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diff --git a/41119-8.txt b/41119-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 67c446e..0000000 --- a/41119-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,11896 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of A Russian Proprietor, by Lyof N. Tolstoi - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: A Russian Proprietor - and other Stories - -Author: Lyof N. Tolstoi - -Translator: Nathan Haskell Dole - -Release Date: October 21, 2012 [EBook #41119] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A RUSSIAN PROPRIETOR *** - - - - -Produced by Sankar Viswanathan, Odessa Paige Turner, and -the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images -generously made available by The Internet Archive/American -Libraries.) - - - - - - - - - A - - RUSSIAN PROPRIETOR - - and - - OTHER STORIES - - - - BY - - COUNT LYOF N. TOLSTOĎ - - - _TRANSLATED FROM THE RUSSIAN_ - - BY - - NATHAN HASKELL DOLE - - - - - NEW YORK - - THOMAS Y. CROWELL & CO. - - 13 ASTOR PLACE - - * * * * * - - - - -PREFACE. - - -The following tales are, with one exception, taken from the second volume -of Count L. N. Tolstoď's collected works, and are representative of his -literary activity between 1852 and 1859. - -The first story, though only a fragment of a projected novel to be called -"A Russian Proprietor," is perfect and complete in itself. One cannot help -feeling that it is autobiographical; Count Tolstoď himself, it will be -remembered, having suddenly quitted the University of Kazan, in spite of -the entreaties of his friends, and retired to his paternal estate of -Yasnaya Polyana, near Tula. The aunt whose letter is quoted in the first -chapter must have been Count Tolstoď's aunt, mentioned in the second -chapter of "My Confession." - -The "Recollections of a Scorer" and "Two Hussars" are both evidently -reminiscent of Count Tolstoď's gambling-days. Both must have been suggested -by some such terrible experience as that told of the count's gambling-debt -in the Caucasus. - -"Lucerne" and "Albert" are likewise evidently transcripts from the author's -own experience. The strange benefactor in each, and the shadowy Prince -Nekhliudof, are all Count Tolstoď in phases quite distinct from what he is -at present. - -"The Three Deaths," written in 1859, has little of the sombre power of -"Iván Ilyitch." The scalpel which was so remorselessly applied to the soul -in the latter is wholly hidden. It is realism pure and simple; and the -contrast between the death of the peasant and of the lady is left to -inference, made all the stronger by the unexpected and grandiose finale in -the death of the tree. - -In interesting contrast to these characteristic stories is the little gem -entitled "A Prisoner in the Caucasus," which is found in Vol. IV. of the -Count's works under the heading "Tales for Children." The style is -perfectly simple and lucid; the pictures of life in the Tatar village among -the mountains are intensely vivid, painted with strong and masterly -touches; and the reader will not soon forget the little laughing maiden -Dina, with the rubles jingling in her braided hair. She stands forth as one -of the most fascinating of the author's creations. - -NATHAN HASKELL DOLE. - -BOSTON, Dec. 5, 1887. - - * * * * * - - - - -CONTENTS. - - - PAGE - -A RUSSIAN PROPRIETOR 1 - -LUCERNE 87 - -RECOLLECTIONS OF A SCORER 123 - -ALBERT 148 - -TWO HUSSARS 190 - -THREE DEATHS 286 - -A PRISONER IN THE CAUCASUS 308 - - * * * * * - - - - -A RUSSIAN PROPRIETOR. - - -I. - -Prince Nekhliudof was nineteen years of age when, at the end of his third -term at the university, he came to spend his summer vacation on his estate. -He was alone there all the summer. - -In the autumn he wrote in his unformed, boyish hand, a letter to his aunt, -the Countess Biéloretskaďa, who, according to his notion, was his best -friend, and the most genial woman in the world. The letter was in French, -and was to the following effect:-- - - "DEAR AUNTIE,--I have adopted a resolution upon which must - depend the fate of my whole existence. I have left the - university in order to devote myself to a country life, - because I feel that I was born for it. For God's sake, dear - auntie, don't make sport of me. You say that I am young. - Perhaps I am still almost a child; but this does not prevent - me from feeling sure of my vocation, from wishing to - accomplish it successfully, and from loving it. - - "As I have already written you, I found our affairs in - indescribable confusion. Wishing to bring order out of - chaos, I made an investigation, and discovered that the - principal trouble was due to the most wretched miserable - condition of the peasants, and that this trouble could be - remedied only by work and patience. - - "If you could only see two of my peasants, David and Iván, - and the way that they and their families live, I am - convinced that one glance at these two unfortunates would do - more to persuade you than all that I can tell you in - justification of my resolve. Is not my obligation sacred and - clear, to labor for the welfare of these seven hundred human - beings for whom I must be responsible to God? Would it not - be a sin to leave them to the mercy of harsh elders and - overseers, so as to carry out plans of enjoyment or - ambition? And why should I seek in any other sphere the - opportunity of being useful, and doing good, when such a - noble, brilliant, and paramount duty lies right at hand? - - "I feel that I am capable of being a good farmer;[1] and in - order to make myself such an one as I understand the word to - mean, I do not need my diploma as B.A., nor the rank which - you so expect of me. Dear auntie, do not make ambitious - plans for me: accustom yourself to the thought that I am - going on an absolutely peculiar path, but one that is good, - and, I think, will bring me to happiness. I have thought and - thought about my future duties, have written out some rules - of conduct, and, if God only gives me health and strength, I - shall succeed in my undertaking. - - [Footnote 1: _khozyáďn_.] - - "Do not show this letter to my brother Vásya: I am afraid of - his ridicule. He generally dictates to me, and I am - accustomed to give way to him. Whilst Vanya may not approve - of my resolve, at least he will understand it." - -The countess replied to her nephew in the following letter, also written in -French:-- - - "Your letter, dear Dmitri, showed nothing else to me than - that you have a warm heart; and I have never had reason to - doubt that. But, my dear, our good tendencies do us more - harm in life than our bad ones. I will not tell you that you - are committing a folly, that your behavior annoys me; but I - will do my best to make one argument have an effect upon - you. Let us reason together, my dear. - - "You say you feel that your vocation is for a country life; - that you wish to make your serfs happy, and that you hope to - be a good farmer. - - "In the first place, I must tell you that we feel sure of - our vocation only when we have once made a mistake in one; - secondly, that it is easier to win happiness for ourselves - than for others; and thirdly, that, in order to be a good - master, it is necessary to be a cold and austere man, which - you will never in this world succeed in being, even though - you strive to make believe that you are. - - "You consider your arguments irresistible, and go so far as - to adopt them as rules for the conduct of life; but at my - age, my dear, people don't care for arguments and rules, but - only for experience. Now, experience tells me that your - plans are childish. - - "I am now in my fiftieth year, and I have known many fine - men; but I have never heard of a young man of good family - and ability burying himself in the country under the pretext - of doing good. - - "You have always wished to appear original, but your - originality is nothing else than morbidly developed egotism. - And, my dear, choose some better-trodden path. It will lead - you to success; and success, if it is not necessary for you - as success, is at least indispensable in giving you the - possibility of doing good which you desire. The poverty of a - few serfs is an unavoidable evil, or, rather, an evil which - cannot be remedied by forgetting all your obligations to - society, to your relatives, and to yourself. - - "With your intellect, with your kind heart, and your love - for virtue, no career would fail to bring you success; but - at all events choose one which would be worth your while, - and bring you honor. - - "I believe that you are sincere, when you say that you are - free from ambition; but you are deceiving yourself. Ambition - is a virtue at your age, and with your means it becomes a - fault and an absurdity when a man is no longer in the - condition to satisfy this passion. - - "And you will experience this if you do not change your - intention. Good-by, dear Mitya. It seems to me that I have - all the more love for you on account of your foolish but - still noble and magnanimous plan. Do as you please, but I - forewarn you that I shall not be able to sympathize with - you." - -The young man read this letter, considered it long and seriously, and -finally, having decided that his genial aunt might be mistaken, sent in his -petition for dismissal from the university, and took up his residence at -his estate. - - -II. - -The young proprietor had, as he wrote his aunt, devised a plan of action in -the management of his estate; and his whole life and activity were measured -by hours, days, and months. - -Sunday was reserved for the reception of petitioners, domestic servants, -and peasants, for the visitation of the poor serfs belonging to the estate, -and the distribution of assistance with the approval of the Commune, which -met every Sunday evening, and was obliged to decide who should have help, -and what amount should be given. - -In such employments passed more than a year, and the young man was now no -longer a novice either in the practical or theoretical knowledge of estate -management. - -It was a clear July Sunday when Nekhliudof, having finished his coffee and -run through a chapter of "Maison Rustique," put his note-book and a packet -of bank-notes into the pocket of his light overcoat, and started out of -doors. It was a great country-house with colonnades and terraces where he -lived, but he occupied only one small room on the ground floor. He made his -way over the neglected, weed-grown paths of the old English garden, toward -the village, which was distributed along both sides of the highway. - -Nekhliudof was a tall, slender young man, with long, thick, wavy auburn -hair, with a bright gleam in his dark eyes, a clear complexion, and rosy -lips where the first down of young manhood was now beginning to appear. - -In all his motions and gait, could be seen strength, energy, and the -good-natured self-satisfaction of youth. - -The serfs, in variegated groups, were returning from church: old men, -maidens, children, mothers with babies in their arms, dressed in their -Sunday best, were scattering to their homes; and as they met the bárin they -bowed low and made room for him to pass. - -After Nekhliudof had walked some distance along the street, he stopped, and -drew from his pocket his note-book, on the last page of which, inscribed in -his own boyish hand, were a number of names of his serfs with memoranda. He -read, "_Iván Churis asks for aid_;" and then, proceeding still farther -along the street, entered the gate of the second hut[2] on the right. - -[Footnote 2: _izbá_.] - -Churis's domicile consisted of a half-decayed structure, with musty -corners; the sides were rickety. It was so buried in the ground, that the -banking, made of earth and dung, almost hid the two windows. The one on the -front had a broken sash, and the shutters were half torn away; the other -was small and low, and was stuffed with flax. A boarded entry with rotting -sills and low door, another small building still older and still -lower-studded than the entry, a gate, and a barn were clustered about the -principal hut. - -All this had once been covered by one irregular roof; but now only over the -eaves hung the thick straw, black and decaying. Above, in places, could be -seen the frame-work and rafters. - -In front of the yard were a well with rotten curb, the remains of a post, -and the wheel, and a mud-puddle stirred up by the cattle where some ducks -were splashing. - -Near the well stood two old willows, split and broken, with their -whitish-green foliage. They were witnesses to the fact that some one, some -time, had taken interest in beautifying this place. Under one of them sat a -fair-haired girl of seven summers, watching another little girl of two, who -was creeping at her feet. The watch-dog gambolling about them, as soon as -he saw the bárin, flew headlong under the gate, and there set up a -quavering yelp expressive of panic. - -"Iván at home?" asked Nekhliudof. - -The little girl seemed stupefied at this question, and kept opening her -eyes wider and wider, but made no reply. The baby opened her mouth, and set -up a yell. - -A little old woman, in a torn checkered skirt, belted low with an old red -girdle, peered out of the door, and also said nothing. Nekhliudof -approached the entry, and repeated his inquiry. - -"Yes, he's at home," replied the little old woman in a quavering voice, -bowing low, and evincing timidity and agitation. - -After Nekhliudof had asked after her health, and passed through the entry -into the little yard, the old woman, resting her chin in her hand, went to -the door, and, without taking her eyes off the bárin, began gently to shake -her head. - -The yard was in a wretched condition, with heaps of old blackened manure -that had not been carried away: on the manure were thrown in confusion a -rotting block, pitchforks, and two harrows. - -There were pent-houses around the yard, under one side of which stood a -wooden plough, a cart without a wheel, and a pile of empty -good-for-nothing bee-hives thrown one upon another. The roof was in -disrepair; and one side had fallen in so that the covering in front rested, -not on the supports, but on the manure. - -Churis, with the edge and head of an axe, was breaking off the wattles that -strengthened the roof. Iván was a peasant, fifty years of age. In stature, -he was short. The features of his tanned oval face, framed in a dark auburn -beard and hair where a trace of gray was beginning to appear, were handsome -and expressive. His dark blue eyes gleamed with intelligence and lazy -good-nature, from under half-shut lids. His small, regular mouth, sharply -defined under his sandy thin mustache when he smiled, betrayed a calm -self-confidence, and a certain bantering indifference toward all around -him. - -By the roughness of his skin, by his deep wrinkles, by the veins that stood -out prominently on his neck, face, and hands, by his unnatural stoop and -the crooked position of his legs, it was evident that all his life had been -spent in hard work, far beyond his strength. - -His garb consisted of white hempen drawers, with blue patches on the knees, -and a dirty shirt of the same material, which kept hitching up his back and -arms. The shirt was belted low in the waist by a girdle, from which hung a -brass key. - -"Good-day," said the bárin, as he stepped into the yard. Churis glanced -around, and kept on with his work; making energetic motions, he finished -clearing away the wattles from under the shed, and then only, having struck -the axe into the block, he came out into the middle of the yard. - -"A pleasant holiday, your excellency!" said he, bowing low and smoothing -his hair. - -"Thanks, my friend. I came to see how your affairs[3] were progressing," -said Nekhliudof with boyish friendliness and timidity, glancing at the -peasant's garb. "Just show me what you need in the way of supports that you -asked me about at the last meeting." - -"Supports, of course, sir, your excellency, sir.[4] I should like it fixed -a little here, sir, if you will have the goodness to cast your eye on it: -here this corner has given way, sir, and only by the mercy of God the -cattle didn't happen to be there. It barely hangs at all," said Churis, -gazing with an expressive look at his broken-down, ramshackly, and ruined -sheds. "Now the girders and the supports and the rafters are nothing but -rot; you won't see a sound timber. But where can we get lumber nowadays, I -should like to know?" - -[Footnote 3: _khozyáďstvo._] - -[Footnote 4: _bátiushka._] - -"Well, what do you want with the five supports when the one shed has fallen -in? the others will be soon falling in too, won't they? You need to have -every thing made new,--rafters and girders and posts; but you don't want -supports," said the bárin, evidently priding himself on his comprehension -of the case. - -Churis made no reply. - -"Of course you need lumber, but not supports. You ought to have told me -so." - -"Surely I do, but there's nowhere to get it. Not all of us can come to the -manor-house. If we all should get into the habit of coming to the -manor-house and asking your excellency for every thing we wanted, what kind -of serfs should we be? But if your kindness went so far as to let me have -some of the oak saplings that are lying idle over by the threshing-floor," -said the peasant, making a low bow and scraping with his foot, "then, -maybe, I might exchange some, and piece out others, so that the old would -last some time longer." - -"What is the good of the old? Why, you just told me that it was all old and -rotten. This part has fallen in to-day; to-morrow, that one will; the day -after, a third. So, if any thing is to be done, it must be all made new, so -that the work may not be wasted. Now tell me what you think about it. Can -your premises[5] last out this winter, or not?" - -"Who can tell?" - -"No, but what do you think? Will they fall in, or not?" - -Churis meditated for a moment. "Can't help falling in," said he suddenly. - -"Well, now you see you had better have said that at the meeting, that you -needed to rebuild your whole place,[5] instead of a few props. You see, I -should be glad to help you." - -[Footnote 5: _dvor._] - -"Many thanks for your kindness," replied Churis, in an incredulous tone and -not looking at the bárin. "If you would give me four joists and some props, -then, perhaps, I might fix things up myself; but if any one is hunting -after good-for-nothing timbers, then he'd find them in the joists of the -hut." - -"Why, is your hut so wretched as all that?" - -"My old woman and I are expecting it to fall in on us any day," replied -Churis indifferently. "A day or two ago, a girder fell from the ceiling, -and struck my old woman." - -"What! struck her?" - -"Yes, struck her, your excellency: whacked her on the back, so that she lay -half dead all night." - -"Well, did she get over it?" - -"Pretty much, but she's been ailing ever since; but then she's always -ailing." - -"What, are you sick?" asked Nekhliudof of the old woman, who had been -standing all the time at the door, and had begun to groan as soon as her -husband mentioned her. - -"It bothers me here more and more, especially on Sundays," she replied, -pointing to her dirty lean bosom. - -"Again?" asked the young master in a tone of vexation, shrugging his -shoulders. "Why, if you are so sick, don't you come and get advice at the -dispensary? That is what the dispensary was built for. Haven't you been -told about it?" - -"Certainly we have, but I have not had any time to spare; have had to work -in the field, and at home, and look after the children, and no one to help -me; if I weren't all alone".... - - -III. - -Nekhliudof went into the hut. The uneven smoke-begrimed walls of the -dwelling were hung with various rags and clothes; and, in the living-room, -were literally covered with reddish cockroaches clustering around the holy -images and benches. - -In the middle of this dark, fetid apartment, not fourteen feet square, was -a huge crack in the ceiling; and in spite of the fact that it was braced up -in two places, the ceiling hung down so that it threatened to fall from -moment to moment. - -"Yes, the hut is very miserable," said the bárin, looking into the face of -Churis, who, it seems, had not cared to speak first about this state of -things. - -"It will crush us to death; it will crush the children," said the woman in -a tearful voice, attending to the stove which stood under the loft. - -"Hold your tongue," cried Churis sternly; and with a slight smile playing -under his mustaches, he turned to the master. "And I haven't the wit to -know what's to be done with it, your excellency,--with this hut and props -and planks. There's nothing to be done with them." - -"How can we live through the winter here? _Okh, okh!_ Oh, oh!" groaned the -old woman. - -"There's one thing--if we put in some more props and laid a new floor," -said the husband, interrupting her with a calm, practical expression, "and -threw over one set of rafters, then perhaps we might manage to get through -the winter. It is possible to live; but you'd have to put some props all -over the hut, like that: but if it gets shaken, then there won't be any -thing left of it. As long as it stands, it holds together," he concluded, -evidently perfectly contented that he appreciated this contingency. - -Nekhliudof was both vexed and grieved that Churis had got himself into such -a condition, without having come to him long before; since he had more than -once, during his sojourn on the estate, told the peasants, and insisted -upon it, that they should all apply directly to him for whatever they -needed. - -He now felt some indignation against the peasant; he angrily shrugged his -shoulders, and frowned. But the sight of the poverty in the midst of which -he found himself, and Churis's calm and self-satisfied appearance in -contrast with this poverty, changed his vexation into a sort of feeling of -melancholy and hopelessness. - -"Well, Iván, why on earth didn't you tell me about this before?" he asked -in a tone of reproach, as he took a seat on the filthy, unsteady bench. - -"I didn't dare to, your excellency," replied Churis with the same scarcely -perceptible smile, shuffling with his black, bare feet over the uneven -surface of the mud floor; but this he said so fearlessly and with such -composure, that it was hard to believe that he had any timidity about going -to his master. - -"We are mere peasants; how could we be so presuming?" began the old woman, -sobbing. - -"Hush up," said Churis, again addressing her. - -"It is impossible for you to live in this hut: it's all rotten," cried -Nekhliudof after a brief silence. "Now, this is how we shall manage it, my -friend"[6].... - -[Footnote 6: _bratets_, brother.] - -"I am listening." - -"Have you seen the improved stone cottages that I have been building at the -new farm,--the one with the undressed walls?" - -"Indeed I have seen them," replied Churis, with a smile that showed his -white teeth still unimpaired. "Everybody's agog at the way they're built. -Fine cottages! The boys were laughing and wondering if they wouldn't be -turned into granaries; they would be so secure against rats. Fine -cottages," he said in conclusion, with an expression of absurd perplexity, -shaking his head, "just like a jail!" - -"Yes, they're splendid cottages, dry and warm, and no danger of fire," -replied the bárin, a frown crossing his youthful face as he perceived the -peasant's involuntary sarcasm. - -"Without question, your excellency, fine cottages." - -"Well, then, one of these cottages is just finished. It is twenty-four feet -square, with an entry, and a barn, and it's entirely ready. I will let you -have it on credit if you say so, at cost price; you can pay for it at your -own convenience," said the bárin with a self-satisfied smile, which he -could not control, at the thought of his benevolence. "You can pull down -this old one," he went on to say; "it will make you a granary. We will also -move the pens. The water there is splendid. I will give you enough land for -a vegetable-garden, and I'll let you have a strip of land on all three -sides. You can live there in a decent way. Now, does not that please you?" -asked Nekhliudof, perceiving that as soon as he spoke of moving, Churis -became perfectly motionless, and looked at the ground without even a -shadow of a smile. - -"It's as your excellency wills," he replied, not raising his eyes. - -The old woman came forward as though something had stung her to the quick, -and began to speak; but her husband anticipated her. - -"It's as your excellency wills," he repeated resolutely, and at the same -time humbly glancing at his master, and tossing back his hair. "But it -would never do for us to live on a new farm." - -"Why not?" - -"Nay, your excellency, not if you move us over there: here we are wretched -enough, but over there we could never in the world get along. What kind of -peasants should we be there? Nay, nay, it is impossible for us to live -there." - -"But why not, pray?" - -"We should be totally ruined, your excellency." - -"But why can't you live there?" - -"What kind of a life would it be? Just think! it has never been lived in; -we don't know any thing about the water, no pasture anywhere. Here we have -had hemp-fields ever since we can remember, all manured; but what is there -there? Yes, what is there there? A wilderness! No hedges, no corn-kilns, no -sheds, no nothing at all! Oh, yes, your excellency; we should be ruined if -you took us there; we should be perfectly ruined. A new place, all unknown -to us," he repeated, shaking his head thoughtfully but resolutely. - -Nekhliudof tried to point out to the peasant that the change, on the -contrary, would be very advantageous for him; that they would plant hedges, -and build sheds; that the water there was excellent, and so on: but -Churis's obstinate silence exasperated him, and he accordingly felt that he -was speaking to no purpose. - -Churis made no objection to what he said; but when the master finished -speaking, he remarked with a crafty smile, that it would be best of all to -remove to that farm some of the old domestic servants, and Alyósha the -fool, so that they might watch over the grain there. - -"That would be worth while," he remarked, and smiled once more. "This is -foolish business, your excellency." - -"What makes you think the place is not inhabitable?" insisted Nekhliudof -patiently. "This place here isn't inhabitable, and hasn't been, and yet you -live here. But there, you will get settled there before you know it; you -will certainly find it easy".... - -"But, your excellency, kind sir,[7] how can it be compared?" replied Churis -eagerly, as though he feared that the master would not accept a conclusive -argument. "Here is our place in the world; we are happy in it; we are -accustomed to it, and the road and the pond--where would the old woman do -her washing? where would the cattle get watered? And all our peasant ways -are here; here from time out of mind. And here's the threshing-floor, and -the little garden, and the willows; and here my parents lived, and my -grandfather; and my father gave his soul into God's keeping here, and I too -would end my days here, your excellency. I ask nothing more than that. Be -good, and let the hut be put in order; we shall be always grateful for your -kindness: but no, not for any thing, would we spend our last days anywhere -else. Let us stay here and say our prayers," he continued, bowing low; "do -not take us from our nest, kind sir."[8] - -[Footnote 7: _bátiushka._] - -[Footnote 8: _bátiushka._] - -All the time that Churis was speaking, there was heard in the place under -the loft, where his wife was standing, sobs growing more and more violent; -and when the husband said "_kind sir_," she suddenly darted forward, and -with tears in her eyes threw herself at the bárin's feet. - -"Don't destroy us, benefactor; you are our father, you are our mother! -Where are you going to move us to? We are old folks; we have no one to help -us. You are to us as God is," lamented the old woman. - -Nekhliudof leaped up from the bench, and was going to lift the old woman; -but she, with a sort of passionate despair, beat her forehead on the earth -floor, and pushed aside the master's hand. - -"What is the matter with you? Get up, I beg of you. If you don't wish to -go, it is not necessary. I won't oblige you to," said he, waving his hand, -and retreating to the door. - -When Nekhliudof sat down on the bench again, and silence was restored in -the room, interrupted only by the sobs of the old woman, who was once more -busy under the loft, and was wiping away her tears with the sleeves of her -shirt, the young proprietor began to comprehend what was meant for the -peasant and his wife by the dilapidated little hut, the crumbling well with -the filthy pool, the decaying stalls and sheds, and the broken willows -which could be seen before the crooked window; and the feeling that arose -in him was burdensome, melancholy, and touched with shame. - -"Why didn't you tell the Commune last Sunday, Iván, that you needed a new -hut? I don't know, now, how to help you. I told you all at the first -meeting, that I had come to live in the country, and devote my life to you, -that I was ready to deprive myself of every thing to make you happy and -contented; and I vowed before God, now, that I would keep my word," said -the young proprietor, not knowing that such a manner of opening the heart -is incapable of arousing faith in any one, and especially in the Russian, -who loves not words but deeds, and is reluctant to be stirred up by -feelings, no matter how beautiful they may be. - -But the simple-hearted young man was so pleased with this feeling that he -experienced, that he could not help speaking. - -Churis leaned his head to one side, and slowly blinking, listened with -constrained attention to his master, as to a man to whom he must needs -listen, even though he says things not entirely good, and absolutely -foreign to his way of thinking. - -"But you see I cannot do all that everybody asks of me. If I did not refuse -some who ask me for wood, I myself should be left without any, and I could -not give to those who really needed. When I made this rule, I did it for -the regulation of the peasants' affairs; and I put it entirely in the hands -of the Commune. This wood now is not mine, but yours, you peasants', and I -cannot any longer dispose of it; but the Commune disposes of it, as you -know. Come to the meeting to-night. I will tell the Commune about your -request: if they are disposed to give you a new hut, well and good; but I -haven't any more wood. I wish with all my soul to help you; but if you -aren't willing to move, then it is no longer my affair, but the Commune's. -Do you understand me?" - -"Many thanks for your kindness," replied Churis in some agitation. "If you -will give me some lumber, then we can make repairs. What is the Commune? -It's a well-known fact that".... - -"No, you come." - -"I obey. I will come. Why shouldn't I come? Only this thing is sure: I -won't ask the Commune." - - -IV. - -The young proprietor evidently desired to ask some more questions of the -peasants. He did not move from the bench; and he glanced irresolutely, now -at Churis, now at the empty, unlighted stove. - -"Well, have you had dinner yet?" he asked at last. - -A mocking smile arose to Churis's lips, as though it were ridiculous to him -for his master to ask such foolish questions; he made no reply. - -"What do you mean,--dinner, benefactor?" said the old woman, sighing -deeply. "We've eaten a little bread; that's our dinner. We couldn't get any -vegetables to-day so as to boil some soup,[9] but we had a little -kvas,--enough for the children." - -[Footnote 9: _shchets_ for _shchi_.] - -"To-day was a fast-day for us, your excellency," remarked Churis -sarcastically, taking up his wife's words. "Bread and onions; that's the -way we peasants live. Howsomever, praise be to the Lord, I have a little -grain yet, thanks to your kindness; it's lasted till now; but there's -plenty of our peasants as ain't got any. Everywheres there's scarcity of -onions. Only a day or two ago they sent to Mikháďl the gardener, to get a -bunch for a farthing: couldn't get any anywheres. Haven't been to God's -church scarcely since Easter. Haven't had nothing to buy a taper for Mikóla -[St. Nicholas] with." - -Nekhliudof, not by hearsay nor by trust in the words of others, but by the -evidence of his own eyes, had long known the extreme depth of poverty into -which his peasantry had sunken: but the entire reality was in such perfect -contrast to his own bringing-up, the turn of his mind, and the course of -his life, that in spite of himself he kept forgetting the truth of it; and -every time when, as now, it was brought vividly, tangibly, before him, his -heart was torn with painful, almost unendurable melancholy, as though some -absolute and unavoidable punishment were torturing him. - -"Why are you so poor?" he exclaimed, involuntarily expressing his thought. - -"How could such as we help being poor, sir,[10] your excellency? Our land -is so bad, you yourself may be pleased to know,--clay and sand-heaps; and -surely we must have angered God, for this long time, ever since the -cholera, the corn won't grow. Our meadows and every thing else have been -growing worse and worse. And some of us have to work for the farm, and some -detailed for the manor-lands. And here I am with no one to help me, and I'm -getting old. I'd be glad enough to work, but I hain't no strength. And my -old woman's ailing; and every year there's a new girl born, and I have to -feed 'em all. I get tired out all alone, and here's seven dependent on me. -I must be a sinner in the eyes of the Lord God, I often think to myself. -And when God takes me off sudden-like, I feel it would be easier for me; -just as it's better for them than to lead such a dog's life here".... - -[Footnote 10: _bátiushka._] - -"Oh, _okh_!" groaned the old woman, as a sort of confirmation of her -husband's words. - -"And this is all the help I have," continued Churis, pointing to the -white-headed, unkempt little boy of seven, with a huge belly, who at this -moment, timidly and quietly pushing the door open, came into the hut, and, -resting his eyes in wonder and solemnity on the master, clung hold of -Churis's shirt-band with both hands. - -"This is all the assistance I have here," continued Churis in a sonorous -voice, laying his shaggy hand on the little lad's white hair. "When will he -be good for any thing? But my work isn't much good. When I reach old age I -shall be good for nothing; the rupture is getting the better of me. In wet -weather it makes me fairly scream. I am getting to be an old man, and yet I -have to take care of my land.[11] And here's Yermilof, Demkin, Zabref, all -younger than I am, and they have been freed from their land long ago. Well, -I haven't any one to help me with it; that's my misfortune. Have to feed so -many; that's where my struggle lies, your excellency." - -"I should be very glad to make it easier for you, truly. But how can I?" -asked the young bárin in a tone of sympathy, looking at the serf. - -"How make it easier? It's a well-known fact, if you have the land you must -do enforced labor also;[12] that's the regulation. I expect something from -this youngster. If only you'd be good enough to let him off from going to -school. But just a day or two ago, the officer[13] came and said that your -excellency wanted him to go to school. Do let him off; he has no capacity -for learning, your excellency. He's too young yet; he won't understand any -thing." - -[Footnote 11: The lands belonging to the Russian commune, or _mir_, were -periodically distributed by allotment, each full-grown peasant receiving as -his share a _tiagló_ representing what the average man and his wife were -capable of cultivating. When the period was long--ten years for -instance--it sometimes happened that a serf, by reason of illness, -laziness, or other misfortune, would find it hard to cultivate his share, -pay the tax on it, and also do the work required of him on his bárin's -land. Such was Churis's complaint.] - -[Footnote 12: _barshchina_: work on the master's land.] - -[Footnote 13: _zemski._] - -"No, brother, you're wrong there," said the bárin. "Your boy is old enough -to understand; it's time for him to be learning. Just think of it! How -he'll grow up, and learn about farming; yes, and he'll know his a-b-c's, -and know how to read; and read in church. He'll be a great help to you if -God lets him live," said Nekhliudof, trying to make himself as plain as -possible, and at the same time blushing and stammering. - -"Very true, your excellency. You don't want to do us an injury, but there's -no one to take care of the house; for while I and the old woman are doing -the enforced labor, the boy, though he's so young, is a great help, driving -the cattle and watering the horses. Whatever he is, he's a true muzhík;" -and Churis, with a smile, took the lad's nose between his fat fingers, and -deftly removed the mucus. - -"Nevertheless, you must send him to school, for now you are at home, and he -has plenty of time,--do you hear? Don't you fail." - -Churis sighed deeply, and made no reply. - - -V. - -"There's one other thing I wished to speak to you about," said Nekhliudof. -"Why don't you haul out your manure?" - -"What manure, sir,[14] your excellency? There isn't any to haul out. What -cattle have I got? One mare and colt; and last autumn I sold my heifer to -the porter,--that's all the cattle I've got." - -[Footnote 14: _bátiushka._] - -"I know you haven't much, but why did you sell your heifer?" asked the -bárin in amazement. - -"What have I got to feed her on?" - -"Didn't you have some straw for feeding the cow? The others did." - -"The others have their fields manured, but my land's all clay. I can't do -any thing with it." - -"Why don't you dress it, then, so it won't be clay? Then the land would -give you grain, and you'd have something to feed to your stock." - -"But I haven't any stock, so how am I going to get dressing?" - -"That's an odd _cercle vicieux_," said Nekhliudof to himself; and he -actually was at his wits' ends to find an answer for the peasant. - -"And I tell you this, your excellency, it ain't the manure that makes the -corn grow, but God," continued the peasant. "Now, one summer I had six -sheaves on one little unmanured piece of land, and only a twelfth as much -on that which was manured well. No one like God," he added with a sigh. -"Yes, and my stock are always dying off. Five years past I haven't had any -luck with 'em. Last summer one heifer died; had to sell another, hadn't any -thing to feed her on; and last year my best cow perished. They were driving -her home from pasture; nothing the matter, but suddenly she staggered and -staggered. And so now it's all empty here. Just my bad luck!" - -"Well, brother, since you say that you have no cattle to help you make -fodder, and no fodder for your cattle, here's something towards a cow," -said Nekhliudof, reddening, and fetching forth from his pocket a packet of -crumpled bank-notes and untying it. "Buy you a cow at my expense, and get -some fodder from the granary: I will give orders. See to it that you have a -cow by next Sunday. I shall come to see." - -Churis hesitated long; and when he did not offer to take the money, -Nekhliudof laid it down on the end of the table, and a still deeper flush -spread over his face. - -"Many thanks for your kindness," said Churis, with his ordinary smile, -which was somewhat sarcastic. - -The old woman sighed heavily several times as she stood under the loft, and -seemed to be repeating a prayer. - -The situation was embarrassing for the young prince: he hastily got up from -the bench, went out into the entry, and called to Churis to follow him. The -sight of the man whom he had been befriending was so pleasant that he found -it hard to tear himself away. - -"I am glad to help you," said he, halting by the well. "It's in my power to -help you, because I know that you are not lazy. You will work, and I will -assist you; and, with God's aid, you will come out all right." - -"There's no hope of coming out all right, your excellency," said Churis, -suddenly assuming a serious and even stern expression of countenance, as -though the young man's assurance that he would come out all right had -awakened all his opposition. "In my father's time my brothers and I did not -see any lack; but when he died, we broke all up. It kept going from bad to -worse. Perfect wretchedness!" - -"Why did you break up?" - -"All on account of the women, your excellency. It was just after your -grandfather died; when he was alive, we should not have ventured to do it: -then the present order of things came in. He was just like you, he took an -interest in every thing; and we should not have dared to separate. The late -master did not like to look after the peasants; but after your -grandfather's time, Andréď Ilyitch took charge. God forgive him! he was a -drunken, careless man. We came to him once and again with complaints,--no -living on account of the women,--begged him to let us separate. Well, he -put it off, and put it off; but at last things came to such a pass, the -women kept each to their own part; we began to live apart; and, of course, -what could a single peasant do? Well, there wasn't no law or order. Andréď -Ilyitch managed simply to suit himself. 'Take all you can get.' And -whatever he could extort from a peasant, he took without asking. Then the -poll-tax was raised, and they began to exact more provisions, and we had -less and less land, and the grain stopped growing. Well, when the new -allotment was made, then he took away from us our manured land, and added -it to the master's, the villain, and ruined us entirely. He ought to have -been hung. Your father[15]--the kingdom of heaven be his!--was a good -bárin, but it was rarely enough that we ever had sight of him: he always -lived in Moscow. Well, of course they used to drive the carts in pretty -often. Sometimes it would be the season of bad roads,[16] and no fodder; -but no matter! The bárin couldn't get along without it. We did not dare to -complain at this, but there wasn't system. But now your grace lets any of -us peasants see your face, and so a change has come over us; and the -overseer is a different kind of man. Now we know for sure that we have a -bárin. And it is impossible to say how grateful your peasants are for your -kindness. But before you came, there wasn't any real bárin: every one was -bárin. Ilyitch was bárin, and his wife put on the airs of a lady,[17] and -the scribe from the police-station was bárin. Too many of em! _ukh!_ the -peasants had to put up with many trials." - -Again Nekhliudof experienced a feeling akin to shame or remorse. He put on -his hat, and went on his way. - -[Footnote 15: _bátiushka._] - -[Footnote 16: _raspútitsa._] - -[Footnote 17: _báruinya._] - - -VI. - -"Yukhvanka the clever[18] wants to sell a horse," was what Nekhliudof next -read in his note-book; and he proceeded along the street to Yukhvanka's -place.[19] Yukhvanka's hut was carefully thatched with straw from the -threshing-floor of the estate; the frame-work was of new light-gray -aspen-wood (also from stock belonging to the estate), had two handsome -painted shutters for the window, and a porch with eaves and ingenious -balustrades cut out of deal planks. - -[Footnote 18: _Yukhvánka-Mudr'yónui._] - -[Footnote 19: _dvor._] - -The narrow entry and the cold hut were also in perfect order; but the -general impression of sufficiency and comfort given by this establishment -was somewhat injured by a barn enclosed in the gates, which had a -dilapidated hedge and a sagging pent roof, appearing from behind it. - -Just as Nekhliudof approached the steps from one side, two peasant women -came up on the other carrying a tub full of water. One was Yukhvanka's -wife, the other his mother. - -The first was a robust, healthy-looking woman, with an extraordinarily -exuberant bosom, and wide fat cheeks. She wore a clean shirt embroidered on -the sleeves and collar, an apron of the same material, a new linen skirt, -peasant's shoes, a string of beads, and an elegant four-cornered head-dress -of embroidered red paper and spangles. - -The end of the water-yoke was not in the least unsteady, but was firmly -settled on her wide and solid shoulder. Her easy forcefulness, manifested -in her rosy face, in the curvature of her back, and the measured swing of -her arms and legs, made it evident that she had splendid health and rugged -strength. - -Yukhvanka's mother, balancing the other end of the yoke, was, on the -contrary, one of those elderly women who seem to have reached the final -limit of old age and decrepitude. Her bony frame, clad in a black -dilapidated shirt and a faded linen skirt, was bent so that the water-yoke -rested rather on her back than on her shoulder. Her two hands, whose -distorted fingers seemed to clutch the yoke, were of a strange dark -chestnut color, and were convulsively cramped. Her drooping head, wrapped -up in some sort of a clout, bore the most monstrous evidences of indigence -and extreme old age. - -From under her narrow brow, perfectly covered with deep wrinkles, two red -eyes, unprotected by lashes, gazed with leaden expression to the ground. -One yellow tooth protruded from her sunken upper lip, and, constantly -moving, sometimes came in contact with her sharp chin. The wrinkles on the -lower part of her face and neck hung down like little bags, quivering at -every motion. - -She breathed heavily and hoarsely; but her bare, distorted legs, though it -seemed as if they would have barely strength to drag along over the ground, -moved with measured steps. - - -VII. - -Almost stumbling against the prince, the young wife precipitately set down -the tub, showed a little embarrassment, dropped a courtesy, and then with -shining eyes glanced up at him, and, endeavoring to hide a slight smile -behind the sleeve of her embroidered shirt, ran up the steps, clattering in -her wooden shoes. - -"Mother,[20] you take the water-yoke to aunt Nastásia," said she, pausing -at the door, and addressing the old woman. - -[Footnote 20: _mátushka._] - -The modest young proprietor looked sternly but scrutinizingly at the rosy -woman, frowned, and turned to the old dame, who, seizing the yoke with her -crooked fingers, submissively lifted it to her shoulder, and was about to -direct her steps to the adjacent hut. - -"Your son at home?" asked the prince. - -The old woman, her bent form bent more than usual, made an obeisance, and -tried to say something in reply, but, suddenly putting her hand to her -mouth, was taken with such a fit of coughing, that Nekhliudof without -waiting went into the hut. - -Yukhvanka, who had been sitting on the bench in the "red corner,"[21] when -he saw the prince, threw himself upon the oven, as though he were anxious -to hide from him, hastily thrust something away in the loft, and, with -mouth and eyes twitching, squeezed himself close to the wall, as though to -make way for the prince. - -[Footnote 21: Where the holy images and the lighted taper are to be found.] - -Yukhvanka was a light-complexioned fellow, thirty years of age, spare, with -a young, pointed beard. He was well proportioned, and rather handsome, save -for the unpleasant expression of his hazel eyes, under his knitted brow, -and for the lack of two front teeth, which immediately attracted one's -attention because his lips were short and constantly parted. - -He wore a Sunday shirt with bright red gussets, striped print drawers, and -heavy boots with wrinkled legs. - -The interior of Vanka's hut was not as narrow and gloomy as that of -Churis's, though it was fully as stifling, as redolent of smoke and -sheep-skin, and showing as disorderly an array of peasant garments and -utensils. - -Two things here strangely attracted the attention,--a small damaged samovár -standing on the shelf, and a black frame near the _ikon_, with the remains -of a dirty mirror and the portrait of some general in a red uniform. - -Nekhliudof looked with distaste on the samovár, the general's portrait, and -the loft, where stuck out, from under some rags, the end of a -copper-mounted pipe. Then he turned to the peasant. - -"How do you do, Yepifán?" said he, looking into his eyes. - -Yepifán bowed low, and mumbled, "Good-morning, 'slency,"[22] with a -peculiar abbreviation of the last word, while his eyes wandered restlessly -from the prince to the ceiling, and from the ceiling to the floor, and not -pausing on any thing. Then he hastily ran to the loft, dragged out a coat, -and began to put it on. - -[Footnote 22: _vaciaso_ for _vashe siátelstvo_ (your excellency).] - -"Why are you putting on your coat?" asked Nekhliudof, sitting down on the -bench, and evidently endeavoring to look at Yepifán as sternly as possible. - -"How can I appear before you without it, 'slency? You see we can -understand".... - -"I have come to ask you why you need to sell a horse? Have you many horses? -What horse do you wish to sell?" said the prince without wasting words, but -propounding questions that he had evidently pre-considered. - -"We are greatly beholden to you, 'slency, that you do not think it beneath -you to visit me, a mere peasant," replied Yukhvanka, casting hasty glances -at the general's portrait, at the stove, at the prince's boots, and every -thing else except Nekhliudof's face. "We always pray God for your 'slency." - -"Why sell the horse?" repeated Nekhliudof, raising his voice, and coughing. - -Yukhvanka sighed, tossed back his hair (again his glance roved about the -hut), and noticing the cat that lay on the bench contentedly purring, he -shouted out to her, "Scat, you rubbish!" and quickly addressed himself to -the bárin. "A horse, 'slency, which ain't worth any thing. If the beast was -good for any thing, I shouldn't think of selling him, 'slency." - -"How many horses have you in all?" - -"Three horses, 'slency." - -"No colts?" - -"Of course, 'slency. There is one colt." - - -VIII. - -"Come, show me your horses. Are they in the yard?"[23] - -[Footnote 23: _dvor._] - -"Indeed they are, 'slency. I have done as I was told, 'slency. Could we -fail to heed you, 'slency? Yakof Ilyitch told me not to send the horses out -to pasture. 'The prince,' says he, 'is coming to look at them,' and so we -didn't send them. For, of course, we shouldn't dare to disobey you, -'slency." - -While Nekhliudof was on his way to the door, Yukhvanka snatched down his -pipe from the loft, and flung it into the stove. His lips were still drawn -in with the same expression of constraint as when the prince was looking at -him. - -A wretched little gray mare, with thin tail, all stuck up with burrs, was -sniffing at the filthy straw under the pent roof. A long-legged colt two -months old, of some nondescript color, with bluish hoofs and nose, followed -close behind her. - -In the middle of the yard stood a pot-bellied brown gelding with closed -eyes and thoughtfully pendent head. It was apparently an excellent little -horse for a peasant. - -"So these are all your horses?" - -"No, indeed, 'slency. Here's still another mare, and here's the little -colt," replied Yukhvanka, pointing to the horses, which the prince could -not help seeing. - -"I see. Which one do you propose to sell?" - -"This here one, 'slency," he replied, waving his jacket in the direction of -the somnolent gelding, and constantly winking and sucking in his lips. - -The gelding opened his eyes, and lazily switched his tail. - -"He does not seem to be old, and he's fairly plump," said Nekhliudof. -"Bring him up, and show me his teeth. I can tell if he's old." - -"You can't tell by one indication, 'slency. The beast isn't worth a -farthing. He's peculiar. You have to judge both by tooth and limb, -'slency," replied Yukhvanka, smiling very gayly, and letting his eyes rove -in all directions. - -"What nonsense! Bring him here, I tell you." - -Yukhvanka stood still smiling, and made a deprecatory gesture; and it was -only when Nekhliudof cried angrily, "Well, what are you up to?" that he -moved toward the shed, seized the halter, and began to pull at the horse, -scaring him, and getting farther and farther away as the horse resisted. - -The young prince was evidently vexed to see this, and perhaps, also, he -wished to show his own shrewdness. - -"Give me the halter," he cried. - -"Excuse me. It's impossible for you, 'slency,--don't".... - -But Nekhliudof went straight up to the horse's head, and, suddenly seizing -him by the ears, threw him to the ground with such force, that the gelding, -who, as it seems, was a very peaceful peasant steed, began to kick and -strangle in his endeavors to get away. - -When Nekhliudof perceived that it was perfectly useless to exert his -strength so, and looked at Yukhvanka, who was still smiling, the thought -most maddening at his time of life occurred to him,--that Yukhvanka was -laughing at him, and regarding him as a mere child. - -He reddened, let go of the horse's ears, and, without making use of the -halter, opened the creature's mouth, and looked at his teeth: they were -sound, the crowns full, so far as the young man had time to make his -observations. No doubt the horse was in his prime. - -Meantime Yukhvanka came to the shed, and, seeing that the harrow was lying -out of its place, seized it, and stood it up against the wattled hedge. - -"Come here," shouted the prince, with an expression of childish annoyance -in his face, and almost with tears of vexation and wrath in his voice. -"What! call this horse old?" - -"Excuse me, 'slency, very old, twenty years old at least. A horse that".... - -"Silence! You are a liar and a good-for-nothing. No decent peasant will -lie, there's no need for him to," said Nekhliudof, choking with the angry -tears that filled his throat. - -He stopped speaking, lest he should be detected in weeping before the -peasant. Yukhvanka also said nothing, and had the appearance of a man who -was almost on the verge of tears, blew his nose, and slowly shook his head. - -"Well, how are you going to plough when you have disposed of this horse?" -continued Nekhliudof, calming himself with an effort, so as to speak in his -ordinary voice. "You are sent out into the field on purpose to drive the -horses for ploughing, and you wish to dispose of your last horse? And I -should like to know why you need to lie about it." - -In proportion as the prince calmed down, Yukhvanka also calmed down. He -straightened himself up, and, while he sucked in his lips constantly, he -let his eyes rove about from one object to another. - -"Lie to you, 'slency? We are no worse off than others in going to work." - -"But what will you go on?" - -"Don't worry. We will do your work, 'slency," he replied, starting up the -gelding, and driving him away. "Even if we didn't need money, I should want -to get rid of him." - -"Why do you need money?" - -"Haven't no grain, 'slency; and besides, we peasants have to pay our debts, -'slency." - -"How is it you have no grain? Others who have families have corn enough; -but you have no family, and you are in want. Where is it all gone?" - -"Ate it up, 'slency, and now we haven't a bit. I will buy a horse in the -autumn, 'slency." - -"Don't for a moment think of selling your horse." - -"But if we don't then what'll become of us, 'slency? No grain, and -forbidden to sell any thing," he replied, turning his head to one side, -sucking in his lips, and suddenly glancing boldly into the prince's face. -"Of course we shall die of starvation." - -"Look here, brother," cried Nekhliudof, paling, and experiencing a feeling -of righteous indignation against the peasant. "I can't endure such peasants -as you are. It will go hard with you." - -"Just as you will, 'slency," he replied, shutting his eyes with an -expression of feigned submission: "I should not think of disobeying you. -But it comes not from any fault of mine. Of course, I may not please you, -'slency; at all events, I can do as you wish; only I don't see why I -deserve to be punished." - -"This is why: because your yard is exposed, your manure is not ploughed in, -your hedges are broken down, and yet you sit at home smoking your pipe, and -don't work; because you don't give a crust of bread to your mother, who -gave you your whole place,[24] and you let your wife beat her, and she has -to come to me with her complaints." - -[Footnote 24: _khozyáďstvo._] - -"Excuse me, 'slency, I don't know what you mean by smoking your pipe," -replied Yukhvanka in a constrained tone, showing beyond peradventure that -the complaint about his smoking touched him to the quick. "It is possible -to say any thing about a man." - -"Now you're lying again! I myself saw".... - -"How could I venture to lie to you, 'slency?" - -Nekhliudof made no answer, but bit his lip, and began to walk back and -forth in the yard. Yukhvanka, standing in one place, and not lifting his -eyes, followed the prince's legs. - -"See here, Yepifán," said Nekhliudof in a childishly gentle voice, coming -to a pause before the peasant, and endeavoring to hide his vexation, "it is -impossible to live so, and you are working your own destruction. Just -think. If you want to be a good peasant, then turn over a new leaf, cease -your evil courses, stop lying, don't get drunk any more, honor your mother. -You see, I know all about you. Take hold of your work; don't steal from the -crown woods, for the sake of going to the tavern. Think how well off you -might be. If you really need any thing, then come to me; tell me honestly, -what you need and why you need it; and don't tell lies, but tell the whole -truth, and then I won't refuse you any thing that I can possibly grant." - -"Excuse me, 'slency, I think I understand you, 'slency," replied Yukhvanka -smiling as though he comprehended the entire significance of the prince's -words. - -That smile and answer completely disenchanted Nekhliudof so far as he had -any hope of reforming the man and of turning him into the path of virtue by -means of moral suasion. It seemed to him hard that it should be wasted -energy when he had the power to warn the peasant, and that all that he had -said was exactly what he should not have said. - -He shook his head gravely, and went into the house. The old woman was -sitting on the threshold and groaning heavily, as it seemed to the young -proprietor as a sign of approbation of his words which she had overheard. - -"Here's something for you to get bread with," said Nekhliudof in her ear, -pressing a bank-note into her hand. "But keep it for yourself, and don't -give it to Yepifán, else he'll drink it up." - -The old woman with her distorted hand laid hold of the door-post, and tried -to get up. She began to pour out her thanks to the prince; her head began -to wag, but Nekhliudof was already on the other side of the street when she -got to her feet. - - -IX. - -"Davidka Byélui[25] asks for grain and posts," was what followed -Yukhvanka's case in the note-book. - -[Footnote 25: Little David White.] - -After passing by a number of places, Nekhliudof came to a turn in the lane, -and there fell in with his overseer Yakof Alpátitch, who, while the prince -was still at a distance, took off his oiled cap, and pulling out a crumpled -bandanna handkerchief began to wipe his fat red face. - -"Cover yourself, Yakof! Yakof, cover yourself, I tell you." - -"Where do you wish to go, your excellency?" asked Yakof, using his cap to -shield his eyes from the sun, but not putting it on. - -"I have been at Yukhvanka's. Tell me, pray, why does he act so?" asked the -prince as he walked along the street. - -"Why indeed, your excellency!" echoed the overseer as he followed behind -the prince in a respectful attitude. He put on his cap, and began to twist -his mustache. - -"What's to be done with him? He's thoroughly good for nothing, lazy, -thievish, a liar; he persecutes his mother, and to all appearances he is -such a confirmed good-for-nothing that there is no reforming him." - -"I didn't know, your excellency, that he displeased you so." - -"And his wife," continued the prince, interrupting the overseer, "seems -like a bad woman. The old mother is dressed worse than a beggar, and has -nothing to eat; but she wears all her best clothes, and so does he. I -really don't know what is to be done with them." - -Yakof knit his brows thoughtfully when Nekhliudof spoke of Yukhvanka's -wife. - -"Well, if he behaves so, your excellency," began the overseer, "then it -will be necessary to find some way to correct things. He is in abject -poverty like all the peasants who have no assistance, but he seems to -manage his affairs quite differently from the others. He's a clever fellow, -knows how to read, and he's far from being a dishonest peasant. At the -collection of the poll-taxes he was always on hand. And for three years, -while I was overseer he was bailiff, and no fault was found with him. In -the third year the warden took it into his head to depose him, so he was -obliged to take to farming. Perhaps when he lived in town at the station he -got drunk sometimes, so we had to devise some means. They used to threaten -him, in fun, and he came to his senses again. He was good-natured, and got -along well with his family. But as it does not please you to use these -means, I am sure I don't know what we are to do with him. He has really got -very low. He can't be sent into the army, because, as you may be pleased to -remember, two of his teeth are missing. Yes, and there are others besides -him, I venture to remind you, who absolutely haven't any".... - -"Enough of that, Yakof," interrupted Nekhliudof, smiling shrewdly. "You and -I have discussed that again and again. You know what ideas I have on this -subject; and whatever you may say to me, I still remain of the same -opinion." - -"Certainly, your excellency, you understand it all," said Yakof, shrugging -his shoulders, and looking askance at the prince as though what he saw were -worthy of no consideration. "But as far as the old woman is concerned, I -beg you to see that you are disturbing yourself to no purpose," he -continued. "Certainly it is true that she has brought up the orphans, she -has fed Yukhvanka, and got him a wife, and so forth; but you know that is -common enough among peasants. When the mother or father has transferred the -property[26] to the son, then the new owners get control, and the old -mother is obliged to work for her own living to the utmost of her strength. -Of course they are lacking in delicate feelings, but this is common enough -among the peasantry; and so I take the liberty of explaining to you that -you are stirred up about the old woman all for nothing. She is a clever old -woman, and a good housewife;[27] is there any reason for a gentleman to -worry over her? Well, she has quarrelled with her daughter-in-law; maybe -the young woman struck her: that's like a woman, and they would make up -again while you torment yourself. You really take it all too much to -heart," said the overseer looking with a certain expression of fondness -mingled with condescension at the prince, who was walking silently with -long strides before him up the street. - -[Footnote 26: _khozyáďstvo._] - -[Footnote 27: _khozyáďka._] - -"Will you go home now?" he added. - -"No, to Davidka Byélui's or Kazyól's--what is his name?" - -"Well, he's a good-for-nothing, I assure you. All the race of the Kazyóls -are of the same sort. I haven't had any success with him; he cares for -nothing. Yesterday I rode past the peasant's field, and his buckwheat -wasn't even sowed yet. What do you wish done with such people? The old man -taught his son, but still he's a good-for-nothing just the same; whether -for himself or for the estate, he makes a bungle of every thing. Neither -the warden nor I have been able to do any thing with him: we've sent him to -the station-house, and we've punished him at home, because you are pleased -now to like".... - -"Who? the old man?" - -"Yes, the old man. The warden more than once has punished him before the -whole assembly, and, would you believe it? he would shake himself, go home, -and be as bad as ever. And Davidka, I assure your excellency, is a -law-abiding peasant, and a quick-witted peasant; that is, he doesn't smoke -and doesn't drink," explained Yakof; "and yet he's worse than the other who -gets drunk. There's nothing else to do with him than to make a soldier of -him or send him to Siberia. All the Kazyóls are the same; and Matriushka -who lives in the village belongs to their family, and is the same sort of -cursed good-for-nothing. Don't you care to have me here, your excellency?" -inquired the overseer, perceiving that the prince did not heed what he was -saying. - -"No, go away," replied Nekhliudof absent-mindedly, and turned his steps -toward Davidka Byélui's. - -Davidka's hovel[28] stood askew and alone at the very edge of the village. -It had neither yard, nor cornkiln, nor barn. Only some sort of dirty stalls -for cattle were built against one side. On the other a heap of brush-wood -and logs was piled up, in imitation of a yard.[29] - -[Footnote 28: _izbá._] - -[Footnote 29: _dvor._] - -Tall green steppe-grass was growing in the place where the court-yard -should have been. - -There was no living creature to be seen near the hovel, except a sow lying -in the mire at the threshold, and grunting. - -Nekhliudof tapped at the broken window; but as no one made answer, he went -into the entry and shouted, "Holloa there!"[30] - -[Footnote 30: _khozyáeva_; literally, "master and mistress."] - -This also brought no response. He passed through the entry, peered into the -empty stalls, and entered the open hut. - -An old red cock and two hens with ruffs were scratching with their legs, -and strutting about over the floor and benches. When they saw a man they -spread their wings, and, cackling with terror, flew against the walls, and -one took refuge on the oven. - -The whole hut, which was not quite fourteen feet[31] square, was occupied -by the oven with its broken pipe, a loom, which in spite of its being -summer-time was not taken down, and a most filthy table made of a split and -uneven plank. - -[Footnote 31: Six _arshin_.] - -Although it was a dry situation, there was a filthy puddle at the door, -caused by the recent rain, which had leaked through roof and ceiling. Loft -there was none. It was hard to realize that this was a human habitation, -such decided evidence of neglect and disorder was impressed upon both the -exterior and the interior of the hovel; nevertheless, in this hovel lived -Davidka Byélui and all his family. - -At the present moment, notwithstanding the heat of the June day, Davidka, -with his head covered by his sheep-skin,[32] was fast asleep, curled up on -one corner of the oven. The panic-stricken hen, skipping up on the oven, -and growing more and more agitated, took up her position on Davidka's back, -but did not awaken him. - -[Footnote 32: _polushubok._] - -Nekhliudof, seeing no one in the hovel, was about to go, when a prolonged -humid sigh betrayed the sleeper.[33] - -[Footnote 33: _khozyáďn._] - -"Holloa! who's there?" cried the prince. - -A second prolonged sigh was heard from the oven. - -"Who's there? Come here!" - -Still another sigh, a sort of a bellow, and a heavy yawn responded to the -prince's call. - -"Well, who are you?" - -Something moved slightly on the oven. The skirt of a torn sheep-skin[34] -was lifted; one huge leg in a dilapidated boot was put down, then another, -and finally Davidka's entire figure emerged. He sat up on the oven, and -rubbed his eyes drowsily and morosely with his fist. - -[Footnote 34: _tulup._] - -Slowly shaking his head, and yawning, he looked down into the hut, and, -seeing the prince, began to make greater haste than before; but still his -motions were so slow, that Nekhliudof had time to walk back and forth three -times from the puddle to the loom before Davidka got down from the oven. - -Davidka Byélui or David White was white in reality: his hair, and his body, -and his face all were perfectly white. - -He was tall and very stout, but stout as peasants are wont to be, that is, -not in the waist alone, but in the whole body. His stoutness, however, was -of a peculiar flabby, unhealthy kind. His rather comely face, with -pale-blue good-natured eyes, and a wide trimmed beard, bore the impress of -ill health. There was not the slightest trace of tan or blood: it was of a -uniform yellowish ashen tint, with pale livid circles under the eyes, quite -as though his face were stuffed with fat or bloated. - -His hands were puffy and yellow, like the hands of men afflicted with -dropsy, and they wore a growth of fine white hair. He was so drowsy that he -could scarcely open his eyes or cease from staggering and yawning. - -"Well, aren't you ashamed of yourself," began Nekhliudof, "sleeping in the -very best part of the day,[35] when you ought to be attending to your work, -when you haven't any corn?" - -[Footnote 35: Literally, "middle of the white day."] - -As Davidka little by little shook off his drowsiness, and began to realize -that it was the prince who was standing before him, he folded his arms -across his stomach, hung his head, inclining it a trifle to one side, and -did not move a limb or say a word; but the expression of his face and the -pose of his whole body seemed to say, "I know, I know; it is an old story -with me. Well, strike me, if it must be: I will endure it." - -He evidently was anxious for the prince to get through speaking and give -him his thrashing as quickly as possible, even if he struck him severely on -his swollen cheeks, and then leave him in peace. - -Perceiving that Davidka did not understand him, Nekhliudof endeavored by -various questions to rouse the peasant from his vexatiously obstinate -silence. - -"Why have you asked me for wood when you have enough to last you a whole -month here, and you haven't had any thing to do? What?" - -Davidka still remained silent, and did not move. - -"Well, answer me." - -Davidka muttered something, and blinked his white eyelashes. - -"You must go to work, brother. What will become of you if you don't work? -Now you have no grain, and what's the reason of it? Because your land is -badly ploughed, and not harrowed, and no seed put in at the right -time,--all from laziness. You asked me for grain: well, let us suppose that -I gave it to you, so as to keep you from starving to death, still it is not -becoming to do so. Whose grain do I give you? whose do you think? Answer -me,--whose grain do I give you?" demanded Nekhliudof obstinately. - -"The Lord's," muttered Davidka, raising his eyes timidly and questioningly. - -"But where did the Lord's grain come from? Think for yourself, who ploughed -for it? who harrowed? who planted it? who harvested it? The peasants, hey? -Just look here: if the Lord's grain is given to the peasants, then those -peasants who work most will get most; but you work less than anybody. You -are complained about on all sides. You work less than all the others, and -yet you ask for more of the Lord's grain than all the rest. Why should it -be given to you, and not to the others? Now, if all, like you, lay on their -backs, it would not be long before everybody in the world died of -starvation. Brother, you've got to labor. This is disgraceful. Do you hear, -David?" - -"I hear you," said the other slowly through his teeth. - - -X. - -At this moment, the window was darkened by the head of a peasant woman who -passed carrying some linen on a yoke, and presently Davidka's mother came -into the hovel. She was a tall woman, fifty years old, very fresh and -lively. Her ugly face was covered with pock-marks and wrinkles; but her -straight, firm nose, her delicate, compressed lips, and her keen gray eyes -gave witness to her mental strength and energy. - -The angularity of her shoulders, the flatness of her chest, the thinness of -her hands, and the solid muscles of her black bare legs, made it evident -that she had long ago ceased to be a woman, and had become a mere drudge. - -She came hurrying into the hovel, shut the door, set down her linen, and -looked angrily at her son. - -Nekhliudof was about to say something to her, but she turned her back on -him, and began to cross herself before the black wooden _ikon_, that was -visible behind the loom. - -When she had thus done, she adjusted the dirty checkered handkerchief which -was tied around her head, and made a low obeisance to the prince. - -"A pleasant Lord's day to you, excellency," she said. "God spare you; you -are our father." - -When Davidka saw his mother he grew confused, bent his back a little, and -hung his head still lower. - -"Thanks, Arína," replied Nekhliudof. "I have just been talking with your -son about your affairs."[36] - -Arína or Aríshka Burlák,[37] as the peasants used to call her when she was -a girl, rested her chin on the clinched fist of her right hand, which she -supported with the palm of the left, and, without waiting for the prince to -speak further, began to talk so sharply and loud that the whole hovel was -filled with the sound of her voice; and from outside it might have been -concluded that several women had suddenly fallen into a discussion. - -[Footnote 36: _khozyáďstvo._] - -[Footnote 37: clod-hopper.] - -"What, my father, what is then to be said to him? You can't talk to him as -to a man. Here he stands, the lout," she continued contemptuously, wagging -her head in the direction of Davidka's woe-begone, stolid form. - -"How are _my_ affairs, your excellency? We are poor. In your whole village -there are none so bad off as we are, either for our own work or for yours. -It's a shame! And it's all his fault. I bore him, fed him, gave him to -drink. Didn't expect to have such a lubber. There is but one end to the -story. Grain is all gone, and no more work to be got out of him than from -that piece of rotten wood. All he knows is to lie on top of the oven, or -else he stands here, and scratches his empty pate," she said, mimicking -him. - -"If you could only frighten him, father! I myself beseech you: punish him, -for the Lord God's sake! send him off as a soldier,--it's all one. But he's -no good to me,--that's the way it is." - -"Now, aren't you ashamed, Davidka, to bring your mother to this?" said -Nekhliudof reproachfully, addressing the peasant. - -Davidka did not move. - -"One might think that he was a sick peasant," continued Arína, with the -same eagerness and the same gestures; "but only to look at him you can see -he's fatter than the pig at the mill. It would seem as if he might have -strength enough to work on something, the lubber! But no, not he! He -prefers to curl himself up on top of the oven. And even when he undertakes -to do any thing, it would make you sick even to look at him, the way he -goes about the work! He wastes time when he gets up, when he moves, when he -does any thing," said she, dwelling on the words, and awkwardly swaying -from side to side with her angular shoulders. - -"Now, here to-day my old man himself went to the forest after wood, and -told him to dig a hole; but he did not even put his hand to the shovel." - -She paused for a moment. - -"He has killed me," she suddenly hissed, gesticulating with her arms, and -advancing toward her son with threatening gesture. "Curse your smooth, bad -face!" - -She scornfully, and at the same time despairingly, turned from him, spat, -and again addressed the prince with the same animation, still swinging her -arms, but with tears in her eyes. - -"I am the only one, benefactor. My old man is sick, old: yes, and I get no -help out of him; and I am the only one at all. And this fellow hangs around -my neck like a stone. If he would only die, then it would be easier; that -would be the end of it. He lets me starve, the poltroon. You are our -father. There's no help for me. My daughter-in-law died of work, and I -shall too." - - -XI. - -"How did she die?" inquired Nekhliudof, somewhat sceptically. - -"She died of hard work, as God knows, benefactor. We brought her last year -from Baburin," she continued, suddenly changing her wrathful expression to -one of tearfulness and grief. "Well, the woman[38] was young, fresh, -obliging, good stuff. As a girl, she lived at home with her father in -clover, never knew want; and when she came to us, then she learned to do -our work,--for the estate and at home and everywhere.... She and I--that -was all to do it. What was it to me? I was used to it. She was going to -have a baby, good father; and she began to suffer pain; and all because she -worked beyond her strength. Well, she did herself harm, the poor little -sweetheart. Last summer, about the time of the feast of Peter and Paul, she -had a poor little boy born. But there was no bread. We ate whatever we -could get, my father. She went to work too soon: her milk all dried up. The -baby was her first-born. There was no cow, and we were mere peasants. She -had to feed him on rye. Well, of course, it was sheer folly. It kept pining -away on this. And when the child died, she became so down-spirited,--she -would sob and sob, and howl and howl; and then it was poverty and work, and -all the time going from bad to worse. So she passed away in the summer, -the sweetheart, at the time of the feast of St. Mary's Intercession. He -brought her to it, the beast," she cried, turning to her son with wrathful -despair. "I wanted to ask your excellency a favor," she continued after a -short pause, lowering her voice, and making an obeisance. - -[Footnote 38: _baba._] - -"What?" asked Nekhliudof in some constraint. - -"You see he's a young peasant still. He demands so much work of me. To-day -I am alive, to-morrow I may die. How can he live without a wife? He won't -be any good to you at all. Help us to find some one for him, good father." - -"That is, you want to get a wife for him? What? What an idea!" - -"God's will be done! You are in the place of parents to us." - -And after making a sign to her son, she and the man threw themselves on the -floor at the prince's feet. - -"Why do you stoop to the ground?" asked Nekhliudof peevishly, taking her by -the shoulder. "You know I don't like this sort of thing. Marry your son, of -course, if you have a girl in view. I should be very glad if you had a -daughter-in-law to help you." - -The old woman got up, and began to rub her dry eyes with her sleeves. -Davidka followed her example, and, rubbing his eyes with his weak fist, -with the same patiently-submissive expression, continued to stand, and -listen to what Arína said. - -"Plenty of brides, certainly. Here's Vasiutka Mikheďkin's daughter, and a -right good girl she is; but the girl would not come to us without your -consent." - -"Isn't she willing?" - -"No, benefactor, she isn't." - -"Well, what's to be done? I can't compel her. Select some one else. If you -can't find one at home, go to another village. I will pay for her, only she -must come of her own free will. It is impossible to marry her by force. -There's no law allows that; that would be a great sin." - -"_E-e-kh!_ benefactor! Is it possible that any one would come to us of her -own accord, seeing our way of life, our wretchedness? Not even the wife of -a soldier would like to undergo such want. What peasant would let us have -his daughter?[39] It is not to be expected. You see we're in the very -depths of poverty. They will say, 'Since you starved one to death, it will -be the same with my daughter.' Who is to give her?" she added, shaking her -head dubiously. "Give us your advice, excellency." - -[Footnote 39: _dyevka_, marriageable girl.] - -"Well, what can I do?" - -"Think of some one for us, kind sir," repeated Arína urgently. "What are we -to do?" - -"How can I think of any one? I can't do any thing at all for you as things -are." - -"Who will help us if you do not?" said Arína, drooping her head, and -spreading her palms with an expression of melancholy discontent. - -"Here you ask for grain, and so I will give orders for some to be delivered -to you," said the prince after a short silence, during which Arína sighed, -and Davidka imitated her. "But I cannot do any thing more." - -Nekhliudof went into the entry. Mother and son with low bows followed the -prince. - - -XII. - -"O-okh! alas for my wretchedness!" exclaimed Arína, sighing deeply. - -She paused, and looked angrily at her son. Davidka immediately turned -around, and, clumsily lifting his stout leg incased in a huge dirty boot -over the threshold, took refuge in the opposite door. - -"What shall I do with him, father?" continued Arína, turning to the prince. -"You yourself see what he is. He is not a bad man;[40] doesn't get drunk, -and is peaceable; wouldn't hurt a little child. It's a sin to say hard -things of him. There's nothing bad about him, and God knows what has taken -place in him to make him so bad to himself. You see he himself does not -like it. Would you believe it, father,[41] my heart bleeds when I look at -him, and see what suffering he undergoes. You see, whatever he is, he is my -son. I pity him. Oh, how I pity him!... You see, it isn't as though he had -done any thing against me or his father or the authorities. But, no: he's a -bashful man, almost like a child. How can he bear to be a widower? Help us -out, benefactor," she said once more, evidently desirous of removing the -unfavorable impression which her bitter words might have left upon the -prince. "Father, your excellency, I"--She went on to say in a confidential -whisper, "My wit does not go far enough to explain him. It seems as though -bad men had spoiled him." - -[Footnote 40: _muzhík._] - -[Footnote 41: _bátiushka._] - -She paused for a moment. - -"If we could find the men, we might cure him." - -"What nonsense you talk, Arína! How can he be spoiled?" - -"My father, they spoil him so that they make him a no-man forever! Many bad -people in the world! Out of ill-will they take a handful of earth from out -of one's path, or something of that sort; and one is made a no-man forever -after. Isn't that a sin? I think to myself, Might I not go to the old man -Danduk, who lives at Vorobyevka? He knows all sorts of words; and he knows -herbs, and he can make charms; and he finds water with a cross. Wouldn't he -help me?" said the woman. "Maybe he will cure him." - -"What abjectness and superstition!" thought the young prince, shaking his -head gloomily, and walking back with long strides through the village. - -"What's to be done with him? To leave him in this situation is impossible, -both for myself and for the others and for him,--impossible," he said to -himself, counting off on his fingers these reasons. - -"I cannot bear to see him in this plight; but how extricate him? He renders -nugatory all my best plans for the management of the estate. If such -peasants are allowed, none of my dreams will ever be realized," he went on, -experiencing a feeling of despite and anger against the peasant in -consequence of the ruin of his plans. "To send him to Siberia, as Yakof -suggests, against his will, would that be good for him? or to make him a -soldier? That is best. At least I should be quit of him, and I could -replace him by a decent peasant." - -Such was his decision. - -He thought about this with satisfaction; but at the same time something -obscurely told him that he was thinking with only one side of his mind, and -not wholly right. - -He paused. - -"I will think about it some more," he said to himself. "To send him off as -a soldier--why? He is a good man, better than many; and I know.... Shall I -free him?" he asked himself, putting the question from a different side of -his mind. "It wouldn't be fair. Yes, it's impossible." - -But suddenly a thought occurred to him that greatly pleased him. He smiled -with the expression of a man who has decided a difficult question. - -"I will take him to the house," he said to himself. "I will look after him -myself; and by means of kindness and advice, and selecting his employment, -I will teach him to work, and reform him." - - -XIII. - -"That's the way I'll do," said Nekhliudof to himself with a pleasant -self-consciousness; and then, recollecting that he had still to go to the -rich peasant Dutlof, he directed his steps toward a lofty and ample -establishment, with two chimneys, standing in the midst of the village. - -As he passed a neighboring hut on his way thither, he stopped to speak with -a tall, disorderly-looking peasant-woman of forty summers, who came to meet -him. - -"A pleasant holiday, father,"[42] she said, with some show of assurance, -stopping at a little distance from him with a pleased smile and a low -obeisance. - -"Good-morning, my nurse. How are you? I was just going to see your -neighbor." - -"Pretty well, your excellency, my father. It's a good idea. But won't you -come in? I beg you to. My old man would be very pleased." - -"Well, I'll come; and we'll have a little talk with you, nurse. Is this -your house?" - -"It is, sir."[42] - -[Footnote 42: _bátiushka._] - -And the nurse led the way into the hut. Nekhliudof followed her into the -entry, and sat down on a tub, and began to smoke a cigarette. - -"It's hot inside. It's better to sit down here, and have our talk," he said -in reply to the woman's invitation to go into the hut. - -The nurse was a well-preserved and handsome woman. In the features of her -countenance, and especially in her big black eyes, there was a strong -resemblance to the prince himself. She folded her hands under her apron, -and looking fearlessly at him, and incessantly moving her head, began to -talk with him. - -"Why is it, father? why do you wish to visit Dutlof?" - -"Oh, I am anxious for him to take thirty desiatins[43] of land of me, and -enlarge his domain; and moreover I want him to buy some wood from me also. -You see, he has money, so why should it be idle? What do you think about -it, nurse?" - -[Footnote 43: eighty-one acres.] - -"Well, what can I say? The Dutlofs are strong people: he's the leading -peasant in the whole estate," replied the nurse, shaking her head. "Last -summer he built another building out of his own lumber. He did not call -upon the estate at all. He has horses, and yearling colts besides, at least -six troďkas, and cattle, cows, and sheep; so that it is a sight worth -seeing when they are driven along the street from pasture, and the women of -the house come out to get them into the yard. There is such a crush of -animals at the gate that they can scarcely get through, so many of them -there are. And two hundred bee-hives at the very least. He is a strong -peasant, and must have money." - -"But what do you think,--has he much money?" asked the prince. - -"Men say, out of spite of course, that the old man has no little money. But -he does not go round talking about it, and he does not tell even his sons, -but he must have. Why shouldn't he take hold of the woodland? Perhaps he -is afraid of getting the reputation for money. Five years ago he went into -a small business with Shkalik the porter. They got some meadow-land; and -this Shkalik, some way or other, cheated him, so that the old man was three -hundred rubles out of pocket. And from that time he has sworn off. How can -he help being forehanded, your excellency, father?" continued the nurse. -"He has three farms, a big family, all workers; and besides, the old -man--it is hard to say it--is a capital manager. He is lucky in every -thing; it is surprising,--in his grain and in his horses and in his cattle -and in his bees, and he's lucky in his children. Now he has got them all -married off. He has found husbands for his daughters; and he has just -married Ilyushka, and given him his freedom. He himself bought the letter -of enfranchisement. And so a fine woman has come into his house." - -"Well, do they live harmoniously?" asked the prince. - -"As long as there's the right sort of a head to the house, they get along. -Yet even the Dutlofs--but of course that's among the women. The -daughters-in-law bark at each other a little behind the oven, but the old -man generally holds them in hand; and the sons live harmoniously." - -The nurse was silent for a little. - -"Now, the old man, we hear, wants to leave his eldest son, Karp, as master -of the house. 'I am getting old,' says he. 'It's my business to attend to -the bees.' Well, Karp is a good peasant, a careful peasant; but he doesn't -manage to please the old man in the least. There's no sense in it." - -"Well, perhaps Karp wants to speculate in land and wood. What do you think -about it?", pursued the prince, wishing to learn from the woman all that -she knew about her neighbors. - -"Scarcely, sir,"[44] continued the nurse. "The old man hasn't disclosed his -money to his son. As long as he lives, of course, the money in the house -will be under the old man's control; and it will increase all the time -too." - -[Footnote 44: _bátiushka._] - -"But isn't the old man willing?" - -"He is afraid." - -"What is he afraid of?" - -"How is it possible, sir, for a seignorial peasant to make a noise about -his money? And it's a hard question to decide what to do with money anyway. -Here he went into business with the porter, and was cheated. Where was he -to get redress? And so he lost his money. But with the proprietor he would -have any loss made good immediately, of course." - -"Yes, hence," ... said Nekhliudof, reddening. "But good-by, nurse." - -"Good-by, sir, your excellency. Greatly obliged to you." - - -XIV. - -"Hadn't I better go home?" mused Nekhliudof, as he strode along toward the -Dutlof enclosure, and felt a boundless melancholy and moral weariness. - -But at this moment the new deal gates were thrown open before him with a -creaking sound; and a handsome, ruddy fellow of eighteen in wagoner's -attire appeared, leading a troďka of powerful-limbed and still sweaty -horses. He hastily brushed back his blonde hair, and bowed to the prince. - -"Well, is your father at home, Ilya?" asked Nekhliudof. - -"At the bee-house, back of the yard," replied the youth, driving the -horses, one after the other, through the half-opened gates. - -"I will not give it up. I will make the proposal. I will do the best I -can," reflected Nekhliudof; and, after waiting till the horses had passed -out, he entered Dutlof's spacious yard. - -It was plain to see that the manure had only recently been carried away. -The ground was still black and damp; and in places, particularly in the -hollows, were left red fibrous clots. - -In the yard and under the high sheds, many carts stood in orderly rows, -together with ploughs, sledges, harrows, barrels, and all sorts of farming -implements. Doves were flitting about, cooing in the shadows under the -broad solid rafters. There was an odor of manure and tar. - -In one corner Karp and Ignát were fitting a new cross-bar to a large -iron-mounted, three-horse cart. - -All three of Dutlof's sons bore a strong family resemblance. The youngest, -Ilya, who had met Nekhliudof at the gate, was beardless, of smaller -stature, ruddier complexion, and more neatly dressed, than the others. The -second, Ignát, was rather taller and darker. He had a wedge-shaped beard; -and though he wore boots, a driver's shirt, and a lamb's-skin cap, he had -not such a festive, holiday appearance as his brother had. - -The eldest, Karp, was still taller. He wore clogs, a gray kaftan, and a -shirt without gussets. He had a reddish beard, trimmed; and his expression -was serious, even to severity. - -"Do you wish my father sent for, your excellency?" he asked, coming to meet -the prince, and bowing slightly and awkwardly. - -"No, I will go to him at the hives: I wish to see what he's building there. -But I should like a talk with you," said Nekhliudof, drawing him to the -other side of the yard, so that Ignát might not overhear what he was about -to talk about with Karp. - -The self-confidence and degree of pride noticeable in the deportment of the -two peasants, and what the nurse had told the young prince, so troubled -him, that it was difficult for him to make up his mind to speak with them -about the matter proposed. - -He had a sort of guilty feeling, and it seemed to him easier to speak with -one brother out of the hearing of the other. Karp seemed surprised that the -prince took him to one side, but he followed him. - -"Well, now," began Nekhliudof awkwardly,--"I wished to inquire of you if -you had many horses." - -"We have about five troďkas, also some colts," replied Karp in a -free-and-easy manner, scratching his back. - -"Well, are your brothers going to take out relays of horses for the post?" - -"We shall send out three troďkas to carry the mail. And there's Ilyushka, -he has been off with his team; but he's just come back." - -"Well, is that profitable for you? How much do you earn that way?" - -"What do you mean by profit, your excellency? We at least get enough to -live on and bait our horses, thank God for that!" - -"Then, why don't you take hold of something else? You see, you might buy -wood, or take more land." - -"Of course, your excellency: we might rent some land if there were any -convenient." - -"I wish to make a proposition to you. Since you only make enough out of -your teaming to live on, you had better take thirty desiatins of land from -me. All that strip behind Sapof I will let you have, and you can carry on -your farming better." - -And Nekhliudof, carried away by his plan for a peasant farm, which more -than once he had proposed to himself, and deliberated about, began fluently -to explain to the peasant his proposition about it. - -Karp listened attentively to the prince's words. - -"We are very grateful for your kindness," said he, when Nekhliudof stopped, -and looked at him in expectation of his answer. "Of course here there's -nothing very bad. To occupy himself with farming is better for a peasant -than to go off as a whip. He goes among strangers; he sees all sorts of -men; he gets wild. It's the very best thing for a peasant, to occupy -himself with land." - -"You think so, do you?" - -"As long as my father is alive, how can I think, your excellency? It's as -he wills." - -"Take me to the bee-hives. I will talk with him." - -"Come with me this way," said Karp, slowly directing himself to the barn -back of the house. He opened a low gate which led to the apiary, and after -letting the prince pass through, he shut it, and returned to Ignát, and -silently took up his interrupted labors. - - -XV. - -Nekhliudof, stooping low, passed through the low gate, under the gloomy -shed, to the apiary, which was situated behind the yard. - -A small space, surrounded by straw and a wattled hedge, through the chinks -of which the light streamed, was filled with bee-hives symmetrically -arranged, and covered with shavings, while the golden bees were humming -around them. Every thing was bathed in the warm and brilliant rays of the -July sun. - -From the gate a well-trodden footway led through the middle to a wooden -side-building, with a tin-foil image on it gleaming brightly in the sun. - -A few orderly young lindens lifting, above the thatched roof of the -neighboring court-yard, their bushy tops, almost audibly rustled their -dark-green, fresh foliage, in unison with the sound of the buzzing bees. -All the shadows from the covered hedge, from the lindens, and from the -hives, fell dark and short on the delicate curling grass springing up -between the planks. - -The bent, small figure of the old man, with his gray hair and bald spot -shining in the sun, was visible near the door of a straw-thatched structure -situated among the lindens. When he heard the creaking of the gate, the old -man looked up, and wiping his heated, sweaty face with the flap of his -shirt, and smiling with pleasure, came to meet the prince. - -In the apiary it was so comfortable, so pleasant, so warm, so free! The -figure of the gray-haired old man, with thick wrinkles radiating from his -eyes, and wearing wide shoes on his bare feet, as he came waddling along, -good-naturedly and contentedly smiling, to welcome the prince to his own -private possessions, was so ingenuously soothing that Nekhliudof for a -moment forgot the trying impressions of the morning, and his cherished -dream came vividly up before him. He already saw all his peasants just as -prosperous and contented as the old man Dutlof, and all smiling soothingly -and pleasantly upon him, because to him alone they were indebted for their -prosperity and happiness. - -"Would you like a net, your excellency? The bees are angry now," said the -old man, taking down from the fence a dirty gingham bag fragrant of honey, -and handing it to the prince. "The bees know me, and don't sting," he -added, with the pleasant smile that rarely left his handsome sunburned -face. - -"I don't need it either. Well, are they swarming yet?" asked Nekhliudof, -also smiling, though without knowing why. - -"Yes, they are swarming, father, Mitri Mikolayévitch,"[45] replied the old -man, throwing an expression of peculiar endearment into this form of -addressing his bárin by his name and patronymic. "They have only just begun -to swarm; it has been a cold spring, you know." - -[Footnote 45: _bátiushka_; Mitri Mikolayévitch, rustic for Dmitri -Nikolayévitch.] - -"I have just been reading in a book," began Nekhliudof, defending himself -from a bee which had got entangled in his hair, and was buzzing under his -ear, "that if the wax stands straight on the bars, then the bees swarm -earlier. Therefore such hives as are made of boards ... with cross-b--" - -"You don't want to gesticulate; that makes it worse," said the little old -man. "Now don't you think you had better put on the net?" - -Nekhliudof felt a sharp pain, but by some sort of childish egotism he did -not wish to give in to it; and so, once more refusing the bag, continued to -talk with the old man about the construction of hives, about which he had -read in "Maison Rustique," and which, according to his idea, ought to be -made twice as large. But another bee stung him in the neck, and he lost the -thread of his discourse and stopped short in the midst of it. - -"That's well enough, father, Mitri Mikolayévitch," said the old man, -looking at the prince with paternal protection; "that's well enough in -books, as you say. Yes; maybe the advice is given with some deceit, with -some hidden meaning; but only just let him do as he advises, and we shall -be the first to have a good laugh at his expense. And this happens! How are -you going to teach the bees where to deposit their wax? They themselves put -it on the cross-bar, sometimes straight and sometimes aslant. Just look -here!" he continued, opening one of the nearest hives, and gazing at the -entrance-hole blocked by a bee buzzing and crawling on the crooked comb. -"Here's a young one. It sees; at its head sits the queen, but it lays the -wax straight and sideways, both according to the position of the block," -said the old man, evidently carried away by his interest in his occupation, -and not heeding the prince's situation. "Now, to-day, it will fly with the -pollen. To-day is warm; it's on the watch," he continued, again covering up -the hive and pinning down with a cloth the crawling bee; and then brushing -off into his rough palm a few of the insects from his wrinkled neck. - -The bees did not sting him; but as for Nekhliudof, he could scarcely -refrain from the desire to beat a retreat from the apiary. The bees had -already stung him in three places, and were buzzing angrily on all sides -around his head and neck. - -"You have many hives?" he asked as he retreated toward the gate. - -"What God has given," replied Dutlof sarcastically. "It is not necessary to -count them, father; the bees don't like it. Now, your excellency, I wanted -to ask a favor of you," he went on to say, pointing to the small posts -standing by the fence. "It was about Osip, the nurse's husband. If you -would only speak to him. In our village it's so hard to act in a neighborly -way; it's not good." - -"How so?... Ah, how they sting!" exclaimed the prince, already seizing the -latch of the gate. - -"Every year now, he lets his bees out among my young ones. We could stand -it, but strange bees get away their comb and kill them," said the old man, -not heeding the prince's grimaces. - -"Very well, by and by; right away," said Nekhliudof. And having no longer -strength of will to endure, he hastily beat a retreat through the gate, -fighting his tormentors with both hands. - -"Rub it with dirt. It's nothing," said the old man, coming to the door -after the prince. The prince took some earth, and rubbed the spot where he -had been stung, and reddened as he cast a quick glance at Karp and Ignát, -who did not deign to look at him. Then he frowned angrily. - - -XVI. - -"I wanted to ask you something about my sons, your excellency," said the -old man, either pretending not to notice, or really not noticing, the -prince's angry face. - -"What?" - -"Well, we are well provided with horses, praise the Lord! and that's our -trade, and so we don't have to work on your land." - -"What do you mean?" - -"If you would only be kind enough to let my sons have leave of absence, -then Ilyushka and Ignát would take three troďkas, and go out teaming for -all summer. Maybe they'd earn something." - -"Where would they go?" - -"Just as it happened," replied Ilyushka, who at this moment, having put the -horses under the shed, joined his father. "The Kadminski boys went with -eight horses to Romen. Not only earned their own living, they say, but -brought back a gain of more than three hundred per cent. Fodder, they say, -is cheap at _Odest_." - -"Well, that's the very thing I wanted to talk with you about," said the -prince, addressing the old man, and anxious to draw him shrewdly into a -talk about the farm. "Tell me, please, if it would be more profitable to go -to teaming than farming at home?" - -"Why not more profitable, your excellency?" said Ilyushka, again putting in -his word, and at the same time quickly shaking back his hair. "There's no -way of keeping horses at home." - -"Well, how much do you earn in the summer?" - -"Since spring, as feed was high, we went to Kief with merchandise, and to -Kursk, and back again to Moscow with grits; and in that way we earned our -living. And our horses had enough, and we brought back fifteen rubles in -money." - -"There's no harm in taking up with an honorable profession, whatever it -is," said the prince, again addressing the old man. "But it seems to me -that you might find another form of activity. And besides, this work is -such that a young man goes everywhere. He sees all sorts of people,--may -get wild," he added, quoting Karp's words. - -"What can we peasants take up with, if not teaming?" objected the old man -with his sweet smile. "If you are a good driver, you get enough to eat, and -so do your horses; but, as regards mischief, they are just the same as at -home, thank the Lord! It isn't the first time that they have been. I have -been myself, and never saw any harm in it, nothing but good." - -"How many other things you might find to do at home! with fields and -meadows"-- - -"How is it possible?" interrupted Ilyushka with animation. "We were born -for this. All the regulations are at our fingers' ends. We like the work. -It's the most enjoyable we have, your excellency. How we like to go -teaming!" - -"Your excellency, will you not do us the honor of coming into the house? -You have not yet seen our new domicile," said the old man, bowing low, and -winking to his son. - -Ilyushka hastened into the house, and Nekhliudof and the old man followed -after him. - - -XVII. - -As soon as he got into the house, the old man bowed once more; then using -his coat-tail to dust the bench in the front of the room, he smiled, and -said,-- - -"What do you want of us, your excellency?" - -The hut was bright and roomy, with a chimney; and it had a loft and berths. -The fresh aspen-wood beams, between which could be seen the moss, scarcely -faded, were as yet not turned dark. The new benches and the loft were not -polished smooth, and the floor was not worn. One young peasant woman, -rather lean, with a serious oval face, was sitting on a berth, and using -her foot to rock a hanging cradle that was suspended from the ceiling by a -long hook. This was Ilya's wife. - -In the cradle lay at full length a suckling child, scarcely breathing, and -with closed eyes. - -Another young woman, robust and rosy-cheeked, with her sleeves rolled up -above her elbows, showing strong arms and hands red even higher than her -wrists, was standing in front of the oven, and mincing onions in a wooden -dish. This was Karp's wife. - -A pock-marked woman, showing signs of pregnancy, which she tried to -conceal, was standing near the oven. The room was hot, not only from the -summer sun, but from the heat of the oven; and there was a strong smell of -baking bread. - -Two flaxen-headed little boys and a girl gazed down from the loft upon the -prince, with faces full of curiosity. They had come in, expecting something -to eat. - -Nekhliudof was delighted to see this happy household; and at the same time -he felt a sense of constraint in presence of these peasants, men and women, -all looking at him. He flushed a little as he sat down on the bench. - -"Give me a crust of hot bread: I am fond of it," said he, and the flush -deepened. - -Karp's wife cut off a huge slice of bread, and handed it on a plate to the -prince. Nekhliudof said nothing, not knowing what to say. The women also -were silent, the old man smiled benevolently. - -"Well, now why am I so awkward? as though I were to blame for something," -thought Nekhliudof. "Why shouldn't I make my proposition about the farm? -What stupidity!" Still he remained silent. - -"Well, father Mitri Mikolayévitch, what are you going to say about my boys' -proposal?" asked the old man. - -"I should advise you absolutely not to send them away, but to have them -stay at home, and work," said Nekhliudof, suddenly collecting his wits. -"You know what I have proposed to you. Go in with me, and buy some of the -crown woods and some more land"-- - -"But how are we going to get money to buy it, your excellency?" he asked, -interrupting the prince. - -"Why, it isn't very much wood, only two hundred rubles' worth," replied -Nekhliudof. - -The old man gave an indignant laugh. - -"Very good, if that's all. Why not buy it?" said he. - -"Haven't you money enough?" asked the prince reproachfully. - -"_Okh!_ Sir, your excellency!" replied the old man, with grief expressed in -his tone, looking apprehensively toward the door. "Only enough to feed my -family, not enough to buy woodland." - -"But you know you have money,--what do you do with it?" insisted -Nekhliudof. - -The old man suddenly fell into a terrible state of excitement: his eyes -flashed, his shoulders began to twitch. - -"Wicked men may say all sorts of things about me," he muttered in a -trembling voice. "But, so may God be my witness!" he said, growing more and -more animated, and turning his eyes toward the ikon, "may my eyes crack, -may I perish with all my family, if I have any thing more than the fifteen -silver rubles which Ilyushka brought home; and we have to pay the poll-tax, -you yourself know that. And we built the hut"-- - -"Well, well, all right," said the prince, rising from the bench. "Good-by, -friends."[46] - -[Footnote 46: _Proshchaďte_, _khozyáeva_.] - - -XVIII. - -"My God! my God!" was Nekhliudof's mental exclamation, as with long strides -he hastened home through the shady alleys of his weed-grown garden, and, -absent-mindedly, snapped off the leaves and branches which fell in his way. - -"Is it possible that my dreams about the ends and duties of my life are all -idle nonsense? Why is it hard for me, and mournful, as though I were -dissatisfied with myself because I imagined that having once begun this -course I should constantly experience the fulness of the morally pleasant -feeling which I had when, for the first time, these thoughts came to me?" - -And with extraordinary vividness and distinctness he saw in his imagination -that happy moment which he had experienced a year before. - -He had arisen very early, before every one else in the house, and feeling -painfully those secret, indescribable impulses of youth, he had gone -aimlessly out into the garden, and from there into the woods; and, amid the -energetic but tranquil nature pulsing with the new life of Maytime, he had -wandered long alone, without thought, and suffering from the exuberance of -some feeling, and not finding any expression for it. - -Then, with all the allurement of what is unknown, his youthful imagination -brought up before him the voluptuous form of a woman; and it seemed to him -that was the object of his indescribable longing. But another, deeper -sentiment said, _Not that_, and impelled him to search and be disturbed in -mind. - -Without thought or desire, as always happens after extra activity, he lay -on his back under a tree, and looked at the diaphanous morning-clouds -drifting over him across the deep, endless sky. - -Suddenly, without any reason, the tears sprang to his eyes, and God knows -in what way the thought came to him with perfect clearness, filling all his -soul and giving him intense delight,--the thought that love and -righteousness are the same as truth and enjoyment, and that there is only -one truth, and only one possible happiness, in the world. - -The deeper feeling this time did not say, _Not that_. He sat up, and began -to verify this thought. - -"That is it, that is it," said he to himself, in a sort of ecstasy, -measuring all his former convictions, all the phenomena of his life, by the -truth just discovered to him, and as it seemed to him absolutely new. - -"What stupidity! All that I knew, all that I believed in, all that I -loved," he had said to himself. "Love is self-denying; this is the only -true happiness independent of chance," he had said over and over again, -smiling and waving his hands. - -Applying this thought on every side to life, and finding in it confirmation -both of life and that inner voice which told him that this was _it_, he had -experienced a new feeling of pleasant agitation and enthusiasm. - -"And so I ought to do good if I would be happy," he thought; and all his -future vividly came up before him, not as an abstraction, but in images in -the form of the life of a proprietor. - -He saw before him a huge field, conterminous with his whole life, which he -was to consecrate to the good, and in which really he should find -happiness. There was no need for him to search for a sphere of activity; it -was all ready. He had one out-and-out obligation: he had his serfs.... - -And what comfortable and beneficent labor lay before him! "To work for this -simple, impressionable, incorruptible class of people; to lift them from -poverty; to give them pleasure; to give them education which, fortunately, -I will turn to use in correcting their faults, which arise from ignorance -and superstition; to develop their morals; to induce them to love the -right.... What a brilliant, happy future! And besides all this, I, who am -going to do this for my own happiness, shall take delight in their -appreciation, shall see how every day I shall go farther and farther toward -my predestined end. A wonderful future! Why could I not have seen this -before? - -"And besides," so he had thought at the same time, "who will hinder me from -being happy in love for a woman, in enjoyment of family?" - -And his youthful imagination portrayed before him a still more bewitching -future. - -"I and my wife, whom I shall love as no one ever loved a wife before in the -world, we shall always live amid this restful, poetical, rural nature, with -our children, maybe, and with my old aunt. We have our love for each other, -our love for our children; and we shall both know that our aim is the -right. We shall help each other in pressing on to this goal. I shall make -general arrangements; I shall give general aid when it is right; I shall -carry on the farm, the savings bank, the workshop. And she, with her dear -little head, and dressed in a simple white dress, which she lifts above -her dainty ankle as she steps through the mud, will go to the peasants' -school, to the hospital, to some unfortunate peasant who in truth does not -deserve help, and everywhere carry comfort and aid.... Children, old men, -women, will wait for her, and look on her as on some angel, as on -Providence. Then she will return, and hide from me the fact that she has -been to see the unfortunate peasant, and given him money; but I shall know -all, and give her a hearty hug, and rain kisses thick and fast on her -lovely eyes, her modestly-blushing cheeks, and her smiling, rosy lips." - - -XIX. - -"Where are those dreams?" the young man now asked himself as he walked home -after his round of visits. "Here more than a year has passed since I have -been seeking for happiness in this course, and what have I found? It is -true, I sometimes feel that I can be contented with myself; but this is a -dry, doubtful kind of content. Yet, no; I am simply dissatisfied! I am -dissatisfied because I find no happiness here; and I desire, I passionately -long for, happiness. I have not experienced delight, I have cut myself off -from all that gives it. Wherefore? for what end? Does that make it easier -for any one? - -"My aunt was right when she wrote that it is easier to find happiness than -to give it to others. Have my peasants become any richer? Have they learned -any thing? or have they shown any moral improvement? Not the least. They -are no better off, but it grows harder and harder every day for me. If I -saw any success in my undertakings, if I saw any signs of gratitude, ... -but, no! I see falsely directed routine, vice, untruthfulness, -helplessness. I am wasting the best years of my life." - -Thus he said to himself, and he recollected that his neighbors, as he heard -from his nurse, called him "a mere boy;" that he had no money left in the -counting-room; that his new threshing-machine, which he had invented, much -to the amusement of the peasants, only made a noise, and did not thresh -any thing when it had been set in motion for the first time in presence of -numerous spectators, who had gathered at the threshing-floor; that from day -to day he had to expect the coming of the district judge for the list of -goods and chattels, which he had neglected to make out, having been -engrossed in various new enterprises on his estate. - -And suddenly there arose before him, just as vividly as, before, that walk -through the forest and his ideal of rural life had arisen,--just as vividly -there appeared his little university room at Moscow, where he used to sit -half the night before a solitary candle, with his chum and his favorite boy -friend. - -They used to read for five hours on a stretch, and study such stupid -lessons in civil law; and when they were done with them, they would send -for supper, open a bottle of champagne, and talk about the future which -awaited them. - -How entirely different the young student had thought the future would be! -Then the future was full of enjoyment, of varied occupation, brilliant with -success, and beyond a peradventure sure to bring them both to what seemed -to them the greatest blessing in the world,--to fame. - -"He will go on, and go on rapidly, in that path," thought Nekhliudof of his -friend; "but I".... - -But by this time he was already mounting the steps to his house; and near -it were standing a score of peasants and house-servants, waiting with -various requests to the prince. And this brought him back from dreams to -the reality. - -Among the crowd was a ragged and blood-stained peasant-woman, who was -lamenting and complaining of her father-in-law, who had been beating her. -There were two brothers, who for two years past had been going on shares in -their domestic arrangements, and now looked at each other with hatred and -despair. There was also an unshaven, gray-haired domestic serf, with hands -trembling from the effects of intoxication; and this man was brought to the -prince by his son, a gardener, who complained of his disorderly conduct. -There was a peasant, who had driven his wife out of the house because she -had not worked any all the spring. There was also the wife, a sick woman, -who sobbed, but said nothing, as she sat on the grass by the steps,--only -showed her inflamed and swollen leg, carelessly wrapped up in a filthy rag. - -Nekhliudof listened to all the petitions and complaints; and after he had -given advice to one, blamed others, and replied to still others, he began -to feel a sort of whimsical sensation of weariness, shame, weakness, and -regret. And he went to his room. - - -XX. - -In the small room occupied by Nekhliudof stood an old leather sofa -decorated with copper nails, a few chairs of the same description, an -old-fashioned inlaid extension-table with scallops and brass mountings, and -strewn with papers, and an old-fashioned English grand with narrow keys, -broken and twisted. - -Between the windows hung a large mirror with an old carved frame gilded. On -the floor, near the table, lay packages of papers, books, and accounts. - -This room, on the whole, had a characterless and disorderly appearance; and -this lively disorder presented a sharp contrast with the affectedly -aristocratic arrangement of the other rooms of the great mansion. - -When Nekhliudof reached his room, he flung his hat angrily on the table, -and sat down in a chair which stood near the piano, crossed his legs, and -shook his head. - -"Will you have lunch, your excellency?" asked a tall, thin, wrinkled old -woman, who entered just at this instant, dressed in a cap, a great -kerchief, and a print dress. - -Nekhliudof looked at her for a moment or two in silence, as though -collecting his thoughts. - -"No: I don't wish any thing, nurse," said he, and again fell into thought. - -The nurse shook her head at him in some vexation, and sighed. - -"Eh! Father, Dmitri Nikolayévitch, are you melancholy? Such tribulation -comes, but it will pass away. God knows".... - -"I am not melancholy. What have you brought, Malanya Finogenovna?" replied -Nekhliudof, endeavoring to smile. - -"Ain't melancholy! can't I see?" the old woman began to say with warmth. -"The whole livelong day to be all sole alone! And you take every thing to -heart so, and look out for every thing; and besides, you scarcely eat any -thing. What's the reason of it? If you'd only go to the city, or visit your -neighbors, as others do! You are young, and the idea of bothering over -things so! Pardon me, little father, I will sit down," pursued the old -nurse, taking a seat near the door. "You see, we have got into such a habit -that we lose fear. Is that the way gentlemen do? There's no good in it. You -are only ruining yourself, and the people are spoiled. That's just like our -people: they don't understand it, that's a fact. You had better go to your -auntie. What she wrote was good sense," said the old nurse, admonishing -him. - -Nekhliudof kept growing more and more dejected. His right hand, resting on -his knee, lazily struck the piano, making a chord, a second, a third. - -Nekhliudof moved nearer, drew his other hand from his pocket, and began to -play. The chords which he made were sometimes not premeditated, were -occasionally not even according to rule, often remarkable for absurdity, -and showed that he was lacking in musical talent; but the exercise gave him -a certain indefinable melancholy enjoyment. - -At every modification in the harmony, he waited with muffled heart-beat for -what would come out of it; and when any thing came, he, in a dark sort of -way, completed with his imagination what was missing. - -It seemed to him that he heard a hundred melodies, and a chorus, and an -orchestra simultaneously joining in with his harmony. But his chief -pleasure was in the powerful activity of his imagination; confused and -broken, but bringing up with striking clearness before him the most varied, -mixed, and absurd images and pictures from the past and the future. - -Now it presents the puffy figure of Davidka Byélui, timidly blinking his -white eyelashes at the sight of his mother's black fist with its net-work -of veins; his bent back, and huge hands covered with white hairs, -exhibiting a uniform patience and submission to fate, sufficient to -overcome torture and deprivation. - -Then he saw the brisk, presuming nurse, and, somehow, seemed to picture her -going through the villages, and announcing to the peasants that they ought -to hide their money from the proprietors; and he unconsciously said to -himself, "Yes, it is necessary to hide money from the proprietors." - -Then suddenly there came up before him the fair head of his future wife, -for some reason weeping and leaning on his shoulder in deep grief. - -Then he seemed to see Churis's kindly blue eyes looking affectionately at -his pot-bellied little son. Yes, he saw in him a helper and savior, apart -from his son. "That is love," he whispered. - -Then he remembered Yukhvanka's mother, remembered the expression of -patience and conciliation which, notwithstanding her prominent teeth and -her irregular features, he recognized on her aged face. - -"It must be that I have been the first during her seventy years of life, to -recognize her good qualities," he said to himself, and whispered -"Strange;" but he continued still to drum on the piano, and to listen to -the sounds. - -Then he vividly recalled his retreat from the bees, and the expressions on -the faces of Karp and Ignát, who evidently wanted to laugh though they made -believe not look at him. He reddened, and involuntarily glanced at the old -nurse, who still remained sitting by the door, looking at him with silent -attention, occasionally shaking her gray head. - -Here, suddenly, he seemed to see a troďka of sleek horses, and Ilyushka's -handsome, robust form, with bright curls, gayly shining, narrow blue eyes, -fresh complexion, and delicate down just beginning to appear on lip and -chin. - -He remembered how Ilyushka was afraid that he would not be permitted to go -teaming, and how eagerly he argued in favor of the work that he liked so -well. And he saw the gray early morning, that began with mist, and the -smooth paved road, and the long lines of three-horse wagons, heavily laden -and protected by mats, and marked with big black letters. The stout, -contented, well-fed horses, thundering along with their bells, arching -their backs, and tugging on the traces, pulled in unison up the hill, -forcefully straining on their long-nailed shoes over the smooth road. - -As the train of wagons reached the foot of the hill, the postman had -quickly dashed by with jingling bells, which were echoed far and wide by -the great forest extending along on both sides of the road. - -"_A-a-aď!_" in a loud, boyish voice, shouts the head driver, who has a -badge on his lambskin cap, and swings his whip around his head. - -Beside the front wheel of the front team, the redheaded, cross-looking -Karp is walking heavily in huge boots. In the second team Ilyushka shows -his handsome head, as he sits on the driver's seat playing the bugle. Three -troďka-wagons loaded with boxes, with creaking wheels, with the sound of -bells and shouts, file by. Ilyushka once more hides his handsome face under -the matting, and falls off to sleep. - -Now it is a fresh, clear evening. The deal gates open for the weary horses -as they halt in front of the tavern yard; and one after the other, the high -mat-covered teams roll in across the planks that lie at the gates, and come -to rest under the wide sheds. - -Ilyushka gayly exchanges greetings with the light-complexioned, -wide-bosomed landlady, who asks, "Have you come far? and will there be many -of you to supper?" and at the same time looks with pleasure on the handsome -lad, with her bright, kindly eyes. - -And now, having unharnessed the horses, he goes into the warm house[47] -crowded with people, crosses himself, sits down at the generous wooden -bowl, and enters into lively conversation with the landlady and his -companions. - -[Footnote 47: _izbá_.] - -And then he goes to bed in the open air, under the stars which gleam down -into the shed. His bed is fragrant hay, and he is near the horses, which, -stamping and snorting, eat their fodder in the wooden cribs. He goes to the -shed, turns toward the east, and after crossing himself thirty times in -succession on his broad brawny chest, and throwing back his bright curls, -he repeats "Our Father" and "Lord have mercy" a score of times, and -wrapping himself, head and all, in his cloak, sleeps the healthy, dreamless -sleep of strong, fresh manhood. - -And here he sees in his vision the city of Kief, with its saints and -throngs of priests; Romen, with its merchants and merchandise; he sees -_Odest_, and the distant blue sea studded with white sails, and the city of -Tsar-grad,[48] with its golden palaces, and the white-breasted, dark-browed -Turkish maidens; and thither he flies, lifting himself on invisible wings. - -[Footnote 48: Constantinople.] - -He flies freely and easily, always farther and farther away, and sees below -him golden cities bathed in clear effulgence, and the blue sky with bright -stars, and a blue sea with white sails; and smoothly and pleasantly he -flies, always farther and farther away.... - -"Splendid!" whispers Nekhliudof to himself; and the thought, "Why am I not -Ilyushka?" comes to him. - - - - -LUCERNE. - -_FROM THE RECOLLECTIONS OF PRINCE NEKHLIUDOF._ - - -JULY 20,1857. - -Yesterday evening I arrived at Lucerne, and put up at the best inn there, -the Schweitzerhof. - -"Lucerne, the chief city of the canton, situated on the shore of the -Vierwaldstätter See," says Murray, "is one of the most romantic places of -Switzerland: here cross three important highways, and it is only an hour's -distance by steamboat to Mount Righi, from which is obtained one of the -most magnificent views in the world." - -Whether that be true or no, other Guides say the same thing, and -consequently at Lucerne there are throngs of travellers of all -nationalities, especially the English. - -The magnificent five-storied building of the Hotel Schweitzerhof is -situated on the quay, at the very edge of the lake, where in olden times -there used to be the crooked covered wooden bridge[49] with chapels on the -corners and pictures on the roof. Now, thanks to the tremendous inroad of -Englishmen, with their necessities, their tastes, and their money, the old -bridge has been torn down, and in its place has been erected a granite -quay, straight as a stick. On the quay are built the long, quadrangular -five-storied houses; in front of the houses two rows of lindens have been -set out and provided with supports, and between the lindens are the usual -supply of green benches. - -[Footnote 49: Hofbrücke, torn down in 1852.] - -This is the promenade; and here back and forth stroll the Englishwomen in -their Swiss straw hats, and the Englishmen in simple and comfortable -attire, and rejoice in that which they have caused to be created. Possibly -these quays and houses and lindens and Englishmen would be excellent in -their way anywhere else, but here they seem discordant amid this strangely -grandiose and at the same time indescribably harmonious and smiling nature. - -As soon as I went up to my room, and opened the window facing the lake, the -beauty of the sheet of water, of these mountains, and of this sky, at the -first moment literally dazzled and overwhelmed me. I experienced an inward -unrest, and the necessity of expressing in some manner the feelings that -suddenly filled my soul to overflowing. I felt a desire to embrace, -powerfully to embrace, some one, to tickle him, or to pinch him; in short, -to do to him and to myself something extraordinary. - -It was seven o'clock in the evening. The rain had been falling all day, but -now it had cleared off. - -The lake, blue as heated sulphur, spread out before my windows smooth and -motionless, like a concave mirror between the variegated green shores; its -surface was dotted with boats, which left behind them vanishing trails. -Farther away it was contracted between two monstrous headlands, and, -darkling, set itself against and disappeared behind a confused pile of -mountains, clouds, and glaciers. In the foreground stretched a panorama of -moist, fresh green shores, with reeds, meadows, gardens, and villas. -Farther away, the dark-green wooded heights, crowned with the ruins of -feudal castles; in the background, the rolling, pale-lilac-colored vista of -mountains, with fantastic peaks built up of crags and dead white mounds of -snow. And every thing was bathed in a fresh, transparent atmosphere of -azure blue, and kindled by the warm rays of the setting sun, bursting forth -through the riven skies. - -Not on the lake nor on the mountains nor in the skies was there a single -completed line, a single unmixed color, a single moment of repose; -everywhere motion, irregularity, fantasy, endless conglomeration and -variety of shades and lines; and above all, a calm, a softness, a unity, -and a striving for the beautiful. - -And here amid this indefinable, confused, unfettered beauty, before my very -window, stretched in stupid kaleidoscopic confusion the white line of the -quay, the lindens with their supports, and the green seats,--miserable, -tasteless creations of human ingenuity, not subordinated, like the distant -villas and ruins, to the general harmony of the beautiful scene, but on the -contrary brutally contradicting it.... Constantly, though against my will, -my eyes were attracted to that horribly straight line of the quay; and -mentally I should have liked to spurn it, to demolish it like a black spot -disfiguring the nose beneath one's eye. - -But the quay with the sauntering Englishmen remained where it was, and I -involuntarily tried to find a point of view where it would be out of my -sight. I succeeded in finding such a view; and till dinner was ready I took -delight, alone by myself, in this incomplete and therefore the more -enjoyable feeling of oppression that one experiences in the solitary -contemplation of natural beauty. - -About half-past seven I was called to dinner. Two long tables, -accommodating at least a hundred persons, were spread in the great, -magnificently decorated dining-room on the first floor.... The silent -gathering of the guests lasted three minutes,--the _frou-frou_ of women's -dresses, the soft steps, the softly-spoken words addressed to the courtly -and elegant waiters. And all the places were occupied by ladies and -gentlemen dressed elegantly, even richly, and for the most part in perfect -taste. - -As is apt to be the case in Switzerland, the majority of the guests were -English, and this gave the ruling characteristics of the common table: that -is, a strict decorum regarded as an obligation, a reserve founded not in -pride but in the absence of any necessity for social relationship, and -finally a uniform sense of satisfaction felt by each in the comfortable and -agreeable gratification of his wants. - -On all sides gleamed the whitest laces, the whitest collars, the whitest -teeth,--natural and artificial,--the whitest complexions and hands. But the -faces, many of which were very handsome, bore the expression merely of -individual prosperity, and absolute absence of interest in all that -surrounded them unless it bore directly on their own individual selves; and -the white hands glittering with rings, or protected by mitts, moved only -for the purpose of straightening collars, cutting meat, or filling -wine-glasses; no soul-felt emotion was betrayed in these actions. - -Occasionally members of some one family would exchange remarks in subdued -voices, about the excellence of such and such a dish or wine, or about the -beauty of the view from Mount Righi. - -Individual tourists, whether men or women, sat alongside of each other in -silence, and did not even seem to see each other. If it happened -occasionally, that, out of this five-score human beings, two spoke to each -other, the topic of their conversation consisted uniformly in the weather, -or the ascent of the Righi. - -Knives and forks scarcely rattled on the plates, so perfect was the -observance of propriety; and no one dared to convey pease and vegetables to -the mouth otherwise than on the fork. The waiters, involuntarily subdued by -the universal silence, asked in a whisper what wine you would be pleased to -order. - -Such dinners invariably depress me: I dislike them, and before they are -over I become blue.... It always seems to me as if I were in some way to -blame; just as when I was a boy I was set upon a chair in consequence of -some naughtiness, and bidden ironically, "Now rest a little while, my dear -young fellow." And all the time my young blood was pulsing through my -veins, and in the other room I could hear the merry shouts of my brothers. - -I used to try to rebel against this feeling of being choked down, which I -experienced at such dinners, but in vain. All these dead-and-alive faces -have an irresistible ascendency over me, and I myself become also as one -dead. I have no desires, I have no thoughts: I do not even observe. - -At first I attempted to enter into conversation with my neighbors; but I -got no response beyond the phrases which had been repeated in that place a -hundred times, a thousand times, with absolutely no variation of -countenance. - -And yet these people were by no means all stupid and feelingless; but -evidently many of them, though they seemed so dead, had got into the habit -of leading self-centred lives, which in reality were far more complicated -and interesting than my own. Why, then, should they deprive themselves of -one of the greatest enjoyments of life,--the enjoyment that comes from the -intercourse of man with man? - -How different it used to be in our _pension_ at Paris, where twenty of us, -belonging to as many different nationalities, professions, and -individualities, met together at a common table, and, under the influence -of the Gallic sociability, found the keenest zest! - -There, from the very moment that we sat down, from one end of the table to -the other, was general conversation, sandwiched with witticisms and puns, -though often in a broken speech. There every one, without being solicitous -for the proprieties, said whatever came into his head. There we had our own -philosopher, our own disputant, our own _bel esprit_, our own butt,--all -common property. - -There, immediately after dinner, we would move the table to one side, and, -without paying too much attention to rhythm, take to dancing the polka on -the dusty carpet, and often keep it up till evening. There, though we were -rather flirtatious, and not over-wise, but perfectly respectable, still we -were human beings. - -And the Spanish countess with romantic proclivities, and the Italian -_abbate_ who insisted on declaiming from the Divine Comedy after dinner, -and the American doctor who had the _entrée_ into the Tuileries, and the -young dramatic author with long hair, and the pianist who, according to her -own account, had composed the best polka in existence, and the unhappy -widow who was a beauty, and wore three rings on every finger,--all of us -enjoyed this society, which, though somewhat superficial, was human and -pleasant. And we each carried away from it hearty recollections of each -other, perhaps lighter in some cases, and more serious in others. - -But at these English _table-d'hôte_ dinners, as I look at all these laces, -ribbons, jewels, pomaded locks, and silken dresses, I often think how many -living women would be happy, and would make others happy, with these -adornments. - -Strange to think how many friends and lovers--most fortunate friends and -lovers--are sitting here side by side, without, perhaps, knowing it! And -God knows why they never come to this knowledge, and never give each other -this happiness, which they might so easily give, and which they so long -for. - -I began to feel blue, as invariably happens after such a dinner; and, -without waiting for dessert, I sallied out in the same frame of mind for a -constitutional through the city. My melancholy frame of mind was not -relieved, but rather confirmed by the narrow, muddy streets without -lanterns, the shuttered shops, the encounters with drunken workmen, and -with women hastening after water, or in bonnets, glancing around them as -they turned the corners. - -It was perfectly dark in the streets, when I returned to the hotel without -casting a glance about me, or having an idea in my head. I hoped that sleep -would put an end to my melancholy. I experienced that peculiar spiritual -chill and loneliness and heaviness, which, without any reason, beset those -who are just arrived in any new place. - -Looking steadfastly down, I walked along the quay to the Schweitzerhof, -when suddenly my ear was struck by the strains of a peculiar but thoroughly -agreeable and sweet music. - -These strains had an immediately enlivening effect upon me. It was as -though a bright, cheerful light had poured into my soul. I felt contented, -gay. My slumbering attention was awakened again to all surrounding objects; -and the beauty of the night and the lake, to which till then I had been -indifferent, suddenly came over me with quickening force like a novelty. - -I involuntarily took in at a glance the dark sky with gray clouds flecking -its deep blue, now lighted by the rising moon, the glassy dark-green lake -with its surface reflecting the lighted windows, and far away the snowy -mountains; and I heard the croaking of the frogs over on the Freshenburg -shore, and the dewy fresh call of the quail. - -Directly in front of me, in the spot whence the sounds of music had first -come, and which still especially attracted my attention, I saw, amid the -semi-darkness on the street, a throng of people standing in a semi-circle, -and in front of the crowd, at a little distance, a small man in dark -clothes. - -Behind the throng and the man, there stood out harmoniously against the -dark, ragged sky, gray and blue, the black tops of a few Lombardy poplars -in some garden, and, rising majestically on high, the two stern spires that -stand on the towers of the ancient cathedral. - -I drew nearer, and the strains became more distinct. At some distance I -could clearly distinguish the full accords of a guitar, sweetly swelling in -the evening air, and several voices, which, while taking turns with each -other, did not sing any definite theme, but gave suggestions of one in -places wherever the melody was most pronounced. - -The theme was in somewhat the nature of a mazurka, sweet and graceful. The -voices sounded now near at hand, now far distant; now a bass was heard, now -a tenor, now a falsetto such as the Tyrolese warblers are wont to sing. - -It was not a song, but the graceful masterly sketch of a song. I could not -comprehend what it was, but it was beautiful. - -Those voluptuous, soft chords of the guitar, that sweet, gentle melody, and -that solitary figure of the man in black, amid the fantastic environment of -the lake, the gleaming moon, and the twin spires of the cathedral rising in -majestic silence, and the black tops of the poplars,--all was strange and -perfectly beautiful, or at least seemed so to me. - -All the confused, arbitrary impressions of life suddenly became full of -meaning and beauty. It seemed to me as though a fresh fragrant flower had -sprung up in my soul. In place of the weariness, dulness, and indifference -toward every thing in the world, which I had been feeling the moment -before, I experienced a necessity for love, a fulness of hope, and an -unbounded enjoyment of life. - -"What dost thou desire, what dost thou long for?" an inner voice seemed to -say. "Here it is. Thou art surrounded on all sides by beauty and poetry. -Breathe it in, in full, deep draughts, as long as thou hast strength. Enjoy -it to the full extent of thy capacity. 'Tis all thine, all blessed!" - -I drew nearer. The little man was, as it seemed, a travelling Tyrolese. He -stood before the windows of the hotel, one leg a little advanced, his head -thrown back; and, as he thrummed on the guitar, he sang his graceful song -in all those different voices. - -I immediately felt an affection for this man, and a gratefulness for the -change which he had brought about in me. - -The singer, so far as I was able to judge, was dressed in an old black -coat. He had short black hair, and he wore a civilian's hat that was no -longer new. There was nothing artistic in his attire, but his clever and -youthfully gay motions and pose, together with his diminutive stature, -formed a pleasing and at the same time pathetic spectacle. - -On the steps, in the windows, and on the balconies of the brilliantly -lighted hotel, stood ladies handsomely decorated and attired, gentlemen -with polished collars, porters and lackeys in gold-embroidered liveries; in -the street, in the semi-circle of the crowd, and farther along on the -sidewalk, among the lindens, were gathered groups of well-dressed waiters, -cooks in white caps and aprons, and young girls wandering about with arms -about each other's waists. - -All, it seemed, were under the influence of the same feeling that I myself -experienced. All stood in silence around the singer, and listened -attentively. Silence reigned, except in the pauses of the song, when there -came from far away across the waters the regular click of a hammer, and -from the Freshenburg shore rang in fascinating monotone the voices of the -frogs, interrupted by the mellow, monotonous call of the quail. - -The little man in the darkness, in the midst of the street, poured out his -heart like a nightingale, in couplet after couplet, song after song. Though -I had come close to him, his singing continued to give me greater and -greater gratification. - -His voice, which was not of great power, was extremely pleasant and tender; -the taste and feeling for rhythm which he displayed in the control of it -were extraordinary, and proved that he had great natural gifts. - -After he sung each couplet, he invariably repeated the theme in variation, -and it was evident that all his graceful variations came to him at the -instant, spontaneously. - -Among the crowd, and above on the Schweitzerhof, and near by on the -boulevard, were heard frequent murmurs of approval, though generally the -most respectful silence reigned. - -The balconies and the windows kept filling more and more with handsomely -dressed men and women leaning on their elbows, and picturesquely -illuminated by the lights in the house. - -Promenaders came to a halt, and in the darkness on the quay stood men and -women in little groups. Near me, at some distance from the common crowd, -stood an aristocratic cook and lackey, smoking their cigars. The cook was -forcibly impressed by the music, and at every high falsetto note -enthusiastically nodded his head to the lackey, and nudged him with his -elbow with an expression of astonishment that seemed to say, "How he sings! -hey?" - -The lackey, whose careless smile betrayed the depth of feeling that he -experienced, replied to the cook's nudges by shrugging his shoulders, as if -to show that it was hard enough for him to be made enthusiastic, and that -he had heard much better music. - -In one of the pauses of his song, while the minstrel was clearing his -throat, I asked the lackey who he was, and if he often came there. - -"Twice this summer he has been here," replied the lackey. "He is from -Aargau; he goes round begging." - -"Well, do many like him come round here?" I asked. - -"Oh, yes," replied the lackey, not comprehending the full force of what I -asked; but, immediately after, recollecting himself, he added, "Oh, no. -This one is the only one I ever heard here. No one else." - -At this moment the little man had finished his first song, briskly twanged -his guitar, and said something in his German patois, which I could not -understand, but which brought forth a hearty round of laughter from the -surrounding throng. - -"What was that he said?" I asked. - -"He says that his throat is dried up, he would like some wine," replied the -lackey who was standing near me. - -"What? is he rather fond of the glass?" - -"Yes, all that sort of people are," replied the lackey, smiling and -pointing at the minstrel. - -The minstrel took off his cap, and swinging his guitar went toward the -hotel. Raising his head, he addressed the ladies and gentlemen standing by -the windows and on the balconies, saying in a half-Italian, half-German -accent, and with the same intonation that jugglers use in speaking to their -audiences,-- - -"_Messieurs et mesdames, si vous croyez que je gagne quelque chose, vous -vous trompez: je ne suis qu'un pauvre tiaple._" - -He stood in silence a moment, but as no one gave him any thing, he once -more took up his guitar and said,-- - -"_Ŕ présent, messieurs et mesdames, je vous chanterai l'air du Righi._" - -His hotel audience made no response, but stood in expectation of the coming -song. Below on the street a laugh went round, probably in part because he -had expressed himself so strangely, and in part because no one had given -him any thing. - -I gave him a few centimes, which he deftly changed from one hand to the -other, and bestowed them in his vest-pocket; and then, replacing his cap, -began once more to sing the graceful, sweet Tyrolese melody which he had -called _l'air du Righi_. - -This song, which formed the last on his programme, was even better than the -preceding, and from all sides in the wondering throng were heard sounds of -approbation. - -He finished. Again he swung his guitar, took off his cap, held it out in -front of him, went two or three steps nearer to the windows, and again -repeated his stock phrase,-- - -"_Messieurs et mesdames, si vous croyez que je gagne quelque chose_," which -he evidently considered to be very shrewd and witty; but in his voice and -motions I perceived a certain irresolution and childish timidity which were -especially touching in a person of such diminutive stature. - -The elegant public, still picturesquely grouped in the lighted windows and -on the balconies, were shining in their rich attire; a few conversed in -soberly discreet tones, apparently about their singer who was standing -there below them with outstretched hand; others gazed down with attentive -curiosity on the little black figure; on one balcony could be heard the -merry, ringing laughter of some young girl. - -In the surrounding crowd the talk and laughter grew constantly louder and -louder. - -The singer for the third time repeated his phrase, but in a still weaker -voice, and did not even end the sentence; and again he stretched his hand -with his cap, but instantly drew it back. Again not one of those -brilliantly dressed scores of people standing to listen to him threw him a -penny. - -The crowd laughed heartlessly. - -The little singer, so it seemed to me, shrunk more into himself, took his -guitar into his other hand, lifted his cap, and said,-- - -"_Messieurs et mesdames, je vous remercie, et je vous souhais une bonne -nuit._" Then he put on his hat. - -The crowd cackled with laughter and satisfaction. The handsome ladies and -gentlemen, calmly exchanging remarks, withdrew gradually from the -balconies. On the boulevard the promenading began once more. The street, -which had been still during the singing, assumed its wonted liveliness; a -few men, however, stood at some distance, and, without approaching the -singer, looked at him and laughed. - -I heard the little man muttering something between his teeth as he turned -away; and I saw him, apparently growing more and more diminutive, hurry -toward the city with brisk steps. The promenaders who had been looking at -him followed him at some distance, still making merry at his expense. My -mind was in a whirl; I could not comprehend what it all meant; and still -standing in the same place, I gazed abstractedly into the darkness after -the little man, who was fast disappearing, as he went with ever-increasing -swiftness with long strides into the city, followed by the merry-making -promenaders. - -I was overmastered by a feeling of pain, of bitterness, and above all, of -shame for the little man, for the crowd, for myself, as though it were I -who had asked for money and received none; as though it were I who had been -turned to ridicule. - -Without looking any longer, feeling my heart oppressed, I also hurried with -long strides toward the entrance of the Schweitzerhof. I could not explain -the feeling that overmastered me; only there was something like a stone, -from which I could not free myself, weighing down my soul and oppressing -me. - -At the ample, well-lighted entrance, I met the porter, who politely made -way for me. An English family was also at the door. A portly, handsome, and -tall gentleman, with black side-whiskers, in a black hat, and with a plaid -on one arm, while in his hand he carried a costly cane, came out slowly and -full of importance. Leaning on his arm was a lady, who wore a raw silk -dress and bonnet with bright ribbons and the most costly laces. Together -with them was a pretty, fresh-looking young lady, in a graceful Swiss hat -with a feather _ŕ la mousquetaire_; from under it escaped long light-yellow -curls softly encircling her fair face. In front of them skipped a buxom -girl of ten, with round white knees which showed from under her thin -embroideries. "Magnificent night!" the lady was saying in a sweet, happy -voice, as I passed them. - -"Oh, yes," growled the Englishman lazily; and it was evident that he found -it so enjoyable to be alive in the world, that it was too much trouble even -to speak. - -And it seemed as though all of them alike found it so comfortable and easy, -so light and free, to be alive in the world, their faces and motions -expressed such perfect indifference to the lives of every one else, and -such absolute confidence that it was to them that the porter made way and -bowed so profoundly, and that when they returned they would find clean, -comfortable beds and rooms, and that all this was bound to be, and was -their indefeasible right, that I involuntarily contrasted them with the -wandering minstrel who weary, perhaps hungry, full of shame, was retreating -before the laughing crowd. And then suddenly I comprehended what it was -that oppressed my heart with such a load of heaviness, and I felt an -indescribable anger against these people. - -Twice I walked up and down past the Englishman, and each time, without -turning out for him, my elbow punched him, which gave me a feeling of -indescribable satisfaction; and then, darting down the steps, I hastened -through the darkness in the direction toward the city taken by the little -man. - -Overtaking the three men who had been walking together, I asked them where -the singer was; they laughed, and pointed straight ahead. There he was, -walking alone with brisk steps; no one was with him; all the time, as it -seemed to me, he was indulging in bitter monologue. - -I caught up with him, and proposed to him to go somewhere with me and drink -a bottle of wine. He kept on with his rapid walk, and scarcely deigned to -look at me; but when he perceived what I was saying, he halted. - -"Well, I would not refuse, if you would be so kind," said he; "here is a -little café, we can go in there. It's not fashionable," he added, pointing -to a drinking-saloon that was still open. - -His expression "not fashionable" involuntarily suggested the idea of not -going to an unfashionable café, but to go to the Schweitzerhof, where those -who had been listening to him were. Notwithstanding the fact that several -times he showed a sort of timid disquietude at the idea of going to the -Schweitzerhof, declaring that it was too fine for him there, still I -insisted in carrying out my purpose; and he, putting the best face on the -matter, gayly swinging his guitar, went back with me across the quay. - -A few loiterers who had happened along as I was talking with the minstrel, -and had stopped to hear what I had to say, now, after arguing among -themselves, followed us to the very entrance of the hotel, evidently -expecting from the Tyrolese some further demonstration. - -I ordered a bottle of wine of a waiter whom I met in the hall. The waiter -smiled and looked at us, and went by without answering. The head waiter, to -whom I addressed myself with the same order, listened to me solemnly, and, -measuring the minstrel's modest little figure from head to foot, sternly -ordered the waiter to take us to the room at the left. - -The room at the left was a bar-room for simple people. In the corner of -this room a hunch-backed maid was washing dishes. The whole furniture -consisted of bare wooden tables and benches. - -The waiter who came to serve us looked at us with a supercilious smile, -thrust his hands in his pockets, and exchanged some remarks with the -humpbacked dish-washer. He evidently tried to give us to understand that he -felt himself immeasurably higher than the minstrel, both in dignity and -social position, so that he considered it not only an indignity, but even -an actual joke, that he was called upon to serve us. - -"Do you wish _vin ordinaire_?" he asked with a knowing look, winking toward -my companion, and switching his napkin from one hand to the other. - -"Champagne, and your very best," said I, endeavoring to assume my -haughtiest and most imposing appearance. - -But neither my champagne, nor my endeavor to look haughty and imposing, had -the least effect on the servant: he smiled incredulously, loitered a moment -or two gazing at us, took time enough to glance at his gold watch, and with -leisurely steps, as though going out for a walk, left the room. - -Soon he returned with the wine, bringing two other waiters with him. These -two sat down near the dish-washer, and gazed at us with amused attention -and a bland smile, just as parents gaze at their children when they are -gently playing. Only the dish-washer, it seemed to me, did not look at us -scornfully but sympathetically. - -Though it was trying and awkward to lunch with the minstrel, and to play -the entertainer, under the fire of all these waiters' eyes, I tried to do -my duty with as little constraint as possible. In the lighted room I could -see him better. He was a small but symmetrically built and muscular man, -though almost a dwarf in stature; he had bristly black hair, teary big -black eyes, bushy eyebrows, and a thoroughly pleasant, attractively shaped -mouth. He had little side-whiskers, his hair was short, his attire was very -simple and mean. He was not over-clean, was ragged and sunburnt, and in -general had the look of a laboring-man. He was far more like a poor -tradesman than an artist. - -Only in his ever humid and brilliant eyes, and in his firm mouth, was there -any sign of originality or genius. By his face it might be conjectured that -his age was between twenty-five and forty; in reality, he was -thirty-seven. - -Here is what he related to me, with good-natured readiness and evident -sincerity, of his life. He was a native of Aargau. In early childhood he -had lost father and mother; other relatives he had none. He had never owned -any property. He had been apprenticed to a carpenter; but twenty-two years -previously one of his hands had been attacked by caries, which had -prevented him from ever working again. - -From childhood he had been fond of singing, and he began to be a singer. -Occasionally strangers had given him money. With this he had learned his -profession, bought his guitar, and now for eighteen years he had been -wandering about through Switzerland and Italy, singing before hotels. His -whole luggage consisted of his guitar, and a little purse in which, at the -present time, there was only half a franc. That would have to suffice for -supper and lodgings this night. - -Every year now for eighteen years he had made the round of the best and -most popular resorts of Switzerland,--Zurich, Lucerne, Interlaken, -Chamounix, etc.; by the way of the St. Bernard he would go down into Italy, -and return over the St. Gothard, or through Savoy. Just at present it was -rather hard for him to walk, as he had caught a cold, causing him to suffer -from some trouble in his legs,--he called it rheumatism,--which grew more -severe from year to year; and, moreover, his voice and eyes had grown -weaker. Nevertheless, he was on his way to Interlaken, Aix-les-Bains, and -thence over the Little St. Bernard to Italy, which he was very fond of. It -was evident that on the whole he was well content with his life. - -When I asked him why he returned home, if he had any relatives there, or a -house and land, his mouth parted in a gay smile, and he replied, "_Oui, le -sucre est bon, il est doux pour les enfants!_" and he winked at the -servants. - -I did not catch his meaning, but the group of servants burst out laughing. - -"No, I have nothing of the sort, but still I should always want to go -back," he explained to me. "I go home because there is always a something -that draws one to one's native place." And once more he repeated with a -shrewd, self-satisfied smile, his phrase, "_Oui, le sucre est bon_," and -then laughed good-naturedly. - -The servants were very much amused, and laughed heartily; only the -hunch-backed dish-washer looked earnestly from her big kindly eyes at the -little man, and picked up his cap for him, when, as we talked, he once -knocked it off the bench. I have noticed that wandering minstrels, -acrobats, even jugglers, delight in calling themselves artists, and several -times I hinted to my comrade that he was an artist; but he did not at all -accept this designation, but with perfect simplicity looked upon his work -as a means of existence. - -When I asked him if he had not himself written the songs which he sang, he -showed great surprise at such a strange question, and replied that the -words of whatever he sang were all of old Tyrolese origin. - -"But how about that song of the Righi? I think that cannot be very -ancient," I suggested. - -"Oh, that was composed about fifteen years ago. There was a German in -Basel; he was a clever man; it was he who composed it. A splendid song. You -see he composed it especially for travellers." And he began to repeat the -words of the Righi song, which he liked so well, translating them into -French as he went along. - - "_If you wish to go to Righi, - You will not need shoes to Wegis, - (For you go that far by steamboat), - But from Wegis take a stout staff, - Also take upon your arm a maiden; - Drink a glass of wine on starting, - Only do not drink too freely, - For if you desire to drink here, - You must earn the right to, first._" - -"Oh! a splendid song!" he exclaimed, as he finished. - -The servants, evidently, also found the song much to their mind, because -they came up closer to us. - -"Yes, but who was it composed the music?" I asked. - -"Oh, no one at all; you know you must have something new when you are going -to sing for strangers." - -When the ice was brought, and I had given my comrade a glass of champagne, -he seemed somewhat ill at ease, and, glancing at the servants, he turned -and twisted on the bench. - -We touched our glasses to the health of all artists; he drank half a glass, -then he seemed to be collecting his ideas, and knit his brows in deep -thought. - -"It is long since I have tasted such wine, _je ne vous dis que ça_. In -Italy the _vino d'Asti_ is excellent, but this is still better. Ah! Italy; -it is splendid to be there!" he added. - -"Yes, there they know how to appreciate music and artists," said I, trying -to bring him round to the evening's mischance before the Schweitzerhof. - -"No," he replied. "There, as far as music is concerned, I cannot give -anybody satisfaction. The Italians are themselves musicians,--none like -them in the world; but I know only Tyrolese songs. They are something of a -novelty to them, though." - -"Well, you find rather more generous gentlemen there, don't you?" I went on -to say, anxious to make him share in my resentment against the guests of -the Schweitzerhof. "There it would not be possible to find a big hotel -frequented by rich people, where, out of a hundred listening to an artist's -singing, not one would give him any thing." - -My question utterly failed of the effect that I expected. It did not enter -his head to be indignant with them: on the contrary, he saw in my remark an -implied slur upon his talent which had failed of its reward, and he -hastened to set himself right before me. "It is not every time that you get -any thing," he remarked; "sometimes one isn't in good voice, or you are -tired; now to-day I have been walking ten hours, and singing almost all the -time. That is hard. And these important aristocrats do not always care to -listen to Tyrolese songs." - -"But still, how can they help giving?" I insisted. - -He did not comprehend my remark. - -"That's nothing," he said; "but here the principal thing is, _on est tres -serré pour la police_, that's what's the trouble. Here, according to these -republican laws, you are not allowed to sing; but in Italy you can go -wherever you please, no one says a word. Here, if they want to let you, -they let you; but if they don't want to, then they can throw you into -jail." - -"What? That's incredible!" - -"Yes, it is true. If you have been warned once, and are found singing -again, they may put you in jail. I was kept there three months once," he -said, smiling as though that were one of his pleasantest recollections. - -"Oh! that is terrible!" I exclaimed. "What was the reason?" - -"That was in consequence of one of the new republican laws," he went on to -explain, growing animated. "They cannot comprehend here that a poor fellow -must earn his living somehow. If I were not a cripple, I would work. But -what harm do I do to any one in the world by my singing? What does it mean? -The rich can live as they wish, _un pauvre tiaple_ like myself can't live -at all. What kind of laws are these republican ones? If that is the way -they run, then we don't want a republic: isn't that so, my dear sir? We -don't want a republic, but we want--we simply want--we want"--he hesitated -a little,--"we want natural laws." - -I filled up his glass. "You are not drinking," I said. - -He took the glass in his hand, and bowed to me. - -"I know what you wish," he said, blinking his eyes at me, and threatening -me with his finger. "You wish to make me drunk, so as to see what you can -get out of me; but no, you sha'n't have that gratification." - -"Why should I make you drunk?" I inquired. "All I wished was to give you a -pleasure." - -He seemed really sorry that he had offended me by interpreting my -insistence so harshly. He grew confused, stood up, and touched my elbow. - -"No, no," said he, looking at me with a beseeching expression in his moist -eyes. "I was only joking." - -And immediately after he made use of some horribly uncultivated slang -expression, intended to signify that I was, nevertheless, a fine young man. -"_Je ne vous dis que ça_," he said in conclusion. In this fashion the -minstrel and I continued to drink and converse; and the waiters continued -unceremoniously to stare at us, and, as it seemed, to make ridicule of us. - -In spite of the interest which our conversation aroused in me, I could not -avoid taking notice of their behavior; and I confess I began to grow more -and more angry. - -One of the waiters arose, came up to the little man, and, regarding the top -of his head, began to smile. I was already full of wrath against the -inmates of the hotel, and had not yet had a chance to pour it out on any -one; and now I confess I was in the highest degree irritated by this -audience of waiters. - -The porter, not removing his hat, came into the room, and sat down near me, -leaning his elbows on the table. This last circumstance, which was so -insulting to my dignity or my vainglory, completely enraged me, and gave an -outlet for all the wrath which all the evening long had been boiling within -me. I asked myself why he had so humbly bowed when he had met me before, -and now, because I was sitting with the travelling minstrel, he came and -took his place near me so rudely? I was entirely overmastered by that -boiling, angry indignation which I enjoy in myself, which I sometimes -endeavor to stimulate when it comes over me, because it has an exhilarating -effect upon me, and gives me, if only for a short time, a certain -extraordinary flexibility, energy, and strength in all my physical and -moral faculties. - -I leaped to my feet. - -"Whom are you laughing at?" I screamed at the waiter; and I felt my face -turn pale, and my lips involuntarily set together. - -"I am not laughing," replied the waiter, moving away from me. - -"Yes, you are: you are laughing at this gentleman. And what right have you -to come, and to take a seat here, when there are guests? Don't you dare to -sit down!" - -The porter, muttering something, got up, and turned to the door. - -"What right have you to make sport of this gentleman, and to sit down by -him, when he is a guest, and you are a waiter? Why didn't you laugh at me -this evening at dinner, and come and sit down beside me? Because he is -meanly dressed, and sings in the streets? Is that the reason? and because I -have better clothes? He is poor, but he is a thousand times better than you -are; that I am sure of, because he has never insulted any one, but you have -insulted him." - -"I didn't mean any thing," replied my enemy the waiter. "Perhaps I -disturbed him by sitting down." - -The waiter did not understand me, and my German was wasted on him. The rude -porter was about to take the waiter's part; but I fell upon him so -impetuously that the porter pretended not to understand me, and waved his -hand. - -The hunch-backed dish-washer, either because she perceived my wrathful -state, and feared a scandal, or possibly because she shared my views, took -my part, and, trying to force her way between me and the porter, told him -to hold his tongue, saying that I was right, but at the same time urging me -to calm myself. - -"_Der Herr hat Recht; Sie haben Recht_," she said over and over again. The -minstrel's face presented a most pitiable, terrified expression; and -evidently he did not understand why I was angry, and what I wanted: and he -urged me to let him go away as soon as possible. - -But the eloquence of wrath burned within me more and more. I understood it -all,--the throng that had made merry at his expense, and his auditors who -had not given him any thing; and not for all the world would I have held my -peace. - -I believe, that, if the waiters and the porter had not been so submissive, -I should have taken delight in having a brush with them, or striking the -defenceless English lady on the head with a stick. If at that moment I had -been at Sevastópol, I should have taken delight in devoting myself to -slaughtering and killing in the English trench. - -"And why did you take this gentleman and me into this room, and not into -the other? What?" I thundered at the porter, seizing him by the arm so that -he could not escape from me. "What right had you to judge by his appearance -that this gentleman must be served in this room, and not in that? Have not -all guests who pay, equal rights in hotels? Not only in a republic, but in -all the world! Your scurvy republic!... Equality, indeed! You would not -dare to take an Englishman into this room, not even those Englishmen who -have heard this gentleman free of cost; that is, who have stolen from him, -each one of them, the few centimes which ought to have been given to him. -How did you dare to take us to this room?" - -"That room is closed," said the porter. - -"No," I cried, "that isn't true; it isn't closed." - -"Then you know best." - -"I know,--I know that you are lying." - -The porter turned his back on me. - -"Eh! What is to be said?" he muttered. - -"What is to be said?" I cried. "You conduct us instanter into that room!" - -In spite of the dish-washer's warning, and the entreaties of the minstrel, -who would have preferred to go home, I insisted on seeing the head waiter, -and went with my guest into the big dining-room. The head waiter, hearing -my angry voice, and seeing my menacing face, avoided a quarrel, and, with -contemptuous servility, said that I might go wherever I pleased. I could -not prove to the porter that he had lied, because he had hastened out of -sight before I went into the hall. - -The dining-room was, in fact, open and lighted; and at one of the tables -sat an Englishman and a lady, eating their supper. Although we were shown -to a special table, I took the dirty minstrel to the very one where the -Englishman was, and bade the waiter bring to us there the unfinished -bottle. - -The two guests at first looked with surprised, then with angry, eyes at the -little man, who, more dead than alive, was sitting near me. They talked -together in a low tone; then the lady pushed back her plate, her silk dress -rustled, and both of them left the room. Through the glass doors I saw the -Englishman saying something in an angry voice to the waiter, and pointing -with his hand in our direction. The waiter put his head through the door, -and looked at us. I waited with pleasurable anticipation for some one to -come and order us out, for then I could have found a full outlet for all my -indignation. But fortunately, though at the time I felt injured, we were -left in peace. The minstrel, who before had fought shy of the wine, now -eagerly drank all that was left in the bottle, so that he might make his -escape as quickly as possible. - -He, however, expressed his gratitude with deep feeling, as it seemed to me, -for his entertainment. His teary eyes grew still more humid and brilliant, -and he made use of a most strange and complicated phrase of gratitude. But -still very pleasant to me was the sentence in which he said that if -everybody treated artists as I had been doing, it would be very good, and -ended by wishing me all manner of happiness. We went out into the hall -together. There stood the servants, and my enemy the porter apparently -airing his grievances against me before them. All of them, I thought, -looked at me as though I were a man who had lost his wits. I treated the -little man exactly like an equal, before all that audience of servants; and -then, with all the respect that I was able to express in my behavior, I -took off my hat, and pressed his hand with its dry and hardened fingers. - -The servants made believe not pay the slightest attention to me. One of -them only indulged in a sarcastic laugh. - -As soon as the minstrel had bowed himself out, and disappeared in the -darkness, I went up-stairs to my room, intending to sleep off all these -impressions and the foolish childish anger which had come upon me so -unexpectedly. But finding that I was too much excited to sleep, I once more -went down into the street with the intention of walking until I should have -recovered my equanimity, and, I must confess, with the secret hope that I -might accidentally come across the porter or the waiter or the Englishman, -and show them all their rudeness, and, most of all, their unfairness. But -beyond the porter, who when he saw me turned his back, I met no one; and I -began to promenade in absolute solitude along the quay. - -"This is an example of the strange fate of poetry," said I to myself, -having grown a little calmer. "All love it, all are in search of it; it is -the only thing in life that men love and seek, and yet no one recognizes -its power, no one prizes this best treasure of the world, and those who -give it to men are not rewarded. Ask any one you please, ask all these -guests of the Schweitzerhof, what is the most precious treasure in the -world, and all, or ninety-nine out of a hundred, putting on a sardonic -expression, will say that the best thing in the world is money. - -"'Maybe, though, this does not please you, or coincide with your elevated -ideas,' it will be urged, 'but what is to be done if human life is so -constituted that money alone is capable of giving a man happiness? I cannot -force my mind not to see the world as it is,' it will be added, 'that is, -to see the truth.' - -"Pitiable is your intellect, pitiable the happiness which you desire! And -you yourselves, unhappy creatures, not knowing what you desire, ... why -have you all left your fatherland, your relatives, your money-making trades -and occupations, and come to this little Swiss city of Lucerne? Why did you -all this evening gather on the balconies, and in respectful silence listen -to the little beggar's song? And if he had been willing to sing longer, you -would have been silent and listened longer. What! could money, even -millions of it, have driven you all from your country, and brought you all -together in this little nook of Lucerne? Could money have gathered you all -on the balconies to stand for half an hour silent and motionless? No! One -thing compels you to do it, and will forever have a stronger influence than -all the other impulses of life: the longing for poetry which you know, -which you do not realize, but feel, always will feel so long as you have -any human sensibilities. The word 'poetry' is a mockery to you; you make -use of it as a sort of ridiculous reproach; you regard the love for poetry -as something meet for children and silly girls, and you make sport of them -for it. For yourselves you must have something more definite. - -"But children look upon life in a healthy way: they recognize and love what -man ought to love, and what gives happiness. But life has so deceived and -perverted you, that you ridicule the only thing that you really love, and -you seek for what you hate and for what gives you unhappiness. - -"You are so perverted that you did not perceive what obligations you were -under to the poor Tyrolese who rendered you a pure delight; but at the same -time you feel yourselves needlessly obliged to bow before some lord, which -gives you neither pleasure nor profit, but rather causes you to sacrifice -your comfort and convenience. What absurdity! what incomprehensible lack of -reason! - -"But it was not this that made the most powerful impression upon me this -evening. This blindness to all that gives happiness, this unconsciousness -of poetic enjoyment, I can almost comprehend, or at least I have become -wonted to it, since I have almost everywhere met with it in the course of -my life; the harsh, unconscious churlishness of the crowd was no novelty to -me: whatever those who argue in favor of popular sentiment may say, the -throng is a conglomeration of very possibly good people, but of people who -touch each other only on their coarse animal sides, and express only the -weakness and harshness of human nature. But how was it that you, children -of a humane people, you Christians, you simple people, repaid with coldness -and ridicule the poor beggar who gave you a pure enjoyment? But no, in -your country there are asylums for beggars. There are no beggars, there can -be none; and there can be no feelings of sympathy, since that would be a -confession that beggary existed. - -"But he labored, he gave you enjoyment, he besought you to give him -something of your superfluity in payment for his labor of which you took -advantage. But you looked upon him with a cool smile as upon one of the -curiosities in your lofty brilliant palaces; and though there were a -hundred of you, favored with happiness and wealth, not one man or one woman -among you gave him a _sou_. Abashed he went away from you, and the -thoughtless throng, laughing, followed and ridiculed not you, but him, -because you were cold, harsh, and dishonorable; because you robbed him in -receiving the entertainment which he gave you: for this they jeered _him_. - -"'_On the 19th of July, 1857, before the Schweitzerhof Hotel, in which were -lodging very opulent people, a wandering beggar minstrel sang for half an -hour his songs, and played his guitar. About a hundred people listened to -him. The minstrel thrice asked you all to give him something. No one person -gave him a thing, and many made sport of him._' - -"This is not an invention, but an actual fact, as those who desire can find -out for themselves by consulting the papers for the list of those who were -at the Schweitzerhof on the 19th of July. - -"This is an event which the historians of our time ought to describe in -letters of inextinguishable flame. This event is more significant and more -serious, and fraught with far deeper meaning, than the facts that are -printed in newspapers and histories. That the English have killed several -thousand Chinese because the Chinese would not sell them any thing for -money while their land is overflowing with ringing coins; that the French -have killed several thousand Kabyles because the wheat grows well in -Africa, and because constant war is essential for the drill of an army; -that the Turkish ambassador in Naples must not be a Jew; and that the -Emperor Napoleon walks about in Plombičres, and gives his people the -express assurance that he rules only in direct accordance with the will of -the people,--all these are words which darken or reveal something long -known. But the episode that took place in Lucerne on the 19th of July seems -to me something entirely novel and strange, and it is connected not with -the everlastingly ugly side of human nature, but with a well-known epoch in -the development of society. This fact is not for the history of human -activities, but for the history of progress and civilization. - -"Why is it that this inhuman fact, impossible in any country,--Germany, -France, or Italy,--is quite possible here where civilization, freedom, and -equality are carried to the highest degree of development, where there are -gathered together the most civilized travellers from the most civilized -nations? Why is it that these cultivated human beings, generally capable of -every honorable human action, had no hearty, human feeling for one good -deed? Why is it that these people who in their palaces, their meetings, and -their societies, labor warmly for the condition of the celibate Chinese in -India, about the spread of Christianity and culture in Africa, about the -formation of societies for attaining all perfection,--why is it that they -should not find in their souls the simple, primitive feeling of human -sympathy? Has such a feeling entirely disappeared, and has its place been -taken by vainglory, ambition, and cupidity, governing these men in their -palaces, meetings, and societies? Has the spreading of that reasonable, -egotistical association of people, which we call civilization, destroyed -and rendered nugatory the desire for instinctive and loving association? -And is this that boasted equality for which so much innocent blood has been -shed, and so many crimes have been perpetrated? Is it possible that -nations, like children, can be made happy by the mere sound of the word -'equality'? - -"Equality before the law? Does the whole life of a people revolve within -the sphere of law? Only the thousandth part of it is subject to the law: -the rest lies outside of it, in the sphere of the customs and intuitions of -society. - -"But in society the lackey is better dressed than the minstrel, and insults -him with impunity. I am better dressed than the lackey, and insult him with -impunity. The porter considers me higher, but the minstrel lower, than -himself; when I made the minstrel my companion, he felt that he was on an -equality with us both, and behaved rudely. I was impudent to the porter, -and the porter acknowledged that he was inferior to me. The waiter was -impudent to the minstrel, and the minstrel accepted the fact that he was -inferior to the waiter. - -"And is that government free, even though men seriously call it free, where -a single citizen can be thrown into prison because, without harming any -one, without interfering with any one, he does the only thing that he can -to prevent himself from dying of starvation? - -"A wretched, pitiable creature is man with his craving for positive -solutions, thrown into this everlastingly tossing, limitless ocean of -_good_ and _evil_, of combinations and contradictions. For centuries men -have been struggling and laboring to put the _good_ on one side, the _evil_ -on the other. Centuries will pass, and no matter how much the unprejudiced -mind may strive to decide where the balance lies between the _good_ and the -_evil_, the scales will refuse to tip the beam, and there will always be -equal quantities of the _good_ and the _evil_ on each scale. - -"If only man would learn to form judgments, and not to indulge in rash and -arbitrary thoughts, and not to make reply to questions that are propounded -merely to remain forever unanswered! If only he would learn that every -thought is both a lie and a truth!--a lie from the one-sidedness and -inability of man to recognize all truth; and true because it expresses one -side of mortal endeavor. There are divisions in this everlastingly -tumultuous, endless, endlessly confused chaos of the _good_ and the _evil_. -They have drawn imaginary lines over this ocean, and they contend that the -ocean is really thus divided. - -"But are there not millions of other possible subdivisions from absolutely -different standpoints, in other planes? Certainly these novel subdivisions -will be made in centuries to come, just as millions of different ones have -been made in centuries past. - -"Civilization is _good_, barbarism is _evil_; freedom, _good_; slavery, -_evil_. Now, this imaginary knowledge annihilates the instinctive, -beatific, primitive craving for the _good_ that is in human nature. And who -will explain to me what is freedom, what is despotism, what is -civilization, what is barbarism? - -"Where are the boundaries that separate them? And whose soul possesses so -absolute a standard of good and evil as to measure these fleeting, -complicated facts? Whose wit is so great as to comprehend and weigh all the -facts in the irretrievable past? And who can find any circumstance in which -there is no union of _good_ and _evil_? And because I know that I see more -of one than of the other, is it not because my standpoint is wrong? And who -has the ability to separate himself so absolutely from life, even for a -moment, as to look upon it from above? - -"One, only one infallible Guide we have,--the universal Spirit which -penetrates all collectively and as units, which has endowed each of us with -the craving for the right; the Spirit which impels the tree to grow toward -the sun, which stimulates the flower in autumn-tide to scatter its seed, -and which obliges each one of us unconsciously to draw closer together. And -this one unerring, inspiring voice rings out louder than the noisy, hasty -development of culture. - -"Who is the greater man, and who the greater barbarian,--that lord, who, -seeing the minstrel's well-worn clothes, angrily left the table, who gave -him not the millionth part of his possessions in payment of his labor, and -now lazily sitting in his brilliant, comfortable room, calmly opines about -the events that are happening in China, and justifies the massacres that -have been done there; or the little minstrel, who, risking imprisonment, -with a franc in his pocket, and doing no harm to any one, has been going -about for a score of years, up hill and down dale, rejoicing men's hearts -with his songs, though they have jeered at him, and almost cast him out of -the pale of humanity; and who, in weariness and cold and shame, has gone -off to sleep, no one knows where, on his filthy straw?" - -At this moment, from the city, through the dead silence of the night, far, -far away, I caught the sound of the little man's guitar and his voice. - -"No," something involuntarily said to me, "you have no right to commiserate -the little man, or to blame the lord for his well-being. Who can weigh the -inner happiness which is found in the soul of each of these men? There he -stands somewhere in the muddy road, and gazes at the brilliant moonlit sky, -and gayly sings amid the smiling, fragrant night; in his soul there is no -reproach, no anger, no regret. And who knows what is transpiring now in the -hearts of all these men within those opulent, brilliant rooms? Who knows if -they all have as much unencumbered, sweet delight in life, and as much -satisfaction with the world, as dwells in the soul of that little man? - -"Endless are the mercy and wisdom of Him who has permitted and formed all -these contradictions. Only to thee, miserable little worm of the dust, -audaciously, lawlessly attempting to fathom His laws, His designs,--only to -thee do they seem like contradictions. - -"Full of love He looks down from His bright, immeasurable height, and -rejoices in the endless harmony in which you all move in endless -contradictions. In thy pride thou hast thought thyself able to separate -thyself from the laws of the universe. No, thou also, with thy petty, -ridiculous anger against the waiters,--thou also hast disturbed the -harmonious craving for the eternal and the infinite.".... - - - - -RECOLLECTIONS OF A SCORER. - -_A STORY._ - - -Well, it happened about three o'clock. The gentlemen were playing. There -was the big stranger, as our men called him. The prince was there,--the two -are always together. The whiskered bárin was there; also the little hussar, -Oliver, who was an actor, and there was the _pan_.[50] It was a pretty good -crowd. - -[Footnote 50: Polish name for lord or gentleman.] - -The big stranger and the prince were playing together. Now, here I was -walking up and down around the billiard-table with my stick, keeping -tally,--ten and forty-seven, twelve and forty-seven. - -Everybody knows it's our business to score. You don't get a chance to get a -bite of any thing, and you don't get to bed till two o'clock o' nights, but -you're always being screamed at to bring the balls. - -I was keeping tally; and I look, and see a new bárin comes in at the door. -He gazed and gazed, and then sat down on the sofa. Very well! - -"Now, who can that be?" thinks I to myself. "He must be somebody." - -His dress was neat,--neat as a pin,--checkered tricot pants, stylish little -short coat, plush vest, and gold chain and all sorts of trinkets dangling -from it. - -He was dressed neat; but there was something about the man neater still; -slim, tall, his hair brushed forward in style, and his face fair and -ruddy,--well, in a word, a fine young fellow. - -You must know our business brings us into contact with all sorts of people. -And there's many that ain't of much consequence, and there's a good deal of -poor trash. So, though you're only a scorer, you get used to telling folks; -that is, in a certain way you learn a thing or two. - -I looked at the bárin. I see him sit down, modest and quiet, not knowing -anybody; and the clothes on him are so bran-new, that thinks I, "Either -he's a foreigner,--an Englishman maybe,--or some count just come. And -though he's so young, he has an air of some distinction." Oliver sat down -next him, so he moved along a little. - -They began a game. The big man lost. He shouts to me. Says he, "You're -always cheating. You don't count straight. Why don't you pay attention?" - -He scolded away, then threw down his cue, and went out. Now, just look -here! Evenings, he and the prince plays for fifty silver rubles a game; and -here he only lost a bottle of Makon wine, and got mad. That's the kind of a -character he is. - -Another time he and the prince plays till two o'clock. They don't bank down -any cash; and so I know neither of them's got any cash, but they are simply -playing a bluff game. - -"I'll go you twenty-five rubles," says he. - -"All right." - -Just yawning, and not even stopping to place the ball,--you see, he was not -made of stone,--now just notice what he said. "We are playing for money," -says he, "and not for chips." - -But this man puzzled me worse than all the rest. Well, then, when the big -man left, the prince says to the new bárin, "Wouldn't you like," says he, -"to play a game with me?" - -"With pleasure," says he. - -He sat there, and looked rather foolish, indeed he did. He may have been -courageous in reality; but, at all events, he got up, went over to the -billiard-table, and did not seem flustered as yet. He was not exactly -flustered, but you couldn't help seeing that he was not quite at his ease. - -Either his clothes were a little too new, or he was embarrassed because -everybody was looking at him; at any rate, he seemed to have no energy. He -sort of sidled up to the table, caught his pocket on the edge, began to -chalk his cue, dropped his chalk. - -Whenever he hit the ball, he always glanced around, and reddened. Not so -the prince. He was used to it; he chalked and chalked his hand, tucked up -his sleeve; he goes and sits down when he pockets the ball, even though he -is such a little man. - -They played two or three games; then I notice the prince puts up the cue, -and says, "Would you mind telling me your name?" - -"Nekhliudof," says he. - -Says the prince, "Was your father commander in the corps of cadets?" - -"Yes," says the other. - -Then they began to talk in French, and I could not understand them. I -suppose they were talking about family affairs. - -"_Au revoir_," says the prince. "I am very glad to have made your -acquaintance." He washed his hands, and went to get a lunch; but the other -stood by the billiard-table with his cue, and was knocking the balls about. - -It's our business, you know, when a new man comes along, to be rather -sharp: it's the best way. I took the balls, and go to put them up. He -reddened, and says, "Can't I play any longer?" - -"Certainly you can," says I. "That's what billiards is for." But I don't -pay any attention to him. I straighten the cues. - -"Will you play with me?" - -"Certainly, sir," says I. - -I place the balls. - -"Shall we play for odds?" - -"What do you mean,--'play for odds'?" - -"Well," says I, "you give me a half-ruble, and I crawl under the table." - -Of course, as he had never seen that sort of thing, it seemed strange to -him: he laughs. - -"Go ahead," says he. - -"Very well," says I, "only you must give me odds." - -"What!" says he, "are you a worse player than I am?" - -"Most likely," says I. "We have few players who can be compared with you." - -We began to play. He certainly had the idea that he was a crack shot. It -was a caution to see him shoot; but the Pole sat there, and kept shouting -out every time,-- - -"Ah, what a chance! ah, what a shot!" - -But what a man he was! His ideas were good enough, but he didn't know how -to carry them out. Well, as usual I lost the first game, crawled under the -table, and grunted. - -Thereupon Oliver and the Pole jumped down from their seats, and applauded, -thumping with their cues. - -"Splendid! Do it again," they cried, "once more." - -Well enough to cry "once more," especially for the Pole. That fellow would -have been glad enough to crawl under the billiard-table, or even under the -Blue bridge, for a half-ruble! Yet he was the first to cry, "Splendid! but -you haven't wiped off all the dust yet." - -I, Petrushka the marker, was pretty well known to everybody. - -Only, of course, I did not care to show my hand yet. I lost my second game. - -"It does not become me at all to play with you, sir," says I. - -He laughs. Then, as I was playing the third game, he stood forty-nine and I -nothing. I laid the cue on the billiard-table, and said, "Bárin, shall we -play off?" - -"What do you mean by playing off?" says he. "How would you have it?" - -"You make it three rubles or nothing," says I. - -"Why," says he, "have I been playing with you for money?" The fool! - -He turned rather red. - -Very good. He lost the game. He took out his pocket-book,--quite a new one, -evidently just from the English shop,--opened it: I see he wanted to make a -little splurge. It is stuffed full of bills,--nothing but hundred-ruble -notes. - -"No," says he, "there's no small stuff here." - -He took three rubles from his purse. "There," says he, "there's your two -rubles; the other pays for the games, and you keep the rest for vodka." - -"Thank you, sir, most kindly." I see that he is a splendid fellow. For such -a one I would crawl under any thing. For one thing, it's a pity that he -won't play for money. For then, thinks I, I should know how to work him for -twenty rubles, and maybe I could stretch it out to forty. - -As soon as the Pole saw the young man's money, he says, "Wouldn't you like -to try a little game with me? You play so admirably." Such sharpers prowl -around. - -"No," says the young man, "excuse me: I have not the time." And he went -out. - -I don't know who that man was, that Pole. Some one called him _Pan_ or the -Pole, and so it stuck to him. Every day he used to sit in the -billiard-room, and always look on. He was no longer allowed to take a hand -in any game whatever; but he always sat by himself, and got out his pipe, -and smoked. But then he could play well. - -Very good. Nekhliudof came a second time, a third time; he began to come -frequently. He would come morning and evening. He learned to play French -carom and pyramid pool,--every thing in fact. He became less bashful, got -acquainted with everybody, and played tolerably well. Of course, being a -young man of a good family, with money, everybody liked him. The only -exception was the "big guest:" he quarrelled with him. - -And the whole thing grew out of a trifle. - -They were playing pool,--the prince, the big guest, Nekhliudof, Oliver, and -some one else. Nekhliudof was standing near the stove talking with some -one. When it came the big man's turn to play, it happened that his ball -was just opposite the stove. There was very little space there, and he -liked to have elbow-room. - -Now, either he didn't see Nekhliudof, or he did it on purpose; but, as he -was flourishing his cue, he hit Nekhliudof in the chest, a tremendous rap. -It actually made him groan. What then? He did not think of apologizing, he -was so boorish. He even went further: he didn't look at him; he walks off -grumbling,-- - -"Who's jostling me there? It made me miss my shot. Why can't we have some -room?" - -Then the other went up to him, pale as a sheet, but quite self-possessed, -and says so politely,-- - -"You ought first, sir, to apologize: you struck me," says he. - -"Catch me apologizing now! I should have won the game," says he, "but now -you have spoiled it for me." - -Then the other one says, "You ought to apologize." - -"Get out of my way! I insist upon it, I won't." - -And he turned away to look after his ball. - -Nekhliudof went up to him, and took him by the arm. - -"You're a boor," says he, "my dear sir." - -Though he was a slender young fellow, almost like a girl, still he was all -ready for a quarrel. His eyes flash fire; he looks as if he could eat him -alive. The big guest was a strong, tremendous fellow, no match for -Nekhliudof. - -"Wha-at!" says he, "you call me a boor?" Yelling out these words, he raises -his hand to strike him. - -Then everybody there rushed up, and seized them both by the arms, and -separated them. - -After much talk, Nekhliudof says, "Let him give me satisfaction: he has -insulted me." - -"Not at all," said the other. "I don't care a whit about any satisfaction. -He's nothing but a boy, a mere nothing. I'll pull his ears for him." - -"If you aren't willing to give me satisfaction, then you are no gentleman." - -And, saying this, he almost cried. - -"Well, and you, you are a little boy: nothing you say or do can offend me." - -Well, we separated them,--led them off, as the custom is, to different -rooms. Nekhliudof and the prince were friends. - -"Go," says the former; "for God's sake make him listen to reason." - -The prince went. The big man says, "I ain't afraid of any one," says he. "I -am not going to have any explanation with such a baby. I won't do it, and -that's the end of it." - -Well, they talked and talked, and then the matter died out, only the big -guest ceased to come to us any more. - -As a result of this,--this row, I might call it,--he was regarded as quite -the cock of the walk. He was quick to take offence,--I mean Nekhliudof,--as -to so many other things, however, he was as unsophisticated as a new-born -babe. - -I remember once, the prince says to Nekhliudof, "Whom do you keep here?" - -"No one," says he. - -"What do you mean,--'no one'!" - -"Why should I?" says Nekhliudof. - -"How so,--why should you?" - -"I have always lived thus. Why shouldn't I continue to live the same way?" - -"You don't say so? Did you ever!" - -And saying this, the prince burst into a peal of laughter, and the -whiskered bárin also roared. They couldn't get over it. - -"What, never?" they asked. - -"Never!" - -They were dying with laughter. Of course I understood well enough what they -were laughing at him for. I keep my eyes open. "What," thinks I, "will come -of it?" - -"Come," says the prince, "come right off." - -"No; not for any thing," was his answer. - -"Now, that is absurd," says the prince. "Come along!" - -They went out. - -They came back at one o'clock. They sat down to supper; quite a crowd of -them were assembled. Some of our very best customers,--Atánof, Prince -Razin, Count Shustakh, Mirtsof. And all congratulate Nekhliudof, laughing -as they do so. They call me in: I see that they are pretty jolly. - -"Congratulate the bárin," they shout. - -"What on?" I ask. - -How did he call it? His initiation or his enlightenment; I can't remember -exactly. - -"I have the honor," says I, "to congratulate you." - -And he sits there very red in the face, yet he smiles. Didn't they have fun -with him though! - -Well and good. They went afterwards to the billiard-room, all very gay; and -Nekhliudof went up to the billiard-table, leaned on his elbow, and said,-- - -"It's amusing to you, gentlemen," says he, "but it's sad for me. Why," says -he, "did I do it? Prince," says he, "I shall never forgive you or myself -as long as I live." - -And he actually burst into tears. Evidently he did not know himself what he -was saying. The prince went up to him with a smile. - -"Don't talk nonsense," says he. "Let's go home, Anatoli." - -"I won't go anywhere," says the other. "Why did I do that?" - -And the tears poured down his cheeks. He would not leave the -billiard-table, and that was the end of it. That's what it means for a -young and inexperienced man to.... - -In this way he used often to come to us. Once he came with the prince, and -the whiskered man who was the prince's crony; the gentlemen always called -him "Fedotka." He had prominent cheek-bones, and was homely enough, to be -sure; but he used to dress neatly and ride in a carriage. What was the -reason that the gentlemen were so fond of him? I really could not tell. - -"Fedotka! Fedotka!" they'd call, and ask him to eat and to drink, and -they'd spend their money paying up for him; but he was a thorough-going -beat. If ever he lost, he would be sure not to pay; but if he won, you bet -he wouldn't fail to collect his money. Often too he came to grief: yet -there he was, walking arm in arm with the prince. - -"You are lost without me," he would say to the prince. "I am, Fedot,"[51] -says he; "but not a Fedot of that sort." - -[Footnote 51: _Fedot, da nyé tot_, an untranslatable play on the word.] - -And what jokes he used to crack, to be sure! Well, as I said, they had -already arrived that time, and one of them says, "Let's have the balls for -three-handed pool." - -"All right," says the other. - -They began to play at three rubles a stake. Nekhliudof and the prince play, -and chat about all sorts of things meantime. - -"Ah!" says one of them, "you mind only what a neat little foot she has." - -"Oh," says the other, "her foot is nothing; her beauty is her wealth of -hair." - -Of course they paid no attention to the game, only kept on talking to one -another. - -As to Fedotka, that fellow was alive to his work; he played his very best, -but they didn't do themselves justice at all. - -And so he won six rubles from each of them. God knows how many games he had -won from the prince, yet I never knew them to pay each other any money; but -Nekhliudof took out two greenbacks, and handed them over to him. - -"No," says he, "I don't want to take your money. Let's square it: play -'quits or double,'[52]--either double or nothing." - -[Footnote 52: _Kitudubl_ = Fr. _quitte ou double_.] - -I set the balls. Fedotka began to play the first hand. Nekhliudof seemed to -play only for fun: sometimes he would come very near winning a game, yet -just fail of it. Says he, "It would be too easy a move, I won't have it -so." But Fedotka did not forget what he was up to. Carelessly he proceeded -with the game, and thus, as if it were unexpectedly, won. - -"Let us play double stakes once more," says he. - -"All right," says Nekhliudof. - -Once more Fedotka won the game. - -"Well," says he, "it began with a mere trifle. I don't wish to win much -from you. Shall we make it once more or nothing?" - -"Yes." - -Say what you may, but fifty rubles is a pretty sum, and Nekhliudof himself -began to propose, "Let us make it double or quit." So they played and -played. - -It kept going worse and worse for Nekhliudof. Two hundred and eighty rubles -were written up against him. As to Fedotka, he had his own method: he would -lose a simple game, but when the stake was doubled, he would win sure. - -As for the prince, he sits by and looks on. He sees that the matter is -growing serious. - -"Enough!"[53] says he, "hold on." - -[Footnote 53: _asé_ = _assez_.] - -My! they keep increasing the stake. - -At last it went so far that Nekhliudof was in for more than five hundred -rubles. Fedotka laid down his cue, and said,-- - -"Aren't you satisfied for to-day? I'm tired," says he. - -Yet I knew he was ready to play till dawn of day, provided there was money -to be won. Stratagem, of course. And the other was all the more anxious to -go on. "Come on! Come on!" - -"No,--'pon my honor, I'm tired. Come," says Fedot; "let's go up-stairs; -there you shall have your revanche." - -Up-stairs with us meant the place where the gentlemen used to play cards. -From that very day, Fedotka wound his net round him so that he began to -come every day. He would play one or two games of billiards, and then -proceed up-stairs,--every day up-stairs. - -What they used to do there, God only knows; but it is a fact that from that -time he began to be an entirely different kind of man, and seemed hand in -glove with Fedotka. Formerly he used to be stylish, neat in his dress, with -his hair slightly curled even; but now it would be only in the morning that -he would be any thing like himself; but as soon as he had paid his visit -up-stairs, he would not be at all like himself. - -Once he came down from up-stairs with the prince, pale, his lips trembling, -and talking excitedly. - -"I cannot permit such a one as _he_ is," says he, "to say that I am -not"--How did he express himself? I cannot recollect, something like "not -refined enough," or what,--"and that he won't play with me any more. I tell -you I have paid him ten thousand, and I should think that he might be a -little more considerate, before others, at least." - -"Oh, bother!" says the prince, "is it worth while to lose one's temper with -Fedotka?" - -"No," says the other, "I will not let it go so." - -"Why, old fellow, how can you think of such a thing as lowering yourself to -have a row with Fedotka?" - -"That is all very well; but there were strangers there, mind you." - -"Well, what of that?" says the prince; "strangers? Well, if you wish, I -will go and make him ask your pardon." - -"No," says the other. - -And then they began to chatter in French, and I could not understand what -it was they were talking about. - -And what would you think of it? That very evening he and Fedotka ate supper -together, and they became friends again. - -Well and good. At other times again he would come alone. - -"Well," he would say, "do I play well?" - -It's our business, you know, to try to make everybody contented, and so I -would say, "Yes, indeed;" and yet how could it be called good play, when he -would poke about with his cue without any sense whatever? - -And from that very evening when he took in with Fedotka, he began to play -for money all the time. Formerly he didn't care to play for stakes, either -for a dinner or for champagne. Sometimes the prince would say,-- - -"Let's play for a bottle of champagne." - -"No," he would say. "Let us rather have the wine by itself. Hollo there! -bring a bottle!" - -And now he began to play for money all the time; he used to spend his -entire days in our establishment. He would either play with some one in the -billiard-room, or he would go "up-stairs." - -Well, thinks I to myself, every one else gets something from him, why don't -I get some advantage out of it? - -"Well, sir," says I one day, "it's a long time since you have had a game -with me." - -And so we began to play. Well, when I won ten half-rubles of him, I says,-- - -"Don't you want to make it double or quit, sir?" - -He said nothing. Formerly, if you remember, he would call me a fool for -such a boldness. And we went to playing "quit or double." - -I won eighty rubles of him. - -Well, what would you think? Since that first time he used to play with me -every day. He would wait till there was no one about, for of course he -would have been ashamed to play with a mere marker in presence of others. -Once he had got rather warmed up by the play (he already owed me sixty -rubles), and so he says,-- - -"Do you want to stake all you have won?" - -"All right," says I. - -I won. "One hundred and twenty to one hundred and twenty?" - -"All right," says I. - -Again I won. "Two hundred and forty against two hundred and forty?" - -"Isn't that too much?" I ask. - -He made no reply. We played the game. Once more it was mine. "Four hundred -and eighty against four hundred and eighty?" - -I says, "Well, sir, I don't want to wrong you. Let us make it a hundred -rubles that you owe me, and call it square." - -You ought to have heard how he yelled at this, and yet he was not a proud -man at all. "Either play, or don't play!" says he. - -Well, I see there's nothing to be done. "Three hundred and eighty, then, if -you please," says I. - -I really wanted to lose. I allowed him forty points in advance. He stood -fifty-two to my thirty-six. He began to cut the yellow one, and missed -eighteen points; and I was standing just at the turning-point. I made a -stroke so as to knock the ball off of the billiard-table. No--so luck would -have it. Do what I might, he even missed the doublet. I had won again. - -"Listen," says he. "Peter,"--he did not call me _Petrushka_ then,--"I can't -pay you the whole right away. In a couple of months I could pay three -thousand even, if it were necessary." - -And there he stood just as red, and his voice kind of trembled. - -"Very good, sir," says I. - -With this he laid down the cue. Then he began to walk up and down, up and -down, the perspiration running down his face. - -"Peter," says he, "let's try it again, double or quit." - -And he almost burst into tears. - -"What, sir, what! would you play against such luck?" - -"Oh, let us play, I beg of you." And he brings the cue, and puts it in my -hand. - -I took the cue, and I threw the balls on the table so that they bounced -over on to the floor; I could not help showing off a little, naturally. I -say, "All right, sir." - -But he was in such a hurry that he went and picked up the balls himself, -and I thinks to myself, "Anyway, I'll never be able to get the seven -hundred rubles from him, so I can lose them to him all the same." I began -to play carelessly on purpose. But no--he won't have it so. "Why," says he, -"you are playing badly on purpose." - -But his hands trembled, and when the ball went towards a pocket, his -fingers would spread out and his mouth would screw up to one side, as if he -could by any means force the ball into the pocket. Even I couldn't stand -it, and I say, "That won't do any good, sir." - -Very well. As he won this game I says, "This will make it one hundred and -eighty rubles you owe me, and fifty games; and now I must go and get my -supper." So I laid down my cue, and went off. - -I went and sat down all by myself, at a small table opposite the door; and -I look in and see, and wonder what he will do. Well, what would you think? -He began to walk up and down, up and down, probably thinking that no one's -looking at him; and then he would give a pull at his hair, and then walk up -and down again, and keep muttering to himself; and then he would pull his -hair again. - -After that he wasn't seen for a week. Once he came into the dining-room as -gloomy as could be, but he didn't enter the billiard-room. The prince -caught sight of him. - -"Come," says he, "let's have a game." - -"No," says the other, "I am not going to play any more." - -"Nonsense! come along." - -"No," says he, "I won't come, I tell you. For you it's all one whether I go -or not, yet for me it's no good to come here." - -And so he did not come for ten days more. And then, it being the holidays, -he came dressed up in a dress suit: he'd evidently been into company. And -he was here all day long; he kept playing, and he came the next day, and -the third.... - -And it began to go in the old style, and I thought it would be fine to have -another trial with him. - -"No," says he, "I'm not going to play with you; and as to the one hundred -and eighty rubles that I owe you, if you'll come at the end of a month, you -shall have it." - -Very good. So I went to him at the end of a month. - -"By God," says he, "I can't give it to you; but come back on Thursday." - -Well, I went on Thursday. I found that he had a splendid suite of -apartments. - -"Well," says I, "is he at home?" - -"He hasn't got up yet," I was told. - -"Very good, I will wait." - -For a body-servant he had one of his own serfs, such a gray-haired old man! -That servant was perfectly single-minded, he didn't know any thing about -beating about the bush. So we got into conversation. - -"Well," says he, "what is the use of our living here, master and I? He's -squandered all his property, and it's mighty little honor or good that we -get out of this Petersburg of yours. As we started from the country, I -thought it would be as it was with the last bárin (may his soul rest in -peace!), we would go about with princes and counts and generals; he thought -to himself, 'I'll find a countess for a sweetheart, and she'll have a big -dowry, and we'll live on a big scale.' But it's quite a different thing -from what he expected; here we are, running about from one tavern to -another as bad off as we could be! The Princess Rtishcheva, you know, is -his own aunt, and Prince Borotintsef is his godfather. What do you think? -He went to see them only once, that was at Christmas-time; he never shows -his nose there. Yes, and even their people laugh about it to me. 'Why,' -says they, 'your bárin is not a bit like his father!' And once I take it -upon myself to say to him,-- - -"'Why wouldn't you go, sir, and visit your aunt? They are feeling bad -because you haven't been for so long.' - -"'It's stupid there, Demyánitch,' says he. Just to think, he found his only -amusement here in the saloon! If he only would enter the service! yet, no: -he has got entangled with cards and all the rest of it. When men get going -that way, there's no good in any thing; nothing comes to any good.... -_E-ekh!_ we are going to the dogs, and no mistake.... The late mistress -(may her soul rest in peace!) left us a rich inheritance: no less than a -thousand souls, and about three hundred thousand rubles worth of -timber-lands. He has mortgaged it all, sold the timber, let the estate go -to rack and ruin, and still no money on hand. When the master is away, of -course, the overseer is more than the master. What does he care? He only -cares to stuff his own pockets. - -"A few days ago, a couple of peasants brought complaints from the whole -estate. 'He has wasted the last of the property,' they say. What do you -think? he pondered over the complaints, and gave the peasants ten rubles -apiece. Says he, 'I'll be there very soon. I shall have some money, and I -will settle all accounts when I come,' says he. - -"But how can he settle accounts when we are getting into debt all the time? -Money or no money, yet the winter here has cost eighty thousand rubles, and -now there isn't a silver ruble in the house. And all owing to his -kind-heartedness. You see, he's such a simple bárin that it would be hard -to find his equal: that's the very reason that he's going to ruin,--going -to ruin, all for nothing." And the old man almost wept. - -Nekhliudof woke up about eleven, and called me in. - -"They haven't sent me any money yet," says he. "But it isn't my fault. Shut -the door," says he. - -I shut the door. - -"Here," says he, "take my watch or this diamond pin, and pawn it. They -will give you more than one hundred and eighty rubles for it, and when I -get my money I will redeem it," says he. - -"No matter, sir," says I. "If you don't happen to have any money, it's no -consequence; let me have the watch if you don't mind. I can wait for your -convenience." - -I can see that the watch is worth more than three hundred. - -Very good. I pawned the watch for a hundred rubles, and carried him the -ticket. "You will owe me eighty rubles," says I, "and you had better redeem -the watch." - -And so it happened that he still owed me eighty rubles. - -After that he began to come to us again every day. I don't know how matters -stood between him and the prince, but at all events he kept coming with him -all the time, or else they would go and play cards up-stairs with Fedotka. -And what queer accounts those three men kept between them! this one would -lend money to the other, the other to the third, yet who it was that owed -the money you never could find out. - -And in this way he kept on coming our way for well-nigh two years; only it -was to be plainly seen that he was a changed man, such a devil-may-care -manner he assumed at times. He even went so far at times as to borrow a -ruble of me to pay a hack-driver; and yet he would still play with the -prince for a hundred rubles stake. - -He grew gloomy, thin, sallow. As soon as he came he used to order a little -glass of absinthe, take a bite of something, and drink some port wine, and -then he would grow more lively. - -He came one time before dinner; it happened to be carnival time, and he -began to play with a hussar. - -Says he, "Do you want to play for a stake?" - -"Very well," says he. "What shall it be?" - -"A bottle of Claude Vougeaux? What do you say?" - -"All right." - -Very good. The hussar won, and they went off for their dinner. They sat -down at table, and then Nekhliudof says, "Simon, a bottle of Claude -Vougeaux, and see that you warm it to the proper point." - -Simon went out, brought in the dinner, but no wine. - -"Well," says he, "where's the wine?" - -Simon hurried out, brought in the roast. - -"Let us have the wine," says he. - -Simon makes no reply. - -"What's got into you? Here we've almost finished dinner, and no wine. Who -wants to drink with dessert?" - -Simon hurried out. "The landlord," says he, "wants to speak to you." - -Nekhliudof turned scarlet. He sprang up from the table. - -"What's the need of calling me?" - -The landlord is standing at the door. - -Says he, "I can't trust you any more, unless you settle my little bill." - -"Well, didn't I tell you that I would pay the first of the month?" - -"That will be all very well," says the landlord, "but I can't be all the -time giving credit, and having no settlement. There are more than ten -thousand rubles of debts outstanding now," says he. - -"Well, that'll do, _monshoor_, you know that you can trust me! Send the -bottle, and I assure you that I will pay you very soon." - -And he hurried back. - -"What was it? Why did they call you out?" asked the hussar. - -"Oh, some one wanted to ask me a question." - -"Now it would be a good time," says the hussar, "to have a little warm wine -to drink." - -"Simon, hurry up!" - -Simon came back, but still no wine, nothing. Too bad! He left the table, -and came to me. - -"For God's sake," says he, "Petrushka, let me have six rubles!" - -He was pale as a sheet. "No, sir," says I: "by God, you owe me quite too -much now." - -"I will give forty rubles for six, in a week's time." - -"If only I had it," says I, "I should not think of refusing you, but I -haven't." - -What do you think! He rushed away, his teeth set, his fist doubled up, and -ran down the corridor like one mad, and all at once he gave himself a knock -on the forehead. - -"O my God!" says he, "what has it come to?" - -But he did not return to the dining-room; he jumped into a carriage, and -drove away. Didn't we have our laugh over it! The hussar asks,-- - -"Where is the gentleman who was dining with me?" - -"He has gone," said some one. - -"Where has he gone? What message did he leave?" - -"He didn't leave any; he just took to his carriage, and went off." - -"That's a fine way of entertaining a man!" says he. - -Now, thinks I to myself, it'll be a long time before he comes again after -this; that is, on account of this scandal. But no. On the next day he came -about evening. He came into the billiard-room. He had a sort of a box in -his hand. Took off his overcoat. - -"Now let us have a game," says he. - -He looked out from under his eyebrows, rather fierce like. - -We played a game. "That's enough now," says he: "go and bring me a pen and -paper; I must write a letter." - -Not thinking any thing, not suspecting any thing, I bring some paper, and -put it on the table in the little room. - -"It's all ready, sir," says I. - -"Very good." He sat down at the table. He kept on writing and writing, and -muttering to himself all the time: then he jumps up, and, frowning, says, -"Look and see if my carriage has come yet." - -It was on a Friday, during carnival time, and so there weren't any of the -customers on hand; they were all at some ball. I went to see about the -carriage, and just as I was going out of the door, "Petrushka! Petrushka!" -he shouted, as if something suddenly frightened him. - -I turn round. I see he's pale as a sheet, standing here and looking at me. - -"Did you call me, sir?" says I. - -He makes no reply. - -"What do you want?" says I. - -He says nothing. "Oh, yes!" says he. "Let's have another game." - -Then says he, "Haven't I learned to play pretty well?" - -He had just won the game. "Yes," says I. - -"All right," says he; "go now, and see about my carriage." He himself -walked up and down the room. - -Without thinking any thing, I went down to the door. I didn't see any -carriage at all. I started to go up again. - -Just as I am going up, I hear what sounds like the thud of a billiard-cue. -I go into the billiard-room. I notice a peculiar smell. - -I look around; and there he is lying on the floor in a pool of blood, with -a pistol beside him. I was so scared that I could not speak a word. - -He keeps twitching, twitching his leg; and stretched himself a little. Then -he sort of snored, and stretched out his full length in such a strange way. -And God knows why such a sin came about,--how it was that it occurred to -him to ruin his own soul,--but as to what he left written on this paper, I -don't understand it at all. Truly, you can never account for what is going -on in the world. - - * * * * * - -"God gave me all that a man can desire,--wealth, name, intellect, noble -aspirations. I wanted to enjoy myself, and I trod in the mire all that was -best in me. I have done nothing dishonorable, I am not unfortunate, I have -not committed any crime; but I have done worse: I have destroyed my -feelings, my intellect, my youth. I became entangled in a filthy net, from -which I could not escape, and to which I could not accustom myself. I feel -that I am falling lower and lower every moment, and I cannot stop my fall. - -"And what ruined me? Was there in me some strange passion which I might -plead as an excuse? No! - -"My recollections are pleasant. One fearful moment of forgetfulness, which -can never be erased from my mind, led me to come to my senses. I shuddered -when I saw what a measureless abyss separated me from what I desired to be, -and might have been. In my imagination arose the hopes, the dreams, and the -thoughts of my youth. - -"Where are those lofty thoughts of life, of eternity, of God, which at -times filled my soul with light and strength? Where that aimless power of -love which kindled my heart with its comforting warmth?... - -"But how good and happy I might have been, had I trodden that path which, -at the very entrance of life, was pointed out to me by my fresh mind and -true feelings! More than once did I try to go from the ruts in which my -life ran, into that sacred path. - -"I said to myself, Now I will use my whole strength of will; and yet I -could not do it. When I happened to be alone, I felt awkward and timid. -When I was with others, I no longer heard the inward voice; and I fell all -the time lower and lower. - -"At last I came to a terrible conviction that it was impossible for me to -lift myself from this low plane. I ceased to think about it, and I wished -to forget all; but hopeless repentance worried me still more and more. -Then, for the first time, the thought of suicide occurred to me.... - -"I once thought that the nearness of death would rouse my soul. I was -mistaken. In a quarter of an hour I shall be no more, yet my view has not -in the least changed. I see with the same eyes, I hear with the same ears, -I think the same thoughts; there is the same strange incoherence, -unsteadiness, and lightness in my thoughts.".... - - - - -ALBERT. - -_A STORY._ - -1857. - - -I. - -Five rich young men went at three o'clock in the morning to a ball in -Petersburg to have a good time. - -Much champagne was drunk; a majority of the gentlemen were very young; the -girls were pretty; a pianist and a fiddler played indefatigably one polka -after another; there was no cease to the noise of conversation and dancing. -But there was a sense of awkwardness and constraint; every one felt somehow -or other--and this is not unusual--that all was not as it should be. - -There were several attempts made to make things more lively, but simulated -liveliness is much worse than melancholy. - -One of the five young men, who was more discontented than any one else, -both with himself and with the others, and who had been feeling all the -evening a sense of disgust, took his hat, and went out noiselessly on -purpose, intending to go home. - -There was no one in the ante-room, but in the next room at the door he -heard two voices disputing. The young man paused, and listened. - -"It is impossible, there are guests in there," said a woman's voice. - -"Come, let me in, please. I will not do any harm," urged a man in a gentle -voice. - -"Indeed I will not without madame's permission," said the woman. "Where are -you going? Oh, what a man you are!" - -The door was flung open, and on the threshold appeared the figure of a -stranger. Seeing a guest, the maid ceased to detain the man; and the -stranger, timidly bowing, came into the room with a somewhat unsteady gait. - -He was a man of medium stature, with a lank, crooked back, and long -dishevelled hair. He wore a short paletot, and tight ragged pantaloons over -coarse dirty boots. His necktie, twisted into a string, exposed his long -white neck. His shirt was filthy, and the sleeves came down over his lean -hands. - -But, notwithstanding his thoroughly emaciated body, his face was attractive -and fair; and a fresh color even mantled his cheeks under his thin dark -beard and side-whiskers. His dishevelled locks, thrown back, exposed a low -and remarkably pure forehead. His dark, languid eyes looked unswervingly -forward with an expression of serenity, submission, and sweetness, which -made a fascinating combination with the expression of his fresh, curved -lips, visible under his thin moustache. - -Advancing a few steps, he paused, turned to the young man, and smiled. He -found it apparently rather hard to smile. But his face was so lighted up by -it, that the young man, without knowing why, smiled in return. - -"Who is that man?" he asked of the maid in a whisper, as the stranger -walked toward the room where the dancing was going on. - -"A crazy musician from the theatre," replied the maid. "He sometimes comes -to call upon madame." - -"Where are you going, Delesof?" some one at this moment called from the -drawing-room. - -The young man who was called Delesof returned to the drawing-room. The -musician was now standing at the door; and, as his eyes fell on the -dancers, he showed by his smile and by the beating of his foot how much -pleasure this spectacle afforded him. - -"Won't you come, and have a dance too?" said one of the guests to him. The -musician bowed, and looked at the hostess inquiringly. - -"Come, come. Why not, since the gentlemen have invited you?" said the -hostess. The musician's thin, weak face suddenly assumed an expression of -decision; and smiling and winking, and shuffling his feet, he awkwardly, -clumsily went to join the dancers in the drawing-room. - -In the midst of a quadrille a jolly officer, who was dancing very -beautifully and with great liveliness, accidentally hit the musician in the -back. His weak, weary legs lost their equilibrium; and the musician, making -ineffectual struggles to keep his balance, measured his length on the -floor. - -Notwithstanding the sharp, hard sound made by his fall, almost everybody at -the first moment laughed. - -But the musician did not rise. The guests grew silent, even the piano -ceased to sound. Delesof and the hostess were the first to reach the -prostrate musician. He was lying on his elbow, and gloomily looking at the -ground. When he had been lifted to his feet, and set in a chair, he threw -back his hair from his forehead with a quick motion of his bony hand, and -began to smile without replying to the questions that were put. - -"Mr. Albert! Mr. Albert!" exclaimed the hostess. "Were you hurt? Where? -Now, I told you that you had better not try to dance.... He is so weak," -she added, addressing her guests. "It takes all his strength." - -"Who is he?" some one asked the hostess. - -"A poor man, an artist. A very nice young fellow; but he's a sad case, as -you can see." - -She said this without paying the least heed to the musician's presence. He -suddenly opened his eyes as though frightened at something, collected -himself, and remarked to those who were standing about him, "It's nothing -at all," said he suddenly, arising from the chair with evident effort. - -And in order to show that he had suffered no injury, he went into the -middle of the room, and was going to dance; but he tottered, and would have -fallen again, had he not been supported. - -Everybody felt constrained. All looked at him, and no one spoke. The -musician's glance again lost its vivacity; and, apparently forgetting that -any one was looking, he put his hand to his knee. Suddenly he raised his -head, advanced one faltering foot, and, with the same awkward gesture as -before, tossed back his hair, and went to a violin-case, and took out the -instrument. - -"It was nothing at all," said he again, waving the violin. "Gentlemen, we -will have a little music." - -"What a strange face!" said the guests among themselves. - -"Maybe there is great talent lurking in that unhappy creature," said one of -them. - -"Yes: it's a sad case,--a sad case," said another. - -"What a lovely face!... There is something extraordinary about it," said -Delesof. "Let us have a look at him."... - - -II. - -Albert by this time, not paying attention to any one, had raised his violin -to his shoulder, and was slowly crossing over to the piano, and tuning his -instrument. His lips were drawn into an expression of indifference, his -eyes were almost shut; but his lank, bony back, his long white neck, his -crooked legs, and disorderly black hair presented a strange but somehow not -entirely ridiculous appearance. After he had tuned his violin, he struck a -quick chord, and, throwing back his head, turned to the pianist who was -waiting to accompany him. "_Melancholie, G sharp_," he said, turning to the -pianist with a peremptory gesture. And immediately after, as though in -apology for his peremptory gesture, he smiled sweetly, and with the same -smile turned to his audience again. - -Tossing back his hair with the hand that held the bow, Albert stood at one -side of the piano, and, with a flowing motion of the bow, touched the -strings. Through the room there swept a pure, harmonious sound, which -instantly brought absolute silence. - -At first, it was as though a ray of unexpectedly brilliant light had -flashed across the inner world of each hearer's consciousness; and the -notes of the theme immediately followed, pouring forth abundant and -beautiful. - -Not one discordant or imperfect note distracted the attention of the -listeners. All the tones were clear, beautiful, and full of meaning. All -silently, with trembling expectation, followed the development of the -theme. From a state of tedium, of noisy gayety, or of deep drowsiness, into -which these people had fallen, they were suddenly transported to a world -whose existence they had forgotten. - -In one instant there arose in their souls, now a sentiment as though they -were contemplating the past, now of passionate remembrance of some -happiness, now the boundless longing for power and glory, now the feelings -of humility, of unsatisfied love, and of melancholy. - -Now bitter-sweet, now vehemently despairing, the notes, freely -intermingling, poured forth and poured forth, so sweetly, so powerfully, -and so spontaneously, that it was not so much that sounds were heard, as -that some sort of beautiful stream of poetry, long known, but now for the -first time expressed, gushed through the soul. - -At each note that he played, Albert grew taller and taller. At a little -distance, he had no appearance of being either crippled or peculiar. -Pressing the violin to his chin, and with an expression of listening with -passionate attention to the tones that he produced, he convulsively moved -his feet. Now he straightened himself up to his full height, now -thoughtfully leaned forward. - -His left hand, curving over spasmodically on the strings, seemed as though -it had swooned in its position, while it was only the bony fingers that -changed about spasmodically; the right hand moved smoothly, gracefully, -without effort. - -His face shone with complete, enthusiastic delight; his eyes gleamed with a -radiant, steely light; his nostrils quivered, his red lips were parted in -rapture. - -Sometimes his head bent down closer to his violin, his eyes almost closed, -and his face, half shaded by his long locks, lighted up with a smile of -genuine blissfulness. Sometimes he quickly straightened himself up, changed -from one leg to the other, and his pure forehead, and the radiant look -which he threw around the room, were alive with pride, greatness, and the -consciousness of power. Once the pianist made a mistake, and struck a false -chord. Physical pain was apparent in the whole form and face of the -musician. He paused for a second, and with an expression of childish anger -stamped his foot, and cried, "_Moll, ce moll!_" The pianist corrected his -mistake; Albert closed his eyes, smiled, and, again forgetting himself and -everybody else, gave himself up with beatitude to his work. Everybody who -was in the room while Albert was playing preserved an attentive silence, -and seemed to live and breathe only in the music. - -The gay officer sat motionless in a chair by the window, with his eyes -fixed upon the floor, and drawing long heavy sighs. The girls, awed by the -universal silence, sat along by the walls, only occasionally exchanging -glances expressive of satisfaction or perplexity. - -The fat smiling face of the hostess was radiant with happiness. The pianist -kept his eyes fixed on Albert's face, and while his whole figure from head -to foot showed his solicitude lest he should make some mistake, he did his -best to follow him. One of the guests, who had been drinking more heavily -than the rest, lay at full length on the sofa, and tried not to move lest -he should betray his emotion. Delesof experienced an unusual sensation. It -seemed as though an icy band, now contracting, now expanding, were pressed -upon his head. The roots of his hair seemed endued with consciousness; the -cold shivers ran down his back, something rose higher and higher in his -throat, his nose and palate were full of little needles, and the tears -stole down his cheeks. - -He shook himself, tried to swallow them back and wipe them away without -attracting attention, but fresh tears followed and streamed down his face. -By some sort of strange association of impressions, the first tones of -Albert's violin carried Delesof back to his early youth. - -Old before his time, weary of life, a broken man, he suddenly felt as -though he were a boy of seventeen again, self-satisfied and handsome, -blissfully dull, unconsciously happy. He remembered his first love for his -cousin who wore a pink dress, he remembered his first confession of it in -the linden alley; he remembered the warmth and the inexpressible charm of -the fortuitous kiss; he remembered the immensity and enigmatical mystery of -Nature as it surrounded them then. - -In his imagination as it went back in its flight, _she_ gleamed in a mist -of indefinite hopes, of incomprehensible desires, and the indubitable faith -in the possibility of impossible happiness. All the priceless moments of -that time, one after the other, arose before him, not like unmeaning -instants of the fleeting present, but like the immutable, full-formed, -reproachful images of the past. - -He contemplated them with rapture, and wept,--wept not because the time had -passed and he might have spent it more profitably (if that time had been -given to him again he would not have spent it any more profitably), but he -wept because it had passed and would never return. His recollections -evolved themselves without effort, and Albert's violin was their -mouthpiece. It said, "They have passed, forever passed, the days of thy -strength, of love, and of happiness; passed forever, and never will return. -Weep for them, shed all thy tears, let thy life pass in tears for these -days; this is the only and best happiness that remains to thee." - -At the end of the next variation, Albert's face grew serene, his eyes -flushed, great clear drops of sweat poured down his cheeks. The veins -swelled on his forehead; his whole body swayed more and more; his pale lips -were parted, and his whole figure expressed an enthusiastic craving for -enjoyment. Despairingly swaying with his whole body, and throwing back his -hair, he laid down his violin, and with a smile of proud satisfaction and -happiness gazed at the bystanders. Then his back assumed its ordinary -curve, his head sank, his lips grew set, his eyes lost their fire; and as -though he were ashamed of himself, timidly glancing round, and stumbling, -he went into the next room. - - -III. - -Something strange came over all the audience, and something strange was -noticeable in the dead silence that succeeded Albert's playing. It was as -though each desired, and yet dared not, to acknowledge the meaning of it -all. - -What did it mean,--this brightly lighted, warm room, these brilliant women, -the dawn just appearing at the windows, these hurrying pulses, and the pure -impressions made by the fleeting tones of music? But no one ventured to -acknowledge the meaning of it all; on the contrary, almost all, feeling -incapable of throwing themselves completely under the influence of what the -new impression concealed from them, rebelled against it. - -"Well, now, he plays mighty well," said the officer. - -"Wonderfully," replied Delesof, stealthily wiping his cheek with his -sleeve. - -"One thing sure, it's time to be going, gentlemen," said the gentleman who -had been lying on the sofa, straightening himself up a little. "We'll have -to give him something, gentlemen. Let us make a collection." - -At this time, Albert was sitting alone in the next room, on the sofa. As he -supported himself with his elbows on his bony knees, he smoothed his face -with his dirty, sweaty hand, tossed back his hair, and smiled at his own -happy thoughts. - -A large collection was taken up, and Delesof was chosen to present it. -Aside from this, Delesof, who had been so keenly and unwontedly affected by -the music, had conceived the thought of conferring some benefit upon this -man. - -It came into his head to take him home with him, to feed him, to establish -him somewhere,--in other words, to lift him from his vile position. - -"Well, are you tired?" asked Delesof, approaching him. Albert replied with -a smile. "You have creative talent; you ought seriously to devote yourself -to music, to play in public." - -"I should like to have something to drink," exclaimed Albert, as though -suddenly waking up. - -Delesof brought him some wine, and the musician greedily drained two -glasses. - -"What splendid wine!" he exclaimed. - -"What a lovely thing that _Melancholie_ is!" said Delesof. - -"Oh, yes, yes," replied Albert with a smile. "But pardon me, I do not know -with whom I have the honor to be talking; maybe you are a count or a -prince. Couldn't you let me have a little money?" He paused for a moment. -"I have nothing--I am a poor man: I couldn't pay it back to you." - -Delesof flushed, grew embarrassed, and hastened to hand the musician the -money that had been collected for him. - -"Very much obliged to you," said Albert, seizing the money. "Now let us -have some more music; I will play for you as much as you wish. Only let me -have something to drink, something to drink," he repeated, as he started to -his feet. - -Delesof gave him some more wine, and asked him to sit down by him. - -"Pardon me if I am frank with you," said Delesof. "Your talent has -interested me so much. It seems to me that you are in a wretched position." - -Albert glanced now at Delesof, now at the hostess, who just then came into -the room. - -"Permit me to help you," continued Delesof. "If you need any thing, then I -should be very glad if you would come and stay with me for a while. I live -alone, and maybe I could be of some service to you." - -Albert smiled, and made no reply. - -"Why don't you thank him?" said the hostess. "It seems to me that this -would be a capital thing for you.--Only I would not advise you," she -continued, turning to Delesof, and shaking her head warningly. - -"Very much obliged to you," said Albert, seizing Delesof's hand with both -his moist ones. "Only now let us have some music, please." - -But the rest of the guests were already making their preparations to -depart; and as Albert did not address them, they came out into the -ante-room. - -Albert bade the hostess farewell; and having taken his worn hat with wide -brim, and a last summer's _alma viva_, which composed his only protection -against the winter, he went with Delesof down the steps. - -As soon as Delesof took his seat in his carriage with his new friend, and -became conscious of that unpleasant odor of intoxication and filthiness -exhaled by the musician, he began to repent of the step that he had taken, -and to curse himself for his childish softness of heart and lack of reason. -Moreover, all that Albert said was so foolish and in such bad taste, and he -seemed so near a sudden state of beastly intoxication, that Delesof was -disgusted. "What shall I do with him?" he asked himself. - -After they had been driving for a quarter of an hour, Albert relapsed into -silence, took off his hat, and laid it on his knee, then threw himself into -a corner of the carriage, and began to snore.... The wheels crunched -monotonously over the frozen snow, the feeble light of dawn scarcely made -its way through the frosty windows. - -Delesof glanced at his companion. His long body, wrapped in his mantle, lay -almost lifeless near him. It seemed to him that a long head with large -black nose was swaying on his trunk; but on examining more closely he -perceived that what he took to be nose and face was the man's hair, and -that his actual face was lower down. - -He bent over, and studied the features of Albert's face. Then the beauty of -his brow and of his peacefully closed mouth once more charmed him. Under -the influence of nervous excitement caused by the sleepless hours of the -long night and the music, Delesof, as he looked at that face, was once more -carried back to the blessed world of which he had caught a glimpse once -before that night; again he remembered the happy and magnanimous time of -his youth, and he ceased to repent of his rashness. At that moment he loved -Albert truly and warmly, and firmly resolved to be a benefactor to him. - - -IV. - -The next morning when Delesof was awakened to go to his office, he saw, -with an unpleasant feeling of surprise, his old screen, his old servant, -and his clock on the table. - -"What did I expect to see if not the usual objects that surround me?" he -asked himself. - -Then he recollected the musician's black eyes and happy smile; the motive -of the _Melancholie_ and all the strange experiences of the night came back -into his consciousness. It was never his way, however, to reconsider -whether he had done wisely or foolishly in taking the musician home with -him. After he had dressed, he carefully laid out his plans for the day: he -took some paper, wrote out some necessary directions for the house, and -hastily put on his cloak and galoshes. - -As he went by the dining-room he glanced in at the door. Albert, with his -face buried in the pillow and lying at full length in his dirty, tattered -shirt, was buried in the profoundest slumber on the saffron sofa, where in -absolute unconsciousness he had been laid the night before. - -Delesof felt that something was not right: it disturbed him. "Please go for -me to Boriuzovsky, and borrow his violin for a day or two," said he to his -man; "and when he wakes up, bring him some coffee, and get him some clean -linen and some old suit or other of mine. Fix him up as well as you can, -please." - -When he returned home in the afternoon, Delesof, to his surprise, found -that Albert was not there. - -"Where is he?" he asked of his man. - -"He went out immediately after dinner," replied the servant. "He took the -violin, and went out, saying that he would be back again in an hour; but -since that time we have not seen him." - -"Ta, ta! how provoking!" said Delesof. "Why did you let him go, Zakhár?" - -Zakhár was a Petersburg lackey, who had been in Delesof's service for eight -years. Delesof, as a single young bachelor, could not help intrusting him -with his plans; and he liked to get his judgment in regard to each of his -undertakings. - -"How should I have ventured to detain him?" replied Zakhár, playing with -his watch-charms. "If you had intimated, Dmitri Ivánovitch, that you wished -me to keep him here, I might have kept him at home. But you only spoke of -his wardrobe." - -"Ta! how vexatious! Well, what has he been doing while I was out?" - -Zakhár smiled. - -"Indeed, he's a real artist, as you may say, Dmitri Ivánovitch. As soon as -he woke up he asked for some madeira: then he began to keep the cook and me -pretty busy. Such an absurd.... However, he's a very interesting character. -I brought him some tea, got some dinner ready for him; but he would not eat -alone, so he asked me to sit down with him. But when he began to play on -the fiddle, then I knew that you would not find many such artists at -Izler's. One might well keep such a man. When he played 'Down the Little -Mother Volga' for us, why, it was enough to make a man weep. It was too -good for any thing! The people from all the floors came down into our -entry to listen." - -"Well, did you give him some clothes?" asked the bárin. - -"Certainly I did: I gave him your dress-shirt, and I put on him an overcoat -of mine. You want to help such a man as that, he's a fine fellow." Zakhár -smiled. "He asked me what rank you were, and if you had had important -acquaintances, and how many _souls_ of peasantry you had." - -"Very good: but now we must send and find him; and henceforth don't give -him any thing to drink, otherwise you'll do him more harm than good." - -"That is true," said Zakhár in assent. "He doesn't seem in very robust -health: we used to have an overseer who, like him".... - -Delesof, who had already long ago heard the story of the drunken overseer, -did not give Zakhár time to finish, but bade him make every thing ready for -the night, and then go out and bring the musician back. - -He threw himself down on his bed, and put out the candle; but it was long -before he fell asleep, for thinking about Albert. - -"This may seem strange to some of my friends," said Delesof to himself, -"but how seldom it is that I can do any thing for any one beside myself! -and I ought to thank God for a chance when one presents itself. I will not -send him away. I will do every thing, at least every thing that I can, to -help him. Maybe he is not absolutely crazy, but only inclined to get drunk. -It certainly will not cost me very much. Where one is, there is always -enough to satisfy two. Let him live with me a while, and then we will find -him a place, or get him up a concert; we'll help him off the shoals, and -then there will be time enough to see what will come of it." An agreeable -sense of self-satisfaction came over him after making this resolution. - -"Certainly I am not a bad man: I might say I am far from being a bad man," -he thought. "I might go so far as to say that I am a good man, when I -compare myself with others." - -He was just dropping off to sleep when the sound of opening doors, and -steps in the ante-room, roused him again. "Well, shall I treat him rather -severely?" he asked himself; "I suppose that is best, and I ought to do -it." - -He rang. - -"Well, did you find him?" he asked of Zakhár, who answered his call. - -"He's a poor, wretched fellow, Dmitri Ivánovitch," said Zakhár, shaking his -head significantly, and closing his eyes. - -"What! is he drunk?" - -"Very weak." - -"Had he the violin with him?" - -"I brought it: the lady gave it to me." - -"All right. Now please don't bring him to me to-night: let him sleep it -off; and to-morrow don't under any circumstances let him out of the house." - -But before Zakhár had time to leave the room, Albert came in. - - -V. - -"You don't mean to say that you've gone to bed at this time," said Albert -with a smile. "I was there again, at Anna Ivánovna's. I spent a very -pleasant evening. We had music, told stories; there was a very pleasant -company there. Please let me have a glass of something to drink," he added, -seizing a carafe of water that stood on the table, "only not water." - -Albert was just as he had been the night before,--the same lovely smiling -eyes and lips, the same fresh inspired brow, and weak features. Zakhár's -overcoat fitted him as though it had been made for him, and the clean, -tall, stiffly-starched collar of the dress-shirt picturesquely fitted -around his delicate white neck, giving him a peculiarly childlike and -innocent appearance. - -He sat down on Delesof's bed, smiling with pleasure and gratitude, and -looked at him without speaking. Delesof gazed into Albert's eyes, and -suddenly felt himself once under the sway of that smile. All desire for -sleep vanished from him, he forgot his resolution to be stern: on the -contrary, he felt like having a gay time, to hear some music, and to talk -confidentially with Albert till morning. Delesof bade Zakhár bring a bottle -of wine, cigarettes, and the violin. - -"This is excellent," said Albert. "It's early yet, we'll have a little -music. I will play whatever you like." - -Zakhár, with evident satisfaction, brought a bottle of Lafitte, two -glasses, some mild cigarettes such as Albert smoked, and the violin. But, -instead of going off to bed as his bárin bade him, he lighted a cigar, and -sat down in the next room. - -"Let us talk instead," said Delesof to the musician, who was beginning to -tune the violin. - -Albert sat down submissively on the bed, and smiled pleasantly. - -"Oh, yes!" said he, suddenly striking his forehead with his hand, and -putting on an expression of anxious curiosity. The expression of his face -always foretold what he was going to say. "I wanted to ask you,"--he -hesitated a little,--"that gentleman who was there with you last -evening.... You called him N. Was he the son of the celebrated N.?" - -"His own son," replied Delesof, not understanding at all what Albert could -find of interest in him. - -"Indeed!" he exclaimed, smiling with satisfaction. "I instantly noticed -that there was something peculiarly aristocratic in his manners. I love -aristocrats. There is something splendid and elegant about an aristocrat. -And that officer who danced so beautifully," he went on to ask. "He also -pleased me very much, he was so gay and noble looking. It seems he is -called Adjutant N. N." - -"Who?" asked Delesof. - -"The one who ran into me when we were dancing. He must be a splendid man." - -"No, he is a silly fellow," replied Delesof. - -"Oh, no! it can't be," rejoined Albert hotly. "There's something very, very -pleasant about him. And he's a fine musician," added Albert. "He played -something from an opera. It's a long time since I have seen any one who -pleased me so much." - -"Yes, he plays very well; but I don't like his playing," said Delesof, -anxious to bring his companion to talk about music. "He does not understand -classic music, but only Donizetti and Bellini; and that's no music, you -know. You agree with me, don't you?" - -"Oh, no, no! Pardon me," replied Albert with a gentle expression of -vindication. "The old music is music; but modern music is music too. And in -the modern music there are extraordinarily beautiful things. Now, -'Somnambula,' and the _finale_ of 'Lucia,' and Chopin, and 'Robert'! I -often think,"--he hesitated, apparently collecting his thoughts,--"that if -Beethoven were alive, he would weep tears of joy to hear 'Somnambula.' It's -so beautiful all through. I heard 'Somnambula' first when Viardot and -Rubini were here. That was something worth while," he said, with shining -eyes, and making a gesture with both hands, as though he were casting -something from his breast. "I'd give a good deal, but it would be -impossible, to bring it back." - -"Well, but how do you like the opera nowadays?" asked Delesof. - -"Bosio is good, very good," was his reply, "exquisite beyond words; but she -does not touch me here," he said, pointing to his sunken chest. "A singer -must have passion, and she hasn't any. She is enjoyable, but she doesn't -torture you." - -"Well, how about Lablache?" - -"I heard him in Paris, in 'The Barber of Seville.' Then he was the only -one, but now he is old. He can't be an artist, he is old." - -"Well, supposing he is old, still he is fine in _morceaux d'ensemble_," -said Delesof, still speaking of Lablache. - -"Who said that he was old?" said Albert severely. "He can't be old. The -artist can never be old. Much is needed in an artist, but fire most of -all," he declared with glistening eyes, and raising both hands in the air. -And, indeed, a terrible inner fire seemed to glow throughout his whole -frame. "Ah, my God!" he exclaimed suddenly. "You don't know Petrof, do -you,--Petrof, the artist?" - -"No, I don't know him," replied Delesof with a smile. - -"How I wish that you and he might become acquainted! You would enjoy -talking with him. How he does understand art! He and I often used to meet -at Anna Ivánovna's, but now she is vexed with him for some reason or other. -But I really wish that you might make his acquaintance. He has great, great -talent." - -"Oh! Does he paint pictures?" asked Delesof. - -"I don't know. No, I think not; but he was an artist of the Academy. What -thoughts he had! Whenever he talks, it is wonderful. Oh, Petrof has great -talent, only he leads a very gay life!... It's too bad," said Albert with a -smile. The next moment he got up from the bed, took the violin, and began -to play. - -"Have you been at the opera lately?" asked Delesof. - -Albert looked round, and sighed. - -"Ah, I have not been able to!" he said, clutching his head. Again he sat -down by Delesof. "I will tell you," he went on to say, almost in a whisper. -"I can't go: I can't play there. I have nothing, nothing at all,--no -clothes, no home, no violin. It's a wretched life,--a wretched life!" he -repeated the phrase. "Yes, and why have I got into such a state? Why, -indeed? It ought not to have been," said he, smiling. "_Akh! Don Juan._" - -And he struck his head. - -"Now let us have something to eat," said Delesof. - -Albert, without replying, sprang up, seized the violin, and began to play -the _finale_ of the first act of "Don Juan," accompanying it with a -description of the scene in the opera. - -Delesof felt the hair stand up on his head, when he played the voice of the -dying commander. - -"No, I cannot play to-night," said Albert, laying down the instrument. "I -have been drinking too much." But immediately after he went to the table, -poured out a brimming glass of wine, drank it at one gulp, and again sat -down on the bed near Delesof. - -Delesof looked steadily at Albert. The latter occasionally smiled, and -Delesof returned his smile. Neither of them spoke, but the glance and smile -brought them close together into a reciprocity of affection. Delesof felt -that he was growing constantly fonder and fonder of this man, and he -experienced an inexpressible pleasure. - -"Were you ever in love?" he asked suddenly. Albert remained sunk in thought -for a few seconds, then his face lighted up with a melancholy smile. He -bent over toward Delesof, and gazed straight into his eyes. - -"Why did you ask me that question?" he whispered. "But I will tell you all -about it. I like you," he added, after a few moments of thought, and -glancing around. "I will not deceive you, I will tell you all, just as it -was, from the beginning." He paused, and his eyes took on a strange wild -appearance. "You know that I am weak in judgment," he said suddenly. "Yes, -yes," he continued. "Anna Ivánovna has told you about it. She tells -everybody that I am crazy. It isn't true, she says it for a joke; she is a -good woman, but I really have not been quite well for some time." Albert -paused again, and stood up, gazing with wide-opened eyes at the dark door. -"You asked me if I had ever been in love. Yes, I have been in love," he -whispered, raising his brows. "That happened long ago; it was at a time -when I still had a place at the theatre. I went to play second violin at -the opera, and she came into a parquet box at the left." - -Albert stood up, and bent over to Delesof's ear. "But no," said he, "why -should I mention her name? You probably know her, everybody knows her. I -said nothing, but simply looked at her: I knew that I was a poor artist, -and she an aristocratic lady. I knew that very well. I only looked at her, -and had no thoughts." - -Albert paused for a moment, as though making sure of his recollections. - -"How it happened I know not, but I was invited once to accompany her on my -violin.... Now I was only a poor artist!" he repeated, shaking his head and -smiling. "But no, I cannot tell you, I cannot!" he exclaimed, again -clutching his head. "How happy I was!" - -"What? did you go to her house often?" asked Delesof. - -"Once, only once.... But it was my own fault; I wasn't in my right mind. I -was a poor artist, and she an aristocratic lady. I ought not to have spoken -to her. But I lost my senses, I committed a folly. Petrof told me the -truth: 'It would have been better only to have seen her at the theatre.'" - -"What did you do?" asked Delesof. - -"Ah! wait, wait, I cannot tell you that." - -And, hiding his face in his hands, he said nothing for some time. - -"I was late at the orchestra. Petrof and I had been drinking that evening, -and I was excited. She was sitting in her box, and talking with some -general. I don't know who that general was. She was sitting at the very -edge of the box, with her arm resting on the rim. She wore a white dress, -with pearls on her neck. She was talking with him, but she looked at me. -Twice she looked at me. She had arranged her hair in such a becoming way! I -stopped playing, and stood near the bass, and gazed at her. Then, for the -first time, something strange took place in me. She smiled on the general, -but she looked at me. I felt certain that she was talking about me; and -suddenly I seemed to be not in my place in the orchestra, but was standing -in her box, and seizing her hand in that place. What was the meaning of -that?" asked Albert, after a moment's silence. - -"A powerful imagination," said Delesof. - -"No, no, ... I cannot tell," said Albert frowning. "Even then I was poor. I -hadn't any room; and when I went to the theatre, I sometimes used to sleep -there." - -"What, in the theatre?" asked Delesof. - -"Ah! I am not afraid of these stupid things. Ah! just wait a moment. As -soon as everybody was gone, I went to that box where she had been sitting, -and slept there. That was my only pleasure. How many nights I spent there! -Only once again did I have that experience. At night many things seemed to -come to me. But I cannot tell you much about them." Albert contracted his -brows, and looked at Delesof. "What did it mean?" he asked. - -"It was strange," replied the other. - -"No, wait, wait!" he bent over to his ear, and said in a whisper,-- - -"I kissed her hand, wept there before her, and said many things to her. I -heard the fragrance of her sighs, I heard her voice. She said many things -to me that one night. Then I took my violin, and began to play softly. And -I played beautifully. But it became terrible to me. I am not afraid of such -stupid things, and I don't believe in them, but my head felt terribly," he -said, smiling sweetly, and moving his hand over his forehead. "It seemed -terrible to me on account of my poor mind; something happened in my head. -Maybe it was nothing; what do you think?" - -Neither spoke for several minutes. - - _"Und wenn die Wolken sie verhüllen, - Die Sonne bleibt doch ewig klar._[54]" - -hummed Albert, smiling gently. "That is true, isn't it?" he asked. - - _"Ich auch habe gelebt und genossen."_[55] - -[Footnote 54: - - E'en though the clouds may veil it, - The sun shines ever clear. - -] - -[Footnote 55: - - I also have lived and rejoiced. - -] - -"Ah, old man Petrof! how this would have made things clear to you!" - -Delesof, in silence and with dismay, looked at his companion's excited and -colorless face. - -"Do you know the Juristen waltzes?" suddenly asked Albert in a loud voice, -and without waiting for an answer, jumped up, seized the violin, and began -to play the waltz. In absolute self-forgetfulness, and evidently imagining -that a whole orchestra was playing for him, Albert smiled, began to dance, -to shuffle his feet, and to play admirably. - -"Hey, we will have a good time!" he exclaimed, as he ended, and waved his -violin. "I am going," said he, after sitting down in silence for a little. -"Won't you come along too?" - -"Where?" asked Delesof in surprise. - -"Let us go to Anna Ivánovna's again. It's gay there,--bustle, people, -music." - -Delesof for a moment was almost persuaded. However, coming to his senses, -he promised Albert that he would go with him the next day. - -"I should like to go this minute." - -"Indeed, I wouldn't go." - -Albert sighed, and laid down the violin. - -"Shall I stay, then?" He looked over at the table, but the wine was gone; -and so, wishing him a good-night, he left the room. - -Delesof rang. "Look here," said he to Zakhár, "don't let Mr. Albert go -anywhere without asking me about it first." - - -VI. - -The next day was a holiday. Delesof, on waking, sat in his parlor, drinking -his coffee and reading a book. Albert, who was in the next room, had not -yet moved. Zakhár discreetly opened the door, and looked into the -dining-room. - -"Would you believe it, Dmitri Ivánovitch, there he lies asleep on the bare -sofa. I would not send him away for any thing, God knows. He's like a -little child. Indeed, he's an artist!" - -At twelve o'clock, there was a sound of yawning and coughing on the other -side of the door. - -Zakhár again crept into the dining-room; and the bárin heard his wheedling -voice, and Albert's gentle, beseeching voice. - -"Well, how is he?" asked Delesof, when Zakhár came out. - -"He feels blue, Dmitri Ivánovitch. He doesn't want to get dressed. He's so -cross. All he asks for is something to drink." - -"Now, if we are to get hold of him, we must strengthen his character," said -Delesof to himself. And, forbidding Zakhár to give him any wine, he again -devoted himself to his book; in spite of himself, however, listening all -the time for developments in the dining-room. - -But there was no movement there, only occasionally were heard a heavy chest -cough and spitting. Two hours passed. Delesof, after dressing to go out, -resolved to look in upon his guest. Albert was sitting motionless at the -window, leaning his head on his hands. - -He looked round. His face was sallow, morose, and not only melancholy but -deeply unhappy. He tried to welcome his host with a smile, but his face -assumed a still more woe-begone expression. It seemed as though he were on -the point of tears. - -With effort he stood up and bowed. "If I might have just a little glass of -simple vodka," he exclaimed with a supplicating expression. "I am so weak. -If you please!" - -"Coffee will be more strengthening, I would advise you." - -Albert's face lost its childish expression; he gazed coldly, sadly, out of -the window, and fell back into the chair. - -"Wouldn't you like some breakfast?" - -"No, thank you, I haven't any appetite." - -"If you want to play on the violin, you will not disturb me," said Delesof, -laying the instrument on the table. Albert looked at the violin with a -contemptuous smile. - -"No, I am too weak, I cannot play," he said, and pushed the instrument from -him. - -After that, in reply to all Delesof's propositions to go to walk, to go to -the theatre in the evening, or any thing else, he only shook his head -mournfully, and refused to speak. - -Delesof went out, made a few calls, dined out, and before the theatre hour, -he returned to his rooms to change his attire and find out how the musician -was getting along. - -Albert was sitting in the dark ante-room, and, with his head resting on his -hand, was gazing at the heated stove. He was neatly dressed, washed and -combed; but his eyes were sad and vacant, and his whole form expressed even -more weakness and debility than in the morning. - -"Well, have you had dinner, Mr. Albert?" asked Delesof. - -Albert nodded his head, and, after looking with a terrified expression at -Delesof, dropped his eyes. It made Delesof feel uncomfortable. - -"I have been talking to-day with a manager," said he, also dropping his -eyes. "He would be very glad to make terms with you, if you would like to -accept an engagement." - -"I thank you, but I cannot play," said Albert, almost in a whisper; and he -went into his room, and closed the door as softly as possible. After a few -minutes, lifting the latch as softly as possible, he came out of the room, -bringing the violin. Casting a sharp, angry look at Delesof, he laid the -instrument on the table, and again disappeared. - -Delesof shrugged his shoulders, and smiled. - -"What am I to do now? Wherein am I to blame?" he asked himself. - -"Well, how is the musician?" was his first question when he returned home -late that evening. - -"Bad," was Zakhár's short and ringing reply. "He sighs all the time, and -coughs, and says nothing at all, only he has asked for vodka four or five -times, and once I gave him some. How can we avoid killing him this way, -Dmitri Ivánovitch? That was the way the overseer".... - -"Well, hasn't he played on the fiddle?" - -"Didn't even touch it. I took it to him, twice--Well, he took it up slowly, -and carried it out," said Zakhár with a smile. "Do you still bid me refuse -him something to drink?" - -"Don't give him any thing to-day; we'll see what'll come of it. What is he -doing now?" - -"He has shut himself into the parlor." - -Delesof went into his library, took down a few French books, and the -Testament in German. "Put these books to-morrow in his room; and look out, -don't let him get away," said he to Zakhár. - -The next morning Zakhár informed his bárin that the musician had not slept -a wink all night. "He kept walking up and down his rooms, and going to the -sideboard to try to open the cupboard and door; but every thing, in spite -of his efforts, remained locked." - -Zakhár told how, while he was going to sleep, he heard Albert muttering to -himself in the darkness and gesticulating. - - * * * * * - -Each day Albert grew more gloomy and taciturn. It seemed as though he were -afraid of Delesof, and his face expressed painful terror whenever their -eyes met. He did not touch either book or violin, and made no replies to -the questions put to him. - -On the third day after the musician came to stay with him, Delesof returned -home late in the evening, tired and worried. He had been on the go all day, -attending to his duties. Though they had seemed very simple and easy, yet, -as is often the case, he had not made any progress at all, in spite of his -strenuous endeavors. Afterwards he had stopped at the club, and lost at -whist. He was out of spirits. - -"Well, God be with him," he replied to Zakhár, who had been telling him of -Albert's pitiable state. "To-morrow I shall be really worried about him. Is -he willing or not to stay with me, and follow my advice? No? Then it's -idle. I have done the best that I could." - -"That's what comes of trying to be a benefactor to people," said he to -himself. "I am putting myself to inconvenience for him. I have taken this -filthy creature into my rooms, which keeps me from receiving strangers in -the morning; I work and trot; and yet he looks upon me as some enemy who, -against his will, would keep him in pound. But the worst is, that he is not -willing to take a step in his own behalf. That's the way with them all." - -That word _all_ referred to people in general, and especially to those with -whom he had been associated in business that day. "But what is to be done -for him now? What is he contemplating? Why is he melancholy? Is he -melancholy on account of the debauch from which I rescued him? on account -of the degradation in which he has been? the humiliation from which I saved -him? Can it be that he has fallen so low that it is a burden for him to -look on a pure life?... - -"No, this was a childish action," reasoned Delesof. "Why should I undertake -to direct others, when it is as much as I can do to manage my own affairs?" - -The impulse came over him to let him go immediately, but after a little -deliberation he postponed it till the morning. - -During the night Delesof was aroused by the noise of a falling table in the -ante-room, and the sound of voices and stamping feet. - -"Just wait a little, I will tell Dmitri Ivánovitch," said Zakhár's voice; -Albert's voice replied passionately and incoherently. - -Delesof leaped up, and went with a candle into the ante-room. Zakhár in his -nightdress was standing against the door; Albert in cap and _alma viva_ was -trying to pull him away, and was screaming at him in a pathetic voice. - -"You have no right to detain me; I have a passport; I have not stolen any -thing from you. You must let me go. I will go to the police." - -"I beg of you, Dmitri Ivánovitch," said Zakhár, turning to his bárin, and -continuing to stand guard at the door. "He got up in the night, found the -key in my overcoat-pocket, and he has drunk up the whole decanter of sweet -vodka. Was that good? And now he wants to go. You didn't give me orders, -and so I could not let him out." - -Albert, seeing Delesof, began to pull still more violently on Zakhár. "No -one has the right to detain me! He cannot do it," he screamed, raising his -voice more and more. - -"Let him go, Zakhár," said Delesof. "I do not wish to detain you, and I -have no right to, but I advise you to stay till to-morrow," he added, -addressing Albert. - -"No one has the right to detain me. I am going to the police," screamed -Albert more and more furiously, addressing only Zakhár, and not heeding -Delesof. "Guard!" he suddenly shouted at the top of his voice. - -"Now, what are you screaming like that for? You see you are free to go," -said Zakhár, opening the door. - -Albert ceased screaming. "How did they dare? They were going to murder me! -No!" he muttered to himself as he put on his galoshes. Not offering to say -good-by, and still muttering something unintelligible, he went out of the -door. Zakhár accompanied him to the gate, and came back. - -"Thank the Lord, Dmitri Ivánovitch! Any longer would have been a sin," said -he to his bárin. "And now we must count the silver." - -Delesof only shook his head, and made no reply. There came over him a -lively recollection of the first two evenings which he and the musician had -spent together; he remembered the last wretched days which Albert had spent -there; and above all he remembered the sweet but absurd sentiment of -wonder, of love, and of sympathy, which had been aroused in him by the very -first sight of this strange man; and he began to pity him. - -"What will become of him now?" he asked himself. "Without money, without -warm clothing, alone at midnight!" He thought of sending Zakhár after him, -but now it was too late. - -"Is it cold out doors?" he asked. - -"A healthy frost, Dmitri Ivánovitch," replied the man. "I forgot to tell -you that you will have to buy some more firewood to last till spring." - -"But what did you mean by saying that it would last?" - - -VII. - -Out of doors it was really cold; but Albert did not feel it, he was so -excited by the wine that he had taken and by the quarrel. - -As he entered the street, he looked around him, and rubbed his hands with -pleasure. The street was empty, but the long lines of lights were still -brilliantly gleaming; the sky was clear and beautiful. "What!" he cried, -addressing the lighted window in Delesof's apartments; and then thrusting -his hands in his trousers pockets under his coat, and looking straight -ahead, he walked with heavy and uncertain steps straight up the street. - -He felt an absolute weight in his legs and abdomen, something hummed in his -head, some invisible power seemed to hurl him from side to side; but he -still plunged ahead in the direction of where Anna Ivánovna lived. - -Strange, disconnected thoughts rushed through his head. Now he remembered -his quarrel with Zakhár, now something recalled the sea and his first -voyage in the steamboat to Russia; now the merry night that he had spent -with some friend in the wine-shop by which he was passing; then suddenly -there came to him a familiar air singing itself in his recollections, and -he seemed to see the object of his passion and the terrible night in the -theatre. - -But notwithstanding their incoherence, all these recollections presented -themselves before his imaginations with such distinctness that when he -closed his eyes he could not tell which was nearer to the reality: what he -was doing, or what he was thinking. He did not realize and he did not feel -how his legs moved, how he staggered and hit against a wall, how he looked -around him, and how he made his way from street to street. - -As he went along the Little Morskaya, Albert tripped and fell. Collecting -himself in a moment, he saw before him some huge and magnificent edifice, -and he went toward it. - -In the sky not a star was to be seen, nor sign of dawn, nor moon, neither -were there any street-lights there; but all objects were perfectly -distinguishable. The windows of the edifice, which loomed up at the corner -of the street, were brilliantly lighted, but the lights wavered like -reflections. The building kept coming nearer and nearer, clearer and -clearer, to Albert. - -But the lights vanished the moment that Albert entered the wide portals. -Inside it was dark. He took a few steps under the vaulted ceiling, and -something like shades glided by and fled at his approach. - -"Why did I come here?" wondered Albert; but some irresistible power dragged -him forward into the depths of the immense hall. - -There stood some lofty platform, and around it in silence stood what seemed -like little men. "Who is going to speak?" asked Albert. No one answered, -but some one pointed to the platform. There stood now on the platform a -tall, thin man, with bushy hair and dressed in a variegated gown. Albert -immediately recognized his friend Petrof. - -"How strange! what is he doing here?" said Albert to himself. - -"No, brethren," said Petrof, pointing to something, "you did not appreciate -the man while he was living among you; you did not appreciate him! He was -not a cheap artist, not a merely mechanical performer, not a crazy, ruined -man. He was a genius, a great musical genius, who perished among you -unknown and unvalued." - -Albert immediately understood of whom his friend was speaking; but not -wishing to interrupt him, he hung his head modestly. "He, like a sheaf of -straw, was wholly consumed by the sacred fire which we all serve," -continued the voice. "But he has completely fulfilled all that God gave -him; therefore he ought to be considered a great man. You may despise him, -torture him, humiliate him," continued the voice, more and more -energetically, "but he has been, is, and will be immeasurably higher than -you all. He is happy, he is good. He loved you all alike, or cared for you, -it is all the same; but he has served only that with which he was so highly -endowed. He loved one thing,--beauty, the only infinite good in the world. -Oh, yes, what a man he is! Fall all of you before him. On your knees!" -cried Petrof in a thundering voice. - -But another voice mildly answered from another corner of the hall. "I do -not wish to bow my knee before him," said the voice. - -Albert instantly recognized Delesof. - -"Why is he great? And why should we bow before him? Has he conducted -himself in an honorable and righteous manner? Has he brought society any -advantage? Do we not know how he borrowed money, and never returned it; -how he carried off a violin that belonged to a brother artist, and pawned -it?" - -"My God! how did he know all that?" said Albert to himself, drooping his -head still lower. - -"Do we not know," the voice went on, "how he pandered to the lowest of the -low, pandered to them for money? Do we not know how he was driven out of -the theatre? How Anna Ivánovna threatened to hand him over to the police?" - -"My God! that is all true, but protect me," cried Albert. "You are the only -one who knows why I did so." - -"Stop, for shame!" cried Petrof's voice again. "What right have you to -accuse him? Have you lived his life? Have you experienced his enthusiasms?" - -"Right! right!" whispered Albert. - -"Art is the highest manifestation of power in man. It is given only to the -favored few, and it lifts the chosen to such an eminence that the head -swims, and it is hard to preserve its integrity. In art, as in every -struggle, there are heroes who bring all under subjection to them, and -perish if they do not attain their ends." - -Petrof ceased speaking; and Albert lifted his head, and tried to shout in a -loud voice, "Right! right!" but his voice died without a sound. - -"That is not the case with you. This does not concern you," sternly said -the artist Petrof, addressing Delesof. "Yes, humble him, despise him," he -continued, "for he is better and happier than all the rest of you." - -Albert, with rapture in his heart at hearing these words, could not contain -himself, but went up to his friend, and was about to kiss him. - -"Get thee gone, I do not know you," replied Petrof. "Go your own way, you -cannot come here." - -"Here, you drunken fellow, you cannot come here," cried a policeman at the -crossing. - -Albert hesitated, then collected all his forces, and, endeavoring not to -stumble, crossed over to the next street. - -It was only a few steps to Anna Ivánovna's. From the hall of her house a -stream of light fell on the snowy _dvor_, and at the gate stood sledges and -carriages. - -Clinging with both hands to the balustrade, he made his way up the steps, -and rang the bell. - -The maid's sleepy face appeared at the open door, and looked angrily at -Albert. - -"It is impossible," she cried; "I have been forbidden to let you in," and -she slammed the door. The sounds of music and women's voices floated down -to him. - -Albert sat down on the ground, and leaned his head against the wall, and -shut his eyes. At that very instant a throng of indistinct but correlated -visions took possession of him with fresh force, mastered him, and carried -him off into the beautiful and free domain of fancy. - -"Yes! he is better and happier," involuntarily the voice repeated in his -imagination. - -From the door were heard the sounds of a polka. These sounds also told him -that he was better and happier. In a neighboring church was heard the sound -of a prayer-bell; and the prayer-bell also told him that he was better and -happier. - -"Now I will go back to that hall again," said Albert to himself. "Petrof -must have many things still to tell me." - -There seemed to be no one now in the hall; and in the place of the artist -Petrof, Albert himself stood on the platform, and was playing on his violin -all that the voice had said before. - -But his violin was of strange make: it was composed of nothing but glass, -and he had to hold it with both hands, and slowly rub it on his breast to -make it give out sounds. The sounds were so sweet and delicious, that -Albert felt he had never before heard any thing like them. The more tightly -he pressed the violin to his breast, the more sweet and consoling they -became. The louder the sounds, the more swiftly the shadows vanished, and -the more brilliantly the walls of the hall were illuminated. But it was -necessary to play very cautiously on the violin, lest it should break. - -Albert played on the instrument of glass cautiously and well. He played -things the like of which he felt no one would ever hear again. - -He was growing tired, when a heavy distant sound began to annoy him. It was -the sound of a bell, but this sound seemed to have a language. - -"Yes," said the bell, with its notes coming from somewhere far off and high -up, "yes, he seems to you wretched; you despise him, but he is better and -happier than you. No one ever will play more on that instrument!" - -These words which he understood seemed suddenly so wise, so novel, and so -true, to Albert, that he stopped playing, and, while trying not to move, -lifted his eyes and his arms toward heaven. He felt that he was beautiful -and happy. Although no one was in the hall, Albert expanded his chest, and -proudly lifted his head, and stood on the platform so that all might see -him. - -Suddenly some one's hand was gently laid on his shoulder; he turned around, -and in the half light saw a woman. She looked pityingly at him, and shook -her head. He immediately became conscious that what he was doing was wrong, -and a sense of shame came over him. - -"Where shall I go?" he asked her. Once more she gazed long and fixedly at -him, and bent her head pityingly. She was the one, the very one whom he -loved, and her dress was the same; on her round white neck was the pearl -necklace, and her lovely arms were bare above the elbows. - -She took him in her arms, and bore him away through the hall. At the -entrance of the hall, Albert saw the moon and water. But the water was not -below as is usually the case, and the moon was not above; there was a white -circle in one place as sometimes happens. The moon and the water were -together,--everywhere, above and below, and on all sides and around them -both. Albert and his love darted off toward the moon and the water, and he -now realized that she whom he loved more than all in the world was in his -arms: he embraced her, and felt inexpressible felicity. - -"Is not this a dream?" he asked himself. But no, it was the reality, it was -more than reality: it was reality and recollection combined. - -Then he felt that the indescribable pleasure which he had felt during the -last moment was gone, and would never be renewed. - -"Why am I weeping?" he asked of her. She looked at him in silence, with -pitying eyes. Albert understood what she desired to say in reply. "Just as -when I was alive," he went on to say. She, without replying, looked -straight forward. - -"This is terrible! How can I explain to her that I _am_ alive?" he asked -himself in horror. "My God, I am alive! Do understand me," he whispered. - -"He is better and happier," said a voice. - -But something kept oppressing Albert ever more powerfully. Whether it was -the moon or the water, or her embrace or his tears, he could not tell, but -he was conscious that he could not say all that it was his duty to say, and -that all would be quickly over. - - * * * * * - -Two guests coming out from Anna Ivánovna's rooms stumbled against Albert -lying on the threshold. One of them went back to Anna Ivánovna, and called -her. "That was heartless," he said. "You might let a man freeze to death -that way." - -"_Akh!_ why, that is my Albert. See where he was lying!" exclaimed the -hostess. "Annushka, have him brought into the room; find a place for him -somewhere," she added, addressing the maid. - -"Oh! I am alive, why do you bury me?" muttered Albert, as they brought him -unconscious into the room. - - - - -TWO HUSSARS. - -_A TALE._ - -1856. - - Jomini, ay, Jomini, - But not a single word of vodka.[56] - -D. DAVUIDOF. - - -At the very beginning of this century, when there were no railways, no -macadamized roads, no gas or stearine candles, no low and springy sofas, no -unvarnished furniture, no disillusionized young men with eye-glasses, no -women philosophers of liberal tendencies, no dear Camilles, such as our -time has produced in abundance; in those naďve days when travellers made -the journey from Moscow to Petersburg by stage or carriage, and took with -them a whole kitchen of domestic preparations, and travelled for a week, -night and day, over soft roads, muddy or dusty as the case might be, pinned -their faith to Pozharsky cutlets, Valdaď bluebells, and pretzels; when -during the long autumn evenings tallow candles burned till they had to be -snuffed, and cast their rays on family circles of twenty or thirty people -(at balls, wax or spermaceti candles were set up in candelabra); when -furniture was placed with stiff precision; when our fathers were still -young, not merely by the absence of wrinkles and gray hair, but fought -duels for women, and were fain to rush from one end of a room to the other -to pick up a handkerchief dropped accidentally or otherwise, and our -mothers wore short waists and huge sleeves, and decided family affairs by -the drawing of lots; when charming Camilles avoided the light of day; in -the naďve period of Masonic lodges, of Martinists, and of the _Tugendbund_; -at the time of the Miloradovitches, Davuidofs, and Pushkins,--a meeting of -landed proprietors took place in the governmental city of K., and the -election of the college of nobles was drawing to a close. - -[Footnote 56: From the poem entitled, "The Song of an Old Hussar," in which -a veteran contrasts the mighty days of the past with the dilettanti -present. Denis Vasilyevitch Davuidof, who was an officer of hussars, died -in 1839.--TR.] - - -I. - -"Well, all right, it's all the same, be it in the hall," said a young -officer dressed in a shuba, and wearing a hussar's helmet, as he dismounted -from a travelling sledge in front of the best hotel of the city of K. - -"A great meeting, little father, your excellency,--a tremendous crowd," -said the hall-boy, who had already learned from the officer's man that it -was Count Turbin, and therefore honored him with the address of "your -excellency." "Madame Afrimova and her daughters have expressed the -intention of going away this evening; you can be accommodated with their -room as soon as it is vacated,--No. 11," the hall-boy went on to say, -noiselessly showing the count the way, and constantly turning round to look -at him. - -In the sitting-room, at a small table under a blackened full-length -portrait of the Emperor Alexander, sat a number of men, evidently belonging -to the local aristocracy, drinking champagne; and on one side were some -travelling merchants in blue shubas. - -The count entered the room, and calling Blücher, a huge gray boarhound that -accompanied him, he threw off his cloak, the collar of which was covered -with frost, and, after ordering vodka, sat down at the table in a short -blue-satin jacket, and entered into conversation with the gentlemen sitting -there. The latter, attracted toward the new-comer by his handsome and frank -exterior, offered him a glass of champagne. - -The count had begun to drink his glass of vodka; but now he also ordered a -bottle of champagne, in order to return the courtesy of his new companions. - -The driver came in to ask for vodka-money. - -"Sashka,"[57] cried the count, "give it to him." - -[Footnote 57: Diminished diminutive of Aleksandr.] - -The driver went out with Sashka, but quickly returned, holding the money in -his hands. - -"What! little father, 'slency, is that right? I did my best for you. You -promised me a half-ruble, and you have only given me a quarter!" - -"Sashka, give him a ruble." - -Sashka, hanging down his head, gazed at the driver's feet. - -"He will have enough," said he in his deep voice. "Besides, I haven't any -more money." - -The count drew from his pocket-book the two solitary blue notes[58] which -were in it, and gave one to the driver, who kissed his hand, and went off. -"I have come to the end," said the count, "my last five rubles." - -[Footnote 58: Blue notes were five rubles.] - -"True hussar style, count," said one of the nobles, whose mustaches, voice, -and a certain energetic freedom in the use of his legs, proclaimed him, -beyond a peradventure, to be a retired cavalryman. "Are you going to spend -some time here, count?" - -"I must have some money if I stay, otherwise I should not be very likely -to. Besides, there are no spare rooms, the Devil take it, in this cursed -tavern." - -"I beg of you, count," pursued the cavalryman, "wouldn't you like to come -in with me? My room is No. 7. If you wouldn't object to sleep there for the -present. We shall be here three days at least. To-day I was at the -marshal's: how glad he would be to see you!" - -"That's right, count, stay with us," urged another of the table companions, -a handsome young man. "What is your hurry? And besides, this happens only -once in three years,--these elections. We might get a glimpse of some of -our girls, count!" - -"Sashka, get me some clean linen. I am going to have a bath," said the -count, rising. "And then we will see; perhaps I may decide to pay my -respects to the marshal." - -Then he called the waiter, and said something to him in an undertone. The -waiter replied, with a laugh, "That is within human possibility," and went -out. - -"Well, then, little father, I have given orders to have my trunk taken to -your room," cried the count, as he went out of the door. - -"I shall consider it a favor: it delights me," replied the cavalryman as he -hastened to the door, and cried, "No.7; don't forget!" - -When the count was out of hearing, the cavalryman returned to his place, -and drawing his chair nearer to the _chinovnik_, and looking him straight -in his smiling eyes, said,-- - -"Well, he's the very one." - -"What one?" - -"I tell you that he's that very same hussar duellist,--let me see, the -famous Turbin. He knew me. I'll wager he knew me. I assure you, at Lebedyan -he and I were on a spree for three weeks, and were never sober once. That -was when I lost my remount. There was one little affair at that time,--we -were engaged in it together. Ah, he is a gay lad! isn't he, though?" - -"Indeed he is. What pleasant manners he has! There's no fault to be found -with him," replied the handsome young man. "How quickly we became -acquainted!... He isn't more than twenty-two, is he?" - -"He certainly would not seem so, would he?... But he's really more than -that. Well, now you want to know who he is, don't you? Who carried off -Megunova? He did. He killed Sablin. He kicked Matnyef out of the window. He -'did' Prince Nesterof out of three hundred thousand rubles. He's a regular -madcap. You ought to know him,--a gambler, duellist, seducer, but a -whole-souled fellow, a genuine hussar. We got talked about a good deal, but -if any one really understood what it meant to be a genuine hussar! Those -were great times." - -And the cavalryman began to tell his comrade of a drinking-bout with the -count, which had never taken place, nor could have taken place. It could -not have taken place, first, because he had never seen the count before, -and had retired from the service two years before the count had entered it; -and secondly, because this cavalryman had never served in the cavalry, but -had served four years as a very insignificant yunker in the Bielevsky -regiment; and just as soon as he was promoted to be ensign, he retired. - -But ten years before he had received an inheritance, and actually went to -Lebedyan; and there he spent seven hundred rubles with the cavalry -officers, and had had made for him an uhlan's uniform with orange lapels, -with the intention of entering the uhlans. His thought of entering the -cavalry, and his three weeks spent with the officers at Lebedyan, made the -very happiest and most brilliant period of his life; so that he began to -transfer his thought into a reality. Then, as he added remembrance to it, -he began actually to believe in his military past,--which did not prevent -him from being a worthy man through his kindness of heart and uprightness. - -"Yes, any one who has never served in the cavalry," he went on to say, -"will never understand us fellows." - -He sat astride of his chair, and, thrusting out his lower lip, went on in a -deep voice, "It happens you are riding along in front of the battalion. A -devil is under you, not a horse, prancing along; thus you sit on this -perfect devil. The battalion commander comes along. 'Lieutenant,' says he, -'I beg of you--your service is absolutely indispensable. You must lead the -battalion for the parade.' Very well, and so it goes. You look around, you -give a shout, you lead the brave fellows who are under your command. Ah! -the deuce take it! 'twas a glorious time!" - -The count came back from the bath, all ruddy, and with his hair wet, and -went directly to No. 7, where the cavalryman was already sitting in his -dressing-gown, with his pipe, and thinking with delight and some little -anxiety of the good fortune that had befallen him in sharing his room with -the famous Turbin. "Well, now," the thought came into his head, "suppose he -should take me, and strip me naked, and carry me outside the town limits, -and set me down in the snow, ... or smear me with tar ... or simply ... -But, no: he would not do such a thing to a comrade," he said, trying to -comfort himself. - -"Sashka, give Blücher something to eat," cried the count. - -Sashka made his appearance. He had been drinking glasses of vodka ever -since his arrival, and was beginning to be genuinely tipsy. - -"You have not been able to control yourself. You have been getting drunk, -_canaillya_!... Feed Blücher." - -"It won't kill him to fast.... You see, ... he's so plump," replied Sashka, -caressing the dog. - -"Now, none of your impudence. Go, and feed him." - -"All you care for is to have your dog fat; but if a man drinks a little -glass, then you pitch into him." - -"Hey! I'll strike you," cried the count with a voice that made the -window-panes rattle, and even scared the cavalryman somewhat. - -"You would better ask if _Sashka_ has had any thing to eat to-day. All -right, strike away, if a dog is more to you than a man," continued Sashka. - -But at that instant he received such a violent blow of the fist across the -face that he staggered, struck his head against the partition, and, -clutching his nose, leaped through the door, and threw himself down on a -bench in the corridor. - -"He has broken my teeth," he growled, wiping his bloody nose with one hand, -and with the other scratching Blücher's back, as the dog licked him. "He -has broken my teeth, Blüchka; and yet he is my count, and I would jump into -the fire for him, that's a fact. Because he's my count, do you understand, -Blüchka? And do you want something to eat?" - -After lying there a while, he got up, gave the dog his dinner, and, almost -sobered, went to serve his master, and get him his tea. - -"You would simply offend me," said the cavalryman timidly, standing in -front of the count, who was lying on the bed with his feet propped against -the partition. "Now, you see, I am an old soldier and comrade, I may say; -instead of letting you borrow of any one else, it would give me great -pleasure to let you have two hundred rubles. I haven't them with me -now,--only a hundred,--but I can get the rest to-day; don't refuse, you -would simply offend me, count!" - -"Thanks, little father," said Turbin, instantly perceiving what sort of -relationship would exist between them, and slapping the cavalryman on the -shoulder. "Thanks. Well, then, we'll go to the ball if you say so. But now -what shall we do? Tell me whom you have in your city: any pretty girls? -anybody ready for a spree? Who plays cards?" - -The cavalryman explained that there would be a crowd of pretty girls at the -ball; that the police commissioner,[59] Kolkof, who had just been -re-elected, was the greatest hand for sprees, only he lacked the spirit of -a genuine hussar, but still was a first-rate fellow; that Ilyushka's chorus -of gypsies had been singing at K. ever since the elections began; that -Stioshka[60] was the soloist, and that after the marshal's reception -everybody went there nowadays. And the stakes were pretty high. "Lukhnof, a -visitor here," he said, "is sweeping in the money; and Ilyin, a cornet of -uhlans, who rooms in No. 8, has already lost a pile. The game has already -begun there. They play there every evening; and he's a wonderfully fine -young fellow, I tell you, count, this Ilyin is. There's nothing mean about -him--he'd give you his last shirt." - -[Footnote 59: isprávnik.] - -[Footnote 60: Diminutive of Stepanida, Stephanie.] - -"Then let us go to his room. We will see what sort of men you have," said -the count. - -"Come on! come on! they will be mighty glad." - - -II. - -Ilyin, the cornet of uhlans, had not long been awake. The evening before, -he had sat down at the gambling-table at eight o'clock, and lost for -fifteen consecutive hours, till eleven o'clock that day. He had lost a -great amount, but exactly how much he did not know, because he had had -three thousand rubles of his money, and fifteen thousand belonging to the -treasury, which he had long ago mixed up with his own, and he did not dare -to settle his accounts lest his anticipations that he had made too great -inroads on the public money should be confirmed. - -He went to sleep about noon, and slept that heavy, dreamless sleep, -peculiar to very young men who have been losing heavily. Waking at six, -about the time that Count Turbin had arrived at the hotel, and seeing cards -and chalk and soiled tables scattered around him in confusion in the room, -he remembered with horror the evening's games, and the last card, a knave, -which had lost him five hundred rubles; but, still scarcely believing in -the reality, he drew out from under his pillow his money, and began to -count it. He recognized a few notes which, with corners turned down and -indorsements, had gone from hand to hand around the table; he remembered -all the particulars. He had lost his own three thousand rubles, and -twenty-five hundred belonging to the treasury had disappeared. - -The uhlan had been playing for four nights in succession. - -He had come from Moscow, where the public money had been intrusted to him. -At K. the post-superintendent had detained him under the pretext that there -were no post-horses, but in reality in accordance with his agreement with -the hotel-keeper to detain all visitors for a day. - -The uhlan, who was a gay young fellow, and had just received from his -parent three thousand rubles for his military equipment, was glad to spend -a few days in the city of K. during the elections, and counted on having a -good time. - -He knew a landed proprietor whose family lived there, and he was preparing -to call upon him and pay his addresses to his daughter, when the cavalryman -appeared, and made his acquaintance. That very evening, without malice -prepense, he took him down into the parlor, and introduced him to his -friends, Lukhnof and several other gamblers. From that time, the uhlan had -kept steadily at gaming, and not only had not called on the proprietor, but -had not thought of inquiring further for horses, and for four days had not -left his room. - -After he had dressed, and taken his tea, he went to the window. He felt an -inclination to go out so as to dispel the importunate recollections of the -game. He put on his cloak, and went into the street. - -The sun had just sunk behind the white houses with their red roofs. It was -already twilight. It was warm. The snow was softly falling in big, damp -flakes, in the muddy streets. His mind suddenly became filled with -unendurable melancholy at the thought that he had spent all that day in -sleep, and now the day was done. - -"This day which has gone, will never come back again," he said to himself. - -"I have wasted my youth," he suddenly exclaimed, not because he really felt -that he had wasted his youth,--he did not think about it at all,--but -simply this phrase came into his head. - -"What shall I do now?" he reasoned; "borrow of some one, and go away?" - -A lady was passing along the sidewalk. - -"What a stupid woman!" he said to himself for some reason. - -"There's no one I can borrow of. I have wasted my youth." - -He came to a block of stores. A merchant in a fox-skin shuba was standing -at the door of his shop, and inviting custom. - -"If I hadn't taken the eight, I should have won." - -A little old beggar-woman followed him, snivelling. - -"I have no one to borrow of." - -A gentleman in a bear-skin shuba passed him. A policeman was standing on -the corner. - -"What can I do that will make sensation? Fire a pistol at them? No! That -would be stupid. I have wasted my youth. _Akh!_ what a splendid harness -that is hanging in that shop! I should like to be riding behind a -troďka!... _Ekh!_ you fine fellows![61] I am going back. Lukhnof will be -there pretty soon, and we'll have a game." - -[Footnote 61: _golúbchiki_, little pigeons.] - -He returned to the hotel, and once more counted his money. No, he was not -mistaken the first time; twenty-five hundred rubles of public money were -missing, just as before. - -"I will put up twenty-five rubles first; the next time, a quarter stake; -then on seven, on fifteen, on thirty, and on sixty ... three thousand. I -will buy that harness, and start. He won't give me any odds, the villain! -I have wasted my youth!" - -This was what was passing through the uhlan's mind just as Lukhnof himself -came into the room. - -"Well, have you been up long, Mikháďlo Vasílyitch?" inquired Lukhnof, -deliberately removing from his thin nose his gold eye-glasses, and -carefully wiping them with a red silk handkerchief. - -"No, only just this minute. I had a splendid sleep!" - -"A new hussar has just come. He is staying with Zavalshevsky. Had you heard -about it?" - -"No, I hadn't. Well, no one seems to be here yet. I believe they have gone -to call on Priakhin. They'll be here very soon." - -In fact, in a short time there came into the room an officer of the -garrison, who was always hovering round Lukhnof; a Greek merchant with a -huge hooked nose, cinnamon complexion, and deep-set black eyes; a stout, -puffy proprietor, a brandy-distiller who gambled all night long, and always -made his stakes on the basis of half a ruble. All of these wished to begin -playing as promptly as possible, but the more daring players said nothing -about it; Lukhnof, in particular, with perfect equanimity, told stories of -rascality in Moscow. - -"Just think of it," said he, "Moscow, the metropolis, the capital; and -there they go out at night with crooks, dressed like demons; and they scare -the stupid people, and rob pedestrians, and that is the end of it. Do the -police notice it? No! It is astonishing!" - -The uhlan listened attentively to the tales of these highwaymen, but -finally got up and unobtrusively ordered cards to be brought. The stout -proprietor was the first to notice it. - -"Well, gentlemen, we are wasting golden moments. To work, let us to work!" - -"Yes, you won by the half-ruble last evening, and so you like it," -exclaimed the Greek. - -"It's a good time to begin," said the garrison officer. - -Ilyin looked at Lukhnof. Lukhnof, returning his gaze, went on calmly with -his story of the robbers who dressed themselves up like devils. "Will you -start the bank?" asked the uhlan. - -"Isn't it rather early?" - -"Byélof!" cried the uhlan, reddening for some reason or other; "bring me -something to eat.... I haven't had any dinner to-day, gentlemen. Bring some -champagne, and distribute the cards." - -A this moment, the count and Zavalshevsky entered. It proved that Turbin -and Ilyin were in the same division. They immediately struck up an -acquaintance, drank a glass of champagne, clinking their glasses together, -and in five minutes were calling each other "thou." - -It was evident that Ilyin made a very pleasant impression on the count. The -count smiled whenever he looked at him, and was amused at his freshness. - -"What a fine young uhlan!" he said, "what a mustache! what a splendid -mustache!" - -Ilyin's upper lip bore the first down of a mustache, that was as yet almost -white. - -"You were preparing to play, were you not?" asked the count. "Well, I -should like to win from you, Ilyin. I think that you must be a master," he -added smiling. - -"Yes, we were just starting in," replied Lukhnof, opening a pack of -cards.... "Aren't you going to join us, count?" - -"No, I won't to-night. If I did there wouldn't be any thing left of any of -you! When I take a hand I always break the bank. But I haven't any money -just now. I lost at Volotchok, at the station-house. It was by some sort of -infantry-man who wore rings; what a cheat he was! and he cleaned me out -completely." - -"Were you long there at the station?" asked Ilyin. - -"I staid there twenty-two hours. I shall not forget that station, curse it! -and the superintendent won't forget it either." - -"Why?" - -"I got there, you see; the superintendent comes out, rascally face, the -liar! 'There are no horses,' said he. Well, now I must tell you, I have -made a rule in such cases: when there are no horses, I keep on my shuba, -and go straight to the superintendent's room,--not the waiting-room, mind -you, but the superintendent's own room,--and I have all the windows and -doors opened, as though it were stifling. Well, that's what I did here. -Cold! you remember how cold it has been this last month; twenty degrees -below. The superintendent began to remonstrate. I knock his teeth in for -him. There was some old woman there; and some young girls and -peasant-women[62] set up a piping, were going to seize their pots and fly -to the village.... I go to the door, and say, 'Let me have horses, and I'll -go away: if you don't, I won't let you out, I'll freeze you all to death.'" - -[Footnote 62: _babas._] - -"What an admirable way!" said the puffy proprietor, bursting out into a -laugh. "That's the way one would freeze out cockroaches." - -"But I wasn't sufficiently on my guard: the superintendent and all his -women managed to get out and run away. Only the old woman remained on the -oven as my hostage. She kept sniffing, and offering prayers to God. Then we -entered into negotiations. The superintendent came back, and, standing at a -distance, tried to persuade me to let the old woman go. But I set Blücher -on him: Blücher is a magnificent dog to take care of superintendents. Even -then the rascal did not let me have horses till the next morning. And then -came along that footpad! I went into the next room, and began to play. Have -you seen Blücher?--Blücher! _Fiu_!" Blücher came running in. The players -received him with flattering attention, although it was evident that they -were anxious to get to work at entirely different matters. - -"By the way, gentlemen, why don't you begin your game? I beg of you, don't -let me interfere with you. You see I am a chatterbox," said Turbin. -"_Whether you love or not_, 'tis an excellent thing." - - -III. - -Lukhnof took two candles, brought out a huge dark-colored pocket-book full -of money; slowly, as though performing some sacrament, opened it on the -table; took out two one-hundred-ruble notes, and laid them on the cards. - -"There, just the same as last evening; the bank begins with two hundred," -said he, adjusting his glasses, and opening a pack of cards. - -"Very well," said Ilyin, not glancing at him, or interrupting his -conversation with Turbin. - -The game began. Lukhnof kept the bank with mechanical regularity, -occasionally pausing, and deliberately making notes, or looking sternly -over his glasses, and saying in a weak voice, "Throw." - -The stout proprietor talked louder than the rest, making various -calculations at the top of his voice, while he wet his clumsy fingers and -dog-eared his cards. - -The garrison officer silently wrote in a fine hand his account on a card, -turned down small corners, pressing them against the table. - -The Greek sat next the banker, attentively following the game with his deep -black eyes, as though waiting for something. - -Zavalshevsky, as he stood by the table, would suddenly become all of a -tremble, draw from his trousers-pocket a blue note or a red,[63] lay a card -on it, pound on it with his palm, and say, "Bring me luck, little seven!" -then he would bite his mustache, change from one leg to the other, and be -in a continual state of excitement until the card came out. - -[Footnote 63: Five or ten rubles.] - -Ilyin, who had been eating veal and cucumbers placed near him on the -haircloth sofa, briskly wiped his hands on his coat, and began to put down -one card after another. - -Turbin, who had taken his seat at first on the sofa, immediately noticed -that something was wrong. Lukhnof did not look at the uhlan, or say any -thing to him; but occasionally his eyes for an instant rested on the -uhlan's hands. The most of his cards lost. - -"If I could only trump that little card," exclaimed Lukhnof in reference to -one of the stout proprietor's cards. He was still making half-ruble wagers. - -"Trump Ilyin's instead: what would be the use of trumping mine?" replied -the proprietor. - -And, in point of fact, Ilyin's cards were trumped oftener than the others'. -He nervously tore up his losing card under the table, and with trembling -hands chose another. - -Turbin arose from the sofa, and asked the Greek to give him his place next -the banker. The Greek changed places; and the count, taking his chair, and -not moving his eyes, began to watch Lukhnof's hands attentively. - -"Ilyin," said he suddenly in his ordinary voice, which, entirely contrary -to his desire, drowned out the others, "why do you stick to those routine -cards? You don't know how to play!" - -"Supposing I don't, it's all the same." - -"You'll lose that way surely. Let me play against the bank for you." - -"No, excuse me, I beg of you. I'm always this way. Play for yourself if you -like." - -"I have told you that I am not going to play. But I should like to play for -you. I hate to see you losing so." - -"Ah, well! you see it's my luck." - -The count said nothing more, and leaning on his elbow began once more to -watch the banker's hand just as attentively as before. - -"Shameful!" he suddenly cried in a loud voice, dwelling on the word. - -Lukhnof glared at him. - -"Shameful, shameful!" he repeated still louder, staring straight into -Lukhnof's eyes. - -The game continued. - -"That is not right!" said Turbin again, as Lukhnof trumped one of Ilyin's -high cards. - -"What displeases you, count?" politely asked the banker with an air of -indifference. - -"Because you give Ilyin a simplum, and turn down your corners. That's what -is shameful!" - -Lukhnof made a slight motion with his shoulders and brows, signifying that -he was resigned to any fate, and then he went on with the game. - -"Blücher, _fiu_!" cried the count, rising; "over with him!" he added -quickly. Blücher, bumping against the sofa with his back, and almost -knocking the garrison officer from his feet, came leaping toward his -master, looking at every one and wagging his tail as though he would ask, -"Who is misbehaving here, hey?" - -Lukhnof laid down the cards, and moved his chair away. "This is no way to -play," said he. "I detest dogs. What kind of a game can you have if a whole -pack of hounds is to be brought in?" - -"Especially that kind of dog: they are called blood-suckers, if I am not -mistaken," suggested the garrison officer. - -"Well, are we to play or not, Mikháďlo Vasílyitch?" asked Lukhnof, -addressing the uhlan. - -"Don't bother us, count, I beg of you," said Ilyin, turning to Turbin. - -"Come here for a moment," said Turbin, taking Ilyin's arm, and drawing him -into the next room. - -There the count's words were perfectly audible, though he spoke in his -ordinary tone. But his voice was so powerful that it could always be heard -three rooms off. - -"Are you beside yourself? Don't you see that that man with the glasses is a -cheat of the worst order?" - -"Hey? Nonsense! Be careful what you say." - -"No nonsense! but quit it, I tell you. It makes no difference to me. -Another time I myself would have plucked you; but now I am sorry to see you -ruining yourself. Have you any public money left?" - -"No. What makes you think so about him?" - -"Brother, I have been over this same road, and I know the ways of these -professional gamblers. I tell you that the man in the glasses is a cheat. -Quit, please. I ask you as a comrade." - -"All right; I'll have just one more hand, and then have done with it." - -"I know what that 'one more' means: very well, we will see." - -They returned to the gaming-table. In one deal he laid down so many cards, -and they were trumped so badly, that he lost a large amount. - -Turbin rested his hand in the middle of the table, and said, "That's -enough! now let us be going." - -"No, I can't go yet; leave me, please," said Ilyin in vexation, shuffling -the bent cards and not looking at Turbin. - -"All right! the Devil be with you! Lose all you've got, if that please you; -but it's time for me to be going.--Come, Zavalshevsky, let us go to the -marshal's." - -And they went out. No one spoke, and Lukhnof did not make the bank until -the noise of their feet and of Blücher's paws had died away down the -corridor. - -"That's a madcap," said the proprietor, smiling. - -"Well, now he won't bother us any more," said the garrison officer in a -hurried whisper. - -And the game went on. - - -IV. - -The band, composed of the marshal's domestic serfs, were stationed in the -butler's pantry, which had been put in order on account of the ball, and, -having turned up the sleeves of their coats, had begun at the signal of -their leader to play the ancient polonaise "Aleksandr, Yelisaviéta;" and -under the soft, brilliant light of the wax candles, the couples began to -move in tripping measure through the great ballroom; a governor-general of -Catherine's time, with a star, taking out the gaunt wife of the marshal, -the marshal with the governor's wife, and so on through all the hierarchy -of the government in various combinations and variations,--when -Zavalshevsky in a blue coat with a huge collar, and epaulets on his -shoulders, and wearing stockings and pumps, and exhaling about him an odor -of jasmine with which he had plentifully drenched his mustaches, the -facings of his coat, and his handkerchief, entered with the handsome count, -who wore tight-fitting blue trousers and a red pelisse embroidered with -gold, and wearing on his breast the cross of Vladímir and a medal of 1812. - -The count was of medium height, but had an extremely handsome figure. His -clear blue eyes of remarkable brilliancy, and dark hair which was rather -long and fell in thick ringlets, gave his beauty a peculiar character. - -The count's presence at the ball was not unexpected. The handsome young -man who had seen him at the hotel had already spoken of him to the marshal. - -The impressions made by this announcement were of various kinds, but on the -whole were not altogether pleasant. - -"I suppose this young man will turn us into ridicule," was what the old -women and the men said to themselves. - -"Suppose he should run off with me," was what the wives and young ladies -thought, with more or less apprehension. - -As soon as the polonaise was finished, and the couples had made each other -low bows, once more the women formed little groups by themselves, and the -men by themselves. Zavalshevsky, proud and happy, led the count up to the -hostess. - -The marshal's wife, conscious of a certain inward trepidation lest this -hussar should make her the cause of some scandal before everybody, said -proudly and scornfully, as she turned away, "Very glad to see you. I hope -that you will dance." And then she looked at the count mistrustfully with -an expression that seemed to say, "Now, if you insult any woman, then you -are a perfect scoundrel after this." - -The count, however, quickly overcame this prejudice by his amiability, his -politeness, and his handsome jovial appearance; so that in five minutes the -expression on the face of the marshal's wife plainly declared to all who -stood around her, "I know how to manage all these men. He immediately -realized whom he was talking with. And now he will be charming to me all -the rest of the evening." - -Moreover, just then the governor, who had known his father, came up to the -count, and very graciously drew him to one side, and entered into -conversation with him, which still more pleased the fashionable society of -the town, and raised the count in their estimation. - -Then Zavalshevsky presented the count to his sister, a plump young widow, -who, ever since the count entered the room, had kept her big black eyes -fastened upon him. - -The count asked the little widow for the waltz which at that moment the -musicians had struck up, and it was his artistic dancing that conquered the -last vestiges of the popular prejudice. - -"Ah, he's a master at dancing!" said a stout lady, following the legs in -blue trousers which were flashing through the ballroom, and mentally -counting, "One, two, three; one, two, three,--he's a master." - -"How gracefully he moves his feet! how gracefully!" said another guest, who -did not stand very high in the governmental society. "How does he manage to -not hit any one with his spurs? Wonderful, very skilful!" - -The count, by his skill in dancing, eclipsed the three best dancers of the -city. These were, a governor's aide, a tall albino, who was famous for his -rapid dancing and because he held the lady pressed very close to his -breast; secondly, the cavalryman, who was famous for his graceful swaying -during the waltz, and for his frequent but light tapping with his heels; -and thirdly, a civilian of whom everybody said, that, though he was not -very strong-minded, yet he was an admirable dancer and the life of all -balls. - -In point of fact, this civilian from the beginning to the end of a ball -invariably invited all the ladies in the order in which they sat, did not -cease for a moment to dance, and only occasionally paused to wipe his -weary but still radiant face with his cambric handkerchief, which would -become wet through. - -The count had surpassed them all, and had danced with the three principal -ladies,--with the stout one, who was rich, handsome, and stupid; with the -middle-sized one, who was lean, and not particularly good-looking, but -handsomely dressed; and with the little one, who was not pretty, but very -witty. - -He had danced also with others,--with all the pretty women, and there were -many pretty women there. - -But the little widow, Zavalshevsky's sister, pleased the count more than -all the rest; with her he danced a quadrille and a schottische and a -mazurka. - -At first, when they took their places for the quadrille, he overwhelmed her -with compliments, comparing her to Venus and Diana, and to a rosebush, and -to some other flower besides. - -To all these amenities the little widow only bent her white neck, modestly -dropped her eyes, and, looking at her white muslin dress, changed her fan -from one hand to the other. - -When, at last, she said, "This is too much, count; you are jesting," etc., -her voice, which was rather guttural, betrayed such _naďve_ simplicity of -heart and amusing naturalness that the count, as he looked at her, actually -compared her, not to a flower or to a rosebush, but to some kind of a -pinkish-white wild-flower, exuberant and odorless, growing alone on a -virgin snow-drift in some far, far-distant land. - -Such a strange impression was made upon the count by this union of -_naďveté_ and unconventionality together with fresh beauty, that several -times, in the pauses of the conversation, when he looked silently into her -eyes or contemplated the loveliness of her arms and neck, the desire came -over him with such vehemence to take her into his arms and kiss her again -and again, that he was really obliged to restrain himself. - -The little widow was quite satisfied with the impression which she -perceived that she had made; but there was something in the count's -behavior that began to disquiet her, and fill her with apprehensions, -though the young hussar was not only flatteringly amiable, but even, to an -extravagant degree, deferential in his treatment of her. - -He ran to get orgeat for her, picked up her handkerchief, snatched a chair -from the hands of a scrofulous young proprietor, who was also anxious to -pay her attention, and who was not quick enough. But perceiving that these -assiduities, which were fashionable at that period, had little effect in -making the lady well-disposed, he began to amuse her by telling her -ridiculous anecdotes: he assured her that he was ready at a moment's notice -to stand on his head, or to crow like a cock, or to jump out of the window, -or to fling himself into a hole in the ice. - -This procedure was a brilliant success: the little widow became very gay; -she rippled with laughter, displaying her marvellous white teeth, and -became entirely satisfied with her cavalier. The count each moment grew -more and more enchanted with her, so that at the end of the quadrille he -was really in love with her. - -After the quadrille, when she was approached by her former admirer, a young -man of eighteen, the son of a very rich proprietor, the same scrofulous -young man from whom Turbin had snatched away the chair, she received him -with perfect coolness, and not one-tenth part of the constraint was -noticeable in her which she felt when she was with the count. - -"You are very kind," she said, all the time gazing at Turbin's back, and -unconsciously reckoning how many yards[64] of gold-lace were used for his -whole jacket. "You are very kind; you promised to come to take me for a -walk, and to bring me some comfits." - -[Footnote 64: _arshins._] - -"Well, I did come, Anna Fedorovna, but you weren't at home, and I left the -very best comfits for you," said the young man, in a voice that was very -thin, considering his height. - -"You always are provided with excuses; I don't need your comfits. Please do -not think".... - -"I begin to see, Anna Fedorovna, how you have changed toward me, and I know -why. But it is not right," he added, but without finishing his remark, -evidently owing to some powerful interior emotion, which caused his lips to -tremble strangely. - -Anna Fedorovna did not heed him, and continued to follow Turbin with her -eyes. The marshal, at whose house the ball was given,--a big, stout old -man, who had lost his teeth,--came up to the count, and, taking him by the -arm, invited him into his library to smoke and drink if he so desired. - -As soon as Turbin disappeared, Anna Fedorovna felt that there was -absolutely nothing for her to do in the ballroom, and slipping her hand -through the arm of a dried-up old maid, who was a friend of hers, went with -her into the dressing-room. - -"Well, what do you think of him? Is he nice?" asked the old maid. - -"Only it's terrible--the way he follows you up!" said Anna Fedorovna, going -to the mirror, and contemplating herself in it. - -Her face was aglow, her eyes were full of mischief, her color was -heightened; then suddenly imitating one of the ballet-dancers whom she had -seen during election time, she pirouetted round on one toe, and, laughing -her guttural but sweet laugh, she leaped up in the air, crossing her knees. - -"What a man he is! he even asked me for a _souvenir_," she confided to her -friend. "But he will ne-e-ver get one," she said, singing the last words, -and lifting one finger in the lilac-colored glove that reached to her -elbow. - -In the library where Turbin was conducted by the marshal, stood various -kinds of vodka, liqueurs, edibles,[65] and champagne. In a cloud of -tobacco-smoke the nobility were sitting, or walking up and down, talking -about the elections. - -[Footnote 65: _zakuski._] - -"When the whole of the high nobility of our district has honored him with -an election," exclaimed the newly elected isprávnik who was already -tolerably tipsy, "he certainly ought not to fail in his duties toward -society in general." - -The conversation was interrupted by the count's coming. All were presented -to him, and the isprávnik especially pressed his hand long between both of -his, and asked him several times to go with him after the ball to the new -tavern, where he would treat the gentlemen of the nobility, and where they -would hear the gypsies sing. - -The count accepted his invitation, and drank with him several glasses of -champagne. - -"Why aren't you dancing, gentlemen?" he asked, as he was about to leave the -library. - -"We aren't dancers," replied the isprávnik, laughing. "We prefer the wine, -count; and besides, all these young ladies have grown up under my eyes, -count. But still, I do sometimes take part in a schottische, count. I can -do it, count." - -"Come on then for a while," said Turbin. "Let us have some sport before we -go to the gypsies." - -"What say you, gentlemen? Let us come! Let us delight our host!" - -And the three gentlemen who, since the beginning of the ball, had been -drinking in the library and had very red faces, began to draw on their -gloves, some of black kid, another of knit silk, and were just going with -the count to the ballroom, when they were detained by the scrofulous young -man, who, pale as a sheet, and scarcely able to refrain from tears, came -straight up to Turbin. - -"You have an idea, because you are a count, you can run into people as if -you were at a fair," said he, with difficulty drawing his breath; "hence it -isn't fitting"-- - -Once more the stream of his speech was interrupted by the involuntary -trembling of his lips. - -"What?" cried Turbin, frowning suddenly, "what?... You're a baby," he -cried, seizing him by the arm, and squeezing it so that the blood rushed to -the young man's head, not so much from vexation as from fright. "What is -it? Do you want to fight? If so, I am at your service." - -Turbin had scarcely let go of his arm, which he had squeezed so powerfully, -when two nobles seized the young man by the sleeve, and carried him off -through a back door. - -"What! have you lost your wits? You've surely been drinking too much. We -shall have to tell your papa. What's the matter with you?" they asked. - -"No, I haven't been drinking; but he ran into me, and did not apologize. -He's a hog, that's what he is," whined the young man, now actually in -tears. - -Nevertheless they paid no attention to him, but carried him off home. - -"Never mind, count," said the isprávnik and Zavalshevsky assuringly. "He's -a mere child. They still whip him: he's only sixteen years old. It's hard -to tell what is to be done with him. What fly stung him? And his father is -such an honorable man! He's our candidate." - -"Well, the Devil take him if he refuses".... - -And the count returned to the ballroom, and, as gayly as before, danced the -schottische with the pretty little widow, and laughed heartily when he saw -the antics of the gentlemen who had come with him out of the library. There -was a general burst of merriment all through the ballroom when the -isprávnik tripped, and measured his length on the floor in the midst of the -dancers. - - -V. - -Anna Fedorovna, while the count was in the library, went to her brother, -and, for the very reason of her conviction that she ought to pretend to -feel very little interest in the count, she began to question him. - -"Who is this hussar that has been dancing with me? Tell me, brother." - -The cavalryman explained, to the best of his ability, what a great man this -hussar was, and in addition he told his sister that the count had stopped -there simply because his money had been stolen on the route: he himself had -loaned him a hundred rubles, but that was not enough. Couldn't his sister -let him have two hundred more? Zavalshevsky asked her not to say any thing -about this to any one, and, above all, not to the count. - -Anna Fedorovna promised to send the money the next day, and to keep it a -secret; but somehow or other, during the schottische, she had a terrible -desire to offer the count as much money as he needed. - -She deliberated, blushed, and at last, mastering her confusion, thus -addressed herself to the task:-- - -"My brother told me, count, that you had met with a misfortune on the road, -and hadn't any money. Now, if you need some, wouldn't you take some of me? -I should be terribly glad." - -But after she had thus spoken, Anna Fedorovna suddenly was overcome with -fright, and blushed. All the gayety had instantly vanished from the -count's face. - -"Your brother is a fool!" said he in a cutting tone. "You know, when a man -insults a man, then they fight a duel; but when a woman insults a man, then -what do they do? Do you know?" - -Poor Anna Fedorovna blushed to her ears with confusion. She dropped her -eyes, and made no reply. - -"They kiss the woman in public," said the count softly, bending over to -whisper in her ear. "Permit me, however, to kiss your little hand," he -added almost inaudibly, after a long silence, having some pity on his -lady's confusion. - -"Ah! only not quite yet," urged Anna Fedorovna, with a deep sigh. - -"But when, then? To-morrow I am going away early.... But really, you owe it -to me." - -"Well, then, of course it is impossible," said Anna Fedorovna smiling. - -"Only give me a chance to see you before to-morrow, so that I may kiss your -hand. I will find one." - -"How will you find one?" - -"That is my affair. I can do any thing to see you.... Is it agreed?" - -"Agreed." - -The schottische came to an end; they danced through the mazurka, and in it -the count did marvels, purloining handkerchiefs, bending on one knee, and -clinking his spurs in an extraordinary manner, after the Warsaw style, so -that all the old men came from their _boston_ to look into the ballroom; -and the cavalryman who was the best dancer confessed himself outdone. After -they had eaten supper, they danced still the _gross vater_, and began to -disperse. - -The count all this time did not take his eyes from the little widow. He had -not been insincere when he declared his readiness to throw himself into a -hole in the ice. - -Whether it was caprice or love or stubbornness, but that evening all the -strength of his mind had been concentrated into one desire,--to see and to -love her. - -As soon as he perceived that Anna Fedorovna was taking her farewell of the -hostess, he hastened to the servants' quarters, and thence, without his -shuba, to the place where the carriages were drawn up. - -"Anna Fedorovna Zaďtsova's equipage," he cried. - -A high four-seated carriage with lanterns moved out, and started to drive -up to the doorstep. - -"Stop!" shouted the count to the coachman, rushing up toward the carriage -through snow that was knee-deep. - -"What is wanted?" called the driver. - -"I want to get into the carriage," replied the count, opening the door as -the carriage moved, and trying to climb in. - -"Stop, you devil! stupid! Vaska![66] stop!" cried the coachman to the -postilion, and reining in the horses. "What are you getting into another -person's carriage for? This belongs to the Lady Anna Fedorovna, and not to -your grace." - -[Footnote 66: Diminutive of Vasili.] - -"Hush up, blockhead! _Na!_ there's a ruble for you; now come down and shut -the door!" said the count. - -But as the coachman did not move, he lifted the steps himself, and, -shutting the window, managed to pull the door to. - -In this, as in all ancient carriages, especially those upholstered in -yellow galloon, there was an odor of mustiness and burnt bristles. - -The count's legs were wet to the knees from melting snow, and almost -freezing in his thin boots and trousers; and his whole body was penetrated -by a cold like that of winter. - -The coachman was grumbling on his box, and seemed to be getting ready to -get down. But the count heard nothing and felt nothing. His face was aglow, -his heart was beating violently. He convulsively clutched the yellow strap, -thrust his head out of the side-window, and his whole being was -concentrated in expectation. - -He was not doomed to wait long. At the door-steps, they shouted, -"Zaďtsova's carriage!" The coachman shook his reins, the carriage swung on -its high springs; the lighted windows of the house passed one after another -by the carriage-windows. - -"See here, rogue, if you tell the lackey that I am here," said the count, -thrusting his head through the front window, and addressing the coachman, -"you'll feel my whip; but if you hold your tongue, I will give you ten -rubles more." - -He had scarcely time to close the window, when the carriage shook again -still more violently, and then the wheels came to a stop. - -He drew back as far as possible into the corner; he ceased to breathe; he -even shut his eyes, so apprehensive was he, lest his passionate expectation -should be disappointed. - -The door was opened; one after the other, with a creak, the steps were let -down; a woman's dress rustled, and the close atmosphere of the carriage -was impregnated by the odor of jasmine; a woman's dainty feet hurried up -the steps, and Anna Fedorovna, brushing against the count's leg with the -skirt of her cloak, which was loosely thrown about her, silently, and with -a deep sigh, took her place on the cushioned seat next him. - -Whether she saw him or not, no one could decide, not even Anna Fedorovna -herself: but when he took her hand, and said, "Now I will kiss your little -hand anyway," she evinced very little dismay. She said nothing, but let him -take her hand, which he covered with kisses, not stopping at the glove. - -The carriage rolled off. - -"Tell me something. You are not angry?" said he to her. - -She silently sank back into her corner, but suddenly, for some reason or -other, burst into tears, and let her head fall on his breast. - - -VI. - -The newly elected isprávnik, with his company, the cavalryman, and other -members of the nobility, had already been listening for some time to the -gypsies, and drinking at the new tavern, when the count, in a blue-lined -bear-skin shuba which had belonged to Anna Fedorovna's late husband, joined -them. - -"Little father, your excellency! we have almost given up expecting you," -said a squint-eyed black gypsy with brilliant teeth, who met him in the -entry and divested him of his shuba. "We haven't met since we were at -Lebedyan.... Stioshka has pined away on account of you." - -Stioshka, a slender young gypsy-girl[67] with a cherry red bloom on her -cinnamon-colored cheeks, with brilliant deep black eyes, shaded by long -eyelashes, also hurried to meet him. - -"Ah! dear little count![68] my sweetheart! This is a pleasure," she -exclaimed through her teeth, with a joyous smile. - -[Footnote 67: _tsiganotchka._] - -[Footnote 68: _grafchik! golubchik!_] - -Ilyushka himself came to greet Turbin, pretending that he was very glad to -see him. The old women, the wives, the young girls, hastened to the spot -and surrounded the guest. - -One would have said that he was a relative or a god-brother to them. - -Turbin kissed all the young gypsy girls on the lips; the old women and the -men kissed him on the shoulder or on the hand. - -The gentlemen were also very glad of the count's arrival; the more because -the festivity, having passed its apogee, was now becoming tame; every one -began to feel a sense of satiety. The wine, having lost its exhilarating -effect on the nerves, only served to load the stomach. Everybody had -discharged the last cannon of his wildness, and was looking around moodily. -All the songs had been sung, and ran in the heads of each, leaving a mere -impression of noise and confusion. - -Whatever any one did that was strange and wild, the rest began to look upon -it as nothing very entertaining or amusing. - -The isprávnik stretched out on the floor in shameless fashion at the feet -of some old woman, kicked his leg in the air, and began to cry,-- - -"Champagne!... The count has come!... Champagne!... He has come!... Now -give us champagne!... I will make a bath of champagne, and swim in it! -Gentlemen of the nobility, I love your admirable society!... Stioshka, sing -'The Narrow Road.'" - -The cavalryman was also very gay, but in a different fashion. He was -sitting in a corner of a sofa with a tall, handsome gypsy, Liubasha; and -with the consciousness that intoxication was beginning to cloud his eyes, -he kept blinking them, and swinging his head, and repeating the same words -over and over again: he was proposing in a whisper to the gypsy to fly with -him somewhere. - -Liubasha, smiling, listened to him as though what he said were very amusing -to her, and at the same time rather melancholy. Occasionally she cast her -glances at her husband, the squint-eyed Sashka, who was standing behind a -chair near her. In reply to the cavalryman's declaration of love, she bent -over to his ear, and begged him to buy her some perfume and a ribbon -without any one knowing it, so that the others should not see it. - -"Hurrah!" cried the cavalryman when the count came in. - -The handsome young man, with an expression of anxiety, was walking up and -down the room with solicitously steady steps, and humming an air from the -"Revolt in the Seraglio." - -An old _paterfamilias_, dragged out to see the gypsies through the -irresistible entreaties of the gentlemen of the nobility, who had told him -that if he staid away every thing would go to pieces, and in that case they -had better not go, was lying on a sofa where he had stretched himself out -immediately on his arrival; and no one paid any attention to him. - -A chinovnik, who had been there before, had taken off his coat, was sitting -with his legs on the table, and was rumpling up his hair, and thus proving -that he understood how to be dissipated. - -As soon as the count came in, the official unbuttoned his shirt-collar, and -lifted his legs still higher. The count's arrival generally gave new life -to the festivities. - -The gypsy girls, who had been scattered about the room, again formed their -circle. The count seated Stioshka, the soloist, on his knee, and ordered -more champagne to be brought. Ilyushka, with his guitar, stood in front of -the soloist, and began the _plyaska_, that is, the gypsy song and dance, -"When I walk upon the Street," "Hey! you Hussars," "Do you hear, do you -understand?" and others of the usual order. - -Stioshka sang splendidly. Her flexible, sonorous contralto, with its deep -chest notes, her smiles while she was singing, her mischievous, passionate -eyes, and her little foot which involuntarily kept time to the measure of -the song, her despairing wail at the end of each couplet,--this all touched -some resonant but tender chord. It was evident that she lived only in the -song that she was singing. - -Ilyushka, in his smile, his back, his legs, his whole being, carrying out -in pantomime the idea expressed in the song, accompanied it on his guitar, -and, fixing his eyes upon her as though he were hearing her for the first -time, attentively and carefully lifted and drooped his head with the rhythm -of the song. - -Then he suddenly straightened himself up as the singer sang the last note, -and, as though he felt himself superior to every one else in the world, -with proud deliberation kicked the guitar, turned it over, stamped his -foot, tossed back his locks, and looked at the chorus with a frown. - -All his body, from his neck to his toes, began to dance in every sinew. - -And twenty powerful, energetic voices, each trying to outdo the other in -making strange and extraordinary noises, were lifted in union. - -The old women sprang down from their chairs, waving their handkerchiefs, -and showing their teeth, and crying in rhythmic measure, each louder than -the other. The bassos, leaning their heads on one side, and swelling their -necks, bellowed from behind their chairs. - -When Stioshka emitted her high notes, Ilyushka brought his guitar nearer to -her as though trying to aid her; and the handsome young man, in his -enthusiasm, cried out that now they struck B-flat. - -When they came to the national dance, the Plyasovaya, and Duniasha, with -shoulders and bosom shaking, stepped in front of the count, and was passing -on, Turbin leaped from his place, took off his uniform, and, remaining only -in his red shirt, boldly joined her, keeping up the same measure, and -cutting with his feet such antics, that the gypsies laughed and exchanged -glances of approval. - -The isprávnik, who was sitting Turkish fashion, pounded his chest with his -fist, and cried "_Vivat!_" and then, seizing the count by the leg, began to -tell him that out of two thousand rubles, he had only five hundred left and -that he might do whatever he pleased, if only the count would permit him. - -The old _paterfamilias_ woke up, and wanted to go home, but they would not -let him. The handsome young man asked a gypsy girl to waltz with him. The -cavalryman, anxious to exalt himself by his friendship with the count, got -up from his corner, and embraced Turbin. "Ah, my turtle-dove!" he cried. -"Why must you leave us so soon? ha?" The count said nothing, being -evidently absorbed in thought. "Where did you go? Ah, you rascal, I know -where you went!" - -This familiarity somehow displeased the Count Turbin. Without smiling, he -looked in silence into the cavalryman's face, and suddenly gave him such a -terrible and grievous affront that the cavalryman was mortified, and for -some time did not know what to make of such an insult, whether it were a -joke or not a joke. At last he made up his mind that it was a joke; he -smiled, and returned to his gypsy, assuring her that he would really marry -her after Easter. - -Another song was sung, a third, they danced again; the round of gayety was -kept up, and every one continued to feel gay. There was no end to the -champagne. - -The count drank a great deal. His eyes seemed to grow rather moist, but he -did not grow dizzy; he danced still better than the rest, spoke without any -thickness, and even joined in a chorus, and supported Stioshka when she -sang "The sweet emotion of friendship." - -In the midst of the dance and song the merchant, who kept the hotel, came -to beg the guests to go home, as it was three o'clock in the morning. - -The count took the landlord by the throat, and ordered him to dance the -_prisiadka_. The merchant refused. The count snatched a bottle of -champagne, and standing the merchant on his head ordered him to stay so, -and then amid general hilarity poured the whole bottle over him. - -The dawn was already breaking. All were pale and weary except the count. - -"At all events, I must go to Moscow," said he, suddenly rising. "Come with -me, all of you, to my room, children.... See me off, and let us have some -tea." - -All accompanied him with the exception of the sleeping proprietor, who -still remained there; they piled into three sledges that were waiting at -the door, and drove off to the hotel. - - -VII. - -"Have the horses put in!" cried the count, as he entered the sitting-room -of the hotel with all his friends including the gypsies. - -"Sashka,--not the gypsy Sashka, but mine,--tell the superintendent that if -the horses are poor I will flog him. Now give us some tea. Zavalshevsky, -make some tea; I am going to Ilyin's; I want to find how things have gone -with him," added Turbin; and he went out into the corridor, and directed -his steps to the uhlan's room. - -Ilyin was just through playing, and, having lost all his money down to his -last kopek, had thrown himself face down on the worn-out haircloth sofa, -and was picking the hairs out one by one, sticking them in his mouth, -biting them into two, and spitting them out again. - -Two tallow candles, one of which was already burnt down to the paper, stood -on the card-cluttered ombre-table, and mingled their feeble rays with the -morning light which was beginning to shine through the window. - -The uhlan's mind was vacant of all thought: that strange thick fog of the -gambling-passion muffled all the capabilities of his mind so that there was -not even room for regret. - -Once he endeavored to think what was left for him to do, how he should get -away without a kopek, how he should pay back the fifteen thousand rubles -of public money that he had lost in gambling, what his colonel would say, -what his mother would say, what his comrades would say; and such fear came -over him, and such disgust at himself, that, in his anxiety to rid himself -of the thought of it, he arose and began to walk up and down through the -room, trying only to walk on the cracks of the floor; and then once more he -began to recall all the least details of the evening. - -He vividly imagined that he was winning the whole back again: he takes a -nine, and lays down a king of spades on two thousand rubles; a queen lies -at the right, at the left an ace, at the right a king of diamonds--and all -was lost! but if he had had a six at the right and a king of diamonds at -the left, then he would have won it all back, he would have staked all -again on P, and would have won back his fifteen thousand rubles, then he -would have bought a good pacer of the colonel, an extra pair of horses, and -a phaëton. And what else besides? Ah! indeed it would have been a splendid, -splendid thing! - -Again he threw himself down on the sofa, and began to bite the hairs once -more. - -"Why are they singing songs in No. 7?" he wondered. "It must be, they are -having a jollification in Turbin's room. I'm of a good mind to go there, -and have a little drink." - -Just at this moment the count came in. - -"Well, have you been losing, brother, hey?" he cried. - -"I will pretend to be asleep, otherwise I shall have to talk with him, and -I really want to sleep now." - -Nevertheless Turbin went up to him, and laid his hand caressingly on his -head.... "Well, my dear little friend, have you been losing? have you had -bad luck? Tell me." - -Ilyin made no reply. - -The count took him by the arm. - -"I have been losing. What is it to you?" muttered Ilyin, in a sleepy voice -expressing indifference and vexation; he did not change his position. - -"Every thing?" - -"Well, yes. What harm is there in it? All! What is it to you?" - -"Listen: tell me the truth, as to a comrade," said the count, who, under -the influence of the wine that he had been drinking, was disposed to be -tender, and continued to smooth the other's hair. "You know I have taken a -fancy to you. Tell me the truth. If you have lost the public money, I will -help you; if you don't, it will be too late.... Was it public money?" - -Ilyin leaped up from the sofa. - -"If you wish me to tell you, don't speak to me so, because ... and I beg of -you don't speak to me.... I will blow my brains out--that's the only thing -that's left for me now!" he exclaimed with genuine despair, letting his -head sink into his hands, and bursting into tears, although but the moment -before he had been calmly thinking about his horses. - -"_Ekh!_ you're a pretty young girl! Well, who might not have the same thing -happen to him? It isn't as bad as it might be; perhaps we can straighten -things out: wait for me here." - -The count hastened from the room. - -"Where is the _pomyeshchik_[69] Lukhnof's room?" he demanded of the -hall-boy. - -[Footnote 69: Landed proprietor.] - -The hall-boy offered to show the count the way. The count in spite of the -objections of the lackey, who said that his master had only just come in -and was preparing to retire, entered the room. - -Lukhnof in his dressing-gown was sitting in front of a table, counting over -a number of packages of bank-notes piled up before him. On the table was a -bottle of Rheinwein, of which he was very fond. He had procured himself -this pleasure from his winnings. - -Coldly, sternly, Lukhnof looked at the count over his glasses, affecting -not to recognize him. - -"It seems that you do not know me," said the count, proceeding toward the -table with resolute steps. - -Lukhnof recognized the count, and asked,-- - -"What is your pleasure?" - -"I wish to play with you," said Turbin, sitting down on the sofa. - -"Now?" - -"Yes." - -"Another time I should be most happy, count; but now I am tired, and am -getting ready to go to bed. Won't you have some wine? It is excellent -wine." - -"But I wish to play with you for a little while _now_." - -"I am not prepared to play any more. Maybe some of the other guests will. -_I will not_, count! I beg of you to excuse me." - -"Then you will not?" - -Lukhnof shrugged his shoulders as though to express his regret at not being -able to fulfil the count's desires. - -"Will you not play under any consideration?" - -The same gesture. - -"I am very desirous of playing with you.... Say, will you play, or not?" - -Silence. - -"Will you play?" asked the count a second time. - -The same silence, and a quick glance over his glasses at the count's face, -which was beginning to grow sinister. - -"Will you play?" cried the count in a loud voice, striking his hand on the -table so violently that the bottle of Rheinwein toppled over and the wine -ran out. "You have been cheating, have you not? Will you play? I ask you -the third time." - -"I have told you, no! This is truly strange, count, ... perfectly -unjustifiable, to come this way, and put your knife at a man's throat," -remarked Lukhnof, not lifting his eyes. - -A brief silence followed, during which the count's face grew paler and -paler. Suddenly Lukhnof received a terrible blow on the head, which stunned -him. He fell back on the divan, trying to grasp the money, and screamed in -a penetratingly despairing tone, such as was scarcely to be expected from -him, he was always so calm and imposing in his deportment. - -Turbin gathered up the remaining bank-notes that were lying on the table, -pushed away the servant who had come to his master's assistance, and with -quick steps left the room. - -"If you wish satisfaction, I am at your service; I shall be in my room for -half an hour yet,--No. 7," added the count, turning back as he reached the -door. - -"Villain! thief!" cried a voice from within the room.... "I will have -satisfaction at law!" - -Ilyin, who had not paid any heed to the count's promise to help him, was -still lying on the sofa in his room, drowned in tears of despair. - -The count's caresses and sympathy had awakened him to a consciousness of -the reality, and now, amidst the fog of strange thoughts and recollections -which filled his mind, it made itself more and more felt. - -His youth, rich in hopes, honor, his social position, the dreams of love -and friendship, were all destroyed forever. The fountain of his tears began -to run dry, a too calm feeling of hopelessness took possession of him; and -the thought of suicide, now bringing no sense of repulsion or terror, more -and more frequently recurred to him. - -At this moment the count's firm steps were heard. - -On Turbin's face were still visible the last traces of his recent wrath, -his hands trembled slightly; but in his eyes shone a kindly gayety and -self-satisfaction. - -"There! It has been won back for you!" he cried, tossing upon the table -several packages of bank-notes. "Count them; are they all there? Then come -as soon as possible to the sitting-room; I am going off right away," he -added, as though he did not perceive the tremendous revulsion of joy and -gratefulness which rushed over the uhlan's face. Then, humming a gypsy -song, he left the room. - - -VIII. - -Sashka, tightening his girdle, was waiting for the horses to be harnessed, -but was anxious to go first and get the count's cloak, which, with the -collar, must have been worth three hundred rubles, and return that -miserable blue-lined shuba to that rascally man who had exchanged with the -count at the marshal's. But Turbin said that it was not necessary, and went -to his room to change his clothes. - -The cavalryman kept hiccoughing as he sat silently by his gypsy maiden. The -isprávnik called for vodka, and invited all the gentlemen to come and -breakfast with him, promising them that his wife would, without fail, dance -the national dance with the gypsies. - -The handsome young man was earnestly arguing with Ilyushka that there was -more soul in the piano-forte, and that it was impossible to take B-flat on -the guitar. The chinovnik was gloomily drinking tea in one corner, and -apparently the daylight made him feel ashamed of his dissipation. - -The gypsies were conversing together in Romany, and urging that they should -once more enliven the gentlemen; to which Stioshka objected, declaring that -it would only vex the _barorai_,--that is, in Romany, count or prince, or -rather great bárin. - -For the most part, the last spark of the orgy was dying out. - -"Well, then, one more song for a farewell, and then home with you," -exclaimed the count, fresh, gay, and radiant above all the others, as he -came into the room ready dressed in his travelling suit. - -The gypsies had again formed their circle, and were just getting ready to -sing, when Ilyin came in with a package of bank-notes in his hand, and drew -the count to one side. - -"I had only fifteen thousand rubles of public money, but you gave me -sixteen thousand three hundred," said the uhlan; "this is yours, of -course." - -"That's a fine arrangement. Let me have it." - -Ilyin handed him the money, looking timidly at the count, and opened his -mouth to say something; but then he reddened so painfully that the tears -came into his eyes, and he seized the count's hand, and began to squeeze -it. - -"Away with you, Ilyushka ... listen to me! Now, here's your money, but you -must accompany me with your songs to the city limits!" And he threw on his -guitar the thirteen hundred rubles which Ilyin had brought him. But the -count had forgotten to repay the cavalryman the one hundred rubles which he -had borrowed of him the evening before. - -It was now ten o'clock in the morning. The little sun was rising above the -housetops, the streets were beginning to fill with people, the merchants -had long ago opened their shops, nobles and chinovniks were riding up and -down through the streets, and ladies were out shopping, when the band of -gypsies, the isprávnik, the cavalryman, the handsome young fellow, Ilyin, -and the count who was wrapped up in his blue-lined bear-skin shuba, came -out on the door-steps of the hotel. - -It was a sunny day, and it thawed. Three hired tróďkas, with their tails -knotted, and splashing through the liquid mud, pranced up to the steps; and -the whole jolly company prepared to take their places. The count, Ilyin, -Stioshka, Ilyushka, and Sashka the count's man,[70] mounted the first -sledge. - -[Footnote 70: _denshchik._] - -Blücher was beside himself with delight, and, wagging his tail, barked at -the shaft-horse. - -The other gentlemen, together with the gypsies, men and women, climbed into -the other sledges. From the very hotel the sledges flew off side by side, -and the gypsies set up a merry chorus and song. - -The tróďkas, with the songs and jingling bells, dashed through the whole -length of the city to the gates, compelling all the equipages which they -met to rein up on the very sidewalks. - -Merchants and passers-by who did not know them, and especially those who -did, were filled with astonishment to see nobles of high rank, in the midst -of "the white day," dashing through the streets with intoxicated gypsies, -singing at the tops of their voices. - -When they reached the city limits, the tróďkas stopped, and all the party -took farewell of the count. - -Ilyin, who had drunk considerable at the leave-taking, and had all the time -been driving the horses, suddenly became melancholy, and began to urge the -count to stay just one day more; but when he was assured that this was -impossible, quite unexpectedly threw himself into his arms, and began to -kiss his new friend, and promised him that as soon as he got to camp, he -would petition to be transferred into the regiment of hussars in which -Count Turbin served. - -The count was extraordinarily hilarious; he tipped into a snow-drift the -cavalryman, who, since morning, had definitely taken to saying _thou_ to -him; he set Blücher on the isprávnik; he took Stioshka into his arms, and -threatened to carry her off with him to Moscow; but at last he tucked -himself into the sledge, and stationed Blücher by his side, who was always -ready to ride. Sashka took his place on the box, after once more asking the -cavalryman to secure the count's cloak from _them_, and to send it to him. -The count cried "Go on,"[71] took off his cap, waved it over his head, and -whistled in post-boy fashion to the horses. The tróďkas parted company. - -[Footnote 71: _próshol._] - -As far as the eye could see, stretched a monotonous snow-covered plain, -over which wound the yellowish muddy ribbon of the road. - -The bright sunlight, dancing, glistened on the melting snow, which was -covered with a thin crust of transparent ice, and pleasantly warmed the -face and back. - -The steam arose from the sweaty horses. The bells jingled. - -A peasant[72] with a creaking sledge, heavily loaded, slowly turned out -into the slushy snow, twitching his hempen reins, and tramping with his -well-soaked sabots.[73] - -[Footnote 72: _muzhík._] - -[Footnote 73: _lapti._] - -A stout, handsome peasant woman, with a child wrapped in a sheep-skin on -her lap, who was seated on another load, used the end of her reins to whip -up a white mangy-tailed old nag. - -Suddenly the count remembered Anna Fedorovna. - -"Turn round!" he cried. - -The driver did not understand. - -"Turn round and drive back; back to the city! Be quick about it." The -tróďka again passed the city gate, and quickly drew up in front of the -boarded steps of the Zaďtsova dwelling. - -The count briskly mounted the steps, passed through the vestibule and the -parlor, and finding the widow still asleep he took her in his arms, lifting -her from her bed, and kissed her sleeping eyes again and again, and then -darted back to the sledge. - -Anna Fedorovna awoke from her slumber, and demanded, "What has happened?" - -The count took his seat in his sledge, shouted to the driver, and now no -longer delaying, and thinking not of Lukhnof nor of the little widow, nor -of Stioshka, but only of what was awaiting him in Moscow, rapidly left the -city of K. behind him. - - -IX. - -A score of years have passed. Much water has run since then, many men have -died, many children have been born, many have grown up and become old; -still more thoughts have been born and perished. Much that was beautiful -and much that was ugly in the past have disappeared; much that is beautiful -in the new has been brought forth, and still more that is incomplete and -abortive of the new has appeared in God's world. - -Count Feódor Turbin was long ago killed in a duel with some foreigner whom -he struck on the street with his long whip. His son, who was as like him as -two drops of water, had already reached the age of two or three and twenty, -and was a lovely fellow, already serving in the cavalry. - -Morally the young Count Turbin was entirely different from his father. -There was not a shadow of those fiery, passionate, and in truth be it said, -corrupt inclinations, peculiar to the last century. - -Together with intelligence, cultivation, and inherited natural gifts, a -love for the proprieties and amenities of life, a practical view of men and -circumstances, wisdom and forethought, were his chief characteristics. - -The young count made admirable progress in his profession; at twenty-three -he was already lieutenant.... When war broke out, he came to the conclusion -that it would be more for his interests to enter the regular army; and he -joined a regiment of hussars as captain of cavalry, where he soon was given -command of a battalion. - -In the month of May, 1848, the S. regiment of hussars was on its way -through the government of K., and the very battalion which the young Count -Turbin commanded was obliged to be quartered for one night at Morozovka, -Anna Fedorovna's village. Anna Fedorovna was still alive, but was now so -far from being young that she no longer called herself young, which, for a -woman, means much. - -She had grown very stout, and this, it is said, restores youth in a woman. -But that was not the worst of it: over her pale, stout flesh was a net-work -of coarse, flabby wrinkles. She no longer went to the city, she even found -it hard to mount into her carriage; but still she was just as good-natured -and as completely vacant-minded as ever,--the truth might safely be told, -now that it was no longer palliated by her beauty. - -Under her roof lived her daughter Liza, a rustic Russian belle of -twenty-three summers, and her brother, our acquaintance the cavalryman, who -had spent all his patrimony in behalf of others, and now, in his old age, -had taken refuge with Anna Fedorovna. - -The hair on his head had become perfectly gray; his upper lip was sunken, -but the mustache that it wore was carefully dyed. Wrinkles covered not only -his brow and cheeks, but also his nose and neck; and yet his weak bow-legs -gave evidence of the old cavalryman. - -Anna Fedorovna's whole family and household were gathered in the small -parlor of the ancient house. The balcony door and windows, looking out into -a star-shaped garden shaded by lindens, were open. Anna Fedorovna, in her -gray hair and a lilac-colored gown,[74] was sitting on the sofa, before a -small round mahogany table, shuffling cards. The old brother, dressed in -spruce white pantaloons and a blue coat, had taken up his position near the -window, knitting strips of white cotton on a fork, an occupation which his -niece had taught him, and which gave him great enjoyment, as he had nothing -else to do, his eyes not being strong enough to enable him to read -newspapers, which was his favorite occupation. Near him Pímotchka, a -_protégée_ of Anna Fedorovna, was studying her lessons under the guidance -of Liza, who with wooden knitting-needles was knitting stockings of -goat-wool for her uncle. - -[Footnote 74: _katsavéďka._] - -The last rays of the setting sun, as always at this time, threw under the -linden alley their soft reflections on the last window-panes and the little -_étagčre_ which stood near it. - -In the garden it was so still that one could hear the swift rush of a -swallow's wings, and so quiet in the room that Anna Fedorovna's gentle -sigh, or the old man's cough as he kept changing the position of his legs, -was the only sound. - -"How does this go, Lízanka? show me, please. I keep forgetting," said Anna -Fedorovna, pausing in the midst of her game of patience. Liza, without -stopping her work, went over to her mother, and, glancing at the cards, -"Ah!" says she. "You have mixed them all up, dear mamasha," said she, -arranging the cards. "That is the way they should be placed. Now they come -as you desired," she added, secretly withdrawing one card. - -"Now you are always managing to deceive me! You said that it would go." - -"No, truly; it goes, I assure you. It has come out right." - -"Very well, then; very well, you rogue! But isn't it time for tea?" - -"I have just ordered the samovár heated. I will go and see about it -immediately. Shall we have it brought here?... Now, Pímotchka, hasten and -finish your lessons, and we will go and take a run." - -And Liza started for the door. - -"Lízotchka! Lízanka!" cried her uncle, steadfastly regarding his fork, -"again it seems to me I have dropped a stitch. Arrange it for me, my -darling."[75] - -[Footnote 75: _golúbchik._] - -"In a moment, in a moment. First I must have the sugar broken up." - -And in point of fact, within three minutes, she came running into the room, -went up to her uncle, and took him by the ear. - -"That's to pay you for dropping stitches," said she laughing. "You have not -been knitting as I taught you." - -"Now, that'll do, that'll do, adjust it for me; there seems to be some sort -of a knot." - -Liza took the fork, pulled out a pin from her kerchief, which was blown -back a little by the breeze coming through the window, picked it out a -couple of times, and handed it back to her uncle. - -"Now you must kiss me for that," said she, putting up her rosy cheek toward -him, and re-adjusting her kerchief. "You shall have rum in your tea to-day. -To-day is Friday, you see." - -And again she went to the tea-room. - -"Uncle dear, come and look! some hussars are riding up toward the house!" -her ringing voice was heard to say. Anna Fedorovna and her brother hastened -into the tea-room, the windows of which faced the village, and looked at -the hussars. Very little was to be seen; through the cloud of dust it could -be judged only that a body of men was advancing. - -"What a pity, sister," remarked the uncle to Anna Fedorovna, "what a pity -that we are so cramped, and the wing is not built yet, so that we might -invite the officers here. Officers of the hussars! they are such glorious, -gay young fellows! I should like to have a glimpse at them." - -"Well, I should be heartily glad, but you know yourself that there is -nowhere to put them: my sleeping-room, Liza's room, the parlor, and then -your room,--judge for yourself. Mikháďlo Matveef has put the -_stárosta's_[76] house in order for them; he says it will be nice there." - -[Footnote 76: Village elder.] - -"But we must find you a husband, Lízotchka, among them,--a glorious -hussar!" said the uncle. - -"No, I do not want a hussar: I want an uhlan. Let me see, you served among -the uhlans, didn't you, uncle?... I don't care to know these hussars. They -say they are desperate fellows." - -And Liza blushed a little, and then once more her ringing laugh was heard. -"There's Ustiushka running: we must ask her what she saw," said she. Anna -Fedorovna sent to have Ustiushka brought in. - -"She has no idea of sticking to her work, she must always be running off to -look at the soldiers," said Anna Fedorovna.... "Now, where have they lodged -the officers?" - -"With the Yeremkins, your ladyship. There are two of them, such lovely men! -One of them is a count, they tell me." - -"What's his name?" - -"Kazárof or Turbínof. I don't remember, excuse me." - -"There now, you're a goose, you don't know how to tell any thing at all. -You might have remembered his name!" - -"Well, I'll run and find out." - -"I know that you are quite able to do that. But no, let Danílo -go.--Brother, go and tell him to go; have him ask if there is not something -which the officers may need; every thing must be done in good form; have -them understand that it is the lady of the house who has sent to find out." - -The old people sat down again in the tea-room, and Liza went to the -servants' room to put the lumps of sugar in the sugar-bowl. Ustiushka was -telling them there about the hussars. - -"O my dear young lady, what a handsome man he is! that count!" she said, -"absolutely a little cherubim,[77] with black eyebrows. You ought to have -such a husband as that; what a lovely little couple you would make!" The -other maids smiled approvingly; the old nurse, sitting by the window with -her stocking, sighed, and, drawing a long breath, murmured a prayer. - -[Footnote 77: _kherubimchik._] - -"It seems to me that the hussars have given you a great deal of pleasure," -said Liza. "You are a master hand at description. Bring me the _mors_,[78] -Ustiushka, please; we must give the officers something sour to drink." And -Liza, laughing, went out with the sugar-bowl. - -[Footnote 78: A sour beverage made of cranberries.] - -"But I should like to see what sort of a man this hussar is,--whether he is -brunet or blondin. And I imagine he would not object to making our -acquaintance. But he will go away, and never know that I was here and was -thinking about him. And how many have passed by me in this way! No one ever -sees me except uncle and Ustiushka! How many times I have arranged my hair, -how many pairs of cuffs I have put on, and yet no one ever sees me or falls -in love with me," she thought with a sigh, contemplating her white, plump -hand. - -"He must be tall, and have big eyes, and a nice little black mustache.... -No! I am already over twenty-two, and no one has ever fallen in love with -me except the pock-marked Iván Ipátuitch. And four years ago I was still -better-looking; and so my girlhood has gone, and no one is the better for -it. Ah! I am an unhappy country maiden!" - -Her mother's voice, calling her to bring the tea, aroused the country -maiden from this momentary revery. - -She shook her little head, and went into the tea-room. - -The best things always happen unexpectedly; and the more you try to force -them, the worse they come out. In the country it is rare that any attempt -is made to impart education, and therefore when a good one is found it is -generally a surprise. And thus it happened, in a notable degree, in the -case of Liza. Anna Fedorovna, through her own lack of intelligence and -natural laziness, had not given Liza any education at all; had not taught -her music, nor the French language which is so indispensable. But the girl -had fortunately been a healthy, bright little child: she had intrusted her -to a wet-nurse and a day-nurse; she had fed her, and dressed her in print -dresses and goat-skin shoes, and let her run wild and gather mushrooms and -berries; had her taught reading and arithmetic by a resident seminarist. -And thus, as fate would have it, at the age of sixteen, she found in her -daughter a companion, a soul who was always cheerful and good-natured, and -the actual mistress of the house. - -Through her goodness of heart, Anna Fedorovna always had in her house some -_protégée_, either a serf or some foundling. Liza, from the time she was -ten years old, had begun to take care of them; to teach them, clothe them, -take them to church, and keep them still when they were inclined to be -mischievous. - -Then her old broken-down but good-natured uncle made his appearance, and he -had to be taken care of like a child. Then the domestic servants and the -peasants began to come to the young mistress with their desires and their -ailments; and she treated them with elderberry, mint, and spirits of -camphor. Then the domestic management of the house fell into her hands -entirely. Then came the unsatisfied craving for love, which found -expression only in nature and religion. - -Thus Liza, by chance, grew into an active, good-naturedly cheerful, -self-poised, pure, and deeply religious young woman. - -To be sure, she had her little fits of jealousy and envy when she saw, all -around her in church, her neighbors dressed in new, fashionable hats that -came from K.; she was sometimes vexed to tears by her old, irritable -mother, and her caprices; she had her dreams of love in the most absurd and -even the crudest forms, but her healthy activity, which she could not -shirk, drove them away; and now, at twenty-two, not a single spot, not a -single compunction, had touched the fresh, calm soul of this maiden, now -developed into the fulness of perfect physical and moral beauty. - -Liza was of medium height, rather plump than lean; her eyes were brown, -small, with a soft dark shade on the lower lid; she wore her flaxen hair in -a long braid. - -In walking she took long steps, and swayed like a duck, as the saying is. - -The expression of her face, when she was occupied with her duties, and -nothing especially disturbed her, seemed to say to all who looked into it, -"Life in this world is good and pleasant to one who has a heart full of -love, and a pure conscience." - -Even in moments of vexation, of trouble, of unrest, or of melancholy, in -spite of her tears, of the drawing-down of the left brow, of the compressed -lips, of the petulance of her desires, even then in the dimples of her -cheeks, in the corners of her mouth, and in her brilliant eyes, so used to -smile and rejoice in life,--even then there shone a heart good and upright, -and unspoiled by knowledge. - - -X. - -It was still rather warm, though the sun was already set, when the -battalion arrived at Morozovka. In front of them, along the dusty village -street, trotted a brindled cow, separated from the herd, bellowing, and -occasionally stopping to look round, and never once perceiving that all she -had to do was to turn out and let the battalion pass. - -Peasants, old men, women, children, and domestic serfs, crowding both sides -of the road, gazed curiously at the hussars. - -Through a thick cloud of dust the hussars rode along on raven-black horses, -curvetting and occasionally snorting. - -At the right of the battalion, gracefully mounted on beautiful black -steeds, rode two officers. One was the commander, Count Turbin; the other a -very young man, who had recently been promoted from the yunkers; his name -was Polózof. - -A hussar, in a white kittel, came from the best of the cottages, and, -taking off his cap, approached the officers. - -"What quarters have been assigned to us?" asked the count. - -"For your excellency?" replied the quartermaster, his whole body -shuddering. "Here at the _stárosta's_; he has put his cottage in order. I -tried to get a room at the mansion,[79] but they said no; the proprietress -is so ill-tempered." - -[Footnote 79: _barsky dvor._] - -"Well, all right," said the count, dismounting and stretching his legs as -he reached the _stárosta's_ cottage. "Tell me, has my carriage come?" - -"It has deigned to arrive, your excellency," replied the quartermaster, -indicating with his cap the leathern carriage-top which was to be seen -inside the gate, and then hastening ahead into the entry of the cottage, -which was crowded with the family of serfs, gathered to have a look at the -officer. - -He even tripped over an old woman, as he hastily opened the door of the -neatly cleaned cottage, and stood aside to let the count pass. - -The cottage was large and commodious, but not perfectly clean. The German -body-servant,[80] dressed like a bárin, was standing in the cottage, and, -having just finished setting up the iron bed, was taking out clean linen -from a trunk. - -[Footnote 80: _kammerdiener._] - -"_Phu!_ what a nasty lodging!" exclaimed the count in vexation. "Diádenko! -Is it impossible to find me better quarters at the proprietor's or -somewhere?" - -"If your excellency command, I will go up to the mansion," replied -Diádenko; "but the house is small and wretched, and seems not much better -than the cottage." - -"Well, that's all now. You can go." - -And the count threw himself down on the bed, supporting his head with his -hands. - -"Johann!" he cried to his body-servant; "again you have made a hump in the -middle. Why can't you learn to make a bed decently?" - -Johann was anxious to make it over again. - -"No, you need not trouble about it now!... Where's my dressing-gown?" he -proceeded to ask in a petulant voice. The servant gave him the -dressing-gown. - -The count, before he put it on, examined the skirt. "There it is! You have -not taken that spot out! Could it be possible for any one to be a worse -servant than you are?" he added, snatching the garment from the servant's -hands, and putting it on. "Now tell me, do you do this way on purpose? Is -tea ready?" - -"I haven't had time to make it," replied Johann. - -"Fool!" - -After this, the count took a French novel which was at hand, and read for -some time without speaking; but Johann went out into the entry to blow up -the coals in the samovár. - -It was plain to see that the count was in a bad humor; it must have been -owing to weariness, to the dust on his face, to his tightly-fitting -clothes, and to his empty stomach. "Johann!" he cried again, "give me an -account of those ten rubles. What did you get in town?" - -The count looked over the account which the servant handed him, and made -some dissatisfied remarks about the high prices paid. - -"Give me the rum for the tea." - -"I did not get any rum," said Johann. - -"Delightful! How many times have I told you always to have rum?" - -"I didn't have money enough." - -"Why didn't Polózof buy it? You might have got some from his man." - -"The cornet Polózof? I do not know. He bought tea and sugar." - -"Beast! Get you gone. You are the only man who has the power to exhaust my -patience! You know that I always take rum in my tea when I am on the -march." - -"Here are two letters one of the staff brought for you," said the -body-servant. - -The count, as he lay on the bed, tore open the letters, and began to read -them. At this moment the cornet came in with gay countenance, having -quartered the battalion. - -"Well, how is it, Turbin? It's first-rate here, seems to me. I am tired -out, I confess it. It has been a warm day." - -"First-rate! I should think so! A dirty, stinking hut! and no rum, thanks -to you. Your stupid did not buy any, nor this one either. You might have -said something anyway!" - -And he went on with his reading. After he had read the letter through, he -crumpled it up, and threw it on the floor. - -"_Why_ didn't you buy some rum?" the cornet in a whisper demanded of his -servant in the entry. "Didn't you have any money?" - -"Well, why should we be always the ones to spend the money? I have enough -to spend for without that, and _his_ German does nothing but smoke his -pipe,--that's all." - -The second letter was evidently not disagreeable, because the count smiled -as he read it. - -"Who's that from?" asked Polózof, returning to the room, and trying to -arrange for himself a couch on the floor, near the oven. - -"From Mina," replied the count gayly, handing him the letter. "Would you -like to read it? What a lovely woman she is! Now, she's better than our -young ladies, that's a fact. Just see what feeling and what wit in that -letter! There's only one thing that I don't like,--she asks me for money!" - -"No, that's not pleasant," replied the cornet. - -"Well it's true I promised to give her some; but this expedition--And -besides, if I am commander of the battalion, at the end of three months I -will send some to her. I should not regret it; she's really a lovely woman. -Isn't she?" he asked with a smile, following with his eyes Polózof's -expression as he read the letter. - -"Horribly misspelled, but sweet; it seems to me she really loves you," -replied the cornet. - -"Hm! I should think so! Only these women truly love when they do love." - -"But who was that other letter from?" asked the cornet, pointing to the one -which he had read. - -"That? Oh, that's from a certain man, very ugly, to whom I owe a gambling -debt, and this is the third time that he has reminded me of it. I can't pay -it to him now. It's a stupid letter," replied the count, evidently nettled -by the recollection of it. - -The two officers remained silent for some little time. The cornet, who, it -seemed, had come under Turbin's influence, drank his tea without speaking, -though he occasionally cast a glance at the clouded face of the handsome -count, who gazed steadily out of the window. He did not venture to renew -the conversation. - -"Well, then, I think it can be accomplished without difficulty," suddenly -exclaimed the count, turning to Polózof, and gayly nodding his head. "If we -who are in the line get promoted this year, yes, and if we take part in -some engagement, then I can overtake my former captains of the guard." - -They were drinking their second cup of tea, and the conversation was still -dwelling on this theme, when the old Danílo came with the message from Anna -Fedorovna. - -"And she would also like to know whether you are not pleased to be the son -of Feódor Ivánovitch Turbin," he added, on his own responsibility, as he -had found out the officer's name, and still remembered the late count's -visit to the city of K. "Our mistress,[81] Anna Fedorovna, used to be very -well acquainted with him." - -[Footnote 81: _báruinya._] - -"He was my father. Now tell the lady that I am very much obliged, but that -I need nothing; only, if it would not be possible to give me a cleaner room -in the mansion, say, or somewhere." - -"Now, why did you do that?" asked Polózof after Danílo had gone. "Isn't it -just the same thing? For one night isn't it just as well here? And it will -put them to inconvenience." - -"There it is again! It seems to me we have had enough of being sent round -among these smoky hovels.[82] It's easy enough to see that you are not a -practical man. Why shouldn't we seize the opportunity, when we can, of -sleeping, even if it's for only one night, like decent men? And they, -contrary to what you think, will be mighty glad. There's only one thing -objectionable. If this lady used to know my father," continued the count, -with a smile that discovered his white gleaming teeth,--"somehow I always -feel a little ashamed of my late papasha; there's always some scandalous -story, or some debt or other. And so I can't endure to meet any of my -father's acquaintances. However, that was an entirely different age," he -added seriously. - -[Footnote 82: _kúrnaya izbá_, a peasant's hut without chimney.] - -"Oh! I did not tell you," rejoined Polózof. "I recently met Ilyin, the -brigade commander of uhlans. He is very anxious to see you; he is -passionately fond of your father." - -"I think that he is terrible trash, that Ilyin. But the worst is that all -these gentlemen who imagine that they knew my father in order to make -friends with me, insist upon telling me, as though it were very pleasant -for me to hear, about escapades of his that make me blush. It is true I am -not impulsive, and I look upon things dispassionately; while he was too -hot-spirited a man, and sometimes he played exceedingly reprehensible -tricks. However, that was all due to his time. In our day and generation, -maybe, he would have been a very sensible man, for he had tremendous -abilities; one must give him credit for that." - -In a quarter of an hour the servant returned, and brought an invitation for -them to come and spend the night at the mansion. - - -XI. - -As soon as Anna Fedorovna learned that the officer of hussars was the son -of Count Feódor Turbin, she was thrown into a great state of excitement. - -"Oh! great heavens![83] he is my darling! Danílo! run, hurry, tell them the -lady invites them to stay at her house," she cried, in great agitation, and -hastening to the servants' room. "Lízanka! Ustiushka! You must have your -room put in order, Liza. You can go into your uncle's room; and you, -brother,--brother, you can sleep to-night in the parlor. It's for only one -night." - -[Footnote 83: _bátiuzhki moď!_] - -"That's nothing, sister! I would sleep on the floor." - -"He must be a handsome fellow, I think, if he's like his father. Only let -me see him, the turtle-dove! You shall see for yourself, Liza. Ah! his -father was handsome! Where shall we put the table? Let it go there," said -Anna Fedorovna, running about here and there. "There now, bring in two -beds; get one from the overseer, and get from the _étagčre_ the glass -candlestick which my brother gave me for my birthday, and put in a wax -candle." - -At last all was ready. Liza, in spite of her mother's interference, -arranged her room in her own way for the two officers. - -She brought out clean linen sheets, fragrant of mignonnette, and had the -beds made; she ordered a carafe of water and candles near it on the little -table. She burned scented paper in the girls' room, and moved her own -little bed into her uncle's chamber. - -Anna Fedorovna gradually became calm, and sat down again in her usual -place; she even took out her cards; but instead of shuffling them, she -leaned on her fat elbow, and gave herself up to her thoughts. - -"How time has gone! how time has gone!" she exclaimed in a whisper. "It is -long! long! isn't it? I seem to see him now! _Akh!_ he was a scamp!" - -And the tears came into her eyes. "Now here is Lízanka, but she isn't at -all what I was at her age. She is a nice girl; but no, not quite.... - -"Lízanka, you had better wear your mousselin-de-laine dress this evening." - -"But are you going to invite them down-stairs, mamasha? You had better not -do it," rejoined Liza, with a feeling of invincible agitation at the -thought of seeing the officers. "You had better not, mamasha!" - -In point of fact, she did not so much desire to see them, as she felt -apprehensive of some painful pleasure awaiting her, as it seemed to her. - -"Perhaps they themselves would like to make our acquaintance, Lízotchka," -said Anna Fedorovna, glancing at her daughter's hair, and at the same time -thinking, "No, not such hair as I had at her age. No, Lízotchka, how much I -could wish for you!" And she really wished something very excellent for her -daughter, but she could scarcely look forward to a match with the count; -she could not desire such a relationship as she herself had formed with his -father; but that something good would come of it, she wished very, very -much for her daughter. She possibly had the desire to live over again in -her daughter's happiness all the life which she lived with the late count. - -The old cavalryman was also somewhat excited by the count's coming. He went -to his room, and shut himself up in it. At the end of a quarter of an hour, -he re-appeared dressed in a Hungarian coat and blue pantaloons; and with a -troubled-happy expression of countenance, such as a girl wears when she -puts on her first ball-dress, he started for the room assigned to the -guests. - -"We shall have a glimpse of some of the hussars of to-day, sister. The late -count was indeed a genuine hussar. We shall see! we shall see!" - -The officers had by this time come in by the back entrance, and were in the -room that had been put at their service. - -"There now," said the count, stretching himself out in his dusty boots on -the bed which had just been made for him, "if we aren't better off here -than we were there in that hovel with the cockroaches!" - -"Better? of course; but think what obligations we are putting ourselves -under to the people here." - -"What rubbish! You must always be a practical man. They are mighty glad to -have us, of course. Fellow!" cried the count, "ask some one to put a -curtain up at this window, else there'll be a draught in the night." - -At this moment the old man came in to make the acquaintance of the -officers. Though he was somewhat confused, he did not fail to tell how he -had been a comrade of the late count's, who had been very congenial to him, -and he even went so far as to say that more than once he had been under -obligations to the late count. Whether he meant, in speaking of the -obligations to the late count, a reference to the hundred rubles which the -count had borrowed and never returned, or to his throwing him into the -snow-drift, or to the slap in the face, the old man failed to explain. - -However, the count was very urbane with the old cavalryman, and thanked him -for his hospitality. - -"You must excuse us if it is not very luxurious, count,"--he almost said -"your excellency," as he had got out of the habit of meeting with men of -rank. "My sister's house is rather small. As for the window here, we will -find something to serve as a curtain right away, and it will be -first-rate," added the little old man; and under the pretext of going for a -curtain, but really because he wanted to give his report about the officers -as quickly as possible, he left the room. The pretty little Ustiushka came, -bringing her mistress's shawl to serve as a curtain. She was also -commissioned to ask if the gentlemen would not like some tea. - -The cheerful hospitality had had a manifestly beneficent influence upon the -count's spirits. He laughed and jested with Ustiushka gayly, and went to -such lengths that she even called him a bad man; he asked her if her -mistress was pretty, and in reply to her question whether he would like -some tea, replied that she might please bring him some, but above all, as -his supper was not ready, he would like some vodka now, and a little lunch, -and some sherry if there was any. - -The old uncle was in raptures over the young count's politeness, and -praised to the skies the young generation of officers, saying that the men -of the present day were far preferable to those of the past. - -Anna Fedorovna could not agree to that,--no one could be any better than -Count Feódor Ivánovitch,--and she was beginning to grow seriously angry, -and remarked dryly, "For you, brother, the one who flatters you last is the -best! Without any question, the men of our time are better educated, but -still Feódor Ivánovitch could dance the schottische, and was so amiable -that everybody in his day, you might say, was stupid compared to him! only -he did not care for any one else beside me. Oh, certainly there were fine -men in the old time!" - -At this moment came the message requesting the vodka, the lunch, and the -sherry. - -"There now, just like you, brother! You never do things right. We ought to -have had supper prepared.... Liza, attend to it, that's my darling." - -Liza hastened to the storeroom for mushrooms and fresh cream butter, and -told the cook to prepare beef cutlets. - -"How much sherry is there? Haven't you any left, brother?" - -"No, sister; I never have had any." - -"What! no sherry? but what is it you drink in your tea?" - -"That is rum, Anna Fedorovna." - -"Isn't that the same thing? Give them some of that. It is all the same, -it'll make no difference. Or would it not be better to invite them down -here, brother? You know all about it. They would not be offended, I -imagine, would they?" - -The cavalryman assured her that he would answer for it that the count, in -his goodness of heart, would not decline, and that he would certainly bring -them. - -Anna Fedorovna went off to put on, for some reason or other, her gros-grain -dress and a new cap; but Liza was so busy that she had no time to take off -her pink gingham dress with wide sleeves. Moreover, she was terribly -wrought up; it seemed to her that something astonishing, like a very low -black cloud, was sweeping down upon her soul. - -This count-hussar, this handsome fellow, seemed to her an absolutely novel -and unexpected but beautiful creature. His character, his habits, his -words, it seemed to her, must be something extraordinary, such as had never -come into the range of her experience. All that he thought and said must be -bright and true; all that he did must be honorable; his whole appearance -must be beautiful. She could have no doubt of that. If he had demanded not -merely a lunch and sherry, but even a bath in spirits of salvia, she would -not have been surprised, she would not have blamed him, and she would have -been convinced that this was just and reasonable. - -The count immediately accepted when the cavalryman brought him his sister's -invitation; he combed his hair, put on his coat, and took his cigar-case. - -"Will you come?" he asked of Polózof. - -"Indeed we had better not go," replied the cornet; "_ils feront des frais -pour nous recevoir_." - -"Rubbish! it will make them happy. Besides, I have been making -inquiries ... there's a pretty daughter here.... Come along," said the -count in French. - -"_Je vous en prie, messieurs_," said the cavalryman, merely for the sake of -giving them to understand that he also could speak French, and understood -what the officers were saying. - - -XII. - -Liza, red in the face and with downcast eyes, was ostensibly occupied with -filling up the teapot, and did not dare to look at the officers as they -entered the room. - -Anna Fedorovna, on the contrary, briskly jumped up and bowed, and without -taking her eyes from the count's face began to talk to him, now finding an -extraordinary resemblance to his father, now presenting her daughter, now -offering him tea, meats, or jelly-cakes. - -No one paid any attention to the cornet, thanks to his modest behavior; and -he was very glad of it, because it gave him a chance, within the limits of -propriety, to observe and study the details of Liza's beauty, which had -evidently come over him with the force of a surprise. - -The uncle listening to his sister's conversation had a speech ready on his -lips, and was waiting for a chance to relate his cavalry experiences. - -The count smoked his cigar over his tea, so that Liza had great difficulty -in refraining from coughing, but he was very talkative and amiable; at -first, in the infrequent pauses of Anna Fedorovna's conversation, he -introduced his own stories, and finally he took the conversation into his -own hands. - -One thing struck his listeners as rather strange: in his talk he often used -words, which, though not considered reprehensible in his own set, were -here rather audacious, so that Anna Fedorovna was a little abashed, and -Liza blushed to the roots of her hair. But this the count did not notice, -and continued to be just as natural and amiable as ever. - -Liza filled the glasses in silence, not putting them into the hands of the -guests, but pushing them toward them; she had not entirely recovered from -her agitation, but listened eagerly to the count's anecdotes. - -The count's pointless tales, and the pauses in the conversation, gradually -re-assured her. The bright things that she had expected from him were not -forthcoming, nor did she find in him that surpassing elegance for which she -had confusedly hoped. Even as soon as the third glass of tea, when her -timid eyes once encountered his, and he did not avoid them, but continued -almost too boldly to stare at her, with a lurking smile, she became -conscious of a certain feeling of hostility against him; and she soon -discovered that there was not only nothing out of the ordinary in him, but -that he was very little different from those whom she had already seen; in -fact, that there was no reason to be afraid of him. She noticed that he had -long and neat finger-nails, but otherwise there was no mark of special -beauty about him. - -Liza suddenly, not without some inward sorrow, renouncing her dream, -regained her self-possession; and only the undemonstrative cornet's glance, -which she felt fixed upon her, disquieted her. - -"Perhaps it is not the count, but the other," she said to herself. - - -XIII. - -After tea, the old lady invited her guests into the other room, and again -sat down in her usual place. "But perhaps you would like to rest, count?" -she asked. "Well, then, what would you like to amuse yourselves with, my -dear guests?" she proceeded to ask after she had been assured to the -contrary. "You play cards, do you not, count?--Here, brother, you might -take a hand in some game or other."... - -"Why, you yourself can play _préférence_," replied the cavalryman. "You had -better take a hand, then. The count will play, will he not? And you?" - -The officers were agreeable to every thing that might satisfy their amiable -hosts. - -Liza brought from her room her old cards which she used for divining -whether her mother would speedily recover of a cold, or whether her uncle -would return on such and such a day from the city if he chanced to have -gone there, or whether her neighbor would be in during the day, and other -like things. These cards, though they had been in use for two months, were -less soiled than those which Anna Fedorovna used for the same purpose. - -"Perhaps you are not accustomed to playing for small stakes," suggested the -uncle. "Anna Fedorovna and I play for half-kopeks, and then she always gets -the better of all of us." - -"Ah! make your own arrangements. I shall be perfectly satisfied," said the -count. - -"Well, then, be it in paper kopeks for the sake of our dear guests; only -let me gain, as I am old," said Anna Fedorovna, settling herself in her -chair, and adjusting her mantilla. "Maybe I shall win a ruble of them," -thought Anna Fedorovna, who in her old age felt a little passion for cards. - -"If you would like, I will teach you to play with tablets," said the count, -"and with the _miséries_. It is very jolly." - -Everybody was delighted with this new Petersburg fashion. The uncle went so -far as to assert that he knew it, and that it was just the same thing as -_boston_, but that he had forgotten somewhat about it. - -Anna Fedorovna did not comprehend it at all; and it took her so long to get -into it, that she felt under the necessity of smiling and nodding her head -assuringly, to give the impression that she now understood, and that now it -was all perfectly clear to her. But there was no little amusement created -when in the midst of the game Anna Fedorovna, with ace and king blank, -called "_misérie_," and remained with the six. She even began to grow -confused, smiled timidly, and hastened to assure them that she had not as -yet become accustomed to the new way. - -Nevertheless they put down the points against her, and many of them too; -the more because the count, through his practice of playing on large -stakes, played carefully, led very prudently, and never at all understood -what the cornet meant by sundry raps with his foot under the table, or why -he made such stupid blunders in playing. - -Liza brought in more jelly-cakes, three kinds of preserves, and apples -cooked in some manner with port-wine; and then, standing behind her -mother's chair, she looked on at the game, and occasionally watched the -officers, and especially the count's white hands with their delicate long -finger-nails, as he with such skill, assurance, and grace, threw the cards, -and took the tricks. - -Once more Anna Fedorovna, with some show of temper going beyond the others, -bid as high as seven, and lost three points; and when, at her brother's -instigation, she tried to make some calculation, she found herself utterly -confused and off the track. - -"It's nothing, mamasha; you'll win it back again," said Liza, with a smile, -anxious to rescue her mother from her ridiculous position. "Some time -you'll put a fine on uncle: then he will be caught." - -"But you might help me, Lízotchka," cried Anna Fedorovna, looking with an -expression of dismay at her daughter; "I don't know how this".... - -"But I don't know how to play this either," rejoined Liza, carefully -calculating her mother's losses. "But if you go on at this rate, mamasha, -you will lose a good deal, and Pímotchka will not have her new dress," she -added in jest. - -"Yes, in this way it is quite possible to lose ten silver rubles," said the -cornet, looking at Liza, and anxious to draw her into conversation. - -"Aren't we playing for paper money?" asked Anna Fedorovna, gazing round at -the rest. - -"I don't know, I am sure," replied the count. "But I don't know how to -reckon in bank-notes. What are they? what do you mean by bank-notes?"[84] - -[Footnote 84: _Assignatsii._] - -"Why, no one nowadays reckons in bank-notes," explained the cavalryman, who -was playing like a hero and was on the winning side. - -The old lady ordered some sparkling wine, drank two glasses herself, grew -quite flushed, and seemed to abandon all hope. One braid of her gray hair -escaped from under her cap, and she did not even put it up. It was evident -that she thought herself losing millions, and that she was entirely ruined. -The cornet kept nudging the count's leg more and more emphatically. The -count was noting down the old lady's losses. - -At last the game came to an end. In spite of Anna Fedorovna's efforts to -bring her reckoning higher than it should be, and to pretend that she had -been cheated in her account, and that it could not be correct, in spite of -her dismay at the magnitude of her losses, at last the account was made -out, and she was found to have lost nine hundred and twenty points. - -"Isn't that equal to nine paper rubles?" she asked again and again; and she -did not begin to realize how great her forfeit was, until her brother, to -her horror, explained that she was "out" thirty-two and a half paper -rubles, and that it was absolutely necessary for her to pay it. - -The count did not even sum up his gains, but, as soon as the game was over, -arose and went over to the window where Liza was arranging the lunch, and -putting potted mushrooms on a plate. There he did with perfect calmness and -naturalness what the cornet had been anxious and yet unable to effect all -the evening,--he engaged her in conversation about the weather. - -The cornet at this time was brought into a thoroughly unpleasant -predicament. Anna Fedorovna, in the absence of the count and Liza, who had -managed to keep her in a jovial frame of mind, became really angry. - -"Indeed, it is too bad that we have caused you to lose so heavily," said -Polózof, in order to say something. "It is simply shameful." - -"I should think these tablets and _miséries_ were something of your own -invention. I don't know any thing about them. How many paper rubles does -the whole amount to?" she demanded. - -"Thirty-two rubles, thirty-two and a half," insisted the cavalryman, who, -from the effect of having been on the winning side, was in a very waggish -frame of mind. "Give him the money, sister.... Give it to him." - -"I will give all I owe, only you must not ask for any more. No, I shall -never win it back in my life." - -And Anna Fedorovna went to her room, all in excitement, hurried back, and -brought nine paper rubles. Only on the old man's strenuous insistence she -was induced to pay the whole sum. Polózof had some fear that the old lady -would pour out on him the vials of her wrath if he entered into -conversation with her. He silently, without attracting attention, turned -away, and rejoined the count and Liza, who were talking at the open window. - -On the table, which was now spread for the supper, stood two tallow -candles, whose flame occasionally flickered in the gentle breeze of the -mild May night. Through the window opening into the garden came a very -different light from that which filled the room. The moon, almost at its -full, already beginning to lose its golden radiance, was pouring over the -tops of the lofty lindens, and making brighter and brighter the delicate -fleecy clouds that occasionally overcast it. - -From the pond, the surface of which, silvered in one place by the moon, -could be seen through the trees, came the voices of the frogs. In the -sweet-scented lilac-bush under the very window, which from time to time -slowly shook its heavy-laden blossoms, birds were darting and fluttering. - -"What marvellous weather!" said the count, as he joined Liza, and sat down -in the low window-seat. "I suppose you go to walk a good deal, don't you?" - -"Yes," rejoined Liza, not experiencing the slightest embarrassment in the -count's company. "Every morning, at seven o'clock, I make the tour of the -estate, and sometimes I take a walk with Pímotchka,--mamma's _protégée_." - -"It's pleasant living in the country," cried the count, putting his monocle -to his eye, and gazing first at the garden, and then at Liza. "But don't -you like to take a walk on moonlight nights?" - -"No. Three years ago my uncle and I used to go out walking every moonlight -night. He had some sort of strange illness,--insomnia. Whenever there was a -full moon, he could not sleep. His room like this opens into the garden, -and the window is low. The moon shines right into it." - -"Strange," remarked the count. "Then this is your room." - -"No, I only sleep there for this one night. You occupy my room." - -"Is it possible? ... oh, good heavens![85] I shall never in the world -forgive myself for the trouble that I have caused," said the count, casting -the monocle from his eye as a sign of sincerity.... "If I had only known -that I was going to".... - -[Footnote 85: _Akh! Bozhe moď!_] - -"How much trouble was it? On the contrary, I am very glad. My uncle's room -is so nice and jolly: there's a low window there. I shall sit down in it -before I go to bed, or perhaps I shall go down, out into the garden, and -take a little walk." - -"What a glorious girl!" said the count to himself, replacing the monocle, -and staring at her, and while pretending to change his seat in the window, -trying to touch her foot with his. "And how shrewdly she gave me to -understand that I might meet her in the garden at the window, if I would -come down!" - -Liza even lost in the count's eyes a large share of her charm, so easy did -the conquest of her seem to him. - -"And how blissful it must be," said the count dreamily, gazing into the -shadow-haunted alley, "to spend such a night in the garden with the object -of one's love!" - -Liza was somewhat abashed by these words, and by a second evidently -deliberate pressure upon her foot. Before she thought, she made some reply -for the sake of dissimulating her embarrassment. - -She said, "Yes, it is splendid to walk in the moonlight." - -There was something disagreeable about the whole conversation. She put the -cover on the jar from which she had been taking the mushrooms, and was just -turning from the window, when the cornet came toward her, and she felt a -curiosity to know what kind of a man he was. - -"What a lovely night!" said he. - -"They can only talk about the weather," thought Liza. - -"What a wonderful view!" continued the cornet, "only I should think it -would be tiresome," he added through a strange propensity, peculiar to him, -of saying things sure to offend the people who pleased him very much. - -"Why should you think so? Always the same cooking and always the same dress -might become tiresome; but a lovely garden can never be tiresome when you -enjoy walking, and especially when there's a moon rising higher and higher. -From my uncle's room you can see the whole pond. I shall see it from there -to-night." - -"And you haven't any nightingales at all, have you?" asked the count, -greatly put out, because Polózof had come and prevented him from learning -the exact conditions of the rendezvous. - -"Oh, yes, we always have them; last year the hunters caught one; and last -week there was one that sang beautifully, but the district inspector[86] -came along with his bells, and scared him away.... Three years ago my uncle -and I used to sit out in the covered alley, and listen to one for two hours -at a time." - -[Footnote 86: _stanovói._] - -"What is this chatterbox telling you about?" inquired the old uncle, -joining the trio. "Aren't you ready for something to eat?" - -At supper, the count by his reiterated praise of the viands, and his -appetite, succeeded somewhat in pacifying Anna Fedorovna's unhappy state of -mind. Afterwards the officers made their adieux, and went to their room. -The count shook hands with the old cavalier, and, to Anna Fedorovna's -surprise, with her, without offering to kiss her hand; and he also squeezed -Liza's hand, at the same time looking straight into her eyes, and craftily -smiling his pleasing smile. This glance again somewhat disconcerted the -maiden. "He is very handsome," she said to herself, "only he is quite too -conceited." - - -XIV. - -"Well, now, aren't you ashamed?" exclaimed Polózof, when the two officers -had reached the privacy of their chamber. "I tried to lose, and I kept -nudging you under the table. Now aren't you really ashamed? The poor old -lady was quite beside herself." - -The count burst into a terrible fit of laughter. - -"A most amusing dame! How abused she felt!" - -And again he began to laugh so heartily that even Johann, who was standing -in front of him, cast down his eyes to conceal a smile. "And here is the -son of an old family friend! Ha, ha, ha!" continued the count in a gale of -laughter. - -"No, indeed, it is not right. I felt really sorry for her," said the -cornet. - -"What rubbish! How young you are! What! did you think that I was going to -lose? Why should I lose? I only lose when I don't know any better. Ten -rubles, brother, will come in handy. You must look on life in a practical -way, or else you will always be a fool." - -Polózof made no answer: in the first place, he wanted to think by himself -about Liza, who seemed to him to be an extraordinarily pure and beautiful -creature. - -He undressed, and lay down on the clean soft bed which had been made ready -for him. - -"How absurd all these honors and the glory of war!" he thought to himself, -gazing at the window shaded by the shawl, through the interstices of which -crept the pale rays of the moon. "Here is happiness--to live in a quiet -nook, with a gentle, bright, simple-hearted wife; that is enduring, true -happiness." - -But somehow he did not communicate these imaginations to his friend; and he -did not even speak of the rustic maiden, though he felt sure that the count -was also thinking about her. - -"Why don't you undress?" he demanded of the count, who was walking up and -down the room. - -"Oh, I don't feel like sleeping! Put out the candle if you like," said he. -"I can undress in the dark." - -And he continued to walk up and down. - -"He does not feel sleepy," repeated Polózof, who after the evening's -experiences felt more than ever dissatisfied with the count's influence -upon him, and disposed to revolt against it. "I imagine," he reasoned, -mentally addressing Turbin, "what thoughts are now trooping through that -well-combed head of yours. And I saw how she pleased you. But you are not -the kind to appreciate that simple-hearted, pure-minded creature. Mina is -the one for you, you want the epaulets of a colonel.--Indeed, I have a mind -to ask him how he liked her." - -And Polózof was about to address him, but he deliberated: he felt that not -only he was not in the right frame of mind to discuss with him if the -count's glance at Liza was what he interpreted it to be, but that he should -not have the force of mind necessary for him to disagree with him, so -accustomed was he to submit to an influence which for him grew each day -more burdensome and unrighteous. - -"Where are you going?" he asked, as the count took his cap and went to the -door. - -"I am going to the stable; I wish to see if every thing is all right." - -"Strange!" thought the cornet; but he blew out the candle, and, trying to -dispel the absurdly jealous and hostile thoughts that arose against his -former friend, he turned over on the other side. - -Anna Fedorovna meantime, having crossed herself, and kissed her brother, -her daughter, and her _protégée_, as affectionately as usual, also retired -to her room. - -Long had it been since the old lady had experienced in a single day so many -powerful sensations. She could not even say her prayers in tranquillity; -all the melancholy but vivid remembrances of the late count, and of this -young dandy who had so ruthlessly taken advantage of her, kept coming up in -her mind. - -Nevertheless she undressed as usual, and drank a half glass of kvas which -stood ready on the little table near the bed, and lay down. Her beloved cat -came softly into the room. Anna Fedorovna called her, and began to stroke -her fur, and listen to her purring; but still she could not go to sleep. - -"It is the cat that disturbs me," she said to herself, and pushed her away. -The cat fell to the floor softly, and, slowly waving her bushy tail, got -upon the oven;[87] and then the maid, who slept in the room on the floor, -brought her felt, and put out the candle, after lighting the night-lamp. - -[Footnote 87: The _lezhanka_, a part of the oven built out as a sort of -couch.] - -At last the maid began to snore; but sleep still refused to come to Anna -Fedorovna, and calm her excited imagination. The face of the hussar -constantly arose before her mental vision, when she shut her eyes; and it -seemed to her that it appeared in various strange guises in her room, when -she opened her eyes and looked at the commode, at the table, and her white -raiment hanging up in the feeble light of the night-lamp. Then it seemed -hot to her in the feather-bed, and the ticking of the watch on the table -seemed unendurable; exasperating to the last degree, the snoring of the -maid. She wakened her, and bade her cease snoring. - -Again the thoughts of the old count and of the young count, and of the game -of _préférence_, became strangely mixed in her mind. Now she seemed to see -herself waltzing with the former count; she saw her own round white -shoulders, she felt on them some one's kisses, and then she saw her -daughter in the young count's embrace. - -Once more Ustiushka began to snore.... - -"No, it's somehow different now, the men aren't the same. _He_ was ready to -fling himself into the fire for my sake. Yes, I was worth doing it for! But -this one, have no fear, is sound asleep like a goose, instead of wooing. -How his father fell on his knees, and said, 'Whatever you desire I will do, -I could kill myself in a moment; what do you desire?' And he would have -killed himself, if I had bade him!"... - -Suddenly the sound of bare feet was heard in the corridor; and Liza with a -shawl thrown over her came in pale and trembling, and almost fell on her -mother's bed.... - -After saying good-night to her mother, Liza had gone alone to the room that -had been her uncle's. Putting on a white jacket, throwing a handkerchief -round her thick long braids, she put out the light, opened the window, and -curled up in a chair, turning her dreamy eyes to the pond which was now all -shining with silver brilliancy. - -All her ordinary occupations and interests came up before her now in an -entirely different light. Her capricious old mother, unreasoning love for -whom had become a part of her very soul, her feeble but amiable old uncle, -the domestics, the peasants who worshipped their young mistress, the milch -cows and the calves; all this nature which was forever the same in its -continual death and resurrection, amid which she had grown up, with love -for others, and with the love of others for her,--all this that gave her -that gentle, agreeable peace of mind,--suddenly seemed to her something -different; it all seemed to her dismal, superfluous. - -It was as though some one said to her, "Fool, fool! For twenty years you -have been occupied in trivialities, you have been serving others without -reason, and you have not known what life, what happiness, were!" - -This was what she thought now as she gazed down into the depths of the -motionless moonlit garden, and the thought came over her with vastly more -force than ever before. And what was it that induced this train of thought? -It was not in the least a sudden love for the count, as might easily be -supposed. On the contrary, he did not please her. It might rather have been -the cornet of whom she was thinking; but he was homely, poor, and taciturn. - -"No, it isn't that," she said to herself. - -Her ideal was so charming! It was an ideal which might have been loved in -the midst of this night, in the midst of this nature, without infringing -its supernal beauty; an ideal not in the least circumscribed by the -necessity of reducing it to coarse reality. - -In days gone by, her lonely situation, and the absence of people who might -have attracted her, caused that all the strength of the love which -Providence has implanted impartially in the hearts of each one of us, was -still intact and potential in her soul. But now she had been living too -long with the pathetic happiness of feeling that she possessed in her heart -this something, and occasionally opening the mysterious chalice of her -heart, of rejoicing in the contemplation of its riches, ready to pour out -without stint on some one all that it contained. - -God grant that she may not have to take this melancholy delight with her to -the tomb! But who knows if there be any better and more powerful delight, -or if it is not the only true and possible one? - -"O Father in heaven," she thought, "is it possible that I have lost my -youth and my happiness, and that they will never return?... Will they never -return again? is it really true?" - -She gazed in the direction of the moon at the bright far-off sky, studded -with white wavy clouds, which, as they swept on toward the moon, blotted -out the little stars. - -"If the moon should seize that little cloud above it, then it means that it -is true," she thought. A thin smoke-like strip of cloud passed over the -lower half of the brilliant orb, and gradually the light grew fainter on -the turf, on the linden tops, on the pond: the black shadows of the trees -grew less distinct. And as though to harmonize with the gloomy shade which -was enveloping nature, a gentle breeze stirred through the leaves, and -brought to the window the dewy fragrance of the leaves, the moist earth, -and the blooming lilacs. - -"No, it is not true!" she said, trying to console herself; "but if the -nightingale should sing this night, then I should take it to mean that all -my forebodings are nonsense, and that there is no need of losing hope." - -And long she sat in silence, as though expecting some one, while once more -all grew bright and full of life; and then again and again the clouds -passed over the moon, and all became sombre. - -She was even beginning to grow drowsy, as she sat there by the window, when -she was aroused by the nightingale's melodious trills clearly echoing -across the pond. The rustic maiden opened her eyes. Once more, with a new -enjoyment, her whole soul was dedicated to that mysterious union with the -nature which so calmly and serenely spread out before her. - -She leaned on both elbows. A certain haunting sensation of gentle -melancholy oppressed her heart; and tears of pure, deep love, burning for -satisfaction, good consoling tears, sprang to her eyes. - -She leaned her arms on the window-sill, and rested her head upon them. Her -favorite prayer seemed of its own accord to arise in her soul, and thus she -fell asleep with moist eyes. - -The pressure of some one's hand awakened her. She started up. But the touch -was gentle and pleasant. The hand squeezed hers with a stronger pressure. - -Suddenly she realized the true state of things, screamed, tore herself -away; and trying to make herself believe that it was not the count who, -bathed in the brilliant moonlight, was standing in front of her window, she -hastened from the room. - - -XV. - -It was indeed the count. When he heard the maiden's cry, and the cough of -the watchman who was coming from the other side of the fence in reply to -the shriek, he had the sensation of being a thief caught in the act, and -started to run across the dew-drenched grass, so as to hide in the depths -of the garden. - -"Oh, what a fool I was!" he said instinctively. "I frightened her. I ought -to have been more gentle, to have wakened her by gentle words. Oh! I am a -beast, a blundering beast." - -He paused and listened. The watchman had come through the wicket-gate into -the garden, dragging his cane along the sanded walk. - -He must hide. He went toward the pond. The frogs made him tremble as they -hastily sprang from under his very feet into the water. There, -notwithstanding his wet feet, he crouched down on his heels, and, began to -recall all he had done,--how he had crept through the hedge, found her -window, and at last caught a glimpse of a white shadow; how several times, -while on the watch for the least noise, he had hastened away from the -window; how at one moment it seemed to him that doubtless she was waiting -for him with vexation in her heart that he was so dilatory, and the next -how impossible it seemed that she would make an appointment with him so -easily; and how, finally coming to the conclusion, that, through the -embarrassment naturally felt by a country maiden, she was only pretending -to be asleep, he had resolutely gone up to the window, and seen clearly her -position, and then suddenly, for some occult reason, had run away again; -and only after a powerful effort of self-control, being ashamed of his -cowardice, he had gone boldly up to her and touched her on the hand. - -The watchman again coughed, and, shutting the squeaky gate, went out of the -garden. The window in the young girl's room was shut, and the wooden -shutters inside were drawn. - -The count was terribly disappointed to see this. He would have given a good -deal to have a chance to begin it all over again; he would not have acted -so stupidly. - -"A marvellous girl! what freshness! simply charming! And so I lost her. -Stupid beast that I was." - -However, as he was not in the mood to go to sleep yet, he walked, as chance -should lead, along the path, through the linden alley, with the resolute -steps of a man who has been angry. And now for him also this night brought, -as its gifts of reconciliation, a strange, calming melancholy, and a -craving for love. - -The clay path, here and there dotted with sprouting grass or dry twigs, was -lighted by patches of pale light where the moon sent its rays straight -through the thick foliage of the lindens. Here and there a bending bough, -apparently overgrown with gray moss, gleamed on one side. The silvered -foliage occasionally rustled. - -At the house there was no light in the windows; all sounds were hushed, -only the nightingale filled with his song all the immensity of silent and -glorious space. - -"My God! what a night! what a marvellous night!" thought the count, -breathing in the fresh fragrance of the garden. "Something makes me feel -blue, as though I were dissatisfied with myself and with others, and -dissatisfied with my whole life. But what a splendid, dear girl! Perhaps -she was really offended." Here his fancies changed. He imagined himself -there in the garden with this district maiden in various and most -remarkable situations; then his mistress Mina supplanted the maiden's -place. - -"What a fool I am! I ought simply to have put my arm around her waist, and -kissed her." - -And with this regret the count returned to his room. The cornet was not yet -asleep. He immediately turned over in bed, and looked at the count. - -"Aren't you asleep?" asked the count. - -"No." - -"Shall I tell you what happened?" - -"Well." - -"No, I'd better not tell you.... Yes, I will too. Move your legs over a -little." - -And the count, who had already given up vain regret for his unsuccessful -intrigue, sat down with a gay smile on his comrade's bed. "Could you -imagine that the young lady of the house gave me a rendezvous?" - -"What is that you say?" screamed Polózof, leaping up in bed. - -"Well, now listen." - -"But how? When? It can't be!" - -"See here: while you were making out your accounts in _préférence_, she -told me that she would this night be sitting at the window, and that it was -possible to get in at that window. Now, this is what it means to be a -practical man: while you were there reckoning up with the old woman, I was -arranging this little affair. You yourself heard her say right out in your -presence, that she was going to sit at the window to-night, and look at -the pond." - -"Yes, but she said that without any meaning in it." - -"I am not so sure whether she said it purposely or otherwise. Maybe she did -not wish to come at it all at once, only it looked like that. But a -wretched piece of work came out of it. Like a perfect fool I spoilt the -whole thing," he added, scornfully smiling at himself. - -"Well, what is it? Where have you been?" - -The count told him the whole story, with the exception of his irresolute -and repeated advances. "I spoilt it myself; I ought to have been bolder. -She screamed, and ran away from the window." - -"Then she screamed and ran away?" repeated the cornet, replying with a -constrained smile to the count's smile, which had such a long and powerful -influence upon him. - -"Yes, but now it's time to go to sleep." - -Polózof again turned his back to the door, and lay in silence for ten -minutes. God knows what was going on in his soul; but when he turned over -again, his face was full of passion and resolution. - -"Count Turbin," said he in a broken voice. - -"Are you dreaming, or not?" replied the count calmly. "What is it, cornet -Polózof?" - -"Count Turbin, you are a scoundrel," cried Polózof, and he sprang from the -bed. - - -XVI. - -The next day the battalion departed. The officers did not see any of the -household, or bid them farewell. Neither did they speak together. - -It was understood that they were to fight their duel when they came to the -next halting-place. But Captain Schultz, a good comrade, an admirable -horseman, who was loved by everybody in the regiment, and had been chosen -by the count for his second, succeeded in arranging the affair in such a -manner that not only they did not fight, but that no one in the regiment -knew about the matter; and Turbin and Polózof, though their old relations -of friendship were never restored, still said "thou," and met at meals and -at the gaming-table. - - - - -THREE DEATHS - -_A TALE._ - -1859. - - -I. - -It was autumn. - -Along the highway came two equipages at a brisk pace. In the first carriage -sat two women. One was a lady, thin and pale. The other, her maid, with a -brilliant red complexion, and plump. Her short, dry locks escaped from -under a faded cap; her red hand, in a torn glove, put them back with a -jerk. Her full bosom, incased in a tapestry shawl, breathed of health; her -restless black eyes now gazed through the window at the fields hurrying by -them, now rested on her mistress, now peered solicitously into the corners -of the coach. - -Before the maid's face swung the lady's bonnet on the rack; on her knees -lay a puppy; her feet were raised by packages lying on the floor, and could -almost be heard drumming upon them above the noise of the creaking of the -springs, and the rattling of the windows. - -The lady, with her hands resting in her lap and her eyes shut, feebly -swayed on the cushions which supported her back, and, slightly frowning, -struggled with a cough. - -She wore a white nightcap, and a blue neckerchief twisted around her -delicate pale neck. A straight line, disappearing under the cap, parted her -blonde hair, which was smoothly pomaded; and there was a dry, deathly -appearance about the whiteness of the skin in this simple parting. The -withered and rather sallow skin was loosely drawn over her delicate and -pretty features, and there was a hectic flush on the cheeks and -cheek-bones. Her lips were dry and restless, her thin eyelashes had lost -their curve, and a cloth travelling capote made straight folds over her -sunken chest. Although her eyes were closed, her face gave the impression -of weariness, irascibility, and habitual suffering. - -The lackey, leaning back, was napping on the coach-box. The hired -driver,[88] shouting in a clear voice, urged on his four powerful and -sweaty horses, occasionally looking back at the other driver, who was -shouting just behind them in an open barouche. The tires of the wheels, in -their even and rapid course, left wide parallel tracks on the limy mud of -the highway. - -[Footnote 88: _yamshchik._] - -The sky was gray and cold, a moist mist was falling over the fields and the -road. It was suffocating in the carriage, and smelt of eau-de-cologne and -dust. The invalid leaned back her head, and slowly opened her eyes. Her -great eyes were brilliant, and of a beautiful dark color. "Again!" said -she, nervously pushing away with her beautiful attenuated hand the end of -her maid's cloak, which occasionally hit against her knee. Her mouth -contracted painfully. - -Matriósha raised her cloak in both hands, lifting herself up on her strong -legs, and then sat down again, farther away. Her fresh face was suffused -with a brilliant scarlet. - -The invalid's handsome dark eyes eagerly followed the maid's motions; and -then with both hands she took hold of the seat, and did her best to raise -herself a little higher, but her strength was not sufficient. - -Again her mouth became contracted, and her whole face took on an expression -of unavailing, angry irony. - -"If you would only help me.... Ah! It's not necessary. I can do it myself. -Only have the goodness not to put those pillows behind me.... On the whole, -you had better not touch them, if you don't understand!" - -The lady closed her eyes, and then again, quickly raising the lids, gazed -at her maid. - -Matriósha looked at her, and gnawed her red lower lip. A heavy sigh escaped -from the sick woman's breast; but the sigh was not ended, but was merged in -a fit of coughing. She scowled, and turned her face away, clutching her -chest with both hands. When the coughing fit was over, she once more shut -her eyes, and continued to sit motionless. The coach and the barouche -rolled into the village. Matriósha drew her fat hand from under her shawl, -and made the sign of the cross. - -"What is this?" demanded the lady. - -"A post-station, madame." - -"Why did you cross yourself, I should like to know?" - -"The church, madame." - -The lady looked out of the window, and began slowly to cross herself, -gazing with all her eyes at the great village church, in front of which the -invalid's carriage was now passing. - -The two vehicles came to a stop together at the post-house. The sick -woman's husband and the doctor dismounted from the barouche, and came to -the coach. - -"How are you feeling?" asked the doctor, taking her pulse. - -"Well, my dear, aren't you fatigued?" asked the husband, in French. -"Wouldn't you like to go out?" - -Matriósha, gathering up the bundles, squeezed herself into the corner, so -as not to interfere with the conversation. - -"No matter, it's all the same thing," replied the invalid. "I will not get -out." - -The husband, after standing there a little while, went into the post-house. -Matriósha, jumping from the carriage, tiptoed across the muddy road, into -the enclosure. - -"If I am miserable, there is no reason why the rest of you should not have -breakfast," said the sick woman, smiling faintly to the doctor, who was -standing by her window. - -"It makes no difference to them how I am," she remarked to herself as the -doctor, turning from her with slow step, started to run up the steps of the -station-house. "They are well, and it's all the same to them. O my God!" - -"How now, Eduard Ivánovitch," said the husband, as he met the doctor, and -rubbing his hands with a gay smile. "I have ordered my travelling-case -brought; what do you say to that?" - -"That's worth while," replied the doctor. - -"Well now, how about _her_?" asked the husband with a sigh, lowering his -voice and raising his brows. - -"I have told you that she cannot reach Moscow, much less Italy, especially -in such weather." - -"What is to be done, then? Oh! my God! my God!" - -The husband covered his eyes with his hand.... "Give it here," he added, -addressing his man, who came bringing the travelling-case. - -"You'll have to stop somewhere on the route," replied the doctor, shrugging -his shoulders. - -"But tell me, how can that be done?" rejoined the husband. "I have done -every thing to keep her from going: I have spoken to her of our means, and -of our children whom we should have to leave behind, and of my business. -She would not hear a word. She has made her plans for living abroad, as -though she were well. But if I should tell her what her real condition is, -it would kill her." - -"Well, she is a dead woman now: you may as well know it, Vasíli Dmítritch. -A person cannot live without lungs, and there is no way of making lungs -grow again. It is melancholy, it is hard, but what is to be done about it? -It is my business and yours to make her last days as easy as possible. It -is the confessor that is needed here." - -"Oh, my God! Now just perceive how I am situated, in speaking to her of her -last will. Let come whatever may, yet I cannot speak of that. And yet you -know how good she is." - -"Try at least to persuade her to wait until the roads are frozen," said the -doctor, shaking his head significantly: "something might happen during the -journey." - - * * * * * - -"Aksiúsha, oh, Aksiúsha!" cried the superintendent's daughter, throwing a -cloak over her head and tiptoeing down the muddy back steps. "Come along. -Let us have a look at the Shirkínskaya lady: they say she's got -lung-trouble, and they're taking her abroad. I never saw how any one looked -in consumption." - -Aksiúsha jumped down from the door-sill; and the two girls, hand in hand, -hurried out of the gates. Shortening their steps, they walked by the coach, -and stared in at the lowered window. The invalid bent her head toward them; -but when she saw their inquisitiveness, she frowned and turned away. - -"Oh, de-e-ar!" said the superintendent's daughter, vigorously shaking her -head.... "How wonderfully pretty she used to be, and how she has changed! -It is terrible! Did you see? Did you see, Aksiúsha?" - -"Yes, but how thin she is!" assented Aksiúsha. "Let us go by and look -again; we'll make believe go to the well. Did you see, she turned away from -us; still I got a good view of her. Isn't it too bad, Masha?" - -"Yes, but what terrible mud!" replied Masha, and both of them started to -run back within the gates. - -"It's evident that I have become a fright," thought the sick woman.... "But -we must hurry, hurry, and get abroad, and there I shall soon get well." - -"Well, and how are you, my dear?" inquired the husband, coming to the -carriage with still a morsel of something in his mouth. - -"Always one and the same question," thought the sick woman, "and he's even -eating!" - -"It's no consequence," she murmured between her teeth. - -"Do you know, my dear, I am afraid that this journey in such weather will -only make you worse. Eduard Ivánovitch says the same thing. Hadn't we -better turn back?" - -She maintained an angry silence. - -"The weather will improve maybe, the roads will become good, and that would -be better for you; then at least we could start all together." - -"Pardon me. If I had not listened to you so long, I should at this moment -be at Berlin and have entirely recovered." - -"What's to be done, my angel? it was impossible, as you know. But now if -you would wait a month, you would be ever so much better; I could finish up -my business, and we could take the children with us." - -"The children are well, and I am ill." - -"But just see here, my love, if in this weather you should grow worse on -the road.... At least we should be at home." - -"What is the use of being at home?... _Die_ at home?" replied the invalid -peevishly. - -But the word _die_ evidently startled her, and she turned upon her husband -a supplicating and inquiring look. He dropped his eyes, and said nothing. - -The sick woman's mouth suddenly contracted in a childish fashion, and the -tears sprang to her eyes. Her husband covered his face with his -handkerchief, and silently turned from the carriage. - -"No, I will go," cried the invalid; and lifting her eyes to the sky, she -clasped her hands, and began to whisper incoherent words. "My God! why must -it be?" she said, and the tears flowed more violently. She prayed long and -fervently, but still there was just the same sense of constriction and pain -in her chest, just the same gray melancholy in the sky and the fields and -the road; just the same autumnal mist, neither thicker nor more tenuous, -but ever the same in its monotony, falling on the muddy highway, on the -roofs, on the carriage, and on the sheep-skin coats of the drivers, who -were talking in strong, gay voices, as they were oiling and adjusting the -carriage. - - -II. - -The coach was ready, but the driver loitered. He had gone into the driver's -cottage,[89] where it was warm, close, dark, and suffocating; smelling of -human occupation, of cooking bread, of cabbage, and of sheep-skin garments. - -[Footnote 89: _izbá._] - -Several drivers were in the room; the cook was engaged near the oven, on -top of which lay a sick man wrapped up in pelts. - -"Uncle Khveódor! hey! Uncle Khveódor," called a young man, the driver, in a -tulup, and with his knout in his belt, coming into the room, and addressing -the sick man. - -"What do you want, rattlepate? What are you calling to Fyédka[90] for?" -demanded one of the drivers. "There's your carriage waiting for you." - -[Footnote 90: Fyédka and Fyédya are diminutives of Feódor, Theodore.] - -"I want to borrow his boots. Mine are worn out," replied the young fellow, -tossing back his curls and straightening his mittens in his belt. "Why? is -he asleep? Say, Uncle Khveódor!" he insisted, going to the oven. - -"What is it?" a weak voice was heard saying, and a blowsy, emaciated face -was lifted up from the oven. - -A broad, gaunt hand, bloodless and covered with hairs, pulled up his -overcoat over the dirty shirt that covered his bony shoulder. "Give me -something to drink, brother; what is it you want?" - -The young fellow handed him a small dish of water. - -"I say, Fyédya," said he, hesitating, "I reckon you won't want your new -boots now; let me have them? Probably you won't need them any more." - -The sick man dropping his weary head down to the lacquered bowl, and -dipping his thin, hanging mustache in the brown water, drank feebly and -eagerly. - -His tangled beard was unclean; his sunken, clouded eyes were with -difficulty raised to the young man's face. When he had finished drinking, -he tried to raise his hand to wipe his wet lips, but his strength failed -him, and he wiped them on the sleeve of his overcoat. Silently, and -breathing with difficulty through his nose, he looked straight into the -young man's eyes, and tried to collect his strength. - -"Maybe you have promised them to some one else?" said the young driver. "If -that's so, all right. The worst of it is, it is wet outside, and I have to -go out to my work, and so I said to myself, 'I reckon I'll ask Fyédka for -his boots; I reckon he won't be needing them.' But maybe you will need -them,--just say".... - -Something began to bubble up and rumble in the sick man's chest; he bent -over, and began to strangle, with a cough that rattled in his throat. - -"Now I should like to know where he would need them?" unexpectedly snapped -out the cook, angrily addressing the whole hovel. "This is the second month -that he has not crept down from the oven. Just see how he is all broken up! -and you can hear how it must hurt him inside. Where would he need boots? -They would not think of burying him in new ones! And it was time long ago, -God pardon me the sin of saying so. Just see how he chokes! He ought to be -taken from this hovel to another, or somewhere. They say there's hospitals -in the city; but what's you going to do? he takes up the whole room, and -that's too much. There isn't any room at all. And yet you are expected to -keep neat." - -"Hey! Seryóha, come along, take your place, the people are waiting," cried -the head man of the station, coming to the door. - -Seryóha started to go without waiting for his reply, but the sick man -during his cough intimated by his eyes that he was going to speak. - -"You can take the boots, Seryóha," said he, conquering the cough and -getting his breath a little. "Only, do you hear, buy me a stone when I am -dead," he added hoarsely. - -"Thank you, uncle; then I will take them, and as for the -stone,--_éď-éď!_--I will buy you one." - -"There, children, you are witnesses," the sick man was able to articulate, -and then once more he bent over and began to choke. - -"All right, we have heard," said one of the drivers. "But run, Seryóha, or -else the stárosta will be after you again. You know Lady Shirkínskaya is -sick." - -Seryóha quickly pulled off his ragged, unwieldy boots, and flung them under -the bench. Uncle Feódor's fitted his feet exactly, and the young driver -could not keep his eyes off them as he went to the carriage. - -"_Ek!_ what splendid boots! Here's some grease," called another driver with -the grease-pot in his hand, as Seryóha mounted to his box and gathered up -the reins. "Get them for nothing?" - -"So you're jealous, are you?" cried Seryóha, lifting up and tucking around -his legs the tails of his overcoat. "Off with you, my darlings," he cried -to the horses, cracking his knout; and the coach and barouche with their -occupants, trunks, and other belongings, were hidden in the thick autumnal -mist, and rapidly whirled away over the wet road. - -The sick driver remained on the oven in the stifling hovel, and, not being -able to throw off the phlegm, by a supreme effort turned over on the -other-side, and stopped coughing. - -Till evening there was a continual coming and going, and eating of meals in -the hovel, and the sick man was not noticed. Before night came on, the cook -climbed upon the oven, and pulled off the sheep-skin from his legs. - -"Don't be angry with me, Nastásya," murmured the sick man. "I shall soon -leave you your room." - -"All right, all right, it's of no consequence. But what is the matter with -you, uncle? Tell me." - -"All my innards are gnawed out, God knows what it is!" - -"And I don't doubt your gullet hurts you when you cough so?" - -"It hurts me all over. My death is at hand, that's what it is. _Okh! Okh! -Okh!_" groaned the sick man. - -"Now cover up your legs this way," said Nastásya, comfortably arranging the -overcoat so that it would cover him, and then getting down from the oven. - -During the night the hovel was faintly lighted by a single taper. Nastásya -and a dozen drivers were sleeping, snoring loudly, on the floor and the -benches. Only the sick man feebly choked and coughed, and tossed on the -oven. - -In the morning no sound was heard from him. - -"I saw something wonderful in my sleep," said the cook, as she stretched -herself in the early twilight the next morning. "I seemed to see Uncle -Khveódor get down from the oven, and go out to cut wood. 'Look here,' says -he, 'I'm going to help you, Násya;' and I says to him, 'How can you split -wood?' but he seizes the hatchet, and begins to cut so fast, so fast that -nothing but chips fly. 'Why,' says I, 'ain't you been sick?'--'No,' says -he, 'I am well,' and he kind of lifted up the axe, and I was scared; and I -screamed and woke up. He can't be dead, can he?--Uncle Khveódor! hey, -uncle!" - -Feódor did not move. - -"Now he can't be dead, can he? Go and see," said one of the drivers who had -just waked up. The emaciated hand, covered with reddish hair, that hung -down from the oven, was cold and pale. - -"Go tell the superintendent; it seems he is dead," said the driver. - -Feódor had no relatives. He was a stranger. On the next day they buried him -in the new burying-ground behind the grove; and Nastásya for many days had -to tell everybody of the dream which she had seen, and how she had been the -first to discover that Uncle Feódor was dead. - - -III. - -Spring had come. - -Along the wet streets of the city swift streamlets ran purling between bits -of ice; bright were the colors of people's dresses and the tones of their -voices, as they hurried along. In the walled gardens, the buds on the trees -were bourgeoning, and the fresh breeze swayed their branches with a soft -gentle murmur. Everywhere transparent drops were forming and falling.... - -The sparrows chattered incoherently, and fluttered about on their little -wings. On the sunny side, on the walls, houses, and trees, all was full of -life and brilliancy. The sky, and the earth, and the heart of man -overflowed with youth and joy. - -In front of a great seignorial mansion, in one of the principal streets, -fresh straw was laid; in the house lay that same invalid whom we saw -hastening abroad. - -Near the closed doors of the house stood the sick lady's husband, and a -lady well along in years. On a sofa sat the confessor, with cast-down eyes, -holding something wrapped up under his stole.[91] In one corner, in a -Voltaire easy-chair, reclined an old lady, the sick woman's mother, weeping -violently. - -[Footnote 91: Called _epitrachilion_ in the Greek Church.] - -Near her the maid stood holding a clean handkerchief, ready for the old -lady's use when she should ask for it. Another maid was rubbing the old -lady's temples, and blowing on her gray head underneath her cap. - -"Well, Christ be with you, my dear," said the husband to the elderly lady -who was standing with him near the door: "she has such confidence in you; -you know how to talk with her; go and speak with her a little while, my -darling, please go!" - -He was about to open the door for her; but his cousin held him back, -putting her handkerchief several times to her eyes, and shaking her head. - -"There, now she will not see that I have been weeping," said she, and, -opening the door herself, went to the invalid. - -The husband was in the greatest excitement, and seemed quite beside -himself. He started to go over to the old mother, but after taking a few -steps he turned around, walked the length of the room, and approached the -priest. - -The priest looked at him, raised his brows toward heaven, and sighed. The -thick gray beard also was lifted and fell again. - -"My God! my God!" said the husband. - -"What can you do?" exclaimed the confessor, sighing and again lifting up -his brows and beard, and letting them drop. - -"And the old mother there!" exclaimed the husband, almost in despair. "She -will not be able to endure it. You see, she loved her so, she loved her so, -that she.... I don't know. You might try, holy father,[92] to calm her a -little, and persuade her to go away." - -[Footnote 92: _bátiushka._] - -The confessor arose and went over to the old lady. - -"It is true, no one can appreciate a mother's heart," said he, "but God is -compassionate." - -The old lady's face was suddenly convulsed, and a hysterical sob shook her -frame. - -"God is compassionate," repeated the priest, when she had grown a little -calmer. "I will tell you, in my parish there was a sick man, and much worse -than Márya Dmítrievna, and he, though he was only a shopkeeper,[93] was -cured in a very short time, by means of herbs. And this very same -shopkeeper is now in Moscow. I have told Vasíli Dmítrievitch about him; it -might be tried, you know. At all events, it would satisfy the invalid. With -God, all things are possible." - -[Footnote 93: _meshchánin._] - -"No, she won't get well," persisted the old lady. "Why should God have -taken her, and not me?" - -And again the hysterical sobbing overcame her so violently that she fainted -away. - -The invalid's husband hid his face in his hands, and rushed from the room. - -In the corridor the first person whom he met was a six-year-old boy, who -was chasing his little sister with all his might and main. - -"Do you bid me take the children to their mamma?" inquired the nurse. - -"No, she is not able to see them. They distract her." - -The lad stopped for a moment, and after looking eagerly into his father's -face, he cut a dido with his leg, and with merry shouts ran on. "I'm -playing she's a horse, papásha," cried the little fellow, pointing to his -sister. - -Meantime, in the next room, the cousin had taken her seat near the sick -woman, and was skilfully bringing the conversation by degrees round so as -to prepare her for the thought of death. The doctor stood by the window, -mixing some draught. - -The invalid in a white dressing-gown, all surrounded by cushions, was -sitting up in bed, and gazed silently at her cousin. - -"Ah, my dear!" she exclaimed, unexpectedly interrupting her, "don't try to -prepare me; don't treat me like a little child! I am a Christian woman. I -know all about it. I know that I have not long to live; I know that if my -husband had heeded me sooner, I should have been in Italy, and possibly, -yes probably, should have been well by this time. They all told him so. But -what is to be done? it's as God saw fit. We all of us have sinned, I know -that; but I hope in the mercy of God, that all will be pardoned, ought to -be pardoned. I am trying to sound my own heart. I also have committed many -sins, my love. But how much I have suffered in atonement! I have tried to -bear my sufferings patiently".... - -"Then shall I have the confessor come in, my love? It will be all the -easier for you, after you have been absolved," said the cousin. - -The sick woman dropped her head in token of assent. "O God! pardon me a -sinner," she whispered. - -The cousin went out, and beckoned to the confessor. "She is an angel," she -said to the husband, with tears in her eyes. The husband wept. The priest -went into the sick-room; the old lady still remained unconscious, and in -the room beyond all was perfectly quiet. At the end of five minutes the -confessor came out, and, taking off his stole, arranged his hair. - -"Thanks be to the Lord, she is calmer now," said he. "She wishes to see -you." - -The cousin and the husband went to the sick-room. The invalid, gently -weeping, was gazing at the images. - -"I congratulate you, my love," said the husband. - -"Thank you. How well I feel now! what ineffable joy I experience!" said the -sick woman, and a faint smile played over her thin lips. "How merciful God -is! Is it not so? He is merciful and omnipotent!" And again with an eager -prayer she turned her tearful eyes towards the holy images. - -Then suddenly something seemed to occur to her mind. She beckoned to her -husband. - -"You are never willing to do what I desire," said she in a weak and -querulous voice. - -The husband, stretching his neck, listened to her submissively. - -"What is it, my love?" - -"How many times I have told you that these doctors don't know any thing! -There are uneducated women doctors: they make cures. That's what the good -father said.... A shopkeeper.... send for him".... - -"For whom, my love?" - -"Good heavens! you can never understand me." And the dying woman frowned, -and closed her eyes. - -The doctor came to her, and took her hand. Her pulse was evidently growing -feebler and feebler. He made a sign to the husband. The sick woman remarked -this gesture, and looked around in fright. The cousin turned away to hide -her tears. - -"Don't weep, don't torment yourselves on my account," said the invalid. -"That takes away from me my last comfort." - -"You are an angel!" exclaimed the cousin, kissing her hand. - -"No, kiss me here. They only kiss the hands of those who are dead. My God! -my God!" - -That same evening the sick woman was a corpse, and the corpse in the -coffin lay in the parlor of the great mansion. In the immense room, the -doors of which were closed, sat the clerk,[94] and with a monotonous voice -read the Psalms of David through his nose. - -[Footnote 94: _diachók._] - -The bright glare from the wax candles in the lofty silver candelabra fell -on the white brow of the dead, on the heavy waxen hands, on the stiff folds -of the cerement which brought out into awful relief the knees and the feet. - -The clerk, not varying his tones, continued to read on steadily, and in the -silence of the chamber of death his words rang out and died away. -Occasionally from distant rooms came the voice of children and their -romping. - -"_Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled; thou takest away their breath, -they die and return to their dust._ - -"_Thou sendest forth thy Spirit, they are created; and thou renewest the -face of the earth._ - -"_The glory of the Lord shall endure forever: the Lord shall rejoice in his -works._" - -The face of the dead was stern and majestic. But there was no motion either -on the pure cold brow, or the firmly closed lips. She was all attention. -But did she perhaps now understand these grand words? - - -IV. - -At the end of a month, over the grave of the dead a stone chapel was -erected. Over the driver's there was as yet no stone, and only the fresh -green grass sprouted over the mound that served as the sole record of the -past existence of a man. - -"It will be a sin and a shame, Seryóha," said the cook at the station-house -one day, "if you don't buy a gravestone for Khveódor. You kept saying, -'It's winter, winter,' but now why don't you keep your word? I heard it -all. He has already come back once to ask why you don't do it; if you don't -buy him one, he will come again, he will choke you." - -"Well, now, have I denied it?" urged Seryóha. "I am going to buy him a -stone, as I said I would. I can get one for a ruble and a half. I have not -forgotten about it; I'll have to get it. As soon as I happen to be in town, -then I'll buy him one." - -"You ought at least to put up a cross, that's what you ought to do," said -an old driver. "It isn't right at all. You're wearing those boots now." - -"Yes. But where could I get him a cross? You wouldn't want to make one out -of an old piece of stick, would you?" - -"What is that you say? Make one out of an old piece of stick? No; take your -axe, go out to the wood a little earlier than usual, and you can hew him -out one. Take a little ash-tree, and you can make one. You can have a -covered cross. If you go then, you won't have to give the watchman a little -drink of vodka. One doesn't want to give vodka for every trifle. Now, -yesterday I broke my axletree, and I go and hew out a new one of green -wood. No one said a word." - -Early the next morning, almost before dawn, Seryóha took his axe, and went -to the wood. - -Over all things hung a cold, dead veil of falling mist, as yet untouched by -the rays of the sun. - -The cast gradually grew brighter, reflecting its pale light over the vault -of heaven still covered by light clouds. Not a single grass-blade below, -not a single leaf on the topmost branches of the tree-top, waved. Only from -time to time could be heard the sounds of fluttering wings in the thicket, -or a rustling on the ground broke in upon the silence of the forest. - -Suddenly a strange sound, foreign to this nature, resounded and died away -at the edge of the forest. Again the noise sounded, and was monotonously -repeated again and again, at the foot of one of the ancient, immovable -trees. A tree-top began to shake in an extraordinary manner; the juicy -leaves whispered something; and the warbler, sitting on one of the -branches, flew off a couple of times with a shrill cry, and, wagging its -tail, finally perched on another tree. - -The axe rang more and more frequently; the white chips, full of sap, were -scattered upon the dewy grass, and a slight cracking was heard beneath the -blows. - -The tree trembled with all its body, leaned over, and quickly straightened -itself with a fearful shudder on its base. - -For an instant all was still, then once more the tree bent over; a crash -was heard in its trunk; and tearing the thicket, and dragging down the -branches, it plunged toward the damp earth. - -The noise of the axe and of footsteps ceased. - -The warbler uttered a cry, and flew higher. The branch which she grazed -with her wings shook for an instant, and then came to rest like all the -others with their foliage. - -The trees, more joyously than ever, extended their branches over the new -space that had been made in their midst. - -The first sunbeams, breaking through the cloud, gleamed in the sky, and -shone along the earth and heavens. - -The mist, in billows, began to float along the hollows; the dew, gleaming, -played on the green foliage; translucent white clouds hurried along their -azure path. - -The birds hopped about in the thicket, and, as though beside themselves, -voiced their happiness; the juicy leaves joyfully and contentedly whispered -on the tree-tops; and the branches of the living trees slowly and -majestically waved over the dead and fallen tree. - - - - -A PRISONER IN THE CAUCASUS. - - -I. - -A Russian of rank was serving as an officer in the army of the Caucasus. -His name was Zhilin. - -There came to him one day a letter from his home. His aged mother wrote -him: "I am now getting along in years, and before I die I should like to -see my beloved son. Come and bid me farewell, lay me in the ground, and -then with my blessing return again to your service. And I have been finding -a bride for you, and she is intelligent and handsome and has property. If -you like, you can marry and settle down together." - -Zhilin cogitated, "It is very true: the old lady has been growing feeble; -maybe I shall not have a chance to see her again. Let us go, and if the -bride is pretty--then I might marry." - -He went to his colonel, got his leave of absence, took his farewell of his -comrades, gave the soldiers of his command nine gallons[95] of vodka as a -farewell treat, and made his arrangements to depart. - -[Footnote 95: Four _vedros_, equivalent exactly to 8.80 gallons.] - -There was war at that time in the Caucasus. The roads were not open for -travel either by day or night. If any of the Russians rode or walked -outside of the fortress, the Tatars were likely either to kill him or -carry him off to the mountains. And it was arranged that twice a week an -escort of soldiers should go from fortress to fortress. In front and behind -marched the soldiers, and the travellers rode in the middle. - -It was now summer-time. At sunrise the baggage-train was made up behind the -fortification; the guard of soldiery marched ahead, and the procession -moved along the road. - -Zhilin was on horseback, and his effects were on a cart that formed part of -the train. - -They had twenty-five versts[96] to travel. The train marched slowly; -sometimes the soldiers halted; sometimes a wagon-wheel came off, or a horse -balked, and all had to stop and wait. - -[Footnote 96: Sixteen and a half miles.] - -The sun was already past the zenith, but the train had only gone half way, -so great were the dust and heat. The sun was baking hot, and nowhere was -there shelter. A bald steppe; not a tree or a shrub on the road. - -Zhilin rode on ahead, occasionally stopping and waiting till the train -caught up with him. He would listen, and hear the signal on the horn to -halt again. And Zhilin thought, "Would I better go on alone without the -soldiers? I have a good horse under me; if I fall in with the Tatars, I can -escape. Or shall I wait?" - -He kept stopping and pondering. And just then another officer, also on -horseback, rode up to him; his name was Kostuilin, and he had a musket. - -He said, "Zhilin, let us ride on ahead together. I am so hungry that I -cannot stand it any longer, and the heat too,--you could wring my shirt -out!" Kostuilin was a heavy, stout, ruddy man, and the sweat was dripping -from him. - -Zhilin reflected, and said, "And your musket is loaded?" - -"It is." - -"All right, let us go. Only one condition: not to separate." - -And they started on up the road. They rode along the steppe, talking and -looking on each side. There was a wide sweep of view. As soon as the steppe -came to an end, the road went into a pass between two mountains. - -And Zhilin said, "I must ride up on that mountain, and reconnoitre, -otherwise you see they might come down from the mountain and surprise us." - -But Kostuilin said, "What is there to reconnoitre? Let us go ahead." - -Zhilin did not heed him. - -"No," says he, "you wait for me here below. I'll just glance around." - -And he spurred his horse up the mountain to the left. - -The horse that Zhilin rode was a hunter; he had bought him out of a drove -of colts, paying a hundred rubles for him, and he had himself trained him. -He bore him up the steep slope as on wings. He had hardly reached the -summit when before him less than seven hundred feet distant mounted Tatars -were standing,--thirty men. - -He saw them, and started to turn back, but the Tatars had caught sight of -him; they set out in pursuit of him, unstrapping their weapons as they -gallop. Zhilin dashes down the precipice with all the speed of his horse, -and cries to Kostuilin, "Fire your gun!" and to his horse he says, though -not aloud, "Little mother, carry me safely, don't stumble; if you trip, I -am lost. If we get back to the gun, we won't fall into their hands." - -But Kostuilin, instead of waiting for him, as soon as he saw the Tatars, -galloped on with all his might toward the fortress. With his whip he -belabored his horse, first on one side, then on the other; all that could -be seen through the dust, was the horse switching her tail. - -Zhilin saw that his case was desperate. The gun was gone; nothing was to be -done with a sabre alone. He turned his horse back toward the train; he -thought he might escape that way. - -But in front of him, he sees that six are galloping down the steep. His -horse is good, but theirs are better; and besides, they have got the start -of him. He started to wheel about, and was going to dash ahead again, but -his horse had got momentum, and could not be held back; he flew straight -down toward them. - -He sees a red-bearded Tatar approaching him on a gray mare. He is gaining -on him; he gnashes his teeth; he is getting his gun ready. - -"Well," thinks Zhilin, "I know you devils; if you should take me prisoner, -you would put me in a hole, and flog me with a whip. I won't give myself up -alive." - -Now, Zhilin was not of great size, but he was an uhlan. He drew his sabre, -spurred his horse straight at the red-bearded Tatar. He says to himself, -"Either I will crush him with my horse, or I will hack him down with my -sabre." - -Zhilin, however, did not reach the place on horseback; suddenly behind him, -gun-shots were fired at the horse. The horse fell headlong, and pinned -Zhilin's leg to the ground. - -He tried to arise; but already ill-smelling Tatars were sitting on him, and -pinioning his hands behind his back. - -He burst from them, knocking the Tatars over; but three others had -dismounted from their horses, and began to beat him on the head with their -gun-stocks. - -His sight failed him, and he staggered. - -The Tatars seized him, took from their saddles extra saddle-girths, bent -his arms behind his back, fastened them with a Tatar knot, and lifted him -up. - -They took his sabre from him, pulled off his boots, made a thorough search -of him, pulled out his money and his watch, tore his clothes all to pieces. - -Zhilin glanced at his horse. The poor beast lay as he had fallen, on his -side, and was kicking, vainly trying to rise. In his head was a hole, and -from the hole the black blood was pouring; the dust for an arshin around -was wet with it. - -A Tatar went to the horse to remove the saddle. He was still kicking, so -the man took out his dagger, and cut his throat. The throat gave a -whistling sound, a trembling ran over the body, and all was over. - -The Tatars took off the saddle and the other trappings. The one with the -red beard mounted his horse, and the others lifted Zhilin behind him to -keep him from falling; they fastened him with the reins to the Tatar's -belt, and thus they carried him off to the mountains. - -Zhilin sat behind, swaying and bumping his face against the stinking -Tatar's back. - -All that he could see before him was the healthy Tatar back, and the sinewy -neck, and a smooth-shaven nape, showing blue beneath the cap. - -Zhilin's head ached; the blood trickled into his eyes. And it was -impossible for him to get a more comfortable position on the horse, or wipe -away the blood. His arms were so tightly bound that his collar-bones ached. -They rode long from mountain to mountain; they forded a river; then they -entered a highway, and rode along a valley. Zhilin tried to follow the -route that they took him; but his eyes were glued together with blood, and -it was impossible for him to turn round. - -It began to grow dark; they crossed still another river, and began to climb -a rocky mountain. There was an odor of smoke. The barking of dogs was -heard. - -They had reached an _aul_.[97] - -[Footnote 97: _Aul_ = Tatar's village.--_Author's note._] - -The Tatars dismounted. The Tatar children came running up, and surrounded -Zhilin, whistling and exulting. Finally they began to fling stones at him. - -The Tatar drove away the children, lifted Zhilin from the horse, and called -a servant. - -A Nogáď, with prominent cheek-bones, came at the call. He wore only a -shirt. The shirt was torn; his whole breast was bare. The Tatar said -something to him. The servant brought a foot-stock. It consisted of two -oaken blocks provided with iron rings, and in one of the rings was a clamp -with a lock. They unfastened Zhilin's arms, put on the stock, and took him -to a barn, pushed him in, and shut the door. - -Zhilin fell on the manure. As he lay there, he felt round in the darkness, -and when he had found a place that was less foul, he stretched himself out. - - -II. - -Zhilin scarcely slept that night. The nights were short. He saw through a -crack that it was growing light. Zhilin got up, widened the crack, and -managed to look out. - -Through the crack he could see a road leading down from the mountain; at -the right, a Tatar _saklia_[98] with two trees near it. A black dog was -lying on the road; a she-goat with her kids was walking by, all of them -shaking their tails. - -[Footnote 98: A mountain-hut in the Caucasus.] - -He saw coming down the mountain a young Tatar girl in a variegated shirt, -ungirdled, in pantalettes and boots; her head was covered with a kaftan, -and on it she bore a great tin water-jug. - -She walked along, swaying and bending her back, and holding by the hand a -little Tatar urchin, with shaven head, who wore a single shirt. - -After the Tatar maiden had passed with her water-jug, the red-bearded Tatar -of the evening before came out, wearing a silk beshmet, a silver dagger in -his belt, and sandals on his bare feet. On his head was a high cap of -sheep-skin, dyed black, and with the point hanging down. He came out, -stretched himself, stroked his red beard. He paused, gave some order to the -servant, and went off somewhere. - -Then two children on horseback came along on their way to the -watering-trough. The hind-quarters of the horses were wet. - -Other shaven-headed youngsters, with nothing but shirts on, and nothing on -their legs, formed a little band, and came to the barn; they got a dry -stick, and stuck it through the crack. - -Zhilin growled "_ukh_" at them. The children began to cry, and scatter in -every direction as fast as their legs would carry them; only their bare -knees glistened. But Zhilin began to be thirsty; his throat was parched. He -said to himself, "I wonder if they won't come to look after me?" - -Suddenly the barn-doors are thrown open. - -The red Tatar came in, and with him another, of slighter stature and of -dark complexion. His eyes were bright and black, his cheeks ruddy, his -little beard well trimmed, his face jolly and always enlivened with a grin. - -The dark man's clothing was still richer: a silk beshmet of blue silk, -embroidered with gold lace. In his belt, a great silver dagger; handsome -morocco slippers embroidered with silver, and over the fine slippers he -wore a larger pair of stout ones. His cap was tall, of white lamb's wool. - -The red Tatar came in, muttered something, gave vent to some abusive -language, and then stood leaning against the wall, fingering his dagger, -and scowling under his brows at Zhilin, like a wolf. - -But the dark Tatar, nervous and active, and always on the go, as though he -were made of springs, came straight up to Zhilin, squatted down on his -heels, showed his teeth, tapped him on the shoulder, began to gabble -something in his own language, winked his eyes, and, clucking his tongue, -kept saying, "A fine Russ, a fine Russ!"[99] - -[Footnote 99: _Urus_ in Tatar.] - -Zhilin did not understand him, and said, "Drink; give me some water." - -The dark one grinned. - -"A fine Russ!" and all the time he kept babbling. - -Zhilin signified by his hands and lips that they should give him water. - -The dark one understood, grinned, put his head out of the door, and cried, -"Dina!" - -A young girl came running in,--a slender, lean creature of thirteen, with a -face like the dark man's. Evidently she was his daughter. - -She was dressed in a long blue shirt with wide sleeves and without a belt. -On the bottom, on the breast, and on the cuffs it was relieved with red -trimmings. She wore on her legs pantalettes and slippers, and over the -slippers another pair with high heels. On her neck was a necklace wholly -composed of half-ruble pieces. Her head was uncovered; she had her hair in -a black braid, and on the braid was a ribbon, and to the ribbon were -attached various ornaments and a silver ruble. - -Her father gave her some command. She ran out, and quickly returned, -bringing a little tin pitcher. After she had handed him the water, she also -squatted on her heels in such a way that her knees were higher than her -shoulders. - -She sits that way, and opens her eyes, and stares at Zhilin while he -drinks, as though he were some wild beast. - -Zhilin offered to return the pitcher to her. She darted away like a wild -goat. Even her father laughed. - -He sent her after something else. She took the pitcher, ran out, and -brought back some unleavened bread on a small round board, and again -squatted down, and stared without taking her eyes from him. - -The Tatars went out, and again bolted the door. - -After a while the Nogáď also comes to Zhilin, and says, "_Aď-da, khozyáďn, -aď-da!_" - -But he does not know Russian either. Zhilin, however, perceived that he -wished him to go somewhere. - -Zhilin hobbled out with his clog; it was impossible to walk, so he had to -drag one leg. The Nogáď led the way for him. - -He sees before him a Tatar village, of half a score of houses, and the -native mosque with its minaret. - -In front of one house stood three horses saddled. Lads held them by the -bridle. From this house came the dark Tatar, and waved his hand, signifying -that Zhilin was to come to him. He grinned, and kept saying something in -his own tongue, and went into the house. - -Zhilin followed him. - -The room was decent; the walls were smoothly plastered with clay. Against -the front wall were placed feather-beds; on the sides hung costly rugs; on -the rugs were guns, pistols, and sabres, all silver-mounted. - -On one side a little oven was set in, on a level with the floor. - -The floor was of earth, clean as a threshing-floor, and the whole of the -front portion was covered with felt; rugs were distributed over the felt, -and on the rugs were down pillows. - -On the rugs were sitting some Tatars in slippers only,--the dark Tatar, the -red-bearded one, and three guests. Behind their backs, down cushions were -placed; and before them on wooden plates were pancakes of millet-flour, and -melted butter in a cup, and the Tatar beer, called _buza_, in a pitcher. -They ate with their fingers, and all dipped into the butter. - -The dark man leaped up, bade Zhilin sit on one side, not on a rug but on -the bare floor; going back again to his rug, he handed his guests cakes and -_buza_. - -The servant showed Zhilin his place; he himself took off his shoes, placed -them by the door in a row with the slippers of the other guests, and took -his seat on the felt as near as possible to his masters; and while they eat -he looks at them, and his mouth waters. - -After the Tatars had finished eating, a Tatar woman entered, dressed in the -same sort of shirt as the girl wore, and in pantalettes; her head was -covered with a handkerchief. She carried out the butter and the cakes, and -brought a handsome finger-bowl, and a pitcher with a narrow nose. - -The Tatars finished washing their hands, then they folded their arms, knelt -down, and puffed on all sides, and said their prayers. They talked in their -own tongue. - -Then one of the guests, a Tatar, approached Zhilin, and began to speak to -him in Russian. "Kazi Muhamet made you prisoner," said he, pointing to the -red-bearded Tatar; "and he has given you to Abdul Murat," indicating the -dark one. "_Abdul Murat is now your master._"[100] - -[Footnote 100: _khozyáďn._] - -Zhilin said nothing. - -Abdul Murat began to talk, all the time pointing toward Zhilin, and grinned -as he talked-: "_soldat Urus, korosho Urus_." - -The interpreter went on to say, "He commands you to write a letter home, -and have them send money to ransom you. As soon as money is sent, he will -set you free." - -Zhilin pondered a little, and then said, "Does he wish a large ransom?" - -The Tatars took counsel together, and then the interpreter said,-- - -"Three thousand silver rubles." - -"No," replied Zhilin, "I can't pay that." - -Abdul leaped up, began to gesticulate and talk to Zhilin; he seemed all the -time to think that Zhilin understood him. - -The interpreter translated his words. "He means," says he, "how much will -you give?" - -Zhilin after pondering a little said, "Five hundred rubles." - -Then the Tatars all began to talk at once. Abdul began to scream at the -red-bearded Tatar. He grew so excited as he talked, that the spittle flew -from his mouth. - -But the red-bearded Tatar only frowned, and clucked with his tongue. - -When all became silent again, the interpreter said, "Five hundred rubles is -not enough to buy you of your master. He himself has paid two hundred for -you. Kazi Muhamet was in debt to him. He took you for the debt. Three -thousand rubles; it is no use to send less. But if you don't write, they -will put you in a hole, and flog you with a whip." - -"_Ekh!_" thinks Zhilin, "the more cowardly one is, the worse it is for -him." He leaped to his feet, and said,-- - -"Now you tell him, dog that he is, that if he thinks he is going to -frighten me, then I will not give him a single kopek nor will I write. I am -not afraid of you, and you will never make me afraid of you, you dog!" The -interpreter translated this, and again they all began to talk at once. - -They gabbled a long time, then the dark one got up and came to Zhilin. - -"_Urus_," says he, "_jigit, jigit Urus!_" - -The word _jigit_ among them signifies a brave young man. And he grinned, -said something to the interpreter, and the interpreter said, "Give a -thousand rubles." Zhilin would not give in. "I will not pay more than five -hundred. But if you kill me, you will get nothing at all." - -The Tatars consulted together, sent out the servant, and they themselves -looked first at the door, then at Zhilin. - -The servant returned, followed by a rather stout man in bare feet and -almost stripped. His feet also were in stocks. - -Zhilin made an exclamation: he recognized Kostuilin. - -And they brought him in, and placed him next his comrade; the two began to -talk together, and the Tatars looked on and listened in silence. - -Zhilin told how it had gone with him; Kostuilin told how his horse had -stood stock still, and his gun had missed fire, and that this same Abdul -had overtaken him and captured him. - -Abdul listened, pointed to Kostuilin, and muttered something. The -interpreter translated his words to mean that they now both belonged to the -same master, and that the one who paid the ransom first would be freed -first. "Now," says he to Zhilin, "you lose your temper so easily, but your -comrade is calm; he has written a letter home; they will send five -thousand silver rubles. And so he will be well fed, and he won't be hurt." - -And Zhilin said, "Let my comrade do as he pleases. Maybe he is rich. But I -am not rich; I will do as I have already told you. Kill me if you wish, but -it would not do you any good, and I will not pay you more than five hundred -rubles." - -They were silent. - -Suddenly Abdul leaped up, brought a little chest, took out a pen, a sheet -of paper, and ink, and pushed them into Zhilin's hands, then tapped him on -the shoulder, and said by signs, "Write." He had agreed to take the five -hundred rubles. - -"Wait a moment," said Zhilin to the interpreter. "Tell him that he must -feed us well, clothe us, and give us good decent foot-wear, and let us stay -together. We want to have a good time. And lastly, that he take off these -clogs." - -He looked at his Tatar master, and smiled. The master also smiled, and when -he learned what was wanted, said,-- - -"I will give you the very best clothes: a cherkeska[101] and boots, fit for -a wedding. And I will feed you like princes. And if you want to live -together, why, you can live in the barn. But it won't do to take away the -clogs: you would run away. Only at night will I have them taken off." Then -he jumped up, tapped him on the shoulder: "You good, me good." - -[Footnote 101: A sort of long Circassian cloak.] - -Zhilin wrote his letter, but he put on it the wrong address so that it -might never reach its destination. He said to himself, "I shall run away." - -They took Zhilin and Kostuilin to the barn, strewed corn-stalks, gave them -water in a pitcher, and bread, two old cherkeski, and some worn-out -military boots. It was evident that they had been stolen from some dead -soldier. When night came they took off their clogs, and locked them up in -the barn. - - -III. - -Thus Zhilin and his comrade lived a whole month. Their master was always on -the grin. - -"You, Iván, good--me, Abdul, good." - -But he gave them wretched food; unleavened bread made of millet-flour, -cooked in the form of cakes, but often not heated through. - -Kostuilin wrote home again, and was anxiously awaiting the arrival of the -money, and lost his spirits. Whole days at a time, he sat in the barn, and -counted the days till his money should arrive, or else he slept. - -But Zhilin had no expectation that his letter would reach its destination, -and he did not write another. - -"Where," he asked himself,--"where would my mother get the money for my -ransom? And besides, she lived for the most part on what I used to send -her. If she made out to raise five hundred rubles, she would be in want -till the end of her days. If God wills it, I may escape." - -And all the time he kept his eyes open, and made plans to elude his -captors. - -He walked about the aul; he amused himself by whistling; or else he sat -down and fashioned things, either modelling dolls out of clay or plaiting -baskets of osiers, for Zhilin was a master at all sorts of handiwork. - -One time he had made a doll with nose, and hands and feet, and dressed in a -Tatar shirt, and he set the doll on the roof. The Tatar women were going -for water. Dina, the master's daughter, caught sight of the doll. She -called the Tatar girls. They set down their jugs, and looked and laughed. - -Zhilin took the doll, and offered it to them. They keep laughing, but don't -dare to take it. - -He left the doll, went to the barn, and watched what would take place. - -Dina ran up to the doll, looked around, seized the doll, and fled. - -The next morning at dawn he sees Dina come out on the doorstep with the -doll. And she has already dressed it up in red rags, and was rocking it -like a little child, and singing a lullaby in her own language. - -An old woman came out, gave her a scolding, snatched the doll away, broke -it in pieces, and sent Dina to her work. - -Zhilin made another doll, a still better one, and gave it to Dina. - -One time Dina brought a little jug, put it down, took a seat, and looked at -him. Then she laughed, and pointed to the jug. - -"What is she so gay about?" thinks Zhilin. - -He took the jug, and began to drink. He supposed that it was water, but it -was milk. - -He drank up the milk. - -"Good," says he. How delighted Dina was! "Good, Iván, good!" - -And she jumped up, clapped her hands, snatched the jug, and ran away. And -from that time she began to bring him secretly fresh milk every day. - -Now, sometimes the Tatars would make cheesecakes out of goat's milk, and -dry them on their roofs. Then she used to carry some of these cakes -secretly to him. And another time, when her father had killed a sheep, she -brought him a piece of mutton in her sleeve. She threw it down, and ran -away. - -One time there was a tremendous shower, and for a whole hour the rain -poured as from buckets; and all the brooks grew roily. Wherever there had -been a ford, the depth of the water increased to seven feet, and bowlders -were rolled along by it. Everywhere torrents were rushing, the mountains -were full of the roaring. - -Now, when the shower was over, streams were pouring all through the -village. Zhilin asked his master for a knife, whittled out a cylinder and -some paddles, and made a water-wheel, and fastened manikins at the two -ends. - -The little girls brought him some rags, and he dressed up the manikins, one -like a man, the other like a woman. He fastened them on, and put the wheel -in a brook. The wheel revolved, and the dolls danced. - -The whole village collected: the little boys and the little girls, the -women, and even the Tatars, came and clucked with their tongues. "_Aď, -Urus! aď, Iván!_" - -Abdul had a Russian watch, which had been broken. He took it, and showed it -to Zhilin, and clucked with his tongue. Zhilin said,-- - -"Let me have it, I will fix it." - -He took it, opened the penknife, took it apart. Then he put it together -again, and gave it back. The watch ran. - -The Tatar was delighted, brought him his old beshmet which was all in rags, -and gave it to him. Nothing else to be done,--he took it, and used it as a -covering at night. - -From that time, Zhilin's fame went abroad, that he was a "master." Even -from distant villages, they came to him. One brought him a gun-lock or a -pistol to repair, another a watch. - -His master furnished him with tools,--a pair of pincers and gimlets and a -little file. - -One time a Tatar fell ill; they came to Zhilin: "Come cure him!" - -Zhilin knew nothing of medicine. He went, looked at the sick man, said to -himself, "Perhaps he will get well, anyway." He went into the barn, took -water and sand, and shook them up together. He whispered a few words to the -water in presence of the Tatars, and gave it to the sick man to drink. - -Fortunately for him, the Tatar got well. - -Zhilin had by this time learned something of their language. And some of -the Tatars became accustomed to him; when they wanted him, they called him -by name, "Iván, Iván;" but others always looked at him as though he was a -wild beast. - -The red-bearded Tatar did not like Zhilin; when he saw him, he scowled and -turned away, or else insulted him. - -There was another old man among them; he did not live in the aul, but came -down from the mountain. Zhilin never saw him except when he came to the -mosque to prayer. He was of small stature; on his cap, he wore a white -handkerchief as an ornament. His beard and mustaches were trimmed; they -were white as wool, and his face was wrinkled and brick-red. His nose was -hooked like a hawk's, and his eyes were gray and cruel, and he had no teeth -except two tusks. - -He used to come in his turban, leaning on his staff, and glare like a -wolf; whenever he saw Zhilin, he would snort, and turn his back. - -One time Zhilin went to the mountain to see where the old man lived. He -descended a narrow path, and sees a little stone-walled garden. On the -other side of the wall are cherry-trees, peach-trees, and a little hut with -a flat roof. - -He went nearer; he sees bee-hives made of straw, and bees flying and -humming around them. And the old man is on his knees before the hives, -hammering something. - -Zhilin raised himself up, so as to get a better view, and his clog made a -noise. - -The old man looked up,--squealed; he pulled his pistol from his belt, and -fired at Zhilin, who had barely time to hide behind the wall. - -The old man came to make his complaint to Zhilin's master. Abdul called him -in, grinned, and asked him: - -"Why did you go to the old man's?" - -"I didn't do him any harm. I wanted to see how he lived." - -Abdul explained it to the old man; but he was angry, hissed, mumbled -something, showed his tusks, and threatened Zhilin with his hands. - -Zhilin did not understand it all; but he made out that the old man wished -Abdul to kill the two Russians, and not have them in the aul. - -The old man went off. - -Zhilin began to ask his master, "Who is that old man?" And the master -replied,-- - -"He is a great man. He used to be our first _jigit_; he has killed many -Russians. He used to be rich. He had three wives and eight sons. All lived -in one village. The Russians came, destroyed his village, and killed seven -of his sons. One son was left, and surrendered to the Russians. The old man -went and gave himself up to the Russians also. He lived among them three -months, found his son, killed him with his own hand, and escaped. Since -that time he has stopped fighting. He went to Mecca to pray to God, and -that's why he wears a turban. Whoever has been to Mecca is called a -_hadji_, and wears a _chalma_. But he does not love you Russians. He has -bade me kill you, but I don't intend to kill you. I have paid out money for -you, and besides, Iván, I have come to like you. And so far from wishing to -kill you, I would rather not let you go from me at all, if I had not given -my word." - -He laughed, and began to repeat in Russian, "_Tvoyá Iván, khorósh, moyá, -Abdul, khorósh._" - - -IV. - -Thus Zhilin lived a month. In the daytime he walked about the aul or did -some handiwork, but when night came, and it grew quiet in the aul, he -burrowed in his barn. It was hard work digging because of the stones, and -he sometimes had to use his file on them; and thus he dug a hole under the -wall big enough to crawl through. - -"Only," he thought, "I must know the region a little first, so as to escape -in the right direction. And the Tatars wouldn't tell me any thing." - -He waited till one time when his master was absent, then he went after -dinner behind the aul to a mountain. His idea was to reconnoitre the -country. - -But when Abdul returned he commanded a small boy to follow Zhilin, and not -take his eyes from him. The little fellow tagged after Zhilin, and kept -crying,-- - -"Don't go there. Father won't allow it. I will call the men if you go!" - -Zhilin began to reason with him. "I am not going far," says he,--"only to -that hill: I must get some herbs. Come with me; I can't run away with this -clog. To-morrow I will make you a bow and arrows." - -He persuaded the lad, they went together. To look at, the mountain is not -far, but it was hard work with the clog; he went a little distance at a -time, pulling himself up by main strength. - -Zhilin sat down on the summit, and began to survey the ground. - -To the south behind the barn lay a valley through which a herd was grazing, -and another aul was in sight at the foot of it. Back of the village was -another hill still steeper, and back of that still another. Between the -mountains lay a further stretch of forest, and then still other mountains -constantly rising higher and higher. And higher than all, stood snow-capped -peaks white as sugar, and one snowy peak rose like a dome above them all. - -To the east and west also were mountains. In every direction the smoke of -auls was to be seen in the ravines. - -"Well," he said to himself, "this is all their country." - -He began to look in the direction of the Russian possessions. At his very -feet was a little river, his village surrounded by gardens. By the river -some women, no larger in appearance than little dolls, were standing and -washing. Behind the aul was a lower mountain, and beyond it two other -mountains covered with forests. And between the two mountains a plain -stretched far, far away in the blue distance; and on the plain lay what -seemed like smoke. - -Zhilin tried to remember in what direction, when he lived at home in the -fortress, the sun used to rise, and where it set. He looked. "Just about -there," says he, "in that valley, our fortress ought to be. There, between -those two mountains, I must make my escape." - -The little sun began to slope toward the west. The snowy mountains changed -from white to purple; the wooded mountains grew dark; a mist arose from -the valley; and the valley itself, where the Russian fortress must be, -glowed in the sunset as though it were on fire. Zhilin strained his gaze. -Something seemed to hang waving in the air, like smoke arising from -chimneys. - -And so it seemed to him that it must be from the fortress itself,--the -Russian fortress. - -It was already growing late. The voice of the mulla calling to prayer was -heard. The herds began to return; the kine were lowing. The little lad kept -repeating, "Let us go!" but Zhilin could not tear himself away. - -They returned home. - -"Well," thinks Zhilin, "now I know the place; I must make my escape." - -He proposed to make his escape that very night. The nights were dark; it -was the wane of the moon. - -Unfortunately the Tatars returned in the evening. Usually they came in -driving the cattle with them, and came in hilarious. But this time they had -no cattle; but they brought a Tatar, dead on his saddle. It was Kazi -Muhamet's brother. They rode in solemnly, and collected for the burial. - -Zhilin also went out to look. - -They did not put the dead body in a coffin, but wrapped it in linen, and -placed it under a plane-tree in the village, where it lay on the sward. - -The mulla came; the old men gathered together, their caps bound around with -handkerchiefs. They took off their shoes, and sat in rows on their heels -before the dead. - -In front was the mulla, behind him three old men in turbans, and behind -them the rest of the Tatars. The mulla lifted the dead man's head, and -said, "Allah!" (That means God.) He said this one word, and let the head -fall back. All were silent; they sat motionless. - -Again the mulla lifted the head, saying, "Allah!" and all repeated it after -him,-- - -"Allah!" - -Then silence again. - -The dead man lay on the sward; he was motionless, and they sat as though -they were dead. Not one made a motion. The only sound was the rustling of -the foliage of the plane-tree, stirred by the breeze. - -Then the mulla offered a prayer. All got to their feet; they took the dead -body in their arms, and carried it away. - -They brought it to a pit. The pit was not a mere hole, but was hollowed out -under the earth like a cellar. - -They took the body under the armpits and by the legs, doubled it up, and -let it down gently, shoved it forcibly under the ground, and laid the arms -along the belly. The Nogáď brought a green osier. They laid it in the pit; -then they quickly filled it up with earth, and over the dead man's head -they placed a gravestone. They smoothed the earth over, and again sat -around the grave in rows. There was a long silence. - -"Allah! Allah! Allah!" - -They sighed and got up. The red-bearded Tatar gave money to the old men, -then he got up, struck his forehead three times with a whip, and went home. - -The next morning Zhilin sees the red-haired Tatar leading a mare through -the village, and three Tatars following him. They went behind the village. -Kazi Muhamet took off his beshmet, rolled up his sleeves,--his hands were -powerful,--took out his dagger, and sharpened it on a whetstone. The Tatars -held back the mare's head. Kazi Muhamet approached, and cut the throat; -then he turned the animal over, and began to flay it, pulling away the hide -with his mighty fists. - -The women and maidens came, and began to wash the intestines and the -lights. Then they cut up the mare, and carried the meat to the hut. And the -whole village collected at the Kazi Muhamet's to celebrate the dead. - -For three days they feasted on the mare and drank _buza_. Thus they -celebrated the dead. All the Tatars were at home. - -On the fourth day about noon, Zhilin sees that they are collecting for some -expedition. Their horses are brought out. They put on their gear, and -started off, ten men of them, under the command of the Kazi Muhamet; only -Abdul staid at home. There was a new moon, but the nights were still dark. - -"Now," thinks Zhilin, "to-day we must escape." And he tells Kostuilin. - -But Kostuilin was afraid. "How can we escape? We don't know the way." - -"I know the way." - -"But we should not get there during the night." - -"Well, if we don't get there we will spend the night in the woods. I have -some cakes. What are you going to do? It will be all right if they send you -the money, but you see, your friends may not collect so much. And the -Tatars are now angry because the Russians have killed one of their men. -They say they are thinking of killing us." - -Kostuilin thought and thought. "All right, let us go!" - - -V. - -Zhilin crept down into his hole, and widened it so that Kostuilin also -could get through, and then they sat and waited till all should be quiet in -the aul. - -As soon as the people were quiet in the aul, Zhilin crept under the wall, -and came out on the other side. He whispers to Kostuilin, "Crawl under." - -Kostuilin also crept under, but in doing so he hit a stone with his leg, -and it made a noise. - -Now, the master had a brindled dog as a watch,--a most ferocious animal; -they called him Ulyashin. - -Zhilin had been in the habit of feeding him. Ulyashin heard the noise, and -began to bark and jump about, and the other dogs joined in. - -Zhilin gave a little whistle, threw him a piece of cake. Ulyashin -recognized him, began to wag his tail, and ceased barking. - -Abdul had heard the disturbance, and cried from within the hut:-- - -"_Háďt! háďt!_ Ulyashin." - -But Zhilin scratched the dog behind the ears. The dog makes no more sound, -rubs against his legs, and wags his tail. - -They wait behind the corner. - -All became silent again; the only sound was the bleating of a sheep in the -fold, and far below them the water roaring over the pebbles. - -It is dark, but the sky is studded with stars. Over the mountain the young -moon hung red, with its horns turned upward. - -In the valleys a mist was rising, white as milk. Zhilin started up, and -said to his comrade in Tatar, "Well, brother, _aď-da_!" - -They set out again. - -But as they get under way, they hear the call of the mulla on the -minaret:-- - -"_Allah! Bis'm Allah! el Rakhman!_" - -"That means, the people will be going to the mosque." - -Again they sat down and hid under the wall. - -They sat there long, waiting until the people should pass. Again it grew -still. - -"Now for our fate!" - -They crossed themselves, and started. - -They went across the dvor, and down the steep bank to the stream, crossed -the stream, proceeded along the valley. The mist was thick, and closed in -all around them, but above their heads the stars could still be seen. - -Zhilin used the stars to guide him which way to go. It was cool in the -mist, it was easy walking, only their boots were troublesome,--they were -worn at the heels. Zhilin took his off, threw them away, and walked -barefoot. He sprang from stone to stone, and kept glancing at the stars. - -Kostuilin began to grow weary. "Go slower," says he; "my boots chafe me, my -whole foot is raw." - -"Then take them off, it will be easier." - -Kostuilin began to go barefoot, but that was still worse; he kept scraping -his feet on the stones and having to stop. - -Zhilin said to him, "You may cut your feet, but you will save your life; -but if you are caught they will kill you, which would be worse." - -Kostuilin said nothing, but crept along, groaning. For a long time they -went down the valley. Suddenly they hear dogs barking at the right. Zhilin -halted, looked around, climbed up the bank, and felt about with his hands. - -"_Ekh!_" says he, "we have made a mistake; we have gone too far to the -right. Here is one of the enemy's villages. I could see it from the hill. -We must go back to the left, up the mountain. There must be a forest -there." - -But Kostuilin objected. "Just wait a little while, let us get breath. My -feet are all blood." - -"Eh, brother! they will get well. You should walk more lightly. This way." - -And Zhilin turned back toward the left, and up hill toward the forest. - -Kostuilin kept halting and groaning. Zhilin tried to hush him up, and still -hastened on. - -They climbed the mountain. And there they found the forest. They entered -it; their clothes were all torn to pieces on the thorns. They found a -little path through the woods. They walked along it. - -"Halt!" - -There was the sound of hoofs on the path. They stopped to listen. It -sounded like the tramping of a horse: then it also stopped. They set out -once more; again the tramping hoofs. When they stopped, it stopped. - -Zhilin crept ahead, and investigated a light spot on the path. - -Something is standing there. It may be a horse, or it may not, but on it -there is something strange, not at all like a man. - -It snorted--plainly! "What a strange thing!" - -Zhilin gave a slight whistle. There was a dash of feet from the path into -the forest, a crackling in the underbrush, and something rushed along like -a hurricane, with a crashing of dry boughs. - -Kostuilin almost fell to the ground in fright. But Zhilin laughed, and -said,-- - -"That was a stag. Do you hear how it crashes through the woods with its -horns? We frightened him, and he frightened us." - -They went on their way. Already the Great Bear was beginning to set; the -dawn was not distant. And they were in doubt whether they should come out -right or not. Zhilin was inclined to think that they were on the right -track, and that it would be about ten versts farther before they reached -the Russian fortress, but there is no certain guide; you could not tell in -the night. - -They came to a little clearing. Kostuilin sat down and said,-- - -"Do as you please, but I will not go any farther; my legs won't carry me." - -Zhilin tried to persuade him. - -"No," says he, "I won't go, I can't go." - -Zhilin grew angry; he threatens him, he scolds him. - -"Then I will go on without you. Good-by!" - -Kostuilin jumped up and followed. They went four versts farther. The fog -began to grow thicker in the forest. Nothing could be seen before them; the -stars were barely visible. - -Suddenly they hear the tramping of a horse just in front of them; they can -hear his shoes striking on the stones. - -Zhilin threw himself down on his belly, and tried to listen by laying his -ear to the ground. - -"Yes, it is,--it is some one on horseback coming in our direction." - -They slipped off to one side of the road, crouched down in the bushes, and -waited. Zhilin crept close to the path, and looked. - -He sees a mounted Tatar riding along, driving a cow. The man is muttering -to himself. When the Tatar had ridden by, Zhilin returned to Kostuilin. - -"Well, God has saved us. Up with you! Come along!" - -Kostuilin tried to rise, and fell back. - -"I can't; by God, I can't. My strength is all gone." - -The man was as though he were drunk. He was all of a sweat; and as they -were surrounded by the cold fog, and his feet were torn, he was quite used -up. Zhilin tried to lift him by main force. Then Kostuilin cried, "_Aď!_ it -hurt." - -Zhilin was frightened to death. - -"What are you screaming for? Don't you know that Tatar is near? He will -hear you." But he said to himself, "Now he is really played out, what can I -do with him? I can't abandon a comrade. Now," says he, "get up; climb on my -back. I will carry you if you can't walk any longer." He took Kostuilin on -his shoulders, holding him by the thighs, and went along the path with his -burden. "Only," says he, "don't put your hands on my throat, for Christ's -sake! Lean on my shoulders." - -It was hard for Zhilin. His feet were also bloody, and he was weary. He -stopped, and made it a little easier for himself by setting Kostuilin down, -and getting him better mounted. Then he went on again. - -Evidently the Tatar had heard them when Kostuilin screamed. Zhilin caught -the sound of some one following them and shouting in his language. Zhilin -put into the bushes. The Tatar aimed his gun; he fired it off, but missed; -began to whine in his native tongue, and galloped up the path. - -"Well," says Zhilin, "we are lost, brother. The dog,--he will be right back -with a band of Tatars on our track.... If we don't succeed in putting three -versts between us, we are lost." And he thinks to himself, "The devil take -it, that I had to bring this clod along with me! Alone, I should have got -there long ago." - -Kostuilin said, "Go alone. Why should you be lost on my account?" - -"No, I will not go; it would not do to abandon a comrade." He lifted him -again on his shoulder, and started on. Thus he made a verst. It was forest -all the way, and no sign of outlet. But the fog was now beginning to lift, -and seemed to be floating away in little clouds: not a star could be seen. -Zhilin was tired out. - -A little spring gushed out by the road: it was walled in with stones. There -he stopped, and dropped Kostuilin. - -"Let me rest a little," says he, "and get a drink. We will eat our cakes. -It can't be very far now." - -He had just stretched himself out to drink, when the sound of hoofs was -heard behind them. Again they hid in the bushes at the right under the -crest, and crouched down. - -They heard Tatar voices. The Tatars stopped at the very spot where they had -turned in from the road. After discussing a while, they seemed to be -setting dogs on the scent. - -The refugees hear the sound of a crashing through the bushes: a strange dog -comes directly to them. He stops and barks. - -The Tatars followed on their track. They are also strangers. - -They seized them, bound them, lifted them on horses, and carried them off. - -After they had ridden three versts, Abdul, with two Tatars, met them. He -said something to their new captors. They were transferred to Abdul's -horses, and were brought back to the aul. - -Abdul was no longer grinning, and he said not a word to them. - -They reached the village at daybreak; the prisoners were left in the -street. The children gathered around them, tormenting them with stones and -whips, and howling. - -The Tatars gathered around them in a circle, and the old man from the -mountain was among them. They began to discuss. Zhilin made out that they -were deciding on what should be done with them. Some said that they ought -to be sent farther into the mountains, but the old man declared that they -must be killed. Abdul argued against it. Says he, "I have paid out money -for them, I shall get a ransom for them." - -But the old man said, "They won't pay any thing; it will only be an injury -to us. And it is a sin to keep Russians alive. Kill them, and that is the -end of it." - -They separated. Abdul came to Zhilin, and reported the decision. - -"If," says he, "the ransom is not sent in two weeks, you will be flogged. -And if you try to run away again, I will kill you like a dog. Write your -letter, and write it good!" - -Paper was brought them; they wrote their letters. Clogs were put on their -feet again; they were taken behind the mosque.... There was a pit twelve -feet[102] deep, and they were thrust down into this pit. - -[Footnote 102: Five arshins, 11.65 feet.] - - -VI. - -Life was made utterly wretched for them. Their clogs were not taken off -even at night, and they were not let out at all. - -Unbaked dough was thrown down to them as though they were dogs, and water -was let down in a jug. In the pit it was damp and suffocating. - -Kostuilin became ill, and swelled up, and had rheumatism all over his body, -and he groaned or slept all the time. - -Even Zhilin lost his spirits; he sees that they are in desperate straits. -And he does not know how to get out. - -He had begun to make an excavation, but there was nowhere to hide the -earth; Abdul discovered it, and threatened to kill him. - -He was squatting down one time in the pit, and thinking about life and -liberty, and he grew sad. - -Suddenly a cake[103] fell directly into his lap, then another, and some -cherries followed. He looked up, and there was Dina. She peered down at -him, laughed, and then ran away. And Zhilin began to conjecture, "Couldn't -Dina help me?" - -[Footnote 103: _lepyóshka._] - -He cleared out a little place in the pit, picked up some clay, and made -some dolls. He made men and women, horses and dogs; he said to himself, -"When Dina comes, I will give them to her." - -But Dina did not make her appearance on the next day. And Zhilin hears the -trampling of horses' hoofs: men came riding up: the Tatars collected at the -mosque, arguing, shouting, and talking about the Russians. - -The voice of the old man was heard. Zhilin could not understand very well, -but he made out that the Russians were somewhere near, and the Tatars were -afraid that they would attack the aul, and they did not know what to do -with the prisoners. - -They talked a while, and went away. Suddenly Zhilin heard a rustling at the -edge of the pit. - -He sees Dina squatting on her heels, with her knees higher than her head; -she leaned over, her necklace hung down and swung over the pit. And her -little eyes twinkled like stars. She took from her sleeve two cheesecakes, -and threw them down to him. Zhilin accepted them, and said, "Why did you -stay away so long? I have been making you some dolls. Here they are." He -began to toss them up to her one at a time. - -But she shook her head, and would not look at them. "I can't take them," -said she. She said nothing more for a time, but sat there: then she said, -"Iván, they want to kill you." - -She made a significant motion across her throat. - -"Who wants to kill me?" - -"Father. The old man has ordered him to. But I am sorry for you." - -And Zhilin said, "Well, then, if you are sorry for me, bring me a long -stick." She shook her head, meaning that it was impossible. - -He clasped his hands in supplication to her. "Dina, please! Bring one to -me, Dínushka!" - -"I can't," said she. "They would see me; they are all at home." And she ran -away. - -Afterwards, Zhilin was sitting there in the evening, and wondering what he -should do. He kept raising his eyes. He could see the stars, but the moon -was not yet up. The mulla uttered his call, then all became silent. - -Zhilin began already to doze, thinking to himself, "The little maid is -afraid." - -Suddenly a piece of clay fell on his head; he glanced up; a long pole was -sliding over the edge of the pit, it slid out, began to descend toward him, -it reached the bottom of the pit. Zhilin was delighted. He seized it, -pulled it along,--it was a strong pole. He had noticed it before on Abdul's -roof. - -He gazed up; the stars were shining high in the heavens, and Dina's eyes, -at the edge of the pit, gleamed in the darkness like a cat's. - -She craned her head over, and whispered, "Iván, Iván." And she waved her -hands before her face, meaning, "Softly, please." - -"What is it?" said Zhilin. - -"All have gone, there are only two at home." - -And Zhilin said, "Well, Kostuilin, let us go, let us make our last attempt. -I will help you." - -Kostuilin, however, would not hear to it. - -"No," says he, "it is not meant for me to get away from here. How could I -go when I haven't even strength to turn over?" - -"All right, then. Good-by.[104] Don't think me unkind." - -[Footnote 104: _proshchaď._] - -He kissed Kostuilin. - -He clasped the pole, told Dina to hold it firmly, and tried to climb up. -Twice he fell back,--his clog so impeded him. Kostuilin boosted him; he -managed to get to the top: Dina pulled on the sleeves of his shirt with all -her might, laughing heartily. - -Zhilin pulled up the pole, and said, "Carry it back to its place, Dina, for -if they found it they would flog you." - -She dragged off the pole, and Zhilin began to go down the mountain. When he -had reached the bottom of the cliff, he took a sharp stone, and tried to -break the padlock of his clog. But the lock was strong; he could not strike -it fairly. - -He hears some one hurrying down the hill, with light, skipping steps. He -thinks, "That is probably Dina again." - -Dina ran to him, took a stone, and says, "Let me try it." - -She knelt down, and began to work with all her might. But her hands were as -delicate as osiers. She had no strength. She threw down the stone, and -burst into tears. - -Zhilin again tried to break the lock, and Dina squatted by his side, and -leaned against his shoulder. Zhilin glanced up, and saw at the left behind -the mountain a red glow like a fire; it was the moon just rising. - -"Well," he says to himself, "I must cross the valley and get into the woods -before the moon rises." He stood up, and threw away the stone. No matter -for the clog--he must take it with him. - -"Good-by," says he. "Dínushka, I shall always remember you." - -Dina clung to him, reached with her hands for a place to stow away some -cakes. He took the cakes. - -"Thank you," said he: "you are a thoughtful darling. Who will make you -dolls after I am gone?" and he stroked her hair. - -Dina burst into tears, hid her face in her hands, and scrambled up the -hillside like a kid. He could hear, in the darkness, the jingling of the -coins on her braids. - -Zhilin crossed himself, picked up the lock of his clog so that it might not -make a noise, and started on his way, dragging his leg all the time, and -keeping his eyes constantly on the glow where the moon was rising. - -He knew the way. He had eight versts to go in a direct course, but he would -have to strike into the forest before the moon came entirely up. He crossed -the stream, and now the light was increasing behind the mountain. - -He proceeded along the valley: it was growing light. He walks along, -constantly glancing around; but still the moon was not visible. The glow -was now changing to white light, and one side of the valley grew brighter -and brighter. The shadow crept away from the mountain till it reached its -very foot. - -Zhilin still hurried along, all the time keeping to the shadow. - -He hurries as fast as he can, but the moon rises still faster; and now, at -the right, the mountain-tops are illuminated. - -He struck into the forest just as the moon rose above the mountains. It -became as light and white as day. On the trees all the leaves were visible. -It was warm and bright on the mountain-side; every thing seemed as though -it were dead. The only sound was the roaring of a torrent far below. He -walked along in the forest; he had met no one. Zhilin found a little spot -in the forest where it was still darker, and began to rest. - -While he rested he ate one of his cakes. He procured a stone and once more -tried to break the padlock, but he only bruised his hands, and failed to -break the lock. - -He arose and went on his way. When he had gone a verst his strength gave -out, his feet were sore. He had to walk ten steps at a time, and then rest. - -"There's nothing to be done for it," says he to himself. "I will push on as -long as my strength holds out; for if I sit down, then I shall not get up -again. If I do not reach the fortress before it is daylight, then I will -lie down in the woods and spend the day, and start on to-morrow night -again." - -He walked all night. Once he passed two Tatars on horseback, but he heard -them at some distance, and hid behind a tree. - -Already the moon was beginning to pale, the dew had fallen, it was near -dawn, and Zhilin had not reached the end of the forest. - -"Well," says he to himself, "I will go thirty steps farther, strike into -the forest, and sit down." - -He went thirty steps, and sees the end of the forest. He went to the edge; -it was broad daylight. Before him, as on the palm of his hand, were the -steppe and the fortress; and on the left, not far away on the -mountain-side, fires were burning, or dying out; the smoke rose, and men -were moving around the watch-fires. - -He looks, and sees the gleaming of fire-arms: Cossacks, soldiers! - -Zhilin was overjoyed. - -He gathered his remaining strength, and walked down the mountain. And he -says to himself, "God help me, if a mounted Tatar should get sight of me on -this bare field! I should not escape him, even though I am so near." Even -while these thoughts are passing through his mind, he sees at the left, on -a hillock not fourteen hundred feet away, three Tatars on the watch. They -caught sight of him,--bore down upon him. Then his heart failed within him. -Waving his arms, he shouted at the top of his voice, "Brothers! help, -brothers!" - -Our men heard him,--mounted Cossacks dashed out toward him. The Cossacks -were far off, the Tatars near. And now Zhilin collected his last remaining -energies, seized his clog with his hand, ran toward the Cossacks, and, -without any consciousness of feeling, crossed himself and cried, "Brothers, -brothers, brothers!" - -The Cossacks were fifteen in number. - -The Tatars were dismayed. Before they reached him, they stopped short. And -Zhilin reached the Cossacks. - -The Cossacks surrounded him, and questioned him: "Who are you?" "What is -your name?" "Where did you come from?" - -But Zhilin was almost beside himself; he wept, and kept on shouting, -"Brothers, brothers!" - -The soldiers hastened up, and gathered around him; one brought him bread, -another kasha-gruel, another vodka, another threw a cloak around him, still -another broke his chains. - -The officers recognized him, they brought him into the fortress. The -soldiers were delighted, his comrades pressed into Zhilin's room. - -Zhilin told them what had happened to him, and he ended his tale with the -words,-- - -"That's the way I went home and got married! No, I see that such is not to -be my fate." - -And he remained in the service in the Caucasus. - -At the end of a month Kostuilin was ransomed for five thousand rubles. - -He was brought home scarcely alive. - - * * * * * - - - - -COUNT TOLSTOĎ'S WORKS. - - -ANNA KARÉNINA $1.75 - -CHILDHOOD, BOYHOOD, AND YOUTH 1.50 - -IVAN ILYITCH 1.25 - -MY RELIGION 1.00 - -MY CONFESSION 1.00 - -WHAT TO DO? 1.25 - -THE INVADERS 1.25 - -A RUSSIAN PROPRIETOR 1.50 - - -THOMAS Y CROWELL & CO., -PUBLISHERS. - -13 ASTOR PLACE, NEW YORK. - - * * * * * - - - - -COUNT TOLSTOI'S WORKS. - - -The demand for these Russian stories has but just fairly begun; but it is a -literary movement more widespread, more intense, than anything this country -has probably seen within the past quarter of a century.--_Boston -Traveller._ - - - ANNA KARÉNINA. 12mo, $1.75. - - "Will take rank among the great works of fiction of the - age."--_Portland Transcript._ - - "As you read on, you say not, 'This is _like_ life' but - 'This _is_ life.'"--_W. D. Howells._ - - - IVÁN ILYITCH, AND OTHER STORIES. 12mo, $1.25. - - "No living author surpasses him, and only one or two - approach him, in the power of picturing not merely places - but persons, with minute and fairly startling - fidelity."--_Congregationalist._ - - "Both the personal character and the literary art of Tolstoi - are manifested with simpler and clearer power in these - writings than in his novels, and the book becomes necessary - to an adequate understanding of Tolstoi's mission and - work."--_Globe._ - - - CHILDHOOD, BOYHOOD, YOUTH. With Portrait of the Author. - 12mo, $1.50. - - A series of reminiscences and traditions of the author's - early life. - - "These exquisite sketches belong to the literature which - never grows old, which lives forever in the heart of - humanity as a cherished revelation."--_Literary World._ - - - MY CONFESSION AND THE SPIRIT OF CHRIST'S TEACHING. 12mo, - $1.00. - - An autobiographical account of the changes in the author's - religious opinions, and the various causes by which it was - brought about; all of which is told in the most delightful - manner, and will enable the reader to understand more - clearly his "My Religion," which is the sequel to this - volume. - - "Like the writings of Bunyan and Thomas ŕ Kempis, Tolstoi's - Confession will be read eagerly and become spiritual tonic - and daily food to little children in the Kingdom of Christ, - whatever be their 'church,' tongue, or nation."--_Critic_, - New York. - - - MY RELIGION. A companion book to My Confession. 12mo, $1.00. - - "Should go to every household where the New Testament is - read. * * * Every man whose eyes are lifted above the manger - and the trough should take 'My Religion' to his home. Let - him read it with no matter what hostile prepossessions, let - him read it to confute it, but still read, and 'he that is - able to receive it, let him receive it.'"--_New York Sun._ - - - WHAT TO DO. Thoughts Evoked by the Census of Moscow. - Containing passages excluded by the Press Censor of Russia. - 12mo, $1.25. A sequel to "My Confession" and "My Religion." - - "Fascinating and startling."--_Boston Daily Advertiser._ - - "A very thoughtful and instructive work."--_Zion's Herald._ - - - THE INVADERS, AND OTHER STORIES. Tales of the Caucasus, - 12mo, $1.25. - - "Marked by the wonderful dramatic power which has made his - name so popular with an immense circle of readers in this - country and in Europe."--_Portland Press._ - - - A RUSSIAN PROPRIETOR, AND OTHER STORIES. (_In Press._) 12mo, - $1.50. - - * * * * * - -THOMAS Y. CROWELL & CO. - -13 ASTOR PLACE, NEW YORK. - - * * * * * - - - - -IMPORTANT NEW BOOKS - -PUBLISHED BY - -THOMAS Y. CROWELL & CO., 13 Astor Place, New York. - - -COUNT TOLSTOI'S WORKS.--The remarkable interest recently awakened by this -"great writer of the Russian land" has caused a constantly growing demand -for the English translations of his works. The following are now ready:-- - - -ANNA KARÉNINA 12mo, $1.75 -CHILDHOOD, BOYHOOD AND YOUTH 12mo, $1,50 -THE INVADERS " $1.25 -MY CONFESSION 12mo, $1.00 -MY RELIGION " $1.00 -IVAN ILYITCH, &c. " $1.25 -WHAT TO DO " $1.25 -A RUSSIAN PROPRIETOR (_in press_). - -LES MISÉRABLES.--By VICTOR HUGO. Translated from the French by Isabel F. -Hapgood. With 160 full-page illustrations, printed on fine calendered -paper, and bound in neat and attractive style. 5 vols., cloth, gilt top, -$7.50; half calf, $15.00. Popular edition in one volume, 12mo, $1.50. - -The name of the translator is sufficient guaranty that the work has been -skilfully and conscientiously performed. It is by far the completest and -best translation of this masterpiece. The type is clear and attractive, the -illustrations are by famous artists, and the volumes are in every way -desirable. - - -MRS. SHILLABER'S COOK-BOOK.--A Practical Guide for Housekeepers. By Mrs. -LYDIA SHILLABER. With an Introduction by Mrs. PARTINGTON. 12mo, cloth, -$1.25. Kitchen Edition, in oil-cloth, $1.25. First and second editions sold -before publication. Fourth edition now ready. - -The connection between laughter and good digestion is proverbial. It is -therefore auspicious for the phenomenal success of this sensible and -practical work that the genial Mrs. Partington is its sponsor. - - -TENNYSON'S WORKS.--HANDY VOLUME EDITION. Complete. Large type. From the -latest text, including Earlier Poems. Cloth, gilt top, 8 vols., $6.00; -parchment, gilt top, $10.50; half calf, gilt edges, $12.00; American seal -russia, gilt edge, round corners, $15.00; full calf, flexible, gilt edges, -round corners, $21.00; full calf, gilt edges, padded, round corners, -$25.00; tree calf, gilt edge, $30.00. - -All of the above are boxed in fancy leatherette or calf boxes, according to -style of binding, and make the most elegant and convenient edition of this -author's poems. - - -WASHINGTON IRVING'S WORKS.--From new plates. Cloth, 12mo, 6 vols., $7.50; -library edition, gilt top, $9.00; half calf, marbled, $15.00. - -An admirable library edition of an American classic. - - -POEMS IN COLOR.--With 56 exquisite illustrations from original designs by -W. J. Whittemore. - -SEA PICTURES, by Tennyson. -SUNRISE ON THE HILLS, by Longfellow. -THE WORSHIP OF NATURE, by Whittier. -I REMEMBER, by Hood. -TO A WATERFOWL, by Bryant. -TO A MOUNTAIN DAISY, by Burns. - -These bright-colored and suggestive little designs are illustrations in the -best sense of the word. They interpret the poems. Nothing could be more -appropriate for a Christmas or birthday remembrance. 6 volumes. Fancy paper -covers, 50 cents each, cloth covers, stamped in gold, 75 cents each; -celluloid covers, lithographed, $1.00 each. - - -INITIALS AND PSEUDONYMS.--A Dictionary of Literary Disguises. By WILLIAM -CUSHING and ALBERT R. FREY. A new edition, enlarged and revised. Royal, -8vo, cloth, $5.00; half morocco, $7.50; interleaved, cloth, $7.50; -interleaved, half morocco, $10.00. - -A most convenient and even necessary adjunct for the desk of a literary -worker. - - -CHRIST AND CHRISTIANITY SERIES.--By Rev. H. R. HAWEIS. 5 vols., 12mo, each -$1.25. - -Those who are familiar with Mr. Haweis's vivid and fascinating style will -welcome these five volumes, which are written with deeply religious and -earnest feeling. - - -ST. PAUL'S PROBLEM AND ITS SOLUTION.--Dedicated to the Young People's -Society of Christian Endeavor, and setting forth under the guise of fiction -the work of this Society. By FAYE HUNTINGTON, author of "Transformed," -"What Fide Remembers," etc. 12mo. $1.25. - -"It is a good helpful book, whose value and merits can be understood only -through a personal reading."--_Church Press._ - - -SIGRID.--An Icelandic Love Story. Translated from the Danish of JON -THORDSSON THORODDSEN. 12mo. $1.25. - -A charming picture of manners and customs in "Ultima Thule." - - * * * * * - - - - -WHAT THE CRITICS SAY OF - -CROWELL'S ILLUSTRATED EDITION - -OF - -LES MISÉRABLES. - - -"This translation of Victor Hugo's masterpiece is the best one that has -been made."--_N. Y. Observer._ - -"Can hardly fail to be accepted by critical authorities as the permanent -Standard."--_Boston Traveller._ - -"Has been many times translated into English, but never has the work been -done by so clever and faithful a translator as Miss Hapgood."--_Albany -Press._ - -"The most spirited rendering of Hugo's masterpiece into English, and the -illustrations and the letter-press are just as deserving of -praise."--_Phila. Press._ - -"The translation will no doubt supersede all others."--_Cin-Times-Star._ - -"The publishers have made this book very attractive. They are to be -commended not only for the edition before us, but more especially for a -popular edition which will make this great work accessible to a wider class -of readers."--_Boston Advertiser._ - -"Deserves the highest praise."--_Nation._ - -"Miss Hapgood is sympathetic; she becomes one with her author. Her -rendering of 'Les Misérables' has not been equalled. It will not be -surpassed. The standard--it is here--is attained."--_National Republican._ - - -ASK YOUR BOOKSELLER FOR - -CROWELL'S ILLUSTRATED EDITION - -OF - -LES MISÉRABLES. - -By VICTOR HUGO. Translated from the French by ISABEL F. HAPGOOD. With 160 -full-page illustrations, printed on fine calendered paper, and bound in -neat and attractive style. - -5 vols., cloth, gilt top, $7.50; half calf, $15.00. - -Popular edition in one vol., 12mo, $1.50. - - -THOMAS Y. CROWELL & CO. - -13 ASTOR PLACE, NEW YORK. - - * * * * * - - - - -_Count Tolstoď's Greatest Work of Fiction_, - -ANNA KARÉNINA. - -By COUNT LEO. TOLSTOĎ. - -Translated from the Russian by NATHAN HASKELL DOLE. - -Royal 12mo, 750 pp., $1.75. - - - "As you read on you say, not, 'This is like life,' but, - 'This is life.' It has not only the complexion, the very - hue, of life, but its movement, its advances, its strange - pauses, its seeming reversions to former conditions, and its - perpetual change, its apparent isolations, its essential - solidarity. It is a world, and you live in it while you - read, and long afterward; but at no step have you been - betrayed, not because your guide has warned or exhorted you, - but because he has been true, and has shown you all things - as they are."--_W. D. Howells, in Harpers' Monthly._ - - "The power of this book lies in the author's supreme control - of the influences which affect human action, in his vivid - apprehension of the operation of inexorable law, in his - intuitive knowledge of the action and reaction of spiritual - conditions. With a noble art he throws against the shadow, - that deepens ever to the end, a radiant soul development - that serenely grows brighter till we know it is Tolstoď - himself, his experience, his best. It is a great book, and - of such creations the most sincere admiration falls sadly - short of fitting expression."--_Washington Post._ - - "The effect of the whole is stimulating and elevating. The - book is certainly one of decided genius."--_New York - Tribune._ - - "It is difficult to speak of this noble book without - incurring the suspicion of extravagance."--_New York - Examiner._ - - "Will take rank among the great works of fiction of the - age."--_Portland Transcript._ - - "Characterized by all the breadth and complexity, the - insight, and the profound analysis of - 'Middlemarch.'"--_Critic, New York._ - - "It is not undue praise to say that, since the publication - of Goethe's 'Elective Affinities,' no such relentless - analysis of the human emotions, and of the action and - reaction of social relations, has appeared as is shown in - Count Tolstoď's novel, 'Anna Karénina.'"--_Boston - Traveller._ - - -THOMAS Y. CROWELL & CO., - -13 ASTOR PLACE, NEW YORK. - - * * * * * - - - - -THE LABOR MOVEMENT IN AMERICA. - -By RICHARD T. ELY, Ph.D., - -Associate in Political Economy, Johns Hopkins University; author of "French -and German Socialism," "The Past and the Present of Political Economy," -etc. - -12mo. Price, $1.50. - -CONTENTS. - -Survey of the Field. -Early American Communism. -The Growth and Present Condition of Labor -Organizations in America. -The Economic Value of Labor Organizations. -The Educational Value of Labor Organizations. -Other Aspects of Labor Organizations. -Co-operation in America. -The Beginnings of Modern Socialism in America. -The Internationalists. -The Propaganda of Deed and the Educational Campaign. -The Socialistic Labor Party. -The Strength of Revolutionary Socialism.--Its Significance. -Remedies. -Platform of Principles of the National Labor Union. -Pledge and Preamble of the Journeymen Bricklayers' Association of - Philadelphia. -Declaration of Principles and Objects of the Cigar Makers' Progressive - Union of America. -Extracts from the Constitution of the National Amalgamated Association - of Iron and Steel Workers of the United States. -Manifesto of the International Working People's Association. -Letter to Tramps, reprinted from the "Alarm" of Chicago. -Platform and Present Demands of the Socialistic Labor Party. -Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1886, by an American Socialist. - -NOTICES OF THE PRESS. - - "The subject has been his specialty for probably a dozen - years, and it is safe to say that he is more thoroughly and - intimately acquainted with it than any other man in the - country."--_Lancaster Intelligencer, Pa._ - - "The best work on the subject--we regard it as a great step - toward the solution of pending difficulties."--_North Western - Presbyterian._ - - "No man in this country speaks with the same authority or - deserves more earnest attention. Must take its place as an - essential in the education of every one who has heart to feel - or desire to comprehend what ground for dissatisfaction - really exists."--_Orange Chronicle._ - - "Deserves the most careful study. No question just now should - more profoundly interest the thinking men of all - classes."--_The Age of Steel._ - - "The review of the labor organizations in this country from - the year 1800 to 1886 is a masterly presentation, and will - justify even a poor man buying the book."--_The Beacon._ - - "A timely book by an able hand. We heartily commend this book - to every thoughtful citizen."--_Portland Argus._ - - "The work is among the best--we think it is the best--which - the perplexing labor question has evoked."--_The Interior._ - - "Every intelligent reader in the country will find the book - most useful."--_St. Louis Republican._ - - "No one who wishes to understand the problems of labor and - capital can afford to be without Professor Ely's - work."--_Rochester Chronicle._ - - "Professor Ely's volume deserves the careful study of - manufacturers and employers of labor especially. It deals - with well authenticated facts more than theories--a - remarkable and timely book."--_Boston Traveller._ - - "His treatment is broad and comprehensive, dealing with the - fundamental questions of the labor movement to the exclusion - of such minor and incidental topics as are often prone to - intrude themselves into a discussion of this - nature."--_School Journal._ - - "We believe it will have a positive effect in helping to - maintain kindly relations between the laborer and his - employer."--_Troy Times._ - - "It is without doubt the most complete historical sketch yet - published of the origin and growth both of socialism and of - labor organizations."--_New York Observer._ - - "Heartily commended to the careful attention of all concerned - in the labor question, whether employers or - employed."--_Cleveland Plaindealer._ - - -_For Sale by all Booksellers._ - -THOMAS Y. CROWELL & CO., 13 Astor Place, New York. - - * * * * * - - - - -MRS. SHILLABER'S COOK-BOOK. - -_A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR HOUSEKEEPERS._ - -By Mrs. LYDIA SHILLABER. With an Introduction by Mrs. PARTINGTON. - -12mo, cloth, $1.25. Kitchen Edition, In Oilcloth, $1.25. Fourth Edition now -ready. - -_Extract from Mrs. Partington's Introduction._ - -"Well, well," said Mrs. Partington, her spectacles beaming with delight as -she turned over the leaves of the new cookery book, "I declare it excites -my salivation glands even to read the names of these good things. It seems -as though the greatest epicac might find something among all these meats -and cosmetics to give a jest to appetite.... Now a book like this will come -into a house like an oasis in the desert of the great Sahara, and be a -quarantine of perpetual peace." - - "Has the best characteristic of simplicity, variety, and - usefulness."--_Boston Journal._ - - "A thoroughly intelligible and practical guide for young - housekeepers."--_Boston Advertiser._ - - "The most sensible cook-book of the season."--_Journal of - Education._ - - "Numerous household hints in the book, which of themselves - make it valuable."--_Pittsburg Chronicle-Telegraph._ - - "The work will certainly commend itself to the - housekeeper."--_American Hebrew._ - - "To all in the culinary work this is a model guide."--_Ohio - State Journal._ - - "A formidable rival of the numerous works of its - kind."--_Christian Index._ - -THOMAS Y. CROWELL & CO. - -13 ASTOR PLACE, NEW YORK. - - * * * * * - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of A Russian Proprietor, by Lyof N. 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