Such work habits would indicate, even if no other evidence were available, that the Chief Kripo had no Irish blood in him whatsoever. In Ireland — at least south of the border — there was no excuse for being awake, let alone working, at such an ungodly hour, save returning from a late night's drinking, insanity, or sex. Even Irish cows slept until nearly eight; later on Sundays. Buisard was, in fact, by origin a Swiss Romand, a French-speaking Swiss from the canton of Vaud, but he had been a resident of Bern for there out of his over four decades, and he worked hard at integrating. For instance, by the pragmatic if somewhat energetic expedient of having a wife and no fewer than two current mistresses, he had proudly succeeded in mastering Berndeutsch, the local dialect. His dedication did not pass unnoticed. Recently he had overheard an eminent member of the Bürgergemeinde refer to him as bodenständig — the ultimate Bernese accolade for a sensible, practical fellow, with his feet firmly on the ground. For a brief moment Buisard wondered if the rumors of his penchant for making love standing up — a by-product of his busy schedule, which combined sex with exercise — had circulated, but he dismissed the thought. He had faith in the discretion of his women and in the soundproofing of Bernese buildings.
