Orloff and his Wife

yellow and fragrant. It was Sunday, and almost the entire population of the village had come out into the street, thickly overgrown with grass, and sprinkled with hillocks of dried mud. In front of the Elder's hut, a large group of peasant men and women had assembled, so

hick eyebrows threw a shadow over the dark pupils. He was clad in the cinnamon-brown, tattered cassock of a monastic lay-brother, which barely covered his knees, and was girt about him with a rope. On his back was a canvas wallet, in his right hand, a long staff with an iron ferrule, with his left hand he clutched at his breast. The people round about stared at him suspiciously, sneeringly, with scorn, and, at last, with plain delight, that they had succeeded in catching the wolf before he had managed to do any damage to their flock. He had passed through the village, and, approachin

note on p. 1

aptain, elected by the

e trunk of a white willow tree, so he remained s

ade his appearance. He lowered his booted feet sedately from step to step, and his round little belly waggled sol

ootnote o

g

ímushka?" the Elder

am bound to conduct this man to the Rural Chief, and-that's all there is to it!"-and having uttered hi

he doc

nt-lives in

argumentatively, and he added, a

ad, and God

n, father?" the policeman s

ied the latter, in a low tone to the p

pping up in the fields and villages ... there wouldn't be horses enough t

it's far from us? With God's blessing, not more than twenty versts! Yes, and it can't

..."[4] explai

iteral translation of the word, kholódna

an's tired he can rest even in jail. And[Pg 468] then-the cooler

nce at his escort-the latter

d father! Farewell, Vas

you, Efímushka!-Ke

u had three eyes!" put in a

! Am I a baby, I

The man in the cassock went first, with the loose but swinging gait of a pedestrian

iling at something, displaying strong, yellow teeth, and wrinkling the skin between his eyebrows, as though he were on the point of sneezing. He was clad in a long, full smock, whose skirts were tucked into

presence behind him. Their way led along a narrow country road; it wound, in serpentine curves,

elds stretched out into the end[Pg 469]less distance, and among them la; the dark bl

till surrounded by scaffoldings, and not yet painted, pierced the blue s

among the rye, and the weather was hot-almost stifli

nature, he could not hold his tongue for long, and clear

re, and why-y

th sor-row g

to sing ... The Víshenki teacher used to say,-'come on, now, Efímushka, strik

d the man in the cass

Víshenki t

-was that

the teacher's name was Pável Mikhá?litch. He wa

he yo

under th

d he die

ef, I s

t a sidelong glance at hi

g

and when he took to drink, that Father Alexéi sent off a document to the town-thus and so, says he-the teacher drinks, and 'tis nothing but a scandal. Then they sent another document from the town, in reply, and a woman teacher. She was a very long woman, and bony, wit

rew nearer to the pedestrians with every step, growin

the forest?" inquired

f a verst. But why? Hey? What are you up to? I p

laughed, and w

ean?" inquired

u're simple, my dear man, nobody with any sense would have asked that questio

ha

forest! Do you think you can get the better of me? Why, I could[Pg 471] manage three such as you,

id the prisoner, cur

s you?"-said Efím

u guessed?" said the pri

we come to the forest, will cut him down'-meaning me,-'I'll cut him d

had been divined, shrugging his shoul

you please-tha

ther angry, or was very anxious to hear fr

, I tell you!" repea

to, brother, none!"-sa

even waved his hand. "There's always some place to run to

hat I am to run away?"-inquired the pr

ay, whom can they put in prison, instead of[Pg 472] you? They'll put

of peasant,-" said Efímushka's travelling-companio

ghtforward, that's the chief thing. Some folks always act in a roundabout way, with guile, but what's that to me? I'm a man who is

ked Efímushka's comp

's all there is to it. I'm a free man, brother. As I like, so I live, I

all me Pável Iváno

Are you an e

no.

hy, I thought

ink so from

n the face you look more like a soldier.... God knows what sort of a man you are"-and Efímushka cast an inquisitive glan

smoke

me! Of cour

g

osom, and bending his head, but not halting,

ending toward a match which his escort lighted, he d

o you come? Are yo

y, and spat to one side, on the ears o

how do you come to be going

m just r

bility is accustomed to this wolfs li

stop your chatter,"-said

mpathy, scrutinized the passportless man, an

How, I suppose it is true that you are a nobleman, because you carry

y glance at Efímushka, and waved him off with his

hy are you persist

ushka soothingly. "I'm speaking with pure

g

.. But your tongue wags inces

n't want to listen to his conversation. But you're getting angry without any caus

out like two acute angles, and the gray bristles on them stood on end. He ey

s pantomime, he began again to co

is cudgel in time with his steps. They reached the edge of the forest. It stood like a dark, motionless wall-not a sound was wafted from it to greet the travellers. The sun was already setting, and its slan

thing-then the forest appears to be full of something living, which is only temporarily keeping quiet. And one waits, with the expectation that the next moment something

g

I

rest, and seated themselves on the grass, near a large oak stump. The prisoner slo

u like so

chew it," replied Ef

his hunger, ate fast, and munched noisily, measuring his crust of bread with his eyes. The field darkened, the grain had already lost its golden hue, and had become rosy-yellow, tufts of dark clouds crept up the sky from the southwest, a

bread, and licking them from his palm with his tongue. "The Lord has fed me-no one saw it, and he who s

nd shook

ful, it's a memorable spot to me ... Yonder, to the

g

ickly, turning in the direction in

elong to them,-all of us used to be their serfs. It was a big family ... The Colonel himself was Alexánder Nikítitch Tutchkóff. There were children: four sons-what has become of them al

internal laughter,-his chest and belly heaved, but his face remained immovabl

sively, and drawing his cudgel n

h you? Have you got a

the prisoner spasmodically but amiabl

n particular...? the youngest of them all. His name was Víctor ... Vítya. He and I were chums.... At the time when the Emancipation was proclaimed, he and I were fourteen years old...

?" his companion so

d is given to you, you fool, so that you may learn.... If you know how to read and write,' says he, 'you'll know how a man must live, and where to seek the truth.' ... Of course, a little child is apt, evidently he had heard that sort of speech from his elders, and began to talk like that himself.... It was all nonsense, of course.... That sort of knowledge is in the heart, and the heart will point out about the[Pg 478] right.... It-the heart-is quick-sighted. Well, and so he taught me, and he got so interested in that matter, that he wouldn't let me rest! I was worn out! I entreated him! 'Vítya,' says I, 'reading and writing are beyond my power, I can't conquer them,' says I. Then ho-ow he did roar at me!? I'll thrash you with papa's kazák whip,-learn your lesson!-' 'Akh, have mercy! I'll learn....' Once I ran away from my lesson. I just jumped up and took to my heels! Then he hunted me all day long, with his gun-he wanted to shoot me. He said to me afterward-' if I had met you that day,' says he, 'I'd have shot you!' You see what a sharp

are both diminutives of E

hirty-six poun

ation, and trembled all over. "It's immediately[Pg 479] apparent

hirty years have passed since those days-Akh, oh Lord! where is he now? I think, that if he is still alive, he must be either occupying a very lofty place, or ... be seething in the very gulf of misery.... Such is human life! I

rrily is the only way to describe his manner of asking, hi

t it? If you tramp about in this way, evidently, it is because you have nothing of your own on earth, neither nook nor chi

,-" said th

s had grown more dense. The air smelled of damp earth, and flow

ust go on ... We have still eight versts

tle longer,-" ent

g

e forest by night myself ... Only, when shall we get

d, he won'

k a word for me?-" g

es

on't s

y n

oker! He'll

he thr

u a whack in the ear, and it will be a

" said the prisoner confidently, tapping h

that goose must not forget that Efímushka had his brass shield of office in his breast. Efímushka rose to his

, come

" said th

de no reply for a minute, not understanding how the p

ere, come along!" he

!" repeated the pri

come with me?" shouted Efímu

g

end the night here with you

aced Efímushka. But, in the depths of his soul, he was amazed. The man said, "I won't go"-but he offered no

,-" the prisoner

er his prisoner, he stared at him with bursting eyes. And the man stared a

hat if he were to fall upon him, bind his hands, give him a cut or two across the throat, and so

and I've had enough of it! Get up! Or I'll bind you, and then yo

ean?" laughed

o you s

off, will thrash

n astonishment,-"but who are you, anyway? What so

gnized me,-" said the prisoner, with a calm smile,

d to him, and stared, with all his eyes, into the face of his pr

and is it really you?"

ll into the wolfs hole, in the Ramén pine woods? And how I climbed a tree for a bird's nest, and hung head downwar

on the ground, and began to

r. Efímushka remained dumb. It had become completely dark around them. A confused rustling and whispering arose in the forest. Far awa

... saintly soul! You are exactly as you were when you were a ch

his nose violently on

old, and you busy yourself with such a nonsensical matter! Stop it!-" and embracing the policeman's shoulders, he shook him gentl

elf on bread.... You have no tobacco.... Oh Lord! Is that right? If it had been I, and you had been the policeman ... it would have been easier to bear! But now, how has it turned out? How can I look you in the ey

riveted obstinately on his feet, and his hand

id not show them to the Elder, because I did not wish to have them recognize me there.... My brother Iván will not put me in prison, but, on the contrary, h

meet the dark cloud, rose the moon, and the edge of the cloud, silvered by her rays, took on soft, opalescent hues. T

g

ou, of course, will adapt yourself to life again ... That's all true.... And we will go hunting ... Only, ev

kóff burst

I have been an actor, I have been a clerk in the timber trade, then I kept actors myself ... then I was burnt out, I got over he

s hand, and began to

e cured myself of that. Now you and I will begin to l

n saying all sorts of things to you ... nonsensical words, and, in general ... a peasant-everybo

ht, go a

whence there immediately proceeded a crackling and a rustling of branches. Efímushka speedily made his appearance, with an

g

at it, as they sat opposite each o

used to be,"-remar

are different,-"

er in character.... Here ...

ether it has conquered me, or I have

fell

re's a nice Sunday greeting!"[1

past is past,-" Tutchkóff co

pering about something, the fire crackled merrily, around it the sh

on Sundays and holidays. In the higher circles o

tr

trong>