The schoolmaster's name was Baard, and he had a brother named Anders. They had thought a great deal of each other, enlisted together, lived together in town, went through the war together, served in the same company, and had both risen to the rank of corporal. When they came home from the war, people said they were two fine, stalwart fellows.Then their father died. He left much personal property, which was difficult to divide, and therefore they said to each other that they would not let this come between them, but would put the property up at auction, that each might buy what he wanted, and both share the proceeds. And it was done.
But the father had owned a large gold watch, which had come to be known far and wide, for it was the only gold watch people in those parts had ever seen. When this watch was put up, there were many wealthy men who wanted it, but when both brothers began to bid, all the pthers desisted. Now Baard expected that Anders would let him have it, and Anders expected the same of Baard. They bid in turn, each trying the other out, and as they bid they looked hard at each other. WHen the watch had gone up to twenty dollars, Baard began to feel that this was not the kind of his brother, and bid over him until he almost reached thirty. When Anders did not withdraw even then Baard felt that Anders no longer remembered how good he had often been to him, and that he was furthermore the elder of the two; and the watch went over thirty. Anders still kept on. Baard then raised the price to forty dollars with one bound, and no longer looked at his brother. It grew still in the auction room, only the bailiff repeated the figures quietly. Anders thought, as he stood there, that if Baard could afford to go to forty dollars, so could he, and if Baard begrudged him the watch, he might as well take it, and bid over him.
