Book Two: 1805 - Chapter XVI

by Leo Tolstoy

　　Having ridden round the whole line from right flank to left,Prince Andrew made his way up to the battery from which the staffofficer had told him the whole field could be seen. Here hedismounted, and stopped beside the farthest of the four unlimberedcannon. Before the guns an artillery sentry was pacing up and down; hestood at attention when the officer arrived, but at a sign resumed hismeasured, monotonous pacing. Behind the guns were their limbers andstill farther back picket ropes and artillerymen's bonfires. To theleft, not far from the farthest cannon, was a small, newly constructedwattle shed from which came the sound of officers' voices in eagerconversation.

　　It was true that a view over nearly the whole Russian position andthe greater part of the enemy's opened out from this battery. Justfacing it, on the crest of the opposite hill, the village of SchonGrabern could be seen, and in three places to left and right theFrench troops amid the smoke of their campfires, the greater part ofwhom were evidently in the village itself and behind the hill. Tothe left from that village, amid the smoke, was something resembling abattery, but it was impossible to see it clearly with the naked eye.Our right flank was posted on a rather steep incline which dominatedthe French position. Our infantry were stationed there, and at thefarthest point the dragoons. In the center, where Tushin's batterystood and from which Prince Andrew was surveying the position, was theeasiest and most direct descent and ascent to the brook separatingus from Schon Grabern. On the left our troops were close to a copse,in which smoked the bonfires of our infantry who were felling wood.The French line was wider than ours, and it was plain that theycould easily outflank us on both sides. Behind our position was asteep and deep dip, making it difficult for artillery and cavalry toretire. Prince Andrew took out his notebook and, leaning on thecannon, sketched a plan of the position. He made some notes on twopoints, intending to mention them to Bagration. His idea was, first,to concentrate all the artillery in the center, and secondly, towithdraw the cavalry to the other side of the dip. Prince Andrew,being always near the commander in chief, closely following the massmovements and general orders, and constantly studying historicalaccounts of battles, involuntarily pictured to himself the course ofevents in the forthcoming action in broad outline. He imagined onlyimportant possibilities: "If the enemy attacks the right flank," hesaid to himself, "the Kiev grenadiers and the Podolsk chasseurs musthold their position till reserves from the center come up. In thatcase the dragoons could successfully make a flank counterattack. Ifthey attack our center we, having the center battery on this highground, shall withdraw the left flank under its cover, and retreatto the dip by echelons." So he reasoned.... All the time he had beenbeside the gun, he had heard the voices of the officers distinctly,but as often happens had not understood a word of what they weresaying. Suddenly, however, he was struck by a voice coming from theshed, and its tone was so sincere that he could not but listen.

　　"No, friend," said a pleasant and, as it seemed to Prince Andrew,a familiar voice, "what I say is that if it were possible to know whatis beyond death, none of us would be afraid of it. That's so, friend."

　　Another, a younger voice, interrupted him: "Afraid or not, you can'tescape it anyhow."

　　"All the same, one is afraid! Oh, you clever people," said a thirdmanly voice interrupting them both. "Of course you artillery men arevery wise, because you can take everything along with you- vodka andsnacks."

　　And the owner of the manly voice, evidently an infantry officer,laughed.

　　"Yes, one is afraid," continued the first speaker, he of thefamiliar voice. "One is afraid of the unknown, that's what it is.Whatever we may say about the soul going to the sky... we know thereis no sky but only an atmosphere."

　　The manly voice again interrupted the artillery officer.

　　"Well, stand us some of your herb vodka, Tushin," it said.

　　"Why," thought Prince Andrew, "that's the captain who stood up inthe sutler's hut without his boots." He recognized the agreeable,philosophizing voice with pleasure.

　　"Some herb vodka? Certainly!" said Tushin. "But still, to conceive afuture life..."

　　He did not finish. Just then there was a whistle in the air;nearer and nearer, faster and louder, louder and faster, a cannonball, as if it had not finished saying what was necessary, thuddedinto the ground near the shed with super human force, throwing up amass of earth. The ground seemed to groan at the terrible impact.

　　And immediately Tushin, with a short pipe in the corner of his mouthand his kind, intelligent face rather pale, rushed out of the shedfollowed by the owner of the manly voice, a dashing infantry officerwho hurried off to his company, buttoning up his coat as he ran.