by sheer impossibility into one high but resonant sound which vibrated on the ear as if it were trying to penetrate beyond mere hearing. K. listened without attempting to telephone, leaning his left arm on the telephone shelf.
He did not know how long he had stood there, but he stood until the landlord pulled at his coat saying that a messenger had come to speak with him. “Go away!” yelled K. in an access of rage, perhaps into the mouthpiece, for someone immediately answered from the other end. The following conversation ensued: “Oswald speaking, who’s there?” cried a severe, arrogant voice with a small defect in its speech, as seemed to K. , which its owner tried to cover by an exaggerated severity. K. hesitated to announce himself, for he was at the mercy of the telephone, the other could shout him down or hang up the receiver, and that might mean the blocking of a not unimportant way of access. K. ’s hesitation made the man impatient. “Who’s there?” he repeated, adding, “I should be obliged if there was less telephoning from down there, only a minute ago somebody rang up.” K. ignored this remark, and announced with sudden decision: “The Land Surveyor’s assistant speaking.” “What Land Surveyor? What assistant?” K. recollected yesterday’s telephone conversation, and said briefly, “Ask Fritz.” This succeeded, to his own astonishment. But even more than at his success he was astonished at the organisation of the Castle service. The answer came: “Oh, yes. That everlasting Land Surveyor. Quite so. What about it? What assistant?” “Joseph,” said K. He was a little put out by the murmuring of the peasants behind his back, obviously they disapproved of his ruse. He had no time to bother about them, however, for the conversation absorbed all his attention. “Joseph?” came the question. “But the assistants are called …” there was a short pause, evidently to enquire the names from somebody else, “Arthur and Jeremiah.” “These are the new assistants,” said K. “No, they are the old ones.” “They are the new ones, I am the old assistant; I came today after the Land Surveyor.” “No,” was shouted back. “Then who am I?” asked K. as blandly as before.