our Lord Christ; I will burn incense and in the morning wewill converse. Morning, you know, brings wisdom.'
"Well, we did converse in the morning, only I was almost stifled bythat incense. And this was the counsel the old man gave me: that whenI reached Belyov I should go into the market place and ask in thesecond shop on the right for one Prohoritch, and when I had foundProhoritch, put into his hand a writing and the writing consisted of ascrap of paper, on which stood the following words: 'In the name ofthe Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. Amen. To Sergey ProhorovitchPervushin. Trust this man. Feduly Ivanitch.' And below, 'Send thecabbages, for God's sake.'
"I thanked the old man and without further discussion ordered mycarriage and drove to Belyov. For I reflected, that though I sufferedno harm from my nocturnal visitor, yet it was uncanny and in fact notquite the thing for a nobleman and an officer--what do you think?"
"And did you really go to Belyov?" murmured Finoplentov.
"Straight to Belyov. I went into the market place and asked at thesecond shop on the right for Prohoritch. 'Is there such a person?' Iasked. 'Yes,' they told me. 'And where does he live?' 'By the Oka,beyond the market gardens.' 'In whose house?' 'In his own.' I went tothe Oka, found his house, though it was really not a house but simplya hovel. I saw a man wearing a blue patched coat and a ragged cap,well ... he looked like a working-man, he was standing with his backto me, digging among his cabbages. I went up to him. 'Are you so andso?' I said. He turned round and, I tell you the truth, I have neverseen such piercing eyes in my life. Yet the whole face was shrunk uplike a little fist with a little wedge-shaped beard and sunken lips.He was an old man. 'I am so and so,' he said. 'What are you_needing_?' 'Why, this is what I am _needing_,' I said, andput the writing in his hand. He looked at me intently and said: 'Comeindoors, I can't read without spectacles.'
"Well, I went with him into his hut--and a hut it certainly was: poor,bare, crooked; only just holding together. On the wall there was anikon of old workmanship as black as a coal; only the whites of theeyes gleamed in the faces. He took some round spectacles in ironframes out of a little table, put them on his nose, read the writingand looked at me again through the spectacles. 'You have need of me?''I certainly have,' I answered. 'Well,' said he, 'if you have, tell itand we will listen.' And, only fancy, he sat down and took a checkedhandkerchief out of his pocket, and spread it out on his knee, and thehandkerchief was full of holes, and he looked at me with as muchdignity as though he were a senator or a minister, and he did notask me to sit down. And what was still stranger, I felt all at onceawe-stricken, so awe-stricken ... my soul sank into my heels. Hepierced me through with his eyes and that's the fact! I pulled myselftogether, however, and told him all my story. He was silent for aspace, shrank into himself, chewed his lips and then questioned mejust like a senator again, majestically, without haste. 'What is yourname?' he asked. 'Your age? What were your parents? Are you single ormarried?' Then again he munched his lips, frowned, held up his fingerand spoke: 'Bow down to the holy ikon, to the honourable SaintsZossima and Savvaty of Solovki.' I bowed down to the earth and did notget up in a hurry; I felt such awe for the man and such submissionthat I believe that whatever he had told me to do I should have doneit on the spot! ... I see you are grinning, gentlemen, but I was in nolaughing mood then, I assure you. 'Get up, sir,' said he at last. 'Ican help you. This is not sent you as a chastisement, but as awarning; it is for your protection; someone is praying for yourwelfare. Go to the market now and buy a young dog and keep it by youday and night. Your visions will leave you and, moreover, that dogwill be of use to you.'
"I felt as though light dawned upon me, all at once; how those wordsdelighted me. I bowed down to Prohoritch and would have gone away,when I bethought me that I could not go away without rewarding him. Igot a three rouble note out of my pocket. But he thrust my hand awayand said, 'Give it to our chapel, or to the poor; the service I havedone you is not to be paid for.' I bowed down to him again almost tothe ground, and set off straight for the market! And only fancy: assoon as I drew near the shops, lo and behold, a man in a friezeovercoat comes sauntering towards me carrying under his arm a twomonths' old setter puppy with a reddish brown coat, white lips andwhite forepaws. 'Stay,' I said to the man in the overcoat, 'what willyou sell it for?' 'For two roubles.' Take three!' The man looked at mein amazement, thought the gentleman had gone out of his wits, but Iflung the notes in his face, took the pup under my arm and made for mycarriage! The coachman quickly had the horses harnessed and thatevening I reached home. The puppy sat inside my coat all the way anddid not stir; and I kept calling him, 'Little Tresor! Little Tresor!'I gave him food and drink at once. I had some straw brought in,settled him and whisked into bed! I blew out the candle: it was dark.'Well, now begin,' said I. There was silence. 'Begin,' said I, 'you soand so!'... Not a sound, as though to mock me. Well, I began to feelso set up that I fell to calling it all sorts of names. But stillthere was not a sound! I could only hear the puppy panting! Filka,' Icried, 'Filka! Come here, you stupid!' He came in. 'Do you hear thedog?' 'No, sir,' said he, 'I hear nothing,' and he laughed. 'And youwon't hear it ever again,' said I. 'Here's half a rouble for vodka!''Let me kiss your hand,' said the foolish fellow, and he stooped downto me in the darkness.... It was a great relief, I must tell you."
"And was that how it all ended?" asked Anton Stepanitch, this timewithout irony.
"The apparitions ended certainly and I was not disturbed in any way,but wait a bit, the whole business was not over yet. My Tresor grew,he turned into a fine fellow. He was heavy, with flopping ears andoverhanging lip and a thick tail; a regular sporting dog. And he wasextremely attached to me, too. The shooting in our district is poor,however, as I had set up a dog, I got a gun, too. I took to saunteringround the neighbourhood with my Tresor: sometimes one would hit a hare(and didn't he go after that hare, upon my soul), sometimes a quail,or a duck. But the great thing was that Tresor was never a step awayfrom me. Where I went, he went; I even took him to the bath with me, Idid really! One lady actually tried to get me turned out of herdrawing-room on account of Tresor, but I made such an uproar! Thewindows I broke! Well, one day ... it was in summer ... and I musttell you there was a drought at the time such as nobody remembered.The air was full of smoke or haze. There was a smell of burning, thesun was like a molten bullet, and as for the dust there was no gettingit out of one's nose and throat. People walked with their mouths wideopen like crows. I got weary of sitting at home in completedeshabille, with shutters closed; and luckily the heat was beginningto abate a little.... So I went off, gentlemen, to see a lady, aneighbour of mine. She lived about three-quarters of a mile away--andshe certainly was a benevolent lady. She was still young and bloomingand of most prepossessing appearance; but she was of rather uncertaintemper. Though that is no harm in the fair sex; it even gives mepleasure.... Well, I reached her door, and I did feel that I had had ahot time of it getting there! Well, I thought, Nimfodora Semyonovnawill regale me now with bilberry water and other cooling drinks--and Ihad already taken hold of the doorhandle when all at once there wasthe tramping of feet and shrieking, and shouting of boys from roundthe corner of a hut in the courtyard.... I looked round. Good heavens!A huge reddish beast was rushing straight towards me; at the firstglance I did not recognise it as a dog: its jaws were open, its eyeswere bloodshot, its coat was bristling.... I had not time to takebreath before the monster bounded up the steps, stood upon its hindlegs and made straight for my chest--it was a position! I was numbwith terror and could not lift my arms. I was completely stupefied....I could see nothing but the terrible white tusks just before my nose,the red tongue all covered with white foam. But at the same instant,another dark body was whisking before me like a ball--it was mydarling Tresor defending me; and he hung like a leech on the brute'sthroat! The creature wheezed, grated its teeth and staggered back. Iinstantly flung open the door and got into the hall.... I stood hardlyknowing what I was doing with my whole weight on the door, and heard adesperate battle going on outside. I b
egan shouting and calling forhelp; everyone in the house was terribly upset. Nimfodora Semyonovnaran out with her hair down, the voices in the yard grew louder--andall at once I heard: 'Hold the gate, hold it, fasten it!' I opened thedoor--just a crack, and looked out: the monster was no longer on thesteps, the servants were rushing about the yard in confusion wavingtheir hands and picking up bits of wood from the ground; they werequite crazy. 'To the village, it has run off to the village,' shriekeda peasant woman in a cap of
Knock, Knock, Knock and Other Stories Page 24
