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Madame Schoss, who had been out to visit her daughter, increased
the countess' fears still more by telling what she had seen at
a spirit dealer's in Myasnitski Street. When returning by that
street she had been unable to pass because of a drunken crowd
rioting in front of the shop. She had taken a cab and driven home
by a side street and the cabman had told her that the people were
breaking open the barrels at the drink store, having received
orders to do so.
After dinner the whole Rostov household set to work with enthusiastic
haste packing their belongings and preparing for their departure.
The old count, suddenly setting to work, kept passing from the
yard to the house and back again, shouting confused instructions
to the hurrying people, and flurrying them still more. Petya directed
things in the yard. Sonya, owing to the count's contradictory
orders, lost her head and did not know what to do. The servants
ran noisily about the house and yard, shouting and disputing.
Natasha, with the ardor characteristic of all she did suddenly
set to work too. At first her intervention in the business of
packing was received skeptically. Everybody expected some prank
from her and did not wish to obey her; but she resolutely and
passionately demanded obedience, grew angry and nearly cried because
they did not heed her, and at last succeeded in making them believe
her. Her first exploit, which cost her immense effort and established
her authority, was the packing of the carpets. The count had valuable
Gobelin tapestries and Persian carpets in the house. When Natasha
set to work two cases were standing open in the ballroom, one
almost full up with crockery, the other with carpets. There was
also much china standing on the tables, and still more was being
brought in from the storeroom. A third case was needed and servants
had gone to fetch it.
"Sonya, wait a bit- we'll pack everything into these,"
said Natasha.
"You can't, Miss, we have tried to," said the butler's
assistant.
"No, wait a minute, please."
And Natasha began rapidly taking out of the case dishes and
plates wrapped in paper.
"The dishes must go in here among the carpets,"
said she.
"Why, it's a mercy if we can get the carpets alone into
three cases," said the butler's assistant.
"Oh, wait, please!" And Natasha began rapidly and
deftly sorting out the things. "These aren't needed,"
said she, putting aside some plates of Kiev ware. "These-
yes, these must go among the carpets," she said, referring
to the Saxony china dishes.
"Don't, Natasha! Leave it alone! We'll get it all packed,"
urged Sonya reproachfully.
"What a young lady she is!" remarked the major-domo.
But Natasha would not give in. She turned everything out and
began quickly repacking, deciding that the inferior Russian carpets
and unnecessary crockery should not be taken at all. When everything
had been taken out of the cases, they recommenced packing, and
it turned out that when the cheaper things not worth taking had
nearly all been rejected, the valuable ones really did all go
into the two cases. Only the lid of the case containing the carpets
would not shut down. A few more things might have been taken out,
but Natasha insisted on having her own way. She packed, repacked,
pressed, made the butler's assistant and Petya- whom she had drawn
into the business of packing- press on the lid, and made desperate
efforts herself.
"That's enough, Natasha," said Sonya. "I see
you were right, but just take out the top one."
"I won't!" cried Natasha, with one hand bolding
back the hair that hung over her perspiring face, while with the
other she pressed down the carpets. "Now press, Petya! Press,
Vasilich, press hard!" she cried.
The carpets yielded and the lid closed; Natasha, clapping
her hands, screamed with delight and tears fell from her eyes.
But this only lasted a moment. She at once set to work afresh
and they now trusted her completely. The count was not angry even
when they told him that Natasha had countermanded an order of
his, and the servants now came to her to ask whether a cart was
sufficiently loaded, and whether it might be corded up. Thanks
to Natasha's directions the work now went on expeditiously, unnecessary
things were left, and the most valuable packed as compactly as
possible.
But hard as they all worked till quite late that night, they
could not get everything packed. The countess had fallen asleep
and the count, having put off their departure till next morning,
went to bed.
Sonya and Natasha slept in the sitting room without undressing.
That night another wounded man was driven down the Povarskaya,
and Mavra Kuzminichna, who was standing at the gate, had him brought
into the Rostovs' yard. Mavra Kuzminichna concluded that he was
a very important man. He was being conveyed in a caleche with
a raised hood, and was quite covered by an apron. On the box beside
the driver sat a venerable old attendant. A doctor and two soldiers
followed the carriage in a cart.
"Please come in here. The masters are going away and
the whole house will be empty," said the old woman to the
old attendant.
"Well, perhaps," said he with a sigh. "We don't
expect to get him home alive! We have a house of our own in Moscow,
but it's a long way from here, and there's nobody living in it."
"Do us the honor to come in, there's plenty of everything
in the master's house. Come in," said Mavra Kuzminichna.
"Is he very ill?" she asked.
The attendant made a hopeless gesture.
"We don't expect to get him home! We must ask the doctor."
And the old servant got down from the box and went up to the
cart.
"All right!" said the doctor.
The old servant returned to the caleche, looked into it, shook
his head disconsolately, told the driver to turn into the yard,
and stopped beside Mavra Kuzminichna.
"O, Lord Jesus Christ!" she murmured.
She invited them to take the wounded man into the house.
"The masters won't object..." she said.
But they had to avoid carrying the man upstairs, and so they
took him into the wing and put him in the room that had been Madame
Schoss'.
This wounded man was Prince Andrew Bolkonski.
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