Berlin Alexanderplatz
Earthquake, lightning, lightning, thunder, torn-up tracks, the station topsy-turvy, wheels, smoke, smoke, swathes of it, nothing to see, swathes of smoke, piercing screams . . . I’m yours, I belong to you.
Let him approach, let him sit down, I’m not scared of him, him least of all, I can look him coolly in the eye. ‘May I introduce you: Mitzi; Reinhold? Oh, you know each other?’ ‘Fleetingly. Glad to make your acquaintance, miss.’
So there they are sitting in the public park in Freienwalde, in the restaurant someone is playing the piano. I’m sitting in Freienwalde, and he’s sitting opposite.
Earthquake, lightning, thunderbolt, swathes, all done in, but it’s nice that we ran into him, I’ll worm it out of him, everything that happened with Pums’s mob, and what Franz is up to, I can get it out of him with a bit of teasing; let him dangle, and he’ll come across. Mitzi dreams of fortune’s favour. The piano player sings: Say oui, little girl, that’s French. Yes, yes, na and Chinese as well, it doesn’t matter what you want, love is international Tell me in Chinese whispers, or through the nose, tell me softly or in ecstasies, say oui, yes, ja. – And everything else is there!
Glasses are brought out, and all partake. Mitzi lets it be known that she was at the ball, and a wonderful conversation begins. The maestro at the piano takes requests: ‘In Switzerland and in Tyrol’, words by Fritz Roller and Otto Stransky, music by Anton Profes. In Switzerland and in Tyrol, there you feel so terribly swoll. Cos in Tyrol there’s warm milk straight from the udder, and in Switzerland there’s a little dudder of a liddle mudder. We have nothing to compare, let’s be honest, it’s just not there, and that’s why I find it so beyond compare, Switzerland and Tyrol as woll. Holoroidi. Available from music shops everywhere. Holoroidi, laughs Mitzi, there’s my sweet Franz thinking I’m with my feller – when I’m all about Franz, and he don’t even know.
Now they propose to take a drive round the countryside, in the motor. That’s what Karl, Reinhold and Mitzi want to do, or arsyversy Mitzi, Reinhold and Karl, or again Reinhold, Karl and Mitzi, every man and woman jack of them want to take a drive. And just then the telephone is brought, and a waiter calls out: telephone for Herr Matter, didn’t you wink your eye at me a moment ago, Rein-hold my lad, well I won’t say anything, Mitzi is smiling and all, it seems you two have no objection, we’ll have a lovely afternoon. Here’s Karlchen back again, oh Karelein, Karelein, you, you must be mine, does something hurt, no, it’s just I have to dash back to Berlin, you stay here, though, Mitzi, I’ve got to go, no one must know, and he gives Mitzi a kiss, every man, when he can, likes a little something off the plan, be seeing you Reinhold, happy Easter, happy Whitsun, plucks his hat off the hatstand and he’s off.
So here we are, just the two of us. ‘What do you say to that then.’ ‘Now miss, there was no call for you to scream like that the other time.’ ‘It was just the shock of it.’ ‘I mean, not in front of me.’ ‘I need time to get used to people.’ ‘Not exactly flattering.’ The way the little minx rolls her eyes, sweet fine carcass, bet I put one over on her today; you wait, boy, I just want to leave you wriggling, and tell me everything you know. My god, look at his eyes. He must have eaten a tree full of celery.
Then the piano player has sung his lot and the piano is tired, and wants to go beddy-byes, and Reinhold and Mitzi traipse off up the hill and into the woods. And they talk about this and that, and they link elbows, and the boy’s really not so bad. And when they’re back in the spa gardens at six Karl is waiting for her, he’s back in the car already. Do we have to go home, there’s a moon, we can go for a walk in the woods, it’s so lovely there, yes, let’s. And so at eight the three of them go walking up to the woods, and Karl quickly has to go and book rooms for them at the hotel, and see to the car. We’ll meet up later in the spa gardens.
The wood is full of trees, and many people are walking there arm in arm, and there are a few paths that are more secluded too. They walk along dreamily side by side. Mitzi has questions she wants to ask, but she doesn’t know how, it’s so nice walking arm in arm with him, I’ll ask him another time, why spoil the beautiful evening. God, what must Franz be thinking, I’d better go soon, but it’s so pretty here. Reinhold has his arm round her waist, he has a right arm, the man is walking at her left, funny, Franz of course is always on her right, he has a strong arm, what a fellow he is. They walk among trees, the forest floor is soft and yielding, Franz has good taste, I’ll take her off him, I’ll have her for a month, willy-nilly. Else I’ll sock him so hard on our next job that he’ll forget which way is up, a beautiful bird, a spirited bird, who’s true to him.
They walk and they talk about this and that. It gets dark. It’s better to speak; Mitzi sighs, it’s so dangerous to walk in silence and only to feel the man at her side. She keeps her eyes on the path in front of her. I don’t know what I’m doing with him; God, what am I doing with him. They walk in a circle. Secretly, Mitzi has led them back to the main drag. Open your eyes, you’re back.
It’s eight o’clock. He takes out his torch, they’re on their way up to the hotel, the woods are behind them, the little birds, oh, the little birds, they all sang so merrily so merrily. He’s trembling. It was a strangely silent walk. His eyes are light. He walks quietly along at her side. The plumber is waiting for them, all alone on the terrace. ‘Did you get us rooms?’ Reinhold looks round for Mitzi; she’s gone. ‘Where did the lady get to?’ ‘She’s up in her room.’ He knocks on the door. ‘The lady says to say she’s gone to bed.’
He’s trembling. It was so wonderful. The darksome woods, the birds. What do I want from the girl. A nice girlfriend Franz has got; I want her. Reinhold sits with Karl on the terrace; they light up a couple of thick cigars. They exchange smiles: what are we doing here exactly when we could be asleep in our own beds at home. – Reinhold is still breathing deeply and slowly, draws on his cigar, the dark woods, the circular walk, she leads me back: ‘If you like, Karl. I’ll spend the night here.’
And then they both march out to the edge of the woods, and sit there, and watch the passing cars. There are many trees in these woods, you walk on soft ground, many people walk there arm in arm, why am I such a bastard.
Saturday, 1 September
This was all on Wednesday, 29 August 1928.
Three days later they do it all again. The plumber drives up in a car, Mitzi – Mitzi said yes right away when he suggested going out to Freienwalde again, and Reinhold wants to come too. This time I’ll be tougher, she thinks, as she sits down in the car, I’ll not go with him into the woods. She said yes right away, because Franz was such a misery all day, and he won’t say what the matter is, and I need to find out. I give him money, he’s got everything, he’s not short of anything, I want to know what’s upsetting the man.
Reinhold sits beside her in the car, his hand wastes no time finding her hip. Everything’s planned this time: today’s the day you’re leaving your beloved Franz for the last time, today you’ll be staying with me, and for as long as I say. You’re my five hundredth or thousandth woman, so far I’ve had no complaints, and this’ll be fine too. She’s sitting there and has no idea, but I know and that’s all that matters.
They park the car outside the inn at Freienwalde, Karl Matter takes Mitzi walking through Freienwalde unaccompanied, it’s four o’clock on Saturday, 1 September. Reinhold wants to have a little nap in the hotel. Sometime after six he shakes himself awake, tinkers with the car for a bit, downs a swift half, and he’s on his way.
In the woods Mitzi is happy. Karl is so nice and all the things he knows to talk about, he’s the inventor of a patent that the company he used to work for took off him, employees are always being rooked like that, they should take care to have everything put in writing, and the company’s made millions, and the only reason he’s helping out at Pums’s is because he’s at work now on a different design that will make the other one, the one that the company stole, obsolete. A design like that costs a lot of money, he can’t say much about
it to Mitzi, it’s very hush-hush, the whole world will change when he pulls it off, all the trams and fire engines and waste removal, everything, it applies to everything, everything you can think of. They reminisce about their drive back from the masked ball, on the avenue the oaks shoot past, I’ll give you 128 days of the year, each with morning, noon and night.
‘Yoohoo,’ Reinhold calls through the woods. That’s Reinhold calling, and they call back: ‘Yoohoo, yoohoo.’ Karl hides away somewhere, but Mitzi gets serious when she sees Reinhold approach.
Then the two policemen got up from their stone. And said the observation had been an exercise in futility and they disappeared, there was nothing we could do about it, only inconsequential things happened, we’ll make a written report to the authorities. And if anything should happen, then we’ll know soon enough, it’ll be posted on the information board.
•
In the woods, though, there were Mitzi and Reinhold walking alone together, a couple of birds whistled and squeaked softly. The tops of the trees started to sing.
One tree sang, then another, then they sang together, then they both stopped, then they sang over the heads of our two.
There is a reaper, Death yclept, by Almighty God employed. His blade he whets, it cuts much better.
‘Oh, I’m so glad to be back in Freienwalde, Reinhold. Do you know, the day before yesterday, that was such a lovely day, wasn’t that a lovely day.’ ‘Just a bit curtailed, miss. You were probably tired, I went knocking on your door, and you never answered.’ ‘The fresh air takes it out of you so, and the drive and everything.’ ‘Well, and wasn’t it a little bit nice as well?’ ‘Of course it was, what do you mean?’ ‘Oh, I mean walking along together side by side. With such an attractive young lady and all.’ ‘Attractive young lady, give it a rest. I don’t call you an attractive young gentleman, do I?’ ‘The fact that you’re walking here with me—’ ‘What about it?’ ‘Well, I’m thinking maybe it doesn’t show in me. But believe me, miss, the fact that we’re stepping out makes me very happy.’ A decent fellow. ‘Don’t you have a girlfriend?’ ‘Girlfriend, who doesn’t call herself your girlfriend nowadays?’ ‘Oh.’ ‘Well. There’s all sorts. You’re not to know. You’ve got a boyfriend who’s a solid type, and he cares about you. But girls, girls just want to have fun, they’ve no heart.’ ‘You must be out of luck.’ ‘You see, miss, that’s how he came to be thinking of-you know – of swapping. But you don’t want to hear about that.’ ‘Oh, you can tell me. What happened.’ ‘I can tell you all about it, and you’ll understand me too. How can you keep a woman for longer than a couple of months or maybe weeks, if there’s nothing to her? Well? Maybe she plays the field, or there’s just nothing to her, she doesn’t understand nothing, sticks her nose in everywhere, or maybe she’s on the sauce?’ ‘Sounds awful.’ ‘You see, Mitzi, and that’s what happened to me. That’s what you get. That’s what’s out there, trash, rubbish, dreck. All got out of the garbage. Can you imagine being married to something like that? Me, not for one hour. Well, so you stick it out a little while, maybe a week or two, and that’s about as much as you can take, and after that she gets her marching orders, and I’m all on my lonesome. It’s not nice. This is, though.’ ‘A bit of a change too, wouldn’t you say.’ Reinhold laughs: ‘What do you mean by that, Mitzi?’ ‘Well, just maybe you feel like someone else once in a while.’ ‘Why not, hey, they’re all human.’
They laugh, they walk with linked arms, it’s 1 September. The trees won’t stop singing. It’s one long sermon.
To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak. To every thing there is a season. I know that there is nothing better for a man than to be happy and enjoy himself. Better than enjoying himself. Enjoy ourselves, therefore let us enjoy ourselves. There is nothing better under the sun than laughing and rejoicing.
Reinhold has taken Mitzi by the hand, he is walking at her side, ooh, the strength there is in his arm. ‘You know, Mitzi, I didn’t trust myself to ask you out, back then, you remember.’ And now we’ve been walking for half an hour, hardly talking. It’s dangerous to walk for a long time without talking. But feel his right arm.
Where will I set the sweet dish down, she’s a class act all right, and maybe I’ll tuck her behind my ear for later, I mean to have her, maybe I’ll drag her back to the hotel, and in the night, in the night, when the moon is shining bright. ‘You’ve got loads of scars on your hand, and you’ve got tattoos and all. Have you got tattoos on your chest?’ ‘Sure. Wanna look?’ ‘What possesses you to get a tattoo?’ ‘That depends on the place, miss.’ Mitzi giggles, pulls on his arm: ‘I can imagine. I had a fellow before Franz, he was painted all over, more places than I could tell you.’ ‘It hurts, but it looks nice. Have a look, why don’t you.’ He lets go of her arm, quickly unbuttons his shirt, shows off his chest. There’s an anvil, and a laurel wreath around it. ‘Now put it away, Reinhold.’ ‘Take a good look.’ The flame in him, the naked desire, he grabs hold of her head, forces it against his chest. ‘Kiss it, you. Kiss. I want you to kiss it.’ She doesn’t kiss him, her head remains pressed down by his hands: ‘Let me go.’ He lets go of her: ‘Don’t take on, girl.’ ‘I’ve had enough.’ The cunt, I’ll grab her by the throat, that’s no way to talk to me. He pulls his shirt down. I’ll have her, she gives herself all those airs, easy does it, boy, easy. ‘I didn’t hurt you, now do me up, will you. Come on, you’ll have seen a man before now.’
What am I doing with this fellow here, he’s messed up my hair, he’s a brute, I’m going. Everything in its own time. Everything, everything.
‘Don’t you take on like that, it was just an instant. A little moment, you know, you get them in the course of a lifetime.’ ‘That’s still no need to grab my head like that.’ ‘Don’t be cross, Mitzi.’ You don’t know where I mean to grab you next. The wild heat is upon him again. Oh, to get my hands on her. ‘Now, Mitzi, shall we make peace?’ ‘Well, you’d better behave, is all I can say.’ ‘There’s a deal.’ Arm in arm. He smiles at her, she smiles down at the grass. ‘Wasn’t so bad, Mitzi, eh? We just bark a little, we don’t bite.’ ‘I’m thinking, why have you got an anvil there? Some have got a picture of a woman or a heart or summink, but an anvil?’ ‘Now why do you think, Mitzi?’ ‘No idea. Search me.’ ‘It’s my emblem.’ ‘An anvil?’ ‘Yeah. Someone has to lie down on it, get banged.’ He gives her a grin. ‘You’re filthy. You should have had a bed there.’ ‘Na, nanvil’s better.’ ‘You a blacksmith, then?’ ‘A bit of one. Jack of all trades, you know. But I don’t think you understand about the anvil, Mitzi. No one’s to get too close to me, else there’ll be a blaze. But you’re not to think I bite, least of all you. We’re walking along and it’s so nice and I feel like a little sit-down in a dell.’ ‘Are they all like that then, Pums’s boys?’ ‘That depends, Mitzi, we’re not the kind you can eat cherries with.’ ‘Well, so what things do you get up to?’ How do I get her in a dell, and no one by. ‘Oh, Mitzi, you’d best ask your Franz about that, he knows as much as I do.’ ‘But he won’t tell me.’ ‘That’s good. He’s no fool. Best say nothing.’ ‘But you can tell me.’ ‘Whaddaya wanna know?’ ‘The stuff you do?’ ‘Will I get a kiss if I do?’ ‘If you tell me.’
Then she’s in his arms. The fellow has two. And the way he can squeeze her in them. To every thing there is a season, planting and weeding, seeking and losing. I can’t breathe. He won’t let me go. Oh, it’s so hot. Let me go. If he does that to me twice more, I’ll be done for. Oh, but he needs
to tell me first what it is with Franz, and what Franz wants and what happened and what they’re thinking. ‘Let go of me now, Reinhold.’ ‘All right.’ And he lets go of her, and he stands there, then he drops to the ground, starts kissing her shoes, he must be mad, kisses her stockings, further up her, her dress, her hands, everything in its season, right the way up to her throat. She laughs, and flaps her hands at him: ‘Stop that, stop it, you silly.’ The glow of him, he needs to be stood under the cold tap. He is breathing hard and panting, he is trying to scrabble into her throat, he stammers, but she doesn’t understand what he’s trying to say, he lays off her for a minute, he’s like a bull. His arm is pushed through hers, they are walking again, the trees are singing. ‘Look, Mitzi, here’s a nice dell, it might have been made for us – look. A weekend dell. Someone’s been cooking in here. Let’s tidy up. I don’t want to get me trousers dirtied in there.’ I’ll sit down. Maybe he’ll start talking a bit. ‘Well, all right then. A coat’d be nicer.’ ‘Hang on, Mitzi, I’ll take my jacket off.’ ‘That’s nice of you.’
There are they, lying diagonally in a grassy hollow, she kicks away a tin can, plops down on her tummy, casually puts out an arm across his chest. There we are. She smiles at him. He pushes his weskit aside, and there’s a little shimmer of the anvil again, and she doesn’t pull her head away. ‘Now tell me something, Reinhold.’ He presses her against his chest, there we are, hunky-dory, here’s the girl, everything’s working out, nice girl, I’ll say, I’ll keep hold of her, I don’t care what Franz says, he’s not getting her back until I’m good and ready. And Reinhold slithers down, pulling Mitzi on top of him, wraps her in his arms, and kisses her on the mouth. He sucks himself full, no thought in him, just pleasure, greed, wildness and every move is predetermined, and no one better get in his way. Then it breaks and splinters and no hurricane or avalanche can stop it, it’s like something shot out of a gun, a shell flying. Whatever gets in its way is blown to smithereens, knocked aside, and it goes on and on.