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In the tavern, before which stood the doctor's covered cart,
there were already some five officers. Mary Hendrikhovna, a plump
little blonde German, in a dressing jacket and nightcap, was sitting
on a broad bench in the front corner. Her husband, the doctor,
lay asleep behind her. Rostov and Ilyin, on entering the room,
were welcomed with merry shouts and laughter.
"Dear me, how jolly we are!" said Rostov laughing.
"And why do you stand there gaping?"
"What swells they are! Why, the water streams from them!
Don't make our drawing room so wet."
"Don't mess Mary Hendrikhovna's dress!" cried other
voices.
Rostov and Ilyin hastened to find a corner where they could
change into dry clothes without offending Mary Hendrikhovna's
modesty. They were going into a tiny recess behind a partition
to change, but found it completely filled by three officers who
sat playing cards by the light of a solitary candle on an empty
box, and these officers would on no account yield their position.
Mary Hendrikhovna obliged them with the loan of a petticoat to
be used as a curtain, and behind that screen Rostov and Ilyin,
helped by Lavrushka who had brought their kits, changed their
wet things for dry ones.
A fire was made up in the dilapidated brick stove. A board
was found, fixed on two saddles and covered with a horsecloth,
a small samovar was produced and a cellaret and half a bottle
of rum, and having asked Mary Hendrikhovna to preside, they all
crowded round her. One offered her a clean handkerchief to wipe
her charming hands, another spread a jacket under her little feet
to keep them from the damp, another hung his coat over the window
to keep out the draft, and yet another waved the flies off her
husband's face, lest he should wake up.
"Leave him alone," said Mary Hendrikhovna, smiling
timidly and happily. "He is sleeping well as it is, after
a sleepless night."
"Oh, no, Mary Hendrikhovna," replied the officer,
"one must look after the doctor. Perhaps he'll take pity
on me someday, when it comes to cutting off a leg or an arm for
me."
There were only three tumblers, the water was so muddy that
one could not make out whether the tea was strong or weak, and
the samovar held only six tumblers of water, but this made it
all the pleasanter to take turns in order of seniority to receive
one's tumbler from Mary Hendrikhovna's plump little hands with
their short and not overclean nails. All the officers appeared
to be, and really were, in love with her that evening. Even those
playing cards behind the partition soon left their game and came
over to the samovar, yielding to the general mood of courting
Mary Hendrikhovna. She, seeing herself surrounded by such brilliant
and polite young men, beamed with satisfaction, try as she might
to hide it, and perturbed as she evidently was each time her husband
moved in his sleep behind her.
There was only one spoon, sugar was more plentiful than anything
else, but it took too long to dissolve, so it was decided that
Mary Hendrikhovna should stir the sugar for everyone in turn.
Rostov received his tumbler, and adding some rum to it asked Mary
Hendrikhovna to stir it.
"But you take it without sugar?" she said, smiling
all the time, as if everything she said and everything the others
said was very amusing and had a double meaning.
"It is not the sugar I want, but only that your little
hand should stir my tea."
Mary Hendrikhovna assented and began looking for the spoon
which someone meanwhile had pounced on.
"Use your finger, Mary Hendrikhovna, it will be still
nicer," said Rostov.
"Too hot!" she replied, blushing with pleasure.
Ilyin put a few drops of rum into the bucket of water and
brought it to Mary Hendrikhovna, asking her to stir it with her
finger.
"This is my cup," said he. "Only dip your finger
in it and I'll drink it all up."
When they had emptied the samovar, Rostov took a pack of cards
and proposed that they should play "Kings" with Mary
Hendrikhovna. They drew lots to settle who should make up her
set. At Rostov's suggestion it was agreed that whoever became
"King" should have the right to kiss Mary Hendrikhovna's
hand, and that the "Booby" should go to refill and reheat
the samovar for the doctor when the latter awoke.
"Well, but supposing Mary Hendrikhovna is 'King'?"
asked Ilyin.
"As it is, she is Queen, and her word is law!"
They had hardly begun to play before the doctor's disheveled
head suddenly appeared from behind Mary Hendrikhovna. He had been
awake for some time, listening to what was being said, and evidently
found nothing entertaining or amusing in what was going on. His
face was sad and depressed. Without greeting the officers, he
scratched himself and asked to be allowed to pass as they were
blocking the way. As soon as he had left the room all the officers
burst into loud laughter and Mary Hendrikhovna blushed till her
eyes filled with tears and thereby became still more attractive
to them. Returning from the yard, the doctor told his wife (who
had ceased to smile so happily, and looked at him in alarm, awaiting
her sentence) that the rain had ceased and they must go to sleep
in their covered cart, or everything in it would be stolen.
"But I'll send an orderly.... Two of them!" said
Rostov. "What an idea, doctor!"
"I'll stand guard on it myself!" said Ilyin.
"No, gentlemen, you have had your sleep, but I have not
slept for two nights," replied the doctor, and he sat down
morosely beside his wife, waiting for the game to end.
Seeing his gloomy face as he frowned at his wife, the officers
grew still merrier, and some of them could not refrain from laughter,
for which they hurriedly sought plausible pretexts. When he had
gone, taking his wife with him, and had settled down with her
in their covered cart, the officers lay down in the tavern, covering
themselves with their wet cloaks, but they did not sleep for a
long time; now they exchanged remarks, recalling the doctor's
uneasiness and his wife's delight, now they ran out into the porch
and reported what was taking place in the covered trap. Several
times Rostov, covering his head, tried to go to sleep, but some
remark would arouse him and conversation would be resumed, to
the accompaniment of unreasoning, merry, childlike laughter.
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