4 July 1928

The events of 4 July 1928 mark Franz Biberkopf’s sudden return to Berlin after an absence that has left Eva, Herbert Wischow, and Emil anxiously wondering what has become of him. The reunion turns uncertainty into relief, but Franz’s empty sleeve makes clear that he has come back changed.

Anticipation and Return

On the train toward Berlin, Eva sits with a banker, enduring his fondling with boredom and feigned rapture while wondering what Franz is doing. When the banker gets off before they reach the city, she is left alone and becomes agitated, afraid that Franz has gone away again. The narration then recalls the friends’ surprise at his appearance on Wednesday, 4 July: they had been worried and are suddenly overjoyed to see him.

Franz arrives clean and tidy, with the Iron Cross on his chest, trusting brown eyes, and a firm handshake. The confident image is immediately complicated by his body: his empty right sleeve is tucked into his pocket. Eva embraces and kisses him, then tells him how frightened she and the others had been. Franz kisses Eva, Herbert, and even Emil, treating their worry as unnecessary.

Reassurance and Money

Franz presents himself jokingly as a war hero dressed in a Bobby Jones jacket. Herbert greets his appearance with delighted teasing, while Eva marvels at how well he looks. When she asks whether he is seeing anyone, Franz says that nothing is going on and that he has nobody. His return thus brings the friends immediate reassurance without revealing a new romantic attachment.

Franz also promises Herbert that he will repay every penny he owes within a few months. Herbert waves a thousand-mark note in front of him, and Eva urges Franz to take it. Franz refuses the money for himself; instead, he proposes that they go downstairs and spend it together on drinks. The offer turns the reunion into a shared celebration, while his promise to repay the debt preserves his insistence on managing his own obligations.

Significance of the Date

The scene sets the warmth of the welcome against the visible evidence of Franz’s injury. His friends encounter the familiar, sociable man they had feared losing, but the right sleeve tucked away prevents the return from appearing to restore him unchanged. Their relief is real; so is the physical alteration he carries back into their circle.