Anna Karenina полностью

‘That I must tell you about. I was busy, and with what? I’ll lay you a hundred, a thousand to one ... you’ll never guess. I was trying to make peace between a husband and his wife’s offender. Yes, really!’

‘And what, did you succeed?’

‘Nearly.’

‘You must tell me about it,’ she said, getting up. ‘Come during the next interval.’

‘Impossible. I’m going to the French Theatre.’

‘From Nilsson?’ said Betsy in horror, though she would never have been able to tell Nilsson from any chorus girl.

‘No help for it. I have an appointment there, all to do with this peacemaking business.’

‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be saved,’³ said Betsy, remembering hearing something of the sort from someone. ‘Sit down, then, and tell me about it.’

And she sat down again.

V

‘This is a bit indiscreet, but so charming that I want terribly to tell it,’ said Vronsky, looking at her with laughing eyes. ‘I won’t mention names.’

‘But I’ll guess them - so much the better.’

‘Listen, then. Two gay young men are out driving ...’⁴

‘Officers from your regiment, naturally.’

‘I’m not saying officers, simply two young men after lunch ...’

‘Translate: slightly drunk.’

‘Maybe so. They’re going to their friend’s for dinner, in the gayest spirits. They see a pretty young woman overtake them in a cab, look back and, so at least it seems to them, nod to them and laugh. Naturally, they go after her. They drive at full speed. To their surprise, the beauty stops at the entrance to the same house they’re going to. The beauty runs upstairs. They see only red lips under a short veil and beautiful little feet.’

‘You’re telling it with such feeling that I suppose you were one of the two yourself.’

‘And what did you say to me just now? Well, the young men go to their friend, he’s having a farewell dinner. Here they do indeed drink, maybe too much, as is usual at farewell dinners. And over dinner they ask who lives upstairs in that house. Nobody knows, and only the host’s footman, to their question whether any mamzelles live upstairs, answers that there are lots of them there. After dinner the young men go to the host’s study and write a letter to the unknown woman. They write a passionate letter, a declaration, and take the letter upstairs themselves, to explain in case the letter isn’t quite clear.’

‘Why do you tell me such vile things? Well?’

‘They ring. A maid comes out. They hand her the letter and assure the maid that they’re both so much in love that they’re going to die right there on the doorstep. The maid, quite perplexed, conveys the message. Suddenly there appears a gentleman with sausage-shaped side-whiskers, red as a lobster, who announces to them that no one lives in the house except his wife, and throws them both out.’

‘And how do you know his side-whiskers are sausage-shaped, as you say?’

‘Just listen. Today I went to try and make peace between them.’

‘Well, and what then?’

‘Here’s the most interesting part. It turned out that they’re a happy titular councillor and councilloress.⁵ The titular councillor lodges a complaint, and I act as the make-peace - and what a one! I assure you, Talleyrand⁶ has nothing on me.’

‘So what’s the difficulty?’

‘Listen now ... We apologized properly: “We are in despair, we beg you to forgive us this unfortunate misunderstanding.” The titular councillor with the little sausages begins to soften, but he also wants to express his feelings, and as soon as he starts expressing them, he starts getting excited and saying rude things, and I again have to employ all my diplomatic talents. “I agree that they did not behave nicely, but I beg you to consider the misunderstanding and their youth; then, too, the young men had just had lunch. You understand. They repent with all their soul, they beg to be forgiven their fault.” The titular councillor softens again: “I agree, Count, and I’m ready to forgive them, but you understand that my wife, my wife, an honourable woman, has been subjected to the pursuit, rudeness and brazenness of some boys, scound ...” And, remember, one of the boys is right there, and I’m supposed to make peace between them. Again I use diplomacy, and again, as soon as the whole affair is about to be concluded, my titular councillor gets excited, turns red, the little sausages bristle, and again I dissolve into diplomatic subtleties.’

‘Ah, this I must tell you!’ Betsy, laughing, addressed a lady who was entering her box. ‘He’s made me laugh so!’

‘Well, bonne chance,’ⁱ she added, giving Vronsky a free finger of the hand holding her fan, and lowering the slightly ridden-up bodice of her dress with a movement of her shoulders, so as to be well and properly naked when she stepped out to the foot of the stage under the gaslights and under everyone’s eyes.