ts.... We've dropped behind the peasants--that's an axiom. I believe
you are laughing, Karamazov?"

"No, Heaven forbid, I am listening," said Alyosha with a most good-natured
air, and the sensitive Kolya was immediately reassured.

"My theory, Karamazov, is clear and simple," he hurried on again, looking
pleased. "I believe in the people and am always glad to give them their
due, but I am not for spoiling them, that is a _sine qua non_ ... But I
was telling you about the goose. So I turned to the fool and answered, 'I
am wondering what the goose thinks about.' He looked at me quite stupidly,
'And what does the goose think about?' he asked. 'Do you see that cart
full of oats?' I said. 'The oats are dropping out of the sack, and the
goose has put its neck right under the wheel to gobble them up--do you
see?' 'I see that quite well,' he said. 'Well,' said I, 'if that cart were
to move on a little, would it break the goose's neck or not?' 'It'd be
sure to break it,' and he grinned all over his face, highly delighted.
'Come on, then,' said I, 'let's try.' 'Let's,' he said. And it did not
take us long to arrange: he stood at the bridle without being noticed, and
I stood on one side to direct the goose. And the owner wasn't looking, he
was talking to some one, so I had nothing to do, the goose thrust its head
in after the oats of itself, under the cart, just under the wheel. I
winked at the lad, he tugged at the bridle, and crack. The goose's neck
was broken in half. And, as luck would have it, all the peasants saw us at
that moment and they kicked up a shindy at once. 'You did that on
purpose!' 'No, not on purpose.' 'Yes, you did, on purpose!' Well, they
shouted, 'Take him to the justice of the peace!' They took me, too. 'You
were there, too,' they said, 'you helped, you're known all over the
market!' And, for some reason, I really am known all over the market,"
Kolya added conceitedly. "We all went off to the justice's, they brought
the goose, too. The fellow was crying in a great funk, simply blubbering
like a woman. And the farmer kept shouting that you could kill any number
of geese like that. Well, of course, there were witnesses. The justice of
the peace settled it in a minute, that the farmer was to be paid a rouble
for the goose, and the fellow to have the goose. And he was warned not to
play such pranks again. And the fellow kept blubbering like a woman. 'It
wasn't me,' he said, 'it was he egged me on,' and he pointed