Book Six: 1808-10 - Chapter XIV

by Leo Tolstoy

　　On the thirty-first of December, New Year's Eve, 1809 - 10 an oldgrandee of Catherine's day was giving a ball and midnight supper.The diplomatic corps and the Emperor himself were to be present.

　　The grandee's well-known mansion on the English Quay glitteredwith innumerable lights. Police were stationed at the brightly litentrance which was carpeted with red baize, and not only gendarmes butdozens of police officers and even the police master himself stoodat the porch. Carriages kept driving away and fresh ones arriving,with red-liveried footmen and footmen in plumed hats. From thecarriages emerged men wearing uniforms, stars, and ribbons, whileladies in satin and ermine cautiously descended the carriage stepswhich were let down for them with a clatter, and then walked hurriedlyand noiselessly over the baize at the entrance.

　　Almost every time a new carriage drove up a whisper ran throughthe crowd and caps were doffed.

　　"The Emperor?... No, a minister.... prince... ambassador. Don'tyou see the plumes?..." was whispered among the crowd.

　　One person, better dressed than the rest, seemed to know everyoneand mentioned by name the greatest dignitaries of the day.

　　A third of the visitors had already arrived, but the Rostovs, whowere to be present, were still hurrying to get dressed.

　　There had been many discussions and preparations for this ball inthe Rostov family, many fears that the invitation would not arrive,that the dresses would not be ready, or that something would not bearranged as it should be.

　　Marya Ignatevna Peronskaya, a thin and shallow maid of honor atthe court of the Dowager Empress, who was a friend and relation of thecountess and piloted the provincial Rostovs in Petersburg highsociety, was to accompany them to the ball.

　　They were to call for her at her house in the Taurida Gardens at teno'clock, but it was already five minutes to ten, and the girls werenot yet dressed.

　　Natasha was going to her first grand ball. She had got up at eightthat morning and had been in a fever of excitement and activity allday. All her powers since morning had been concentrated on ensuringthat they all- she herself, Mamma, and Sonya- should be as welldressed as possible. Sonya and her mother put themselves entirely inher hands. The countess was to wear a claret-colored velvet dress, andthe two girls white gauze over pink silk slips, with roses on theirbodices and their hair dressed a la grecque.

　　Everything essential had already been done; feet, hands, necks,and ears washed, perfumed, and powdered, as befits a ball; theopenwork silk stockings and white satin shoes with ribbons werealready on; the hairdressing was almost done. Sonya was finishingdressing and so was the countess, but Natasha, who had bustled abouthelping them all, was behindhand. She was still sitting before alooking-glass with a dressing jacket thrown over her slendershoulders. Sonya stood ready dressed in the middle of the room and,pressing the head of a pin till it hurt her dainty finger, wasfixing on a last ribbon that squeaked as the pin went through it.

　　"That's not the way, that's not the way, Sonya!" cried Natashaturning her head and clutching with both hands at her hair which themaid who was dressing it had not time to release. "That bow is notright. Come here!"

　　Sonya sat down and Natasha pinned the ribbon on differently.

　　"Allow me, Miss! I can't do it like that," said the maid who washolding Natasha's hair.

　　"Oh, dear! Well then, wait. That's right, Sonya."

　　"Aren't you ready? It is nearly ten," came the countess' voice.

　　"Directly! Directly! And you, Mamma?"

　　"I have only my cap to pin on."

　　"Don't do it without me!" called Natasha. "You won't do it right."

　　"But it's already ten."

　　They had decided to be at the ball by half past ten, and Natasha hadstill to get dressed and they had to call at the Taurida Gardens.

　　When her hair was done, Natasha, in her short petticoat from underwhich her dancing shoes showed, and in her mother's dressing jacket,ran up to Sonya, scrutinized her, and then ran to her mother.Turning her mother's head this way and that, she fastened on the capand, hurriedly kissing her gray hair, ran back to the maids who wereturning up the hem of her skirt.

　　The cause of the delay was Natasha's skirt, which was too long.Two maids were turning up the hem and hurriedly biting off the ends ofthread. A third with pins in her mouth was running about between thecountess and Sonya, and a fourth held the whole of the gossamergarment up high on one uplifted hand.

　　"Mavra, quicker, darling!"

　　"Give me my thimble, Miss, from there..."

　　"Whenever will you be ready?" asked the count coming to the door."Here is here is some scent. Peronskaya must be tired of waiting."

　　"It's ready, Miss," said the maid, holding up the shortened gauzedress with two fingers, and blowing and shaking something off it, asif by this to express a consciousness of the airiness and purity ofwhat she held.

　　Natasha began putting on the dress.

　　"In a minute! In a minute! Don't come in, Papa!" she cried to herfather as he opened the door- speaking from under the filmy skirtwhich still covered her whole face.

　　Sonya slammed the door to. A minute later they let the count in.He was wearing a blue swallow-tail coat, shoes and stockings, andwas perfumed and his hair pomaded.

　　"Oh, Papa! how nice you look! Charming!" cried Natasha, as she stoodin the middle of the room smoothing out the folds of the gauze.

　　"If you please, Miss! allow me," said the maid, who on her knees waspulling the skirt straight and shifting the pins from one side ofher mouth to the other with her tongue.

　　"Say what you like," exclaimed Sonya, in a despairing voice as shelooked at Natasha, "say what you like, it's still too long."

　　Natasha stepped back to look at herself in the pier glass. The dresswas too long.

　　"Really, madam, it is not at all too long," said Mavra, crawlingon her knees after her young lady.

　　"Well, if it's too long we'll take it up... we'll tack it up inone minute," said the resolute Dunyasha taking a needle that was stuckon the front of her little shawl and, still kneeling on the floor, setto work once more.

　　At that moment, with soft steps, the countess came in shyly, inher cap and velvet gown.

　　"Oo-oo, my beauty!" exclaimed the count, "she looks better thanany of you!"

　　He would have embraced her but, blushing, she stepped asidefearing to be rumpled.

　　"Mamma, your cap, more to this side," said Natasha. "I'll arrangeit," and she rushed forward so that the maids who were tacking upher skirt could not move fast enough and a piece of gauze was tornoff.

　　"Oh goodness! What has happened? Really it was not my fault!"

　　"Never mind, I'll run it up, it won't show," said Dunyasha.

　　"What a beauty- a very queen!" said the nurse as she came to thedoor. "And Sonya! They are lovely!"

　　At a quarter past ten they at last got into their carriages andstarted. But they had still to call at the Taurida Gardens.

　　Peronskaya was quite ready. In spite of her age and plainness shehad gone through the same process as the Rostovs, but with lessflurry- for to her it was a matter of routine. Her ugly old body waswashed, perfumed, and powdered in just the same way. She had washedbehind her ears just as carefully, and when she entered her drawingroom in her yellow dress, wearing her badge as maid of honor, herold lady's maid was as full of rapturous admiration as the Rostovs'servants had been.

　　She praised the Rostovs' toilets. They praised her taste and toilet,and at eleven o'clock, careful of their coiffures and dresses, theysettled themselves in their carriages and drove off.