Long continued grieving had crushed all cheerfulness and every strong feeling in that poor woman; nothing is so clear a proof of Va.s.sily"s captivating charm as that he had made even his mother love him pa.s.sionately. Demonstrations of tenderness on the part of children were not in the spirit of the age, and so it is not to be wondered at that Olga did not dare to express her devotion, though she always kissed Anna Pavlovna"s hand with special reverence, when she said good-night to her.
Twenty years later, Russian girls began to read romances of the cla.s.s of _The Adventures of Marquis Glagol, Fanfan and Lolotta, Alexey or the Cottage in the Forest_; they began to play the clavichord and to sing songs in the style of the once very well-known:
"Men like b.u.t.terflies in sunshine Flutter round us opening blossoms," etc.
But in the seventies of last century (Olga Ivanovna was born in 1757) our country beauties had no notion of such accomplishments. It is difficult for us now to form a clear conception of the Russian miss of those days. We can indeed judge from our grandmothers of the degree of culture of girls of n.o.ble family in the time of Catherine; but how is one to distinguish what they had gradually gained in the course of their long lives from what they were in the days of their youth?
Olga Ivanovna spoke French a little, but with a strong Russian accent: in her day there was as yet no talk of French emigrants. In fact, with all her fine qualities, she was still pretty much of a savage, and I dare say in the simplicity of her heart, she had more than once chastised some luckless servant girl with her own hands....
Some time before Va.s.sily Ivanovitch"s arrival, Olga Ivanovna had been betrothed to a neighbour, Pavel Afanasievitch Rogatchov, a very good-natured and straightforward fellow. Nature had forgotten to put any spice of ill-temper into his composition. His own serfs did not obey him, and would sometimes all go off, down to the least of them, and leave poor Rogatchov without any dinner... but nothing could trouble the peace of his soul. From his childhood he had been stout and indolent, had never been in the government service, and was fond of going to church and singing in the choir. Look, gentlemen, at this round, good-natured face; glance at this mild, beaming smile... don"t you really feel it rea.s.suring, yourselves? His father used at long intervals to drive over to Lutchinovka, and on holidays used to bring with him his Pavlusha, whom the little Lutchinovs teased in every possible way.
Pavlusha grew up, began driving over to call on Ivan Andreevitch on his own account, fell in love with Olga Ivanovna, and offered her his hand and heart--not to her personally, but to her benefactors. Her benefactors gave their consent. They never even thought of asking Olga Ivanovna whether she liked Rogatchov. In those days, in the words of my grandmother, "such refinements were not the thing." Olga soon got used to her betrothed, however; it was impossible not to feel fond of such a gentle and amiable creature. Rogatchov had received no education whatever; his French consisted of the one word _bonjour_, and he secretly considered even that word improper. But some jocose person had taught him the following lines, as a French song: "Sonitchka, Sonitchka!
Ke-voole-voo-de-mwa--I adore you--me-je-ne-pyoo-pa...." This supposed song he always used to hum to himself when he felt in good spirits. His father was also a man of incredible good-nature, always wore a long nankin coat, and whatever was said to him he responded with a smile.
From the time of Pavel Afanasievitch"s betrothal, both the Rogatchovs, father and son, had been tremendously busy. They had been having their house entirely transformed adding various "galleries," talking in a friendly way with the workmen, encouraging them with drinks. They had not yet completed all these additions by the winter; they put off the wedding till the summer. In the summer Ivan Andreevitch died; the wedding was deferred till the following spring. In the winter Va.s.sily Ivanovitch arrived. Rogatchov was presented to him; he received him coldly and contemptuously, and as time went on, he, so alarmed him by his haughty behaviour that poor Rogatchov trembled like a leaf at the very sight of him, was tongue-tied and smiled nervously. Va.s.sily once almost annihilated him altogether--by making him a bet, that he, Rogatchov, was not able to stop smiling. Poor Pavel Afanasievitch almost cried with, embarra.s.sment, but--actually!--a smile, a stupid, nervous smile refused to leave his perspiring face! Va.s.sily toyed deliberately with the ends of his neckerchief, and looked at him with supreme contempt. Pavel Afanasievitch"s father heard too of Va.s.sily"s presence, and after an interval of a few days--"for the sake of greater formality"--he sallied off to Lutchinovka with the object of "felicitating our honoured guest on his advent to the halls of his ancestors." Afanasey Lukitch was famed all over the countryside for his eloquence--that is to say, for his capacity for enunciating without faltering a rather long and complicated speech, with a sprinkling of bookish phrases in it. Alas! on this occasion he did not sustain his reputation; he was even more disconcerted than his son, Pavel Afanasievitch; he mumbled something quite inarticulate, and though he had never been used to taking vodka, he at once drained a gla.s.s "to carry things off"--he found Va.s.sily at lunch,--tried at least to clear his throat with some dignity, and did not succeed in making the slightest sound. On their way home, Pavel Afanasievitch whispered to his parent, "Well, father?" Afanasey Lukitch responded angrily also in a whisper, "Don"t speak of it!"
The Rogatchovs began to be less frequent visitors at Lutchinovka. Though indeed they were not the only people intimidated by Va.s.sily; he awakened in his own brothers, in their wives, in Anna Pavlovna herself, an instinctive feeling of uneasiness and discomfort... they tried to avoid him in every way they could. Va.s.sily must have noticed this, but apparently had no intention of altering his behaviour to them. Suddenly, at the beginning of the spring, he became once more the charming, attractive person they had known of old...
The first symptom of this sudden transformation was Va.s.sily"s unexpected visit to the Rogatchovs. Afanasey Lukitch, in particular, was fairly disconcerted at the sight of Lutchinov"s carriage, but his dismay very quickly vanished. Never had Va.s.sily been more courteous and delightful.
He took young Rogatchov by the arm, went with him to look at the new buildings, talked to the carpenters, made some suggestions, with his own hands chopped a few chips off with the axe, asked to be shown Afanasey Lukitch"s stud horses, himself trotted them out on a halter, and altogether so affected the good-hearted children of the steppes by his gracious affability that they both embraced him more than once. At home, too, Va.s.sily managed, in the course of a few days, to turn every one"s head just as before. He contrived all sorts of laughable games, got hold of musicians, invited the ladies and gentlemen of the neighbourhood, told the old ladies the scandals of the town in the most amusing way, flirted a little with the young ones, invented unheard-of diversions, fireworks and such things, in short, he put life into every thing and every one. The melancholy, gloomy house of the Lutchinovs was suddenly converted into a noisy, brilliant, enchanted palace of which the whole countryside was talking. This sudden transformation surprised many and delighted all. All sorts of rumours began to be whispered about.
Sagacious persons opined that Va.s.sily Ivanovitch had till then been crushed under the weight of some secret trouble, that he saw chances of returning to the capital... but the true cause of Va.s.sily Ivanovitch"s metamorphosis was guessed by no one.
Olga Ivanovna, gentlemen, was rather pretty; though her beauty consisted rather in the extraordinary softness and freshness of her shape, in the quiet grace of her movements than in the strict regularity of her features. Nature had bestowed on her a certain independence; her bringing up--she had grown up without father or mother--had developed in her reserve and determination. Olga did not belong to the cla.s.s of quiet and tame-spirited young ladies; but only one feeling had reached its full possibilities in her as yet--hatred for her benefactor. Other more feminine pa.s.sions might indeed flare up in Olga Ivanovna"s heart with abnormal and painful violence... but she had not the cold pride, nor the intense strength of will, nor the self-centred egoism, without which any pa.s.sion pa.s.ses quickly away.
The first rush of feeling in such half-active, half-pa.s.sive natures is sometimes extremely violent; but they give way very quickly, especially when it is a question of relentless conformity with accepted principles; they are afraid of consequences.... And yet, gentlemen, I will frankly confess, women of that sort always make the strongest impression on me.
... (At these words the speaker drank a gla.s.s of water. Rubbish!
rubbish! thought I, looking at his round chin; nothing in the world makes a strong impression on you, my dear fellow!)
Piotr Fedoritch resumed: Gentlemen, I believe in blood, in race. Olga Ivanovna had more blood than, for instance, her foster sister, Natalia.
How did this blood show itself, do you ask? Why, in everything; in the lines of her hands, in her lips, in the sound of her voice, in her glance, in her carriage, in her hair, in the very folds of her gown. In all these trifles there lay hid something special, though I am bound to admit that the--how can one express it?--_la distinction_, which had fallen to Olga Pavlovna"s share would not have attracted Va.s.sily"s notice had he met her in Petersburg. But in the country, in the wilds, she not only caught his attention, she was positively the sole cause of the transformation of which I have just been speaking.
Consider the position. Va.s.sily Ivanovitch liked to enjoy life; he could not but be bored in the country; his brothers were good-natured fellows, but extremely limited people: he had nothing in common with them. His sister, Natalia, with the a.s.sistance of her husband, had brought into the world in the course of three years no less than four babies; between her and Va.s.sily was a perfect gulf.... Anna Pavlovna went to church, prayed, fasted, and was preparing herself for death. There remained only Olga--a fresh, shy, pretty girl.... Va.s.sily did not notice her at first... indeed, who does notice a dependant, an orphan girl kept from charity in the house?... One day, at the very beginning of spring, Va.s.sily was walking about the garden, and with his cane slashing off the heads of the dandelions, those stupid yellow flowers, which come out first in such numbers in the meadows, as soon as they begin to grow green. He was walking in the garden in front of the house; he lifted his head, and caught sight of Olga Ivanovna.
She was sitting sideways at the window, dreamily stroking a tabby kitten, who, purring and blinking, nestled on her lap, and with great satisfaction held up her little nose into the rather hot spring sunshine. Olga Ivanovna was wearing a white morning gown, with short sleeves; her bare, pale-pink, girlish shoulders and arms were a picture of freshness and health. A little red cap discreetly restrained her thick, soft, silky curls. Her face was a little flushed; she was only just awake. Her slender, flexible neck bent forward so charmingly; there was such seductive negligence, such modesty in the restful pose of her figure, free from corsets, that Va.s.sily Ivanovitch (a great connoisseur!) halted involuntarily and peeped in. It suddenly occurred to him that Olga Ivanovna ought not to be left in her primitive ignorance; that she might with time be turned into a very sweet and charming woman. He stole up to the window, stretched up on tiptoe, and imprinted a silent kiss on Olga Ivanovna"s smooth, white arm, a little below the elbow.
Olga shrieked and jumped up, the kitten put its tail in the air and leaped into the garden. Va.s.sily Ivanovitch with a smile kept her by the arm.... Olga flushed all over, to her ears; he began to rally her on her alarm... invited her to come a walk with him. But Olga Ivanovna became suddenly conscious of the negligence of her attire, and "swifter than the swift red deer" she slipped away into the next room.
The very same day Va.s.sily set off to the Rogatchovs. He was suddenly happy and light-hearted. Va.s.sily was not in love with Olga, no! the word "love" is not to be used lightly.... He had found an occupation, had set himself a task, and rejoiced with the delight of a man of action. He did not even remember that she was his mother"s ward, and another man"s betrothed. He never for one instant deceived himself; he was fully aware that it was not for her to be his wife.... Possibly there was pa.s.sion to excuse him--not a very elevated nor n.o.ble pa.s.sion, truly, but still a fairly strong and tormenting pa.s.sion. Of course he was not in love like a boy; he did not give way to vague ecstasies; he knew very well what he wanted and what he was striving for.
Va.s.sily was a perfect master of the art of winning over, in the shortest time, any one however shy or prejudiced against him. Olga soon ceased to be shy with him. Va.s.sily Ivanovitch led her into a new world. He ordered a clavichord for her, gave her music lessons (he himself played fairly well on the flute), read books aloud to her, had long conversations with her.... The poor child of the steppes soon had her head turned completely. Va.s.sily dominated her entirely. He knew how to tell her of what had been till then unknown to her, and to tell her in a language she could understand. Olga little by little gained courage to express all her feelings to him: he came to her aid, helped her out with the words she could not find, did not alarm her, at one moment kept her back, at another encouraged her confidences.... Va.s.sily busied himself with her education from no disinterested desire to awaken and develop her talents. He simply wanted to draw her a little closer to himself; and he knew too that an innocent, shy, but vain young girl is more easily seduced through the mind than the heart. Even if Olga had been an exceptional being, Va.s.sily would never have perceived it, for he treated her like a child. But as you are aware, gentlemen, there was nothing specially remarkable in Olga. Va.s.sily tried all he could to work on her imagination, and often in the evening she left his side with such a whirl of new images, phrases and ideas in her head that she could not sleep all night, but lay breathing uneasily and turning her burning cheeks from side to side on the cool pillows, or got up, went to the window and gazed fearfully and eagerly into the dark distance. Va.s.sily filled every moment of her life; she could not think of any one else. As for Rogatchov, she soon positively ceased to notice his existence.
Va.s.sily had the tact and shrewdness not to talk to Olga in his presence; but he either made him laugh till he was ready to cry, or arranged some noisy entertainment, a riding expedition, a boating party by night with torches and music--he did not in fact let Pavel Afanasievitch have a chance to think clearly.
But in spite of all Va.s.sily Ivanovitch"s tact, Rogatchov dimly felt that he, Olga"s betrothed and future husband, had somehow become as it were an outsider to her... but in the boundless goodness of his heart, he was afraid of wounding her by reproaches, though he sincerely loved her and prized her affection. When left alone with her, he did not know what to say, and only tried all he could to follow her wishes. Two months pa.s.sed by. Every trace of self-reliance, of will, disappeared at last in Olga.
Rogatchov, feeble and tongue-tied, could be no support to her. She had no wish even to resist the enchantment, and with a sinking heart she surrendered unconditionally to Va.s.sily....
Olga Ivanovna may very likely then have known something of the bliss of love; but it was not for long. Though Va.s.sily--for lack of other occupation--did not drop her, and even attached himself to her and looked after her fondly, Olga herself was so utterly distraught that she found no happiness even in love and yet could not tear herself away from Va.s.sily. She began to be frightened at everything, did not dare to think, could talk of nothing, gave up reading, and was devoured by misery. Sometimes Va.s.sily succeeded in carrying her along with him and making her forget everything and every one. But the very next day he would find her pale, speechless, with icy hands, and a fixed smile on her lips.... There followed a time of some difficulty for Va.s.sily; but no difficulties could dismay him. He concentrated himself like a skilled gambler. He could not in the least rely upon Olga Ivanovna; she was continually betraying herself, turning pale, blushing, weeping... her new part was utterly beyond her powers. Va.s.sily toiled for two: in his restless and boisterous gaiety, only an experienced observer could have detected something strained and feverish. He played his brothers, sisters, the Rogatchovs, the neighbours, like p.a.w.ns at chess. He was everlastingly on the alert. Not a single glance, a single movement, was lost on him, yet he appeared the most heedless of men. Every morning he faced the fray, and every evening he scored a victory. He was not the least oppressed by such a fearful strain of activity. He slept four hours out of the twenty-four, ate very little, and was healthy, fresh, and good-humoured.
Meantime the wedding-day was approaching. Va.s.sily succeeded in persuading Pavel Afanasievitch himself of the necessity of delay. Then he despatched him to Moscow to make various purchases, while he was himself in correspondence with friends in Petersburg. He took all this trouble, not so much from sympathy for Olga Ivanovna, as from a natural bent and liking for bustle and agitation.... Besides, he was beginning to be sick of Olga Ivanovna, and more than once after a violent outbreak of pa.s.sion for her, he would look at her, as he sometimes did at Rogatchov. Lutchinov always remained a riddle to every one. In the coldness of his relentless soul you felt the presence of a strange almost southern fire, and even in the wildest glow of pa.s.sion a breath of icy chill seemed to come from the man.
Before other people he supported Olga Ivanovna as before. But when they were alone, he played with her like a cat with a mouse, or frightened her with sophistries, or was wearily, malignantly bored, or again flung himself at her feet, swept her away, like a straw in a hurricane... and there was no feigning at such moments in his pa.s.sion... he really was moved himself.
One day, rather late in the evening, Va.s.sily was sitting alone in his room, attentively reading over the last letters he had received from Petersburg, when suddenly he heard a faint creak at the door, and Olga Ivanovna"s maid, Palashka, came in.
"What do you want?" Va.s.sily asked her rather crossly.
"My mistress begs you to come to her."
"I can"t just now. Go along.... Well what are you standing there for?"
he went on, seeing that Palashka did not go away.
"My mistress told me to say that she very particularly wants to see you," she said.
"Why, what"s the matter?"
"Would your honour please to see for yourself...."
Va.s.sily got up, angrily flung the letters into a drawer, and went in to Olga Ivanovna. She was sitting alone in a corner, pale and pa.s.sive.
"What do you want?" he asked her, not quite politely.
Olga looked at him and closed her eyes.
"What"s the matter? what is it, Olga?"
He took her hand.... Olga Ivanovna"s hand was cold as ice... She tried to speak... and her voice died away. The poor woman had no possible doubt of her condition left her.
Va.s.sily was a little disconcerted. Olga Ivanovna"s room was a couple of steps from Anna Pavlovna"s bedroom. Va.s.sily cautiously sat down by Olga, kissed and chafed her hands, comforted her in whispers. She listened to him, and silently, faintly, shuddered. In the doorway stood Palashka, stealthily wiping her eyes. In the next room they heard the heavy, even ticking of the clock, and the breathing of some one asleep. Olga Ivanovna"s numbness dissolved at last into tears and stifled sobs. Tears are like a storm; after them one is always calmer. When Olga Ivanovna had quieted down a little, and only sobbed convulsively at intervals, like a child, Va.s.sily knelt before her with caresses and tender promises, soothed her completely, gave her something to drink, put her to bed, and went away. He did not undress all night; wrote two or three letters, burnt two or three papers, took out a gold locket containing the portrait of a black-browed, black-eyed woman with a bold, voluptuous face, scrutinised her features slowly, and walked up and down the room pondering.
Next day, at breakfast, he saw with extreme displeasure poor Olga"s red and swollen eyes and pale, agitated face. After breakfast he proposed a stroll in the garden to her. Olga followed Va.s.sily, like a submissive sheep. When two hours afterwards she came in from the garden she quite broke down; she told Anna Pavlovna she was unwell, and went to lie down on her bed. During their walk Va.s.sily had, with a suitable show of remorse, informed her that he was secretly married--he was really as much a bachelor as I am. Olga Ivanovna did not fall into a swoon--people don"t fall into swoons except on the stage--but she turned all at once stony, though she herself was so far from hoping to marry Va.s.sily Ivanovitch that she was even afraid to think about it. Va.s.sily had begun to explain to her the inevitableness of her parting from him and marrying Rogatchov. Olga Ivanovna looked at him in dumb horror. Va.s.sily talked in a cool, business-like, practical way, blamed himself, expressed his regret, but concluded all his remarks with the following words: "There"s no going back on the past; we"ve got to act."
Olga was utterly overwhelmed; she was filled with terror and shame; a dull, heavy despair came upon her; she longed for death, and waited in agony for Va.s.sily"s decision.
"We must confess everything to my mother," he said to her at last.
Olga turned deadly pale; her knees shook under her.
"Don"t be afraid, don"t be afraid," repeated Va.s.sily, "trust to me, I won"t desert you... I will make everything right... rely upon me."
The poor woman looked at him with love... yes, with love, and deep, but hopeless devotion.
"I will arrange everything, everything," Va.s.sily said to her at parting... and for the last time he kissed her chilly hands....
Next morning--Olga Ivanovna had only just risen from her bed--her door opened... and Anna Pavlovna appeared in the doorway. She was supported by Va.s.sily. In silence she got as far as an arm-chair, and in silence she sat down. Va.s.sily stood at her side. He looked composed; his brows were knitted and his lips slightly parted. Anna Pavlovna, pale, indignant, angry, tried to speak, but her voice failed her. Olga Ivanovna glanced in horror from her benefactress to her lover, with a terrible sinking at her heart... she fell on her knees with a shriek in the middle of the room, and hid her face in her hands.
"Then it"s true... is it true?" murmured Anna Pavlovna, and bent down to her.... "Answer!" she went on harshly, clutching Olga by the arm.
"Mother!" rang out Va.s.sily"s brazen voice, "you promised me not to be hard on her."
"I want... confess... confess... is it true? is it true?"