| Anna Pavlovna's reception was in full swing. The spindles hummedsteadily
and ceaselessly on all sides. With the exception of the aunt,beside
whom sat only one elderly lady, who with her thin careworn facewas
rather out of place in this brilliant society, the whole companyhad
settled into three groups. One, chiefly masculine, had formedround
the abbe. Another, of young people, was grouped round thebeautiful
Princess Helene, Prince Vasili's daughter, and the littlePrincess
Bolkonskaya, very pretty and rosy, though rather too plumpfor her
age. The third group was gathered round Mortemart and AnnaPavlovna.
The vicomte was a nice-looking young man with soft features
andpolished manners, who evidently considered himself a celebrity
but outof politeness modestly placed himself at the disposal of
the circle inwhich he found himself. Anna Pavlovna was obviously
serving him upas a treat to her guests. As a clever maitre d'hotel
serves up as aspecially choice delicacy a piece of meat that no
one who had seenit in the kitchen would have cared to eat, so
Anna Pavlovna servedup to her guests, first the vicomte and then
the abbe, as peculiarlychoice morsels. The group about Mortemart
immediately began discussingthe murder of the Duc d'Enghien. The
vicomte said that the Ducd'Enghien had perished by his own magnanimity,
and that there wereparticular reasons for Buonaparte's hatred
of him.
"Ah, yes! Do tell us all about it, Vicomte," said
Anna Pavlovna,with a pleasant feeling that there was something
a la Louis XV inthe sound of that sentence: "Contez nous
cela, Vicomte."
The vicomte bowed and smiled courteously in token of his willingnessto
comply. Anna Pavlovna arranged a group round him, inviting everyoneto
listen to his tale.
"The vicomte knew the duc personally," whispered
Anna Pavlovna to ofthe guests. "The vicomte is a wonderful
raconteur," said she toanother. "How evidently he belongs
to the best society," said she to athird; and the vicomte
was served up to the company in the choicestand most advantageous
style, like a well-garnished joint of roast beefon a hot dish.
The vicomte wished to begin his story and gave a subtle smile.
"Come over here, Helene, dear," said Anna Pavlovna
to thebeautiful young princess who was sitting some way off, the
center ofanother group.
The princess smiled. She rose with the same unchanging smile
withwhich she had first entered the room- the smile of a perfectlybeautiful
woman. With a slight rustle of her white dress trimmedwith moss
and ivy, with a gleam of white shoulders, glossy hair, andsparkling
diamonds, she passed between the men who made way for her,not
looking at any of them but smiling on all, as if graciouslyallowing
each the privilege of admiring her beautiful figure andshapely
shoulders, back, and bosom- which in the fashion of those dayswere
very much exposed- and she seemed to bring the glamour of aballroom
with her as she moved toward Anna Pavlovna. Helene was solovely
that not only did she not show any trace of coquetry, but onthe
contrary she even appeared shy of her unquestionable and all toovictorious
beauty. She seemed to wish, but to be unable, to diminishits effect.
"How lovely!" said everyone who saw her; and the
vicomte liftedhis shoulders and dropped his eyes as if startled
by somethingextraordinary when she took her seat opposite and
beamed upon him alsowith her unchanging smile.
"Madame, I doubt my ability before such an audience,"
said he,smilingly inclining his head.
The princess rested her bare round arm on a little table andconsidered
a reply unnecessary. She smilingly waited. All the time thestory
was being told she sat upright, glancing now at her beautifulround
arm, altered in shape by its pressure on the table, now at herstill
more beautiful bosom, on which she readjusted a diamondnecklace.
From time to time she smoothed the folds of her dress, andwhenever
the story produced an effect she glanced at Anna Pavlovna, atonce
adopted just the expression she saw on the maid of honor'sface,
and again relapsed into her radiant smile.
The little princess had also left the tea table and followed
Helene.
"Wait a moment, I'll get my work.... Now then, what are
you thinkingof?" she went on, turning to Prince Hippolyte.
"Fetch me my workbag."
There was a general movement as the princess, smiling and talkingmerrily
to everyone at once, sat down and gaily arranged herself inher
seat.
"Now I am all right," she said, and asking the vicomte
to begin, shetook up her work.
Prince Hippolyte, having brought the workbag, joined the circleand
moving a chair close to hers seated himself beside her.
Le charmant Hippolyte was surprising by his extraordinaryresemblance
to his beautiful sister, but yet more by the fact thatin spite
of this resemblance he was exceedingly ugly. His featureswere
like his sister's, but while in her case everything was lit up
bya joyous, self-satisfied, youthful, and constant smile of animation,and
by the wonderful classic beauty of her figure, his face on thecontrary
was dulled by imbecility and a constant expression ofsullen self-confidence,
while his body was thin and weak. His eyes,nose, and mouth all
seemed puckered into a vacant, wearied grimace,and his arms and
legs always fell into unnatural positions.
"It's not going to be a ghost story?" said he, sitting
down besidethe princess and hastily adjusting his lorgnette, as
if without thisinstrument he could not begin to speak.
"Why no, my dear fellow," said the astonished narrator,
shrugginghis shoulders.
"Because I hate ghost stories," said Prince Hippolyte
in a tonewhich showed that he only understood the meaning of his
words after hehad uttered them.
He spoke with such self-confidence that his hearers could not
besure whether what he said was very witty or very stupid. He
wasdressed in a dark-green dress coat, knee breeches of the color
ofcuisse de nymphe effrayee, as he called it, shoes, and silk
stockings.
The vicomte told his tale very neatly. It was an anecdote,
thencurrent, to the effect that the Duc d'Enghien had gone secretly
toParis to visit Mademoiselle George; that at her house he came
uponBonaparte, who also enjoyed the famous actress' favors, and
that inhis presence Napoleon happened to fall into one of the
fainting fitsto which he was subject, and was thus at the duc's
mercy. The latterspared him, and this magnanimity Bonaparte subsequently
repaid bydeath.
The story was very pretty and interesting, especially at the
pointwhere the rivals suddenly recognized one another; and the
ladieslooked agitated.
"Charming!" said Anna Pavlovna with an inquiring
glance at thelittle princess.
"Charming!" whispered the little princess, sticking
the needleinto her work as if to testify that the interest and
fascination ofthe story prevented her from going on with it.
The vicomte appreciated this silent praise and smiling gratefullyprepared
to continue, but just then Anna Pavlovna, who had kept awatchful
eye on the young man who so alarmed her, noticed that hewas talking
too loudly and vehemently with the abbe, so she hurried tothe
rescue. Pierre had managed to start a conversation with the abbeabout
the balance of power, and the latter, evidently interested bythe
young man's simple-minded eagerness, was explaining his pettheory.
Both were talking and listening too eagerly and too naturally,which
was why Anna Pavlovna disapproved.
"The means are... the balance of power in Europe and the
rights ofthe people," the abbe was saying. "It is only
necessary for onepowerful nation like Russia- barbaric as she
is said to be- to placeherself disinterestedly at the head of
an alliance having for itsobject the maintenance of the balance
of power of Europe, and it wouldsave the world!"
"But how are you to get that balance?" Pierre was
beginning.
At that moment Anna Pavlovna came up and, looking severely
atPierre, asked the Italian how he stood Russian climate. TheItalian's
face instantly changed and assumed an offensivelyaffected, sugary
expression, evidently habitual to him when conversingwith women.
"I am so enchanted by the brilliancy of the wit and culture
of thesociety, more especially of the feminine society, in which
I havehad the honor of being received, that I have not yet had
time to thinkof the climate," said he.
Not letting the abbe and Pierre escape, Anna Pavlovna, the
moreconveniently to keep them under observation, brought them
into thelarger circle.
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