
On a sweltering summer day the world outside burns, while inside the main office of a vast timber‑sawing corporation the air stays cool and typewriters clatter. Rows of impeccably dressed men move methodically through corridors, their polite smiles masking the weight of decisions that affect thousands of workers and families. The opening describes this bureaucratic universe with a quiet, authoritative tone.
A gaunt man with a freshly‑crafted wooden leg and a limp, accompanied by a timid boy, interrupts the routine. He introduces himself as Jeremias Kähkönen, a sawmill foreman summoned—without a recommendation letter—to speak with the chief executive. Their uneasy exchange hints at hidden grievances and a looming conflict within the company.
The story promises a careful look at power, duty, and the lives caught in the gears of industry, all narrated with measured, almost clinical prose. Listeners will be drawn into the subtle drama of a single office encounter that may echo far beyond its walls.
Language
fi
Duration
~2 hours (171K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Original publisher
Helsinki: Otava, 1922.
Credits
Juhani Kärkkäinen and Tapio Riikonen
Release date
2024-03-23
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
1891–1926
A Finnish writer and journalist from Oulu, he wrote vivid fiction about northern life, rural communities, and people living close to hardship. His career was brief, but his books helped capture a distinct corner of early 20th-century Finland.
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