Book Five: 1806-07 - Chapter XIX

by Leo Tolstoy

　　Having returned to the regiment and told the commander the stateof Denisov's affairs, Rostov rode to Tilsit with the letter to theEmperor.

　　On the thirteenth of June the French and Russian Emperors arrived inTilsit. Boris Drubetskoy had asked the important personage on whomhe was in attendance, to include him in the suite appointed for thestay at Tilsit.

　　"I should like to see the great man," he said, alluding to Napoleon,whom hitherto he, like everyone else, had always called Buonaparte.

　　"You are speaking of Buonaparte?" asked the general, smiling.

　　Boris looked at his general inquiringly and immediately saw thathe was being tested.

　　"I am speaking, Prince, of the Emperor Napoleon," he replied. Thegeneral patted him on the shoulder, with a smile.

　　"You will go far," he said, and took him to Tilsit with him.

　　Boris was among the few present at the Niemen on the day the twoEmperors met. He saw the raft, decorated with monograms, sawNapoleon pass before the French Guards on the farther bank of theriver, saw the pensive face of the Emperor Alexander as he sat insilence in a tavern on the bank of the Niemen awaiting Napoleon'sarrival, saw both Emperors get into boats, and saw how Napoleon-reaching the raft first- stepped quickly forward to meet Alexander andheld out his hand to him, and how they both retired into the pavilion.Since he had begun to move in the highest circles Boris had made ithis habit to watch attentively all that went on around him and to noteit down. At the time of the meeting at Tilsit he asked the names ofthose who had come with Napoleon and about the uniforms they wore, andlistened attentively to words spoken by important personages. At themoment the Emperors went into the pavilion he looked at his watch, anddid not forget to look at it again when Alexander came out. Theinterview had lasted an hour and fifty-three minutes. He noted thisdown that same evening, among other facts he felt to be of historicimportance. As the Emperor's suite was a very small one, it was amatter of great importance, for a man who valued his success in theservice, to be at Tilsit on the occasion of this interview between thetwo Emperors, and having succeeded in this, Boris felt that henceforthhis position was fully assured. He had not only become known, butpeople had grown accustomed to him and accepted him. Twice he hadexecuted commissions to the Emperor himself, so that the latter knewhis face, and all those at court, far from cold-shouldering him asat first when they considered him a newcomer, would now have beensurprised had he been absent.

　　Boris lodged with another adjutant, the Polish Count Zhilinski.Zhilinski, a Pole brought up in Paris, was rich, and passionately fondof the French, and almost every day of the stay at Tilsit, Frenchofficers of the Guard and from French headquarters were dining andlunching with him and Boris.

　　On the evening of the twenty-fourth of June, Count Zhilinskiarranged a supper for his French friends. The guest of honor was anaide-de-camp of Napoleon's, there were also several French officers ofthe Guard, and a page of Napoleon's, a young lad of an oldaristocratic French family. That same day, Rostov, profiting by thedarkness to avoid being recognized in civilian dress. came to Tilsitand went to the lodging occupied by Boris and Zhilinski.

　　Rostov, in common with the whole army from which he came, was farfrom having experienced the change of feeling toward Napoleon andthe French- who from being foes had suddenly become friends- thathad taken place at headquarters and in Boris. In the army, Bonaparteand the French were still regarded with mingled feelings of anger,contempt, and fear. Only recently, talking with one of Platov'sCossack officers, Rostov had argued that if Napoleon were takenprisoner he would be treated not as a sovereign, but as a criminal.Quite lately, happening to meet a wounded French colonel on theroad, Rostov had maintained with heat that peace was impossiblebetween a legitimate sovereign and the criminal Bonaparte. Rostovwas therefore unpleasantly struck by the presence of French officersin Boris' lodging, dressed in uniforms he had been accustomed to seefrom quite a different point of view from the outposts of the flank.As soon as he noticed a French officer, who thrust his head out of thedoor, that warlike feeling of hostility which he always experienced atthe sight of the enemy suddenly seized him. He stopped at thethreshold and asked in Russian whether Drubetskoy lived there.Boris, hearing a strange voice in the anteroom, came out to meethim. An expression of annoyance showed itself for a moment on his faceon first recognizing Rostov.

　　"Ah, it's you? Very glad, very glad to see you," he said, however,coming toward him with a smile. But Rostov had noticed his firstimpulse.

　　"I've come at a bad time I think. I should not have come, but I havebusiness," he said coldly.

　　"No, I only wonder how you managed to get away from your regiment.Dans un moment je suis a vous,"* he said, answering someone who calledhim.

　　*"In a minute I shall be at your disposal."

　　"I see I'm intruding," Rostov repeated.

　　The look of annoyance had already disappeared from Boris' face:having evidently reflected and decided how to act, he very quietlytook both Rostov's hands and led him into the next room. His eyes,looking serenely and steadily at Rostov, seemed to be veiled bysomething, as if screened by blue spectacles of conventionality. So itseemed to Rostov.

　　"Oh, come now! As if you could come at a wrong time!" said Boris,and he led him into the room where the supper table was laid andintroduced him to his guests, explaining that he was not a civilian,but an hussar officer, and an old friend of his.

　　"Count Zhilinski- le Comte N. N.- le Capitaine S. S.," said he,naming his guests. Rostov looked frowningly at the Frenchmen, bowedreluctantly, and remained silent.

　　Zhilinski evidently did not receive this new Russian person verywillingly into his circle and did not speak to Rostov. Boris did notappear to notice the constraint the newcomer produced and, with thesame pleasant composure and the same veiled look in his eyes withwhich he had met Rostov, tried to enliven the conversation. One of theFrenchmen, with the politeness characteristic of his countrymen,addressed the obstinately taciturn Rostov, saying that the latterhad probably come to Tilsit to see the Emperor.

　　"No, I came on business," replied Rostov, briefly.

　　Rostov had been out of humor from the moment he noticed the lookof dissatisfaction on Boris' face, and as always happens to those in abad humor, it seemed to him that everyone regarded him with aversionand that he was in everybody's way. He really was in their way, for healone took no part in the conversation which again became general. Thelooks the visitors cast on him seemed to say: "And what is hesitting here for?" He rose and went up to Boris.

　　"Anyhow, I'm in your way," he said in a low tone. "Come and talkover my business and I'll go away."

　　"Oh, no, not at all," said Boris. "But if you are tired, come andlie down in my room and have a rest."

　　"Yes, really..."

　　They went into the little room where Boris slept. Rostov, withoutsitting down, began at once, irritably (as if Boris were to blame insome way) telling him about Denisov's affair, asking him whether,through his general, he could and would intercede with the Emperoron Denisov's behalf and get Denisov's petition handed in. When heand Boris were alone, Rostov felt for the first time that he could notlook Boris in the face without a sense of awkwardness. Boris, with oneleg crossed over the other and stroking his left hand with the slenderfingers of his right, listened to Rostov as a general listens to thereport of a subordinate, now looking aside and now gazing straightinto Rostov's eyes with the same veiled look. Each time thishappened Rostov felt uncomfortable and cast down his eyes.

　　"I have heard of such cases and know that His Majesty is very severein such affairs. I think it would be best not to bring it before theEmperor, but to apply to the commander of the corps.... But ingeneral, I think..."

　　"So you don't want to do anything? Well then, say so!" Rostov almostshouted, not looking Boris in the face.

　　Boris smiled.

　　"On the contrary, I will do what I can. Only I thought..."

　　At that moment Zhilinski's voice was heard calling Boris.

　　"Well then, go, go, go..." said Rostov, and refusing supper andremaining alone in the little room, he walked up and down for a longtime, hearing the lighthearted French conversation from the next room.