ly aflame, her eyes darkened
strangely, a smile hovered over her lips, something gracefully-bacchic
was disseminated all over her body. On arriving at home, Varvara
Pavlovna sprang lightly from the carriage,--only fashionable lionesses
know how to spring out in that way,--turned to Gedeonovsky, and suddenly
burst into a ringing laugh, straight in his face.

"A charming person,"--thought the State Councillor, as he wended his way
homeward to his lodgings, where his servant was awaiting him with a
bottle of eau de Cologne:--"it is well that I am a staid man ... only,
what was she laughing at?"

Marfa Timofeevna sat all night long by Liza's pillow.

XLI

Lavretzky spent a day and a half at Vasilievskoe, and during nearly the
whole of that time he wandered about the neighbourhood. He could not
remain long in one place: anguish gnawed him; he experienced all the
torture of incessant, impetuous, and impotent impulses. He recalled the
feeling which had taken possession of his soul on the day following his
arrival in the country; he recalled his intentions at that time, and
waxed very angry with himself. What could have torn him away from that
which he recognised as his duty, the sole task of his future? The thirst
for happiness--once more, the thirst for happiness!--"Obviously,
Mikhalevitch is right," he thought. "Thou hast wished once more to taste
of happiness in life,"--he said to himself,--"thou hast forgotten what a
luxury, what an unmerited mercy it is when it has visited a man even
once. It was not complete, thou wilt say? But put forth thy claims to
complete, genuine happiness! Look about thee: who of those around thee is
blissful, who enjoys himself? Yonder, a peasant is driving to the
reaping; perchance, he is satisfied with his lot.... What of that?
Wouldst thou change with him? Remember thy mother: how insignificantly
small were her demands, and what lot fell to her share? Thou hast,
evidently, only been bragging before Panshin, when thou saidst to him,
that thou hadst come to Russia in order to till the earth; thou hast come
in order to run after the girls in thine old age. The news of thy freedom
came, and thou didst discard everything, thou didst forget everything,
thou didst run like a little boy after a butterfly."... Liza's image
uninterruptedly presented itself before his thoughts; with an effort he
drove it away, as he did also another importunate image, other