Part Six: Chapter 17

by Leo Tolstoy

　　The coachman pulled up his four horses and looked round to theright, to a field of rye, where some peasants were sitting on acart. The counting house clerk was just going to jump down, buton second thoughts he shouted peremptorily to the peasantsinstead, and beckoned to them to come up. The wind, that seemedto blow as they drove, dropped when the carriage stood still;gadflies settled on the steaming horses that angrily shook themoff. The metallic clank of a whetstone against a scythe, thatcame to them from the cart, ceased. One of the peasants got upand came towards the carriage.

　　"Well, you are slow!" the counting house clerk shouted angrily tothe peasant who was stepping slowly with his bare feet over theruts of the rough dry road. "Come along, do!"

　　A curly-headed old man with a bit of bast tied round his hair,and his bent back dark with perspiration, came towards thecarriage, quickening his steps, and took hold of the mud-guardwith his sunburnt hand.

　　"Vozdvizhenskoe, the manor house? the count's?" he repeated; "goon to the end of this track. Then turn to the left. Straightalong the avenue and you'll come right upon it. But whom do youwant? The count himself?"

　　"Well, are they at home, my good man?" Darya Alexandrovna saidvaguely, not knowing how to ask about Anna, even of this peasant.

　　"At home for sure," said the peasant, shifting from one bare footto the other, and leaving a distinct print of five toes and aheel in the dust. "Sure to be at home," he repeated, evidentlyeager to talk. "Only yesterday visitors arrived. There's asight of visitors come. What do you want?" He turned round andcalled to a lad, who was shouting something to him from the cart."Oh! They all rode by here not long since, to look at a reapingmachine. They'll be home by now. And who will you be belongingto?..."

　　"We've come a long way," said the coachman, climbing onto thebox. "So it's not far?"

　　"I tell you, it's just here. As soon as you get out..." he said,keeping hold all the while of the carriage.

　　A healthy-looking, broad-shouldered young fellow came up too.

　　"What, is it laborers they want for the harvest?" he asked.

　　"I don't know, my boy."

　　"So you keep to the left, and you'll come right on it," said thepeasant, unmistakably loth to let the travelers go, and eager toconverse.

　　The coachman started the horses, but they were only just turningoff when the peasant shouted: "Stop! Hi, friend! Stop!" calledthe two voices. The coachman stopped.

　　"They're coming! They're yonder!" shouted the peasant. "Seewhat a turn-out!" he said, pointing to four persons on horseback,and two in a char-a-banc, coming along the road.

　　They were Vronsky with a jockey, Veslovsky and Anna on horseback,and Princess Varvara and Sviazhsky in the char-a-banc. They hadgone out to look at the working of a new reaping machine.

　　When the carriage stopped, the party on horseback were coming ata walking pace. Anna was in front beside Veslovsky. Anna,quietly walking her horse, a sturdy English cob with cropped maneand short tail, her beautiful head with her black hair strayingloose under her high hat, her full shoulders, her slender waistin her black riding habit, and all the ease and grace of herdeportment, impressed Dolly.

　　For the first minute it seemed to her unsuitable for Anna to beon horseback. The conception of riding on horseback for a ladywas, in Darya Alexandrovna's mind, associated with ideas ofyouthful flirtation and frivolity, which, in her opinion, wasunbecoming in Anna's position. But when she had scrutinized her,seeing her closer, she was at once reconciled to her riding. Inspite of her elegance, everything was so simple, quiet, anddignified in the attitude, the dress and the movements of Anna,that nothing could have been more natural.

　　Beside Anna, on a hot-looking gray cavalry horse, was VassenkaVeslovsky in his Scotch cap with floating ribbons, his stoutlegs stretched out in front, obviously pleased with his ownappearance. Darya Alexandrovna could not suppress a good-humoredsmile as she recognized him. Behind rode Vronsky on a dark baymare, obviously heated from galloping. He was holding her in,pulling at the reins.

　　After him rode a little man in the dress of a jockey. Sviazhskyand Princess Varvara in a new char-a-banc with a big, raven-blacktrotting horse, overtook the party on horseback.

　　Anna's face suddenly beamed with a joyful smile at the instantwhen, in the little figure huddled in a corner of the oldcarriage, she recognized Dolly. She uttered a cry, started inthe saddle, and set her horse into a gallop. On reaching thecarriage she jumped off without assistance, and holding up herriding habit, she ran up to greet Dolly.

　　"I thought it was you and dared not think it. How delightful!You can't fancy how glad I am!" she said, at one moment pressingher face against Dolly and kissing her, and at the next holdingher off and examining her with a smile.

　　"Here's a delightful surprise, Alexey!" she said, looking roundat Vronsky, who had dismounted, and was walking towards them.

　　Vronsky, taking off his tall gray hat, went up to Dolly.

　　"You wouldn't believe how glad we are to see you," he said,giving peculiar significance to the words, and showing his strongwhite teeth in a smile.

　　Vassenka Veslovsky, without getting off his horse, took off hiscap and greeted the visitor by gleefully waving the ribbons overhis head.

　　"That's Princess Varvara," Anna said in reply to a glance ofinquiry from Dolly as the char-a-banc drove up.

　　"Ah!" said Darya Alexandrovna, and unconsciously her facebetrayed her dissatisfaction.

　　Princess Varvara was her husband's aunt, and she had long knownher, and did not respect her. She knew that Princess Varvara hadpassed her whole life toadying on her rich relations, but thatshe should now be sponging on Vronsky, a man who was nothing toher, mortified Dolly on account of her kinship with her husband.Anna noticed Dolly's expression, and was disconcerted by it. Sheblushed, dropped her riding habit, and stumbled over it.

　　Darya Alexandrovna went up to the char-a-banc and coldly greetedPrincess Varvara. Sviazhsky too she knew. He inquired how hisqueer friend with the young wife was, and running his eyes overthe ill-matched horses and the carriage with its patchedmud-guards, proposed to the ladies that they should get into thechar-a-banc.

　　"And I'll get into this vehicle," he said. "The horse is quiet,and the princess drives capitally."

　　"No, stay as you were," said Anna, coming up, "and we'll go inthe carriage," and taking Dolly's arm, she drew her away.

　　Darya Alexandrovna's eyes were fairly dazzled by the elegantcarriage of a pattern she had never seen before, the splendidhorses, and the elegant and gorgeous people surrounding her. Butwhat struck her most of all was the change that had taken placein Anna, whom she knew so well and loved. Any other woman, aless close observer, not knowing Anna before, or not havingthought as Darya Alexandrovna had been thinking on the road,would not have noticed anything special in Anna. But now Dollywas struck by that temporary beauty, which is only found inwomen during the moments of love, and which she saw now in Anna'sface. Everything in her face, the clearly marked dimples in hercheeks and chin, the line of her lips, the smile which, as itwere, fluttered about her face, the brilliance of her eyes, thegrace and rapidity of her move meets, the fulness of the notes ofher voice, even the manner in which, with a sort of angryfriendliness, she answered Veslovsky when he asked permission toget on her cob, so as to teach it to gallop with the right legforemost--it was all peculiarly fascinating, and it seemed as ifshe were herself aware of it, and rejoicing in it.

　　When both the women were seated in the carriage, a suddenembarrassment came over both of them. Anna was disconcerted bythe intent look of inquiry Dolly fixed upon her. Dolly wasembarrassed because after Sviazhsky's phrase about "thisvehicle," she could not help feeling ashamed of the dirty oldcarriage in which Anna was sitting with her. The coachman Philipand the counting house clerk were experiencing the samesensation. The counting house clerk, to conceal his confusion,busied himself settling the ladies, but Philip the coachmanbecame sullen, and was bracing himself not to be overawed infuture by this external superiority. He smiled ironically,looking at the raven horse, and was already deciding in his ownmind that this smart trotter in the char-a-banc was only good forpromenage, and wouldn't do thirty miles straight off in the heat.

　　The peasants had all got up from the cart and were inquisitivelyand mirthfully staring at the meeting of the friends, makingtheir comments on it.

　　"They're pleased, too; haven't seen each other for a long while,"said the curly-headed old man with the bast round his hair.

　　"I say, Uncle Gerasim, if we could take that raven horse now, tocart the corn, that 'ud be quick work!"

　　"Look-ee! Is that a woman in breeches?" said one of them,pointing to Vassenka Veslovsky sitting in a side saddle.

　　"Nay, a man! See how smartly he's going it!"

　　"Eh, lads! seems we're not going to sleep, then?"

　　"What chance of sleep today!" said the old man, with a sidelonglook at the sun. "Midday's past, look-ee! Get your hooks, andcome along!"