n's letter on the drawing-room table; but she
was not only afraid to speak of it and ask Dessalles the reason of his
confusion and silence, but was afraid even to think about it.

In the evening Michael Ivanovich, sent by the prince, came to Princess
Mary for Prince Andrew's letter which had been forgotten in the drawing
room. She gave it to him and, unpleasant as it was to her to do so,
ventured to ask him what her father was doing.

"Always busy," replied Michael Ivanovich with a respectfully ironic
smile which caused Princess Mary to turn pale. "He's worrying very much
about the new building. He has been reading a little, but now"--Michael
Ivanovich went on, lowering his voice--"now he's at his desk, busy with
his will, I expect." (One of the prince's favorite occupations of late
had been the preparation of some papers he meant to leave at his death
and which he called his "will.")

"And Alpatych is being sent to Smolensk?" asked Princess Mary.

"Oh, yes, he has been waiting to start for some time."

CHAPTER III

When Michael Ivanovich returned to the study with the letter, the old
prince, with spectacles on and a shade over his eyes, was sitting at his
open bureau with screened candles, holding a paper in his
outstretched hand, and in a somewhat dramatic attitude was reading his
manuscript--his "Remarks" as he termed it--which was to be transmitted
to the Emperor after his death.

When Michael Ivanovich went in there were tears in the prince's eyes
evoked by the memory of the time when the paper he was now reading had
been written. He took the letter from Michael Ivanovich's hand, put it
in his pocket, folded up his papers, and called in Alpatych who had long
been waiting.

The prince had a list of things to be bought in Smolensk and, walking
up and down the room past Alpatych who stood by the door, he gave his
instructions.

"First, notepaper--do you hear? Eight quires, like this sample,
gilt-edged... it must be exactly like the sample. Varnish, sealing wax,
as in Michael Ivanovich's list."

He paced up and down for a while and glanced at his notes.

"Then hand to the governor in person a letter about the deed."

Next, bolts for the doors of the new building were wanted and had to be
of a special shape the prince had himself designed, and a leather case
had to be ordered to keep the "will" in.

The instructions to Alpatych took over two hours and still the prince
did not let him go. He sat