, she
was of an uneasy character. As she considered that her life had been
ruined, she could not love her husband, who, "as a matter of course,"
did not understand her; but she respected, she tolerated him; and as she
was a thoroughly honest and perfectly cold being, she never once so much
as thought of any other "object." Moreover, she was constantly engrossed
by anxieties: in the first place, over her really feeble health; in the
second place, over the health of her husband, whose fits always inspired
her with something akin to superstitious terror; and, in conclusion,
over her only son, Misha, whom she reared herself with great zeal.
Andrei Nikolaevitch did not prevent his wife's busying herself with
Misha--but on one condition: she was never, under any circumstances, to
depart from the limits, which had been defined once for all, wherein
everything in his house must revolve! Thus, for example: during the
Christmas holidays and Vasily's evening preceding the New Year, Misha
was not only permitted to dress up in costume along with the other
"lads,"--doing so was even imposed upon him as an obligation....[4]
On the other hand, God forbid that he should do it at any other time!
And so forth, and so forth.

II

I remember this Misha at the age of thirteen. He was a very comely lad
with rosy little cheeks and soft little lips (and altogether he was soft
and plump), with somewhat prominent, humid eyes; carefully brushed and
coifed--a regular little girl!--There was only one thing about him which
displeased me: he laughed rarely; but when he did laugh his teeth, which
were large, white, and pointed like those of a wild animal, displayed
themselves unpleasantly; his very laugh had a sharp and even
fierce--almost brutal--ring to it; and evil flashes darted athwart his
eyes. His mother always boasted of his being so obedient and polite, and
that he was not fond of consorting with naughty boys, but always was
more inclined to feminine society.

"He is his mother's son, an effeminate fellow," his father, Andrei
Nikolaevitch, was wont to say of him:--"but, on the other hand, he
likes to go to God's church.... And that delights me."

Only one old neighbour, a former commissary of the rural police, once
said in my presence concerning Misha:--"Good gracious! he will turn out
a rebel." And I remember that that word greatly surprised me at the
time. The former commissary of police, it is true, had a habit of
descrying reb