nd so also were the brutish peasants. It was a form of
chastisement which he had never before experienced, and knew not how to
resist. The affront of an entire community was an offence against which
he felt himself to be helpless.

As they approached the town, the demonstrations of insolence were
redoubled. About two hundred boys, between the ages of ten and fourteen,
awaited them on the hill below the church, forming themselves into files
on either side of the road. These imps had been instructed to stick
out their tongues in derision, and howl, as the carriage passed between
them. At the entrance of the long main street of Kinesma, they were
obliged to pass under a mock triumphal arch, hung with dead dogs and
drowned cats; and from this point the reception assumed an outrageous
character. Howls, hootings, and hisses were heard on all sides; bouquets
of nettles and vile weeds were flung to them; even wreaths of spoiled
fish dropped from the windows. The women were the most eager and
uproarious in this carnival of insult: they beat their saucepans, threw
pails of dirty water upon the horses, pelted the coachman with rotten
cabbages, and filled the air with screeching and foul words.

It was impossible to pass through this ordeal with indifference. Boris,
finding that his kindly greetings were thrown away,--that even his old
acquaintances in the bazaar howled like the rest,--sat with head bowed
and despair in his heart. The beautiful eyes of Helena were heavy with
tears; but she no longer trembled, for she knew the crisis was yet to
come.

As the kibitka slowly climbed the hill on its way to the castle-gate,
Prince Alexis, who had heard and enjoyed the noises in the village from
a balcony on the western tower, made his appearance on the head of the
steps which led from the court-yard to the state apartments. The dreaded
whip was in his hand; his eyes seemed about to start from their sockets,
in their wild, eager, hungry gaze; the veins stood out like cords on his
forehead; and his lips, twitching involuntarily, revealed the glare
of his set teeth. A frightened hush filled the castle. Some of the
domestics were on their knees; others watching, pale and breathless,
from the windows: for all felt that a greater storm than they had ever
experienced was about to burst. Sasha and the castle-steward had taken
the wise precaution to summon a physician and a priest, provided
with the utensils for extreme unction. Both of these