The Cossacks: A Tale of 1852
supper. Only the old man still stayed under the plane tree watching for the vulture and pulling the string tied to the falcon's leg, but though a vulture was really perching on
s every kind of work, both rough and deli
p voice calling him from the thicket close
his arm, forced his way through the
is song, 'where did you get that cock
ashka and had also only been at th
ne's ears. They were neighbours and comrades. Lukashka was sitt
whose it was-y
e plane tree? Then it is min
e dark burnished head of the bird, which rolled its eyes and stretc
ilau tonight. You go
t ourselves or give
as pl
killing them,'
it h
ave it a swift jerk. The bird fluttered, but before it c
id Lukashka, throwing down the ph
red as he look
he said, taking up the bird. (He was alluding to the corporal.) 'He has sent
whistling al
ing with you,
ka ob
zarka. 'Let's say we won't go; we're tired out and there's an end o
'What bosh! If he made us turn out of the village at night now, that would be annoying: there one can have s
u going to
for the h
s carrying on with Fomushk
, showing his regular white teeth, though he d
hile and then went away, and passing by the window he heard her say, "He's gone, the fiend.... Why don't you eat your
making
e true, b
devil,' said Lukashka, after a pause. 'There's
. 'You should make up to the cornet's girl, Ma
at of Maryanka? They'
you jus
? Are girls so sca
s he went. Suddenly, catching sight of a smooth sapling, he drew the knife from the handle of his dagger an
er room of the hut, when the question of whose turn it was to lie in ambush was raised. 'Who is t
o,' said he, not quite confidently. 'You two had better go, you and Nazarka,' he w
self so why should he?' said
sacks l
unk and asleep near the hut. He had only that
y risen and was get
shut the door, evidently not expecting the Cossack to obey. 'Of course,' thought he, 'if I hadn't been ordered to I
go,' remarked Ergushov
he times are such.
gushov, seemed quite indifferent to what passed and only laughed at them both. Before the Cossacks were ready to go int
-roofed room drowning all the other voices, 'I'm goin