, because
she was awed by it, hated it in her child, because she could neither
bend it nor influence it, nor make it express any of that exuberant
affection which Alexander so easily felt. Both boys had inherited from
their father a goodly share of the Slav element, but, finding very
different ground upon which to work in the natures of the two brothers,
the strong Russian individuality had developed in widely different ways.
In Alexander were expressed all the wild extremes of mood of which the
true Russian is so eminently capable; all the overflowing and
uncultivated talent and love of art and beauty, which in Russia brings
forth so much that approaches indefinitely near to genius without ever
quite reaching it. In Paul the effect of the Slavonic blood was totally
opposite, and showed itself in that strange stolidity, that cold and
ruthless exercise of force and pursuance of conviction, which have
characterized so many Russian generals, so many Russian monarchs, and
which have produced also so many Russian martyrs. There is something
fateful in that terrible sternness, something which very well excites
horror while imposing respect, and especially when forced to submit to
superior force; and when vanquished, there is something grand in the
capacity such a character possesses for submitting to destiny, and
bearing the extremest suffering.

It was clear enough that there could never be any love lost between two
such men, and I was curious to see their meeting. I wondered whether
each would fall upon the other's neck and shed tears of rejoicing, or
whether they would shake hands and express their satisfaction more
formally. In looking forward to the scene which was soon to take place,
I almost wished that Paul might have accompanied us in the disguise of a
second adjutant, and thus have had a hand in the final stroke by which
we had effected Alexander's liberation. But I knew that he would only
have been in the way, and that, considering the whole situation, we had
done wisely. The least mistake on his part might have led to a struggle
inside the Khanum's house, and we had good cause to congratulate
ourselves upon having freed the prisoner without shedding blood. There
was something pleasantly ludicrous in the thought that all our
anticipations of a fight had ended in that one solemn kick with which
Balsamides had consigned Selim to the prison whence we had taken
Alexander.

I was giving the latter a few more details o