FRAU BOLLAND. Our set never dreams of such things.
BEERMANN. How did it all turn out?
DOBLER. What do you mean?
BEERMANN. Well, in the end you got something to eat again?
DOBLER. Finally I fainted; I was found lying in a meadow, and was
taken to the hospital.
FRAU BEERMANN [sighing]. Are such things still possible in our
day?
FRAU BOLLAND. What can you expect--of these idealists! DR. HAUSER.
They deserve nothing better.
BEERMANN. And after you were in the hospital--how did you get
out?
DOBLER. As soon as I got stronger. Later on I became a printer--
found a position--studied and published my book.
BEERMANN. That's all in your novel, I know. But the part where you
describe how you were a tramp--that's not true?
DOBLER. Yes, I "hoboed" almost a whole year.
FRAU BOLLAND. "Hoboed!" Fancy that! How unique!
FRAULEIN KOCH-PINNEBERG. I can just picture it. Tramping along the
railroad tracks.
DOBLER. Yes. You folks think you can picture it with four square
meals a day. But it's quite different, I assure you. There were
three of us at that time. We worked our way from Basel upwards--
sometimes on the left--sometimes on the right bank of the Rhine.
In Worms we spent the last of our money and we had to PEDDLE for
HAND-OUTS.
FRAU BOLLAND [not understanding him]. "Handouts?" What is that?
DOBLER [with pathos].
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