白痴 英文版 The Idiot
陀思妥耶夫斯基 Fyodor Dostoyevsky
The Idiot VIII. Page 2
"Your soup'll be cold; do come."
"Coming, coming " said the general. "Son of my old friend--" hewas heard muttering as he went down the passage.
you himself?" sheadded?
"You will have to excuse very much in my husband, if you staywith us," said Nina Alexandrovna; "but he will not disturb youoften. He dines alone. Everyone has his little peculiarities, youknow, and some people perhaps have more than those who are mostpointed at and laughed at. One thing I must beg of you-if myhusband applies to you for payment for board and lodging, tellhim that you have already paid me. Of course anything paid by youto the general would be as fully settled as if paid to me, so faras you are concerned; but I wish it to be so, if you please, forconvenience' sake. What is it, Varia?"
Varia had quietly entered the room, and was holding out theportrait of Nastasia Philipovna to her mother.
Nina Alexandrovna started, and examined the photograph intently,gazing at it long and sadly. At last she looked up inquiringly atVaria.
"It's a present from herself to him," said Varia; "the questionis to be finally decided this evening."
"This evening!" repeated her mother in a tone of despair, butsoftly, as though to herself. "Then it's all settled, of course,and there's no hope left to us. She has anticipated her answer bythe present of her portrait. Did he show it you himself?" sheadded, in some surprise.
"You know we have hardly spoken to each other for a whole month.Ptitsin told me all about it; and the photo was lying under thetable, and I picked it up."
"Prince," asked Nina Alexandrovna, "I wanted to inquire whetheryou have known my son long? I think he said that you had onlyarrived today from somewhere."
The prince gave a short narrative of what we have heard before,leaving out the greater part. The two ladies listened intently.
"I did not ask about Gania out of curiosity," said the elder, atlast. "I wish to know how much you know about him, because hesaid just now that we need not stand on ceremony with you. What,exactly, does that mean?"
At this moment Gania and Ptitsin entered the room together, andNina Alexandrovna immediately became silent again. The princeremained seated next to her, but Varia moved to the other end ofthe room; the portrait of Nastasia Philipovna remained lying asbefore on the work-table. Gania observed it there, and with afrown of annoyance snatched it up and threw it across to hiswriting-table, which stood at the other end of the room.
"Is it today, Gania?" asked Nina Alexandrovna, at last.
"Is what today?" cried the former. Then suddenly recollectinghimself, he turned sharply on the prince. "Oh," he growled, "Isee, you are here, that explains it! Is it a disease, or what,that you can't hold your tongue? Look here, understand once forall, prince--"
"I am to blame in this, Gania--no one else," said Ptitsin.
Gania glanced inquiringly at the speaker.
"It's better so, you know, Gania--especially as, from one pointof view, the matter may be considered as settled," said Ptitsin;and sitting down a little way from the table he began to study apaper covered with pencil writing.
Gania stood and frowned, he expected a family scene. He neverthought of apologizing to the prince, however.
"If it's all settled, Gania, then of course Mr. Ptitsin isright," said Nina Alexandrovna. "Don't frown. You need not worryyourself, Gania; I shall ask you no questions. You need not tellme anything you don't like. I assure you I have quite submittedto your will." She said all this, knitting away the while asthough perfectly calm and composed.
Gania was surprised, but cautiously kept silence and looked athis mother, hoping that she would express herself more clearly.Nina Alexandrovna observed his cautiousness and added, with abitter smile:
"You are still suspicious, I see, and do not believe me; but youmay be quite at your ease. There shall be no more tears, norquestions--not from my side, at all events. All I wish is thatyou may be happy, you know that. I have submitted to my fate; butmy heart will always be with you, whether we remain united, orwhether we part. Of course I only answer for myself--you canhardly expect your sister--"
"My sister again," cried Gania, looking at her with contempt andalmost hate. "Look here, mother, I have already given you my wordthat I shall always respect you fully and absolutely, and soshall everyone else in this house, be it who it may, who shallcross this threshold."
Gania was so much relieved that he gazed at his mother almostaffectionately.
"I was not at all afraid for myself, Gania, as you know well. Itwas not for my own sake that I have been so anxious and worriedall this time! They say it is all to be settled to-day. What isto be settled?"
"She has promised to tell me tonight at her own house whethershe consents or not," replied Gania.
"We have been silent on this subject for three weeks," said hismother, "and it was better so; and now I will only ask you onequestion. How can she give her consent and make you a present ofher portrait when you do not love her? How can such a--such a--"
"Practised hand--eh?"
"I was not going to express myself so. But how could you so blindher?"
Nina Alexandrovna's question betrayed intense annoyance. Ganiawaited a moment and then said, without taking the trouble toconceal the irony of his tone:
"There you are, mother, you are always like that. You begin bypromising that there are to be no reproaches or insinuations orquestions, and here you are beginning them at once. We had betterdrop the subject--we had, really. I shall never leave you,mother; any other man would cut and run from such a sister asthis. See how she is looking at me at this moment! Besides, howdo you know that I am blinding Nastasia Philipovna? As for Varia,I don't care--she can do just as she pleases. There, that's quiteenough!"
Gania's irritation increased with every word he uttered, as hewalked up and down the room. These conversations always touchedthe family sores before long.
"I have said already that the moment she comes in I go out, and Ishall keep my word," remarked Varia.
"Out of obstinacy" shouted Gania. "You haven't married, either,thanks to your obstinacy. Oh, you needn't frown at me, Varvara!You can go at once for all I care; I am sick enough of yourcompany. What, you are going to leave us are you, too?" he cried,turning to the prince, who was rising from his chair.
Gania's voice was full of the most uncontrolled anduncontrollable irritation.
The prince turned at the door to say something, but perceiving inGania's expression that there was but that one drop wanting tomake the cup overflow, he changed his mind and left the roomwithout a word. A few minutes later he was aware from the noisyvoices in the drawing room, that the conversation had become morequarrelsome than ever after his departure.
He crossed the salon and the entrance-hall, so as to pass downthe corridor into his own room. As he came near the front door heheard someone outside vainly endeavouring to ring the bell, whichwas evidently broken, and only shook a little, without emittingany sound.
The prince took down the chain and opened the door. He startedback in amazement--for there stood Nastasia Philipovna. He knewher at once from her photograph. Her eyes blazed with anger asshe looked at him. She quickly pushed by him into the hall,shouldering him out of her way, and said, furiously, as she threwoff her fur cloak:
"If you are too lazy to mend your bell, you should at least waitin the hall to let people in when they rattle the bell handle.There, now, you've dropped my fur cloak--dummy!"
Sure enough the cloak was lying on the ground. Nastasia hadthrown it off her towards the prince, expecting him to catch it,but the prince had missed it.
"Now then--announce me, quick!"
The prince wanted to say something, but was so confused andastonished that he could not. However, he moved off towards thedrawing-room with the cloak over his arm.
"Now then, where are you taking my cloak to? Ha, ha, ha! Are youmad?"
The prince turned and came back, more confused than ever. Whenshe burst out laughing, he smiled, but his tongue could not forma word as yet. At first, when he had opened the door and saw herstanding before him, he had become as pale as death; but now thered blood had rushed back to his cheeks in a torrent.
"Why, what an idiot it is!" cried Nastasia, stamping her footwith irritation. "Go on, do! Whom are you going to announce?"
"Nastasia Philipovna," murmured the prince.
"And how do you know that?" she asked him, sharply.
"I have never seen you before!"
"Go on, announce me--what's that noise?"
"They are quarrelling," said the prince, and entered the drawing-room, just as matters in there had almost reached a crisis. NinaAlexandrovna had forgotten that she had "submitted toeverything!" She was defending Varia. Ptitsin was taking herpart, too. Not that Varia was afraid of standing up for herself.She was by no means that sort of a girl; but her brother wasbecoming ruder and more intolerable every moment. Her usualpractice in such cases as the present was to say nothing, butstare at him, without taking her eyes off his face for aninstant. This manoeuvre, as she well knew, could drive Ganiadistracted.
Just at this moment the door opened and the prince entered,announcing:
"Nastasia Philipovna!"