白痴 英文版 The Idiot
陀思妥耶夫斯基 Fyodor Dostoyevsky
The Idiot VIII. Page 1
"I DID not expect you, gentlemen," began the prince. I have beenill until to-day. A month ago," he continued, addressing himselfto Antip Burdovsky, "I put your business into GavrilaArdalionovitch Ivolgin's hands, as I told you then. I do not inthe least object to having a personal interview ... but youwill agree with me that this is hardly the time ... I proposethat we go into another room, if you will not keep me long... Asyou see, I have friends here, and believe me ..."
"Friends as many as you please, but allow me," interrupted theharsh voice of Lebedeff's nephew--" allow me to tell you that youmight have treated us rather more politely, and not have kept uswaiting at least two hours ...
"No doubt ... and I ... is that acting like a prince? And you ...you may be a general! But I ... I am not your valet! And I ...I..." stammered Antip Burdovsky.
He was extremely excited; his lips trembled, and the resentmentof an embittered soul was in his voice. But he spoke soindistinctly that hardly a dozen words could be gathered.
"It was a princely action!" sneered Hippolyte.
"If anyone had treated me so," grumbled the boxer.
"I mean to say that if I had been in Burdovsky's place...I..."
"Gentlemen, I did not know you were there; I have only just beeninformed, I assure you," repeated Muishkin.
"We are not afraid of your friends, prince," remarked Lebedeff'snephew, "for we are within our rights."
The shrill tones of Hippolyte interrupted him. "What right haveyou ... by what right do you demand us to submit this matter,about Burdovsky ... to the judgment of your friends? We know onlytoo well what the judgment of your friends will be! ..."
This beginning gave promise of a stormy discussion. The princewas much discouraged, but at last he managed to make himselfheard amid the vociferations of his excited visitors.
"If you," he said, addressing Burdovsky--"if you prefer not tospeak here, I offer again to go into another room with you ...and as to your waiting to see me, I repeat that I only thisinstant heard ..."
"Well, you have no right, you have no right, no right at all!...Your friends indeed!"... gabbled Burdovsky, defiantly examiningthe faces round him, and becoming more and more excited. "Youhave no right!..." As he ended thus abruptly, he leantforward, staring at the prince with his short-sighted, bloodshoteyes. The latter was so astonished, that he did not reply, butlooked steadily at him in return.
"Lef Nicolaievitch!" interposed Madame Epanchin, suddenly, "readthis at once, this very moment! It is about this business."
She held out a weekly comic paper, pointing to an article on oneof its pages. Just as the visitors were coming in, Lebedeff,wishing to ingratiate himself with the great lady, had pulledthis paper from his pocket, and presented it to her, indicating afew columns marked in pencil. Lizabetha Prokofievna had had timeto read some of it, and was greatly upset.
a princely action!" sneered Hippolyte.article.itspublication," said Lebedeff's nephew,
"Would it not be better to peruse it alone ..." later asked theprince, nervously.
"No, no, read it--read it at once directly, and aloud, aloud!"cried she, calling Colia to her and giving him the journal.--"Read it aloud, so that everyone may hear it!"
An impetuous woman, Lizabetha Prokofievna sometimes weighed heranchors and put out to sea quite regardless of the possiblestorms she might encounter. Ivan Fedorovitch felt a sudden pangof alarm, but the others were merely curious, and somewhatsurprised. Colia unfolded the paper, and began to read, in hisclear, high-pitched voice, the following article:
"Proletarians and scions of nobility! An episode of thebrigandage of today and every day! Progress! Reform! Justice!"
"Oh, I don't know what this means" cried Ivan Fedorovitch,transported with indignation.
"Leave off, Colia," begged the prince. Exclamations arose on allsides.
"Let him go on reading at all costs!" ordered LizabethaProkofievna, evidently preserving her composure by a desperateeffort. "Prince, if the reading is stopped, you and I willquarrel."
Colia had no choice but to obey. With crimson cheeks he read onunsteadily:
"But while our young millionaire dwelt as it were in theEmpyrean, something new occurred. One fine morning a man calledupon him, calm and severe of aspect, distinguished, but plainlydressed. Politely, but in dignified terms, as befitted hiserrand, he briefly explained the motive for his visit. He was alawyer of enlightened views; his client was a young man who hadconsulted him in confidence. This young man was no other than theson of P--, though he bears another name. In his youth P--, thesensualist, had seduced a young girl, poor but respectable. Shewas a serf, but had received a European education. Finding that achild was expected, he hastened her marriage with a man of noblecharacter who had loved her for a long time. He helped the youngcouple for a time, but he was soon obliged to give up, for thehigh-minded husband refused to accept anything from him. Soon thecareless nobleman forgot all about his former mistress and thechild she had borne him; then, as we know, he died intestate. P--'s son, born after his mother's marriage, found a true father inthe generous man whose name he bore. But when he also died, theorphan was left to provide for himself, his mother now being aninvalid who had lost the use of her limbs. Leaving her in adistant province, he came to the capital in search of pupils. Bydint of daily toil he earned enough to enable him to follow thecollege courses, and at last to enter the university. But whatcan one earn by teaching the children of Russian merchants at tencopecks a lesson, especially with an invalid mother to keep? Evenher death did not much diminish the hardships of the young man'sstruggle for existence. Now this is the question: how, in thename of justice, should our scion have argued the case? Ourreaders will think, no doubt, that he would say to himself: 'P--showered benefits upon me all my life; he spent tens of thousandsof roubles to educate me, to provide me with governesses, and tokeep me under treatment in Switzerland. Now I am a millionaire,and P--'s son, a noble young man who is not responsible for thefaults of his careless and forgetful father, is wearing himselfout giving ill-paid lessons. According to justice, all that wasdone for me ought to have been done for him. The enormous sumsspent upon me were not really mine; they came to me by an errorof blind Fortune, when they ought to have gone to P--'s son. Theyshould have gone to benefit him, not me, in whom P-- interestedhimself by a mere caprice, instead of doing his duty as a father.If I wished to behave nobly, justly, and with delicacy, I oughtto bestow half my fortune upon the son of my benefactor; but aseconomy is my favourite virtue, and I know this is not a case inwhich the law can intervene, I will not give up half my millions.But it would be too openly vile, too flagrantly infamous, if Idid not at least restore to P--'s son the tens of thousands ofroubles spent in curing my idiocy. This is simply a case ofconscience and of strict justice. Whatever would have become ofme if P-- had not looked after my education, and had taken careof his own son instead of me?'
"No, gentlemen, our scions of the nobility do not reason thus.The lawyer, who had taken up the matter purely out of friendshipto the young man, and almost against his will, invoked everyconsideration of justice, delicacy, honour, and even plainfigures; in vain, the ex-patient of the Swiss lunatic asylum wasinflexible. All this might pass, but the sequel is absolutelyunpardonable, and not to be excused by any interesting malady.This millionaire, having but just discarded the old gaiters ofhis professor, could not even understand that the noble young manslaving away at his lessons was not asking for charitable help,but for his rightful due, though the debt was not a legal one;that, correctly speaking, he was not asking for anything, but itwas merely his friends who had thought fit to bestir themselveson his behalf. With the cool insolence of a bloated capitalist,secure in his millions, he majestically drew a banknote for fiftyroubles from his pocket-book and sent it to the noble young manas a humiliating piece of charity. You can hardly believe it,gentlemen! You are scandalized and disgusted; you cry out inindignation! But that is what he did! Needless to say, the moneywas returned, or rather flung back in his face. The case is notwithin the province of the law, it must be referred to thetribunal of public opinion; this is what we now do, guaranteeingthe truth of all the details which we have related."
When Colia had finished reading, he handed the paper to theprince, and retired silently to a corner of the room, hiding hisface in his hands. He was overcome by a feeling of inexpressibleshame; his boyish sensitiveness was wounded beyond endurance. Itseemed to him that something extraordinary, some suddencatastrophe had occurred, and that he was almost the cause of it,because he had read the article aloud.
Yet all the others were similarly affected. The girls wereuncomfortable and ashamed. Lizabetha Prokofievna restrained herviolent anger by a great effort; perhaps she bitterly regrettedher interference in the matter; for the present she kept silence.The prince felt as very shy people often do in such a case; hewas so ashamed of the conduct of other people, so humiliated forhis guests, that he dared not look them in the face. Ptitsin,Varia, Gania, and Lebedeff himself, all looked rather confused.Stranger still, Hippolyte and the "son of Pavlicheff" also seemedslightly surprised, and Lebedeff's nephew was obviously far frompleased. The boxer alone was perfectly calm; he twisted hismoustaches with affected dignity, and if his eyes were cast downit was certainly not in confusion, but rather in noble modesty,as if he did not wish to be insolent in his triumph. It wasevident that he was delighted with the article.
"The devil knows what it means," growled Ivan Fedorovitch, underhis breath; "it must have taken the united wits of fifty footmento write it."
"May I ask your reason for such an insulting supposition, sir?"said Hippolyte, trembling with rage.
You will admit yourself, general, that for an honourable man, ifthe author is an honourable man, that is an--an insult," growledthe boxer suddenly, with convulsive jerkings of his shoulders.
"In the first place, it is not for you to address me as 'sir,'and, in the second place, I refuse to give you any explanation,"said Ivan Fedorovitch vehemently; and he rose without anotherword, and went and stood on the first step of the flight that ledfrom the verandah to the street, turning his back on the company.He was indignant with Lizabetha Prokofievna, who did not think ofmoving even now.
"Gentlemen, gentlemen, let me speak at last," cried the prince,anxious and agitated. "Please let us understand one another. Isay nothing about the article, gentlemen, except that every wordis false; I say this because you know it as well as I do. It isshameful. I should be surprised if any one of you could havewritten it."
"I did not know of its existence till this moment," declaredHippolyte. "I do not approve of it."
"I knew it had been written, but I would not have advised itspublication," said Lebedeff's nephew, "because it is premature."
"I knew it, but I have a right. I... I ... "stammered the"son of Pavlicheff."
"What! Did you write all that yourself? Is it possible?" askedthe prince, regarding Burdovsky with curiosity.
"One might dispute your right to ask such questions," observedLebedeff's nephew.
"I was only surprised that Mr. Burdovsky should have--however,this is what I have to say. Since you had already given thematter publicity, why did you object just now, when I began tospeak of it to my friends?"
"At last!" murmured Lizabetha Prokofievna indignantly.
Lebedeff could restrain himself no longer; he made his waythrough the row of chairs.
"Prince," he cried, "you are forgetting that if you consented toreceive and hear them, it was only because of your kind heartwhich has no equal, for they had not the least right to demandit, especially as you had placed the matter in the hands ofGavrila Ardalionovitch, which was also extremely kind of you. Youare also forgetting, most excellent prince, that you are withfriends, a select company; you cannot sacrifice them to thesegentlemen, and it is only for you to have them turned out thisinstant. As the master of the house I shall have great pleasure...."
"Quite right!" agreed General Ivolgin in a loud voice.
"That will do, Lebedeff, that will do--" began the prince, whenan indignant outcry drowned his words.
"Excuse me, prince, excuse me, but now that will not do," shoutedLebedeff's nephew, his voice dominating all the others. "Thematter must be clearly stated, for it is obviously not properlyunderstood. They are calling in some legal chicanery, and uponthat ground they are threatening to turn us out of the house!Really, prince, do you think we are such fools as not to be awarethat this matter does not come within the law, and that legallywe cannot claim a rouble from you? But we are also aware that ifactual law is not on our side, human law is for us, natural law,the law of common-sense and conscience, which is no less bindingupon every noble and honest man--that is, every man of sanejudgment--because it is not to be found in miserable legal codes.If we come here without fear of being turned out (as wasthreatened just now) because of the imperative tone of ourdemand, and the unseemliness of such a visit at this late hour(though it was not late when we arrived, we were kept waiting inyour anteroom), if, I say, we came in without fear, it is justbecause we expected to find you a man of sense; I mean, a man ofhonour and conscience. It is quite true that we did not presentourselves humbly, like your flatterers and parasites, but holdingup our heads as befits independent men. We present no petition,but a proud and free demand (note it well, we do not beseech, wedemand!). We ask you fairly and squarely in a dignified manner.Do you believe that in this affair of Burdovsky you have right onyour side? Do you admit that Pavlicheff overwhelmed you withbenefits, and perhaps saved your life? If you admit it (which wetake for granted), do you intend, now that you are a millionaire,and do you not think it in conformity with justice, to indemnifyBurdovsky? Yes or no? If it is yes, or, in other words, if youpossess what you call honour and conscience, and we more justlycall common-sense, then accede to our demand, and the matter isat an end. Give us satisfaction, without entreaties or thanksfrom us; do not expect thanks from us, for what you do will bedone not for our sake, but for the sake of justice. If you refuseto satisfy us, that is, if your answer is no, we will go away atonce, and there will be an end of the matter. But we will tellyou to your face before the present company that you are a man ofvulgar and undeveloped mind; we will openly deny you the right tospeak in future of your honour and conscience, for you have notpaid the fair price of such a right. I have no more to say--Ihave put the question before you. Now turn us out if you dare.You can do it; force is on your side. But remember that we do notbeseech, we demand! We do not beseech, we demand!"