"Good heavens, even without any offense you naturally want to know; you're her mother. Aglaya Ivanovna and I met today by the green bench at exactly seven o'clock in the morning following her invitation yesterday. In her note yesterday evening, she informed me that she had to see me and speak to me about an important matter. We met and spent a whole hour discussing things of concern to Aglaya Ivanovna alone, and that is all."

"Of course it is all, my dear man, and without any doubt it is all," Lizaveta Prokofyevna pronounced with dignity.

"Splendid, Prince!" said Aglaya, suddenly coming into the room. "I thank you with all my heart for considering me unable to stoop to lying. Is that enough for you, maman, or do you intend to inquire further?"

"You know that up to now I have never had occasion to blush before you . .. though you might have been glad if I had," Lizaveta Prokofyevna replied didactically. "Good-bye, Prince; forgive me for having troubled you. And I hope you remain assured of my unfailing respect for you."

The prince bowed at once to both sides and silently went out. Alexandra and Adelaida smiled and whispered something to each other. Lizaveta Ivanovna gave them a stern look.

"It's only because the prince bowed so wonderfully, maman," Adelaida laughed. "Sometimes he's a perfect sack, but now suddenly he's like . . . like Evgeny Pavlych."

"Delicacy and dignity are taught by one's own heart, not by a dancing master," Lizaveta Prokofyevna concluded sententiously and went to her rooms upstairs without even glancing at Aglaya.

When the prince returned home, at around nine o'clock, he found Vera Lukyanovna and the maid on the terrace. They were tidying and sweeping up together after yesterday's disorder.

"Thank God we finished before you came!" Vera said joyfully.

"Good morning. My head is spinning a little; I slept poorly; I'd like to sleep."

"Here on the terrace like yesterday? Very well. I'll tell everyone not to wake you up. Papa has gone somewhere."

The maid went out; Vera followed her, but then came back and worriedly went over to the prince.

"Prince, have pity on this . . . unfortunate boy; don't send him away today."

"I wouldn't do that for anything; it will be as he likes."

"He won't do anything now, and . . . don't be severe with him."

"Oh, no, why would I?"

"And . . . don't laugh at him; that's the most important thing."

"Oh, certainly not!"

"It's stupid of me to say that to a man like you," Vera blushed. "And though you're tired," she laughed, half turning to leave, "you have such nice eyes at this moment . . . happy eyes."

"Happy, really?" the prince asked with animation and laughed joyfully.

But Vera, simple-hearted and unceremonious as a young boy, suddenly became embarrassed, blushed all the more, and, still laughing, hastily left the room.

"Such a . . . nice girl . . ." the prince thought and forgot about her at once. He went to the corner of the terrace, where there was a couch with a little table in front of it, sat down, covered his face with his hands, and went on sitting for some ten minutes; suddenly he thrust his hand hastily and anxiously into his side pocket and took out the three letters.

But the door opened again and Kolya came in. The prince seemed glad that he had to put the letters back into his pocket and postpone the moment.

"Well, quite an event!" said Kolya, sitting on the couch and going straight to the subject, like all his fellows. "How do you look at Ippolit now? Without respect?"

"Why should . . . but I'm tired, Kolya . . . Besides, it's too sad to start about that again . . . How is he, though?"

"Asleep, and he'll go on sleeping for another couple of hours. I understand; you didn't sleep at home, you walked in the park . . . agitation, of course . . . what else!"

"How do you know that I walked in the park and didn't sleep at home?"

"Vera just said so. She insisted that I not come in; I couldn't help it, for a moment. I've spent these two hours watching at his bedside; now it's Kostya Lebedev's turn. Burdovsky left. Lie down,

then, Prince. Good . . . well, good day! Only, you know, I'm really struck!"

"Of course ... all this . . ."

"No, Prince, no; I'm struck by the confession. Above all by the place where he speaks about providence and the future life. There's a gi-gan-tic thought there!"

The prince gazed affectionately at Kolya, who had certainly come only to talk the sooner about the gigantic thought.

"But the main thing, the main thing is not in the thought alone, but in the whole situation! If it had been written by Voltaire, Rousseau, Proudhon,²⁵ I'd read it, make note of it, but I wouldn't be struck to such a degree. But a man who knows for certain that he has ten minutes left, and who speaks like that—oh, that's proud! That's the highest independence of personal dignity, that means a direct challenge . . . No, it's gigantic strength of spirit! And after that to maintain that he didn't put the cap in on purpose—it's mean, unnatural! And, you know, he deceived us yesterday, he tricked us: I never packed his bag with him and never saw the pistol; he packed everything himself, and then he suddenly got me confused. Vera says you're letting him stay here; I swear there won't be any danger, especially since we never leave him for an instant."

"And who of you was there during the night?"

"Kostya Lebedev, Burdovsky, and I; Keller stayed for a while and then went to sleep at Lebedev's, because we had no bed. Ferdyshchenko also slept at Lebedev's; he left at seven. The general is always at Lebedev's; he also left just now . . . Lebedev may come to see you presently; he's been looking for you, I don't know why, he asked twice. Shall I let him in or not, since you're going to bed? I'm also going to sleep. Ah, yes, there's something I might tell you; the general surprised me earlier: Burdovsky woke me up after six for my turn on duty, even almost at six; I stepped out for a minute and suddenly met the general, still so drunk that he didn't recognize me; stood in front of me like a post; the moment he came to his senses, he simply fell on me: 'How's the sick boy?' he says. 'I was on my way to find out about the sick boy . . .' I reported to him, well—this and that. 'That's all fine,' he says, 'but I was on my way, mainly, which is why I got up, to warn you; I have reasons to think that not everything can be said in front of Mr. Ferdyshchenko, and . . . one must restrain oneself.' Can you understand that, Prince?"

"Really? However . . . it's all the same to us."

"Yes, undoubtedly it's all the same, we're not Masons!²⁶ So that I even wondered why the general was coming at night on purpose to wake me up for that."

"Ferdyshchenko left, you say?"

"At seven. He stopped to see me on his way; I was on duty! He said he was going to spend the rest of the night at Vilkin's—there's this drunk named Vilkin! Well, I'm going! And here is Lukyan Timofeich . . . The prince wants to sleep, Lukyan Timofeich; about-face!"

"Just for one minute, my much-esteemed Prince, on a certain matter which is significant in my eyes," the entering Lebedev said in a half-whisper, stiffly and in a sort of heartfelt tone, and bowed gravely. He had just returned and had not even had time to stop at his own quarters, so that he still had his hat in his hand. His face was preoccupied and had a special, extraordinary tinge of personal dignity. The prince invited him to sit down.