Hanns Heinz Ewers Alraune by Joe Bandel Page A

interrupted him, “It’s not important. I am
only sorry that the Privy Counsellor is not on his deathbed. That
would have been so nice! Then I would have inherited right? Unless
he has disowned me. That is also very possible–even more
likely.”
    He saw the bewildered doctor standing before
him and fed on his discomfort for a moment.
    Then he continued, “But tell me doctor, since
when has my uncle been called his Excellency?”
    “It’s been four days, the opportunity–”
    He interrupted him, “Only four days! And how
many years now have you been with him–as his right hand?”
    “Now that would be at least ten years now,”
replied Dr. Petersen.
    “And for ten years you have called him Privy
Councilor and he has replied back to you. But now in these four
days he has become so completely his Excellency to you that you
can’t even think of him any other way than in the third
person?”
    “Permit me, Herr Doctor,” said the assistant
doctor, intimidated and pleading. Permit me to–What do you mean
anyway?”
    But Frank Braun took him under the arm and
led him to the breakfast table.
    “Oh, I know that you are a man of the world
doctor! One with form and manners–with an inborn instinct for
proper behavior–I know that–and now doctor, let’s have breakfast
and you can tell me what you have been up to in the meantime.”
    Doctor Petersen gratefully sat down,
thoroughly reconciled and happy that was over with. This young
attorney that he had known as a young schoolboy was quite a windbag
and a true hothead–but he was the nephew–of his Excellency.
    The assistant doctor was about thirty-six. He
was average and Frank Braun thought that everything about him was
“average”. His nose was not large or small. His features were not
ugly or handsome. He was not young anymore and yet he wasn’t old.
The color of his hair was exactly in the middle between dark and
light. He wasn’t stupid or brilliant either, not exactly boring and
yet not entertaining. His clothes were not elegant and yet not
ordinary either.
    He was a good “average” in all things and
just the man the Privy Councilor needed. He was a competent worker,
intelligent enough to grasp and do what was asked of him and yet
not intelligent enough to know everything about this colorful game
his master played.
    “By the way, how much does my uncle pay you?”
Frank Braun asked.
    “Oh, not exactly splendid–but it is enough,”
was the answer. “I’m happy with it. At New Years I was given a four
hundred Mark raise.”
    The doctor looked hungrily as the nephew
began his breakfast with fruit, eating an apple and a handful of
cherries.
    “What kind of cigars do you smoke?” the
attorney inquired.
    “What I smoke? Oh, an average kind–Not too
strong–he interrupted himself. But why do you ask doctor?”
    “Only because,” said Frank Braun, “it
interests me–But now tell me what you have already done in these
things. Has the Privy Councilor shared his plans with you?”
    “Certainly,” the doctor nodded proudly. “I am
the only one that knows–except for you of course. This effort is of
the highest scientific importance.”
    The attorney cleared his throat, “Hmm–you
think so?”
    “Entirely without a doubt,” confirmed the
doctor. “And his Excellency is so extremely gifted to have thought
it all out, taking care of every possible problem ahead of time.
You know how careful you have to be these days. The foolish public
is always attacking us doctors for so many of our absolutely
important experiments. Take vivisection–God, the people become sick
when they hear the word. What about our experiments with germs,
vaccines and so on? They are all thorns in the eyes of the public
even though we almost always only work with animals. And now, this
question of artificial insemination of people–
    His Excellency has found the only possibility
in an executed murderer and a paid prostitute. Even the people
loving pastor would not have much