They Were Divided - Miklos Banffy [139]
In the dining-room too there was a lavish collection of Rhenish and other fine wines, as well as an imposing array of locally produced wines, new and old, and all of them so potent that the executed Brandy would have hidden himself in shame. Soon the food was brought in, simple country food, filling but unsophisticated, cabbage with smoked pork, and sausages of many different varieties, for it was just after the first pig-killing of the winter. Everyone ate heartily and laughed and joked … and they all drank heavily.
In half an hour several of the guests were drunk, but none more so than the noble host himself who was by now quite cross-eyed.
Otherwise the tipsiest of the older men, as might have been expected, was old Daniel and, among the younger ones, a neighbouring land-owner, Vince Himleos, an extremely polite young man whose widowed mother had impressed upon him what an honour it was to be invited by Count Peter Kendy and had made him promise to mind his manners and to introduce himself to everyone present, especially to the older men.
With this motherly advice ringing in his ears, he was obsessed with the thought that maybe he was not doing this properly. The more he drank the more convinced he became that perhaps he had not been doing all that he should; indeed, he decided, after much agonizing, that more was needed, something that would save him from the awful fault of not knowing how to behave in noble company.
Accordingly he got up and staggered to the head of the table where Farkas Alvinczy and Kamuthy were sitting, clicked his heels and announced:
‘I am Himleos!’
‘Servus – how do you do?’ they both responded politely, as did Uncle Ambrus, who was sitting next to them, for no one in such company minded a man being drunk and not fully in control of himself.
Then poor Himleos, whose old Hungarian name meant ‘pox-ridden’, reached old Dani, clicked his heels again and said his name once more.
As the older man did not turn round and answer, probably because he had not heard him, young Vince introduced himself again, more loudly and then, seeing that he still got no response, touched old Daniel’s shoulder and yelled in his ear, ‘I am Himleos!’ and put out his hand.
Old Dani still did not turn fully to face him but briefly looked him up and down and then peered into his proffered palm. Then, under Dani’s red nose, a wicked smile spread across his face and, stuttering badly as he always did when drunk, he said very slowly, ‘I hope you g-g-g-get well s-s-soon!’ and, chuckling to himself, turned back to his glass.
Young Vince staggered at this insult as if he had been struck. Though mild and inoffensive by nature the one thing he would never have accepted, even when sober, was that someone should make fun of his ancient family name … and now he was drunk. He stepped back and swung back his arm to strike out. Luckily Uncle Ambrus sprang up in time to grasp him in a powerful bear-hug so that Himleos could do nothing more than scream out, ‘Monstrous! I protest … protest … I protest!’
The gypsy musicians fell silent and many of the younger men, Pityu among them, ran forward, surrounded the irate Himleos and dragged him to the other end of the room where they all, especially the two young Laczoks who knew him well, did their best to hush him up and calm him by telling him about old Dani. Others busied themselves with Daniel Kendy himself, who now rose to his feet and, swaying as if caught in a gale, started to bow repeatedly in every direction and, in elegant French, stammer out:
‘A v-v-votre d-d-disposition … v-v-votre d-d-dis …’ but got no further for he was grasped by several strong arms and carried out into the garden, for it was well known what followed when Dani was in drink and started to bow to everyone present.
Abady took advantage of the general confusion to leave the room. With Kozma in tow he quickly found his chauffeur who was waiting for them just outside the main gates.
They drove swiftly through the village, which was now completely deserted because every man, woman and child was up