholzer had risen to his feet. ‘Oh, Moritz-Maria, I am so pleased that you are alive! I cannot tell you how sad I was . . . ’ He stopped as he realised his terrible solecism. He had addressed von Igelfeld by his first name, and they had only known one another for, what was it, fifteen years?
‘I’m so sorry,’ he rapidly continued. ‘I didn’t mean to call you that. It was the emotion of the occasion . . . ’
Von Igelfeld raised a hand to stop him. He was touched that Unterholzer, for all his faults, had been so upset at his death. One might even overlook his presumption in taking his room, or almost . . .
‘Don’t apologise,’ he said, adding, ‘Detlev.’
It was a terrible effort for von Igelfeld to utter Unterholzer’s first name, but it had to be done.
‘Yes, Detlev, we have known one another for many years now, and it might be appropriate to move to first-name terms. So it will be
du
from now on.’
Unterholzer looked immensely relieved. ‘Let us go down to the café and drink . . . ’
‘And drink a toast to
Bruderschaft
,’ said von Igelfeld kindly. It was good to be alive, he thought. Life was so precious, so unexpected in its developments, and so very rich in possibilities.
They left the Institute and walked down to the café.
‘To
Bruderschaft!
’ said Unterholzer, raising his glass. ‘To brotherhood!’
‘To
Brüderschaft!
’ said von Igelfeld.
They sipped at the wine. Outside in the streets, a passing band of students suddenly raised their voices in song, singing those wonderful haunting words of the
Gaudeamus
:
Gaudeamus igitur,
Juvenes dum sumus.
Post iucundum iuventutem,
Post molestam senectutem,
Nos habebit humus,
Nos habebit humus!
1
Von Igelfeld smiled at Unterholzer. ‘Aut nos habebit mare!’
2
he joked. And Unterholzer, who had not heard so good a joke for many years, laughed and laughed.
1
Let us rejoice therefore / While we are young. / After a pleasant youth, / After a troublesome old age, / The earth will have us.
2
Or the sea will have us!
VINTAGE CANADA EDITION, 2004
Text copyright © 2003 Alexander McCall Smith Illustrations copyright © Iain McIntosh
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright
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Published in Canada by Vintage Canada, a division of
Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto. First published in
Great Britain in 2003 by Polygon, an imprint of Birlinn Ltd, Edinburgh.
Distributed by Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto.
Vintage Canada and colophon are registered trademarks of
Random House of Canada Limited.
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
McCall Smith, Alexander, 1948–
The finer points of sausage dogs / Alexander McCall Smith.
(Portuguese irregular verbs trilogy)
“A Professor Dr von Igelfeld entertainment”.
I. Title. II. Series: McCall Smith, Alexander, 1948–
Portuguese irregular verbs trilogy.
PR6063.C326F’.914 C2004-904091-X
Typeset by Antony Gray, London
Printed and bound in Canada
eISBN: 978-0-307-42858-5
v3.0