Ogniem i mieczem. English

by Henryk Sienkiewicz

  CHAPTER XVII.

  To explain what had taken place in Rozlogi, we must return to thatnight when Pan Yan sent Jendzian from Kudak with a letter to the oldprincess. The letter contained an earnest request to take Helena andseek with all haste the protection of Prince Yeremi at Lubni, since warmight begin at any moment.

  Jendzian, taking his place in the boat which Pan Grodzitski sent fromKudak for powder, made his way with slow advance, for they went up theriver. At Kremenchug he met the forces sailing under command ofKrechovski and Barabash, despatched by the hetmans against Hmelnitski.Jendzian had a meeting with Barabash, whom he informed of the possibledanger to Pan Yan on his journey to the Saitch; therefore he begged theold colonel not to fail in making urgent demand for the envoy when hemet Hmelnitski. After this he moved on.

  They arrived in Chigirin at daylight. They were surrounded at once by aguard of Cossacks inquiring who they were. They answered that they weregoing from Kudak with a letter from Grodzitski to the hetmans.Notwithstanding this, the chief of the boat and Jendzian were summonedto answer the colonel.

  "What colonel?" asked the chief.

  "Loboda," replied the essauls of the guard. "The Grand Hetman hasordered him to detain and examine every one coming from the Saitch toChigirin."

  They went. Jendzian walked on boldly, for he expected no harm since hewas sent by authority of the hetman.

  They were taken to the neighborhood of Bell-ringers' Corner, to thehouse of Pan Jelenski, where Colonel Loboda's quarters were. But theywere informed that the colonel having set out at daybreak for Cherkasi,the lieutenant-colonel occupied his place. They waited rather long; atlast the door opened, and the expected lieutenant-colonel appeared inthe room. At the sight of him Jendzian's knees trembled under him. Itwas Bogun.

  The hetman's power extended really to Chigirin; but since Loboda andBogun had not yet gone over to Hmelnitski, but adhered publicly to theCommonwealth, the Grand Hetman had appointed them to Chigirin, andordered them to maintain guard.

  Bogun took his place at the table and began to question the newlyarrived.

  The chief of the boat, who brought a letter from Grodzitski, answeredfor himself and Jendzian. On examination of the letter, the younglieutenant-colonel began to inquire carefully what was to be heard inKudak, and it was evident that he had a great desire to know whyGrodzitski had sent men and a boat to the Grand Hetman. But the chiefof the boat could not answer this, and the letter was secured with PanGrodzitski's seal. Having finished his inquiries, Bogun was putting hishand to his purse to give the men something to buy beer, when the dooropened, and Zagloba burst like a thunderbolt into the room.

  "Listen, Bogun!" cried he; "that traitor Dopula has kept his besttriple mead hidden. I went with him to the cellar. I looked, I sawsomething in the corner; it was hay and it wasn't hay. I asked, 'Whatis that?' 'Dry hay,' said he. When I looked more closely, the top of abottle was sticking up, like the head of a Tartar, out of the grass.'Oh, you son of a such a one,' said I, 'let's divide the labor! Do youeat the hay, for you are an ox; and I will drink the mead, for I am aman.' I brought the fat bottle for an honest trial; only let us havethe glasses now!"

  Having said this, Zagloba put one hand on his hip, and with the otherraised the bottle above his head and began to sing,--

  "Hei Yagush, hei Kundush, but give us the glasses, Give a kiss, and then care for naught else."

  Here Zagloba, seeing Jendzian, stopped suddenly, placed the bottle onthe table, and said,--

  "As God is dear to me! this is Pan Yan's young man."

  "Whose?" asked Bogun, hastily.

  "Pan Skshetuski's, the lieutenant who went to Kudak, and before goingtreated me to such mead from Lubni that I wish all would keep it behindtheir tavern-signs. What is your master doing? Is he well?"

  "Well, and asked to be remembered to you," said Jendzian, confused.

  "He is a man of mighty courage. How do you come to be in Chigirin? Whydid your master send you from Kudak?"

  "My master," said Jendzian, "has his affairs in Lubni, on which hedirected me to return, for I had nothing to do in Kudak."

  All this time Bogun was looking sharply at Jendzian, and suddenly hesaid: "I too know your master, I saw him in Rozlogi."

  Jendzian bent his head, and turning his ear as if he had not heard,inquired: "Where?"

  "In Rozlogi."

  "That place belongs to the Kurtsevichi," said Zagloba.

  "To whom?" asked Jendzian again.

  "Oh, I see you are hard of hearing," said Bogun, curtly.

  "Because I have not slept enough."

  "You will sleep enough yet. You say that your master sent you toLubni?"

  "Yes."

  "Doubtless he has some sweetheart there," interrupted Zagloba, "to whomhe sends his love through you."

  "How do I know, worthy sir? Maybe he has, maybe he has not," saidJendzian. Then he bowed to Bogun and Zagloba. "Praise be to--" said he,preparing to go out.

  "Forever!" said Bogun. "But wait, my little bird; don't be in a hurry!And why did you hide from me that you are the servant of PanSkshetuski?"

  "You didn't ask me, and I thought, 'What reason have I to talk ofanything?' Praise be to--"

  "Wait, I say! You have some letters from your master?"

  "It is his affair to write, and mine to deliver, but only to him towhom they are written; therefore permit me to bid farewell to you,gentlemen."

  Bogun wrinkled his sable brows and clapped his hands. Two Cossacksentered the room.

  "Search him!" cried he, pointing to Jendzian.

  "As I live, violence is done me! I am a nobleman, though a servant,and, gentlemen, you will answer for this in court."

  "Bogun, let him go!" said Zagloba.

  But that moment one of the Cossacks found two letters in Jendzian'sbosom, and gave them to the lieutenant-colonel. Bogun directed theCossacks to withdraw at once, for not knowing how to read, he did notwish to expose himself before them; then turning to Zagloba, hesaid,----

  "Read, and I will look after this young fellow." Zagloba shut his lefteye, on which he had a cataract, and read the address:--

  "To my gracious lady and benefactress, Princess Kurtsevichova inRozlogi."

  "So you, my little falcon, are going to Lubni, and you don't know whereRozlogi is?" said Bogun, surveying Jendzian with a terrible look.

  "Where they send me, there I go!"

  "Am I to open it? The seal of a nobleman is sacred," remarked Zagloba.

  "The hetman has given me the right to examine all letters. Open andread!"

  Zagloba opened and read:--

  "My gracious Lady,--I inform you that I have arrived in Kudak, fromwhich, with God's assistance, I shall go to-morrow morning to theSaitch. But now I am writing in the night, not being able to sleep fromanxiety lest something may happen to you from that bandit Bogun and hisscoundrels. Pan Grodzitski tells me that we are on the eve of a greatwar, which will rouse the mob; therefore I implore and beseech you thisminute,--even before the steppes are dry, even if on horseback,--to gowith the princess to Lubni; and not to neglect this, for I shall not beable to return for a time. Which request you will be pleased to grantat once, so that I may be sure of the happiness of my betrothed andrejoice after my return. And what need have you of dallying with Bogunand throwing sand in his eyes from fear, after you have given theprincess to me? It is better to take refuge under the protection of mymaster, the prince, who will not fail to send a garrison to Rozlogi;and thus you will save your property. In the mean while I have thehonor, etc."

  "Ho, ho! my friend Bogun," said Zagloba, "the hussar wants in some wayto put horns on you. So you have been paying compliments to the samegirl! Why didn't you speak of this? But be comforted, for once upon atime it happened to me--"

  But the joke that he had begun died suddenly on his lips. Bogun satmotionless at the table, but his face was pale and drawn, as if byconvulsions; his eyes closed, his brows contracted. Something terribleha
d happened to him.

  "What's the matter?" asked Zagloba.

  The Cossack began to wave his hand feverishly, and from his lips issueda suppressed hoarse voice: "Read--read the other letter!"

  "The other is to Princess Helena."

  "Read! read!"

  Zagloba began:--

  "Sweetest, beloved Halshko, mistress and queen of my heart! Since inthe service of the prince I had but little time to stop at Rozlogi, Iwrite therefore to your aunt, that you and she go to Lubni, where noharm can happen to you from Bogun, and our mutual affection cannot beexposed to interruption--"

  "Enough!" cried Bogun; and jumping up in madness from the table, hesprang toward Jendzian.

  The unfortunate young fellow, struck straight in the breast, groanedand fell to the floor. Frenzy carried Bogun away; he threw himself onZagloba and snatched the letters from him.

  Zagloba, seizing the fat bottle of mead, sprang to the stove and criedout,--

  "In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, have you grown wild,man, or mad? Calm down! be mild! Stick your head in the water-pail! Ahundred devils take you! Do you hear me?"

  "Blood! blood!" howled Bogun.

  "Have you lost your mind? Thrust your head in the water-pail, I tellyou! You have blood already,--you have spilt innocent blood. Thatunfortunate youth is already breathless. The devil has snared you, oryou are the devil yourself with something to boot. Come to your senses,the deuce take you, you son of a pagan!"

  While crying out in this fashion, Zagloba pushed around to the otherside of the table, and bending over Jendzian felt of his breast and puthis hand to his mouth, from which blood was flowing freely.

  Bogun seized himself by the head, and howled like a wounded wolf. Thenhe dropped on the bench, without ceasing to howl, for the spirit withinwas torn from rage and pain. Suddenly he sprang up, ran to the door,kicked it open, and hurried to the anteroom.

  "I hope you will break your neck!" muttered Zagloba to himself. "Go andsmash your head against the stable or the barn,--though, as a hornedbeast, you can knock your head without danger. But he is a fury! I havenever seen anything like him in my life. He snapped his teeth like adog going to bite. But this boy is alive yet, poor fellow! In truth, ifthis mead won't help him, he lied when he said he was a noble."

  Thus muttering, Zagloba placed Jendzian's head on his knees and beganto pour the mead through his blue lips.

  "We will see if you have good blood in you. If it is Jewish, when mixedwith mead or wine it will boil; if clownish, being torpid and heavy, itwill sink. Only the blood of a noble becomes lively and forms excellentliquor, which gives manhood and daring to the body. The Lord gavedifferent drinks to different people, so that each one might have hisown appropriate pleasure."

  Jendzian groaned faintly.

  "Ah, ha! you want more. No, brother, let me have some too,--that's thestyle. Now, since you have given sign of life, I think I'll take you tothe stable and put you somewhere in a corner, so that dragon of aCossack may not tear you to pieces when he gets back. He is a dangerousfriend, the devil take him! for I see that his hand is quicker than hiswit."

  Zagloba raised Jendzian from the floor with ease, showing unusualstrength, carried him to the anteroom, and then to the yard, where anumber of Cossacks were playing dice on a rug spread on the ground.They greeted him, and he said,--

  "Boys, take this youngster for me, put him on the hay, and let some onerun for a barber."

  The command was obeyed immediately, for Zagloba as a friend of Bogunenjoyed consideration among the Cossacks.

  "And where is the colonel?" he asked.

  "He ordered his horse and went to the regimental quarters. He commandedus also to be ready and have our horses saddled."

  "Is mine ready?"

  "Ready."

  "Then bring it; I will find the colonel at the regiment. But here hecomes!"

  In fact, Bogun was to be seen through the arched gateway riding fromthe square. After him appeared in the distance the lances of a hundredand some tens of Cossacks, apparently ready for the march.

  "To horse!" cried Bogun to the Cossacks who had remained in the yard.All moved quickly. Zagloba went through the gate, and lookedattentively at the young leader.

  "You are going on a journey?" asked he.

  "Yes."

  "And whither is the devil taking you?"

  "To a wedding."

  Zagloba drew nearer.

  "Fear God, my son! The hetman ordered you to guard the town. You aregoing away yourself, and taking the Cossacks with you,--disobeyingorders. Here the mob is merely waiting a favorable moment to rush onthe nobility. You will destroy the town and expose yourself to thewrath of the hetman!"

  "To the devil with the hetman and the town!"

  "It is a question of your head."

  "What do I care for that?"

  Zagloba saw that it was useless to talk with the Cossack. He had madeup his mind, and though he were to bury himself and others, he wasdetermined to carry his point. Zagloba guessed, too, where theexpedition was going; but he did not know himself what to do,--whetherto go with Bogun or to remain. It was dangerous to go, for it was thesame as to enter upon a hazardous and criminal affair in rough, warliketimes. But to remain? The mob was in fact only waiting for news fromthe Saitch,--the moment of signal for slaughter; and maybe they wouldnot have waited at all had it not been for Bogun's thousand Cossacksand his authority in the Ukraine.

  Zagloba might have taken refuge in the camp of the hetmans; but he hadhis reasons for not doing that,--whether it was a sentence for havingkilled some one or some little defect in accounts he himself only knew;it is sufficient that he did not wish to show himself. He was sorry toleave Chigirin, it was so pleasant for him; no one inquired aboutanything there, and Zagloba had become so accustomed to everybody,--tothe nobility, the managers of crown estates, and the Cossack elders.True, the elders had scattered in different directions, and thenobility sat in their corners fearing the storm; but Bogun was theprince of companions and drinkers. Having become acquainted at theglass, he made friends with Zagloba straightway. After that one was notseen without the other. The Cossack scattered gold for two, the noblelied, and each being of restless mind was happy with the other. Butwhen it came to him either to remain in Chigirin and fall under theknife of the rabble or to go with Bogun, Zagloba decided for thelatter.

  "If you are so determined," said he; "I will go too; I may be of use orrestrain you when necessary. We have become altogether accustomed toeach other; but I had no thought of anything like this."

  Bogun made no answer. Half an hour later two hundred Cossacks were inmarching order. Bogun rode to the head of them, and with him Zagloba.They moved on. The peasants standing here and there on the squarelooked at them from under their brows, and whispered, discussing aboutwhere they were going, whether they would return soon or would notreturn.

  Bogun rode on in silence, shut up in himself, mysterious and gloomy asnight. The Cossacks asked not whither he was leading them. They wereready to go with him even to the end of the earth.

  After crossing the Dnieper, they appeared on the highway to Lubni. Thehorses went at a trot, raising clouds of dust; but as the day was hotand dry, they were soon covered with foam. They slackened their pacethen, and stretched out in a straggling band along the road. Bogunpushed ahead. Zagloba came up abreast of him, wishing to beginconversation.

  The face of the young leader was calmer, but mortal grief was clearlydepicted on it. It seemed as if the distance in which his glance waslost toward the north beyond the Kagamlik, the speed of the horse, andthe breeze of the steppe were quieting the storm within him which wasroused by the reading of the letters brought by Jendzian.

  "The heat flies down from heaven," said Zagloba. "It is feverish evenin a linen coat, for there is no breeze what ever. Bogun! look here,Bogun!"

  The leader gazed with his deep, dark eyes as if roused from sleep.

  "Be careful, my son," said Zagloba, "that you are not devoured bymel
ancholy, which when it leaves the liver, its proper seat, strikesthe head and may soon destroy a man's reason. I did not know that youwere such a hero of romance. It must be that you were born in May,which is the month of Venus, in which there is so much sweetness in theair that even one shaving begins to feel an affection for another;therefore men who are born in that month have greater curiosity intheir bones for women than other men. But he has the advantage whosucceeds in curbing himself; therefore I advise you to let revengealone. You may justly cherish hatred against the Kurtsevichi; but isshe the only girl in the world?"

  Bogun, as if in answer not to Zagloba but to his own grief, said in avoice more like that of revery than conversation,--

  "She is the one cuckoo, the only one on earth!"

  "Even if that were true, if she calls for another, she is nothing toyou. It is rightly said that the heart is a volunteer; under whateverbanner it wants to serve, under that it serves. Remember too that thegirl is of high blood, for the Kurtsevichi I hear are of princelyfamily. Those are lofty thresholds."

  "To the devil with your thresholds, families, and parchments!" HereBogun struck with all his force on the hilt of his sword. "This is myfamily, this is my right and parchment, this is my matchmaker and bestman! Oh, traitors! oh, cursed blood of the enemy! A Cossack was goodenough for you to be a friend and a brother with whom to go to theCrimea, get Turkish wealth, divide spoils. Oh! you fondled him andcalled him a son, betrothed the maiden to him. Now what? A noble came,a petted Pole. You deserted the Cossack, the son, the friend,--pluckedout his heart. She is for another; and do you gnaw the earth, Cossack,if you like!"

  The voice of the leader trembled; he ground his teeth, and struck hisbroad breast till an echo came from it as from an underground cave.

  Silence followed. Bogun breathed heavily. Pain and anger rent insuccession the wild soul of the Cossack, which knew no restraint.Zagloba waited till he should become wearied and quiet.

  "What do you wish to do, unhappy hero,--how will you act?"

  "Like a Cossack,--in Cossack fashion."

  "Oh, I see there is something ahead! But no more of this! One thing Iwill tell you, that the place is within Vishnyevetski's rule and Lubniis not distant. Pan Skshetuski wrote to the princess to take refugethere with the maiden,--which means that they are under the prince'sprotection; and the prince is a fierce lion--"

  "The Khan is a lion, and I rushed up to his throat and held the lightto his eyes."

  "What, you crazy brain! do you wish to declare war against the prince?"

  "Hmelnitski has rushed on the hetmans. What do I care for your prince?"

  Pan Zagloba became still more alarmed. "Shu! to the devil with this!This smells simply of rebellion. Vis armata, raptus puellae, andrebellion,--this comes to the executioner, the rope, and the gallows. Asplendid six-in-hand, you may go high in it, if not far. TheKurtsevichi will defend themselves."

  "What of that? Either I must perish, or they. I would have given mylife for the Kurtsevichi, since I held them as brothers, and the oldprincess as a mother. Into her eyes I looked as a dog looks! And whenthe Tartars caught Vassily, who went to the Crimea and rescued him? I!I loved them and served them as a slave, for I thought that I wasearning the maiden. And for this they sold me like a slave to an evilfate and misfortune. They drove me away; but I will go now, and first Iwill bow down to them in return for the bread and salt that I haveeaten in their house, and I will pay them in Cossack fashion. I willgo, for I know my road."

  "And where will you go, when you begin with the prince,--to the camp ofHmelnitski?"

  "If they had given me the girl, I should have been your Polish brother,your friend, your sabre, your sworn soul, your dog. I should have takenmy Cossacks, called others together in the Ukraine, then moved againstHmelnitski, and my own brothers, the Zaporojians, and torn them withhoofs. Did I wish reward for this? No! I should have taken the girl andgone beyond the Dnieper, to the steppes of God, to the wild meadows, tothe quiet waters. That would have been enough for me; but now--"

  "Now you have become enraged."

  Bogun made no answer, struck his horse with the nogaika, and rushed on.But Zagloba began to think of the trouble into which he had gothimself. There was no doubt that Bogun intended to attack theKurtsevichi, to avenge the injustice done him, and carry off the girlby force. Zagloba would have kept him company, even in an undertakinglike this. In the Ukraine such affairs happened frequently, andsometimes they went unpunished. True, when the offender was not anoble, such a deed became complicated, more dangerous; but theenforcement of justice on a Cossack was difficult, for where was he tobe found and seized? After the deed he escaped to the wild steppe,beyond the reach of human hand; and how many could see him? When warbroke out, and Tartars invaded the country, the offender appearedagain, for at such times laws were asleep. In this way Bogun, too,might save himself from responsibility. Besides, Zagloba had no need ofgiving him active assistance, and taking on himself half the fault. Hewould not have done this in any case; for though Bogun was his friend,still it did not beseem Zagloba, a noble, to engage with a Cossackagainst a noble, especially as he was acquainted with Skshetuski, andhad drunk with him. Zagloba was a disturber of no common order, but histurbulence had a certain limit. To frolic in the public houses ofChigirin, with Bogun and other Cossack elders, especially at theirexpense,--but it was well too, in view of Cossack troubles, to havesuch people as friends. Zagloba, though he had got a scratch here andthere, was very careful of his own skin; therefore he saw at once thatthrough this friendship he had got into a desperate muddle. For it wasclear that if Bogun should carry off the maiden, the betrothed ofVishnyevetski's lieutenant and favorite, he would come into collisionwith the prince; then nothing would remain for him but to take refugewith Hmelnitski and join the rebellion. To this Zagloba mentallyopposed his positive veto. To join the rebellion for the beautiful eyesof Bogun was altogether beyond his intention, and besides he fearedYeremi as he did fire.

  "Oh, misery!" muttered he to himself; "I have caught the devil by thetail, and this time he will catch me by the head and twist my neck. Maylightning strike this Bogun, with his girl face and his Tartar hand!I've gone to a wedding, indeed, a regular dog-fight, as God is dear tome! May lightning strike all the Kurtsevichi and all the women! Whathave I to do with them? They are not necessary to me. No matter who hasthe grist, they will grind it on me. And for what? Do I want to marry?Let the evil one marry, it is all the same to me; what business have Iin this affair? If I go with Bogun, then Vishnyevetski will flay me; ifI leave Bogun, the peasants will kill me, or he will do it withoutwaiting for them. The worst of all is to be intimate with a bear. I amin a nice plight. I should rather be the horse on which I am sitting,than Zagloba. I've come out on Cossack folly. I've hung to awater-burner; justly, therefore, will they flay me on both sides."

  While occupied with these thoughts, Zagloba sweated terribly, and fellinto worse humor. The heat was great; the horse travelled withdifficulty, for he had not been on the road for a long time, and PanZagloba was a heavy man. Merciful God! what would he have given then tobe sitting in the shade at an inn, over a glass of cool beer, not toweary himself in the heat and rush on over the scorching steppe!

  Though Bogun was in a hurry, he slackened his pace, for the heat wasterrible. They fed the horses a little. During that time Bogun spoke tothe essauls,--apparently gave them orders, for up to that time they didnot know where they were going. The last word of the command reachedZagloba's ear,--

  "Wait the pistol-shot!"

  "Very well, father."

  Bogun turned suddenly to Zagloba: "You will go in advance with me."

  "I?" asked Zagloba, in evident bad humor. "I love you so much that Ihave already sweated out one half of my soul; why should I not sweatout the other half? We are like a coat and its lining, and I hope thedevil will take us together,--which is all the same to me, for I thinkit cannot be hotter in hell than here."

  "Forward!"

  "At breakneck speed."
<
br />   They moved on, and soon after them the Cossacks; but the latter rodeslowly, so that in a short time they were a good distance in the rear,and finally were lost to sight.

  Bogun and Zagloba rode side by side in silence, both in deep thought.Zagloba pulled his mustache, and it was evident that he was workingvigorously with his brain; he was planning, perhaps, how to extricatehimself from the whole affair. At times he muttered something tohimself half audibly; then again he looked at Bogun, on whose face wasdepicted now unrestrained anger, now grief.

  "It is a wonder," thought Zagloba to himself, "that though such abeauty, he was not able to bring the girl to his side. He is a Cossack,it is true, but a famous knight and a lieutenant-colonel, who sooner orlater will become a noble, unless he joins the rebellion, which dependsentirely on himself. Pan Skshetuski is a respectable cavalier andgood-looking but he cannot compare in appearance with the Cossack, whois as beautiful as a picture. Ha! they will grapple when they meet, forboth are champions of no common kind."

  "Bogun, do you know Pan Skshetuski well?" asked Zagloba, suddenly.

  "No," answered the Cossack, briefly.

  "You will have difficult work with him. I saw him when he opened thedoor for himself with Chaplinski. He is a Goliath in drinking as wellas fighting."

  Bogun made no reply, and again they were both buried in their ownthoughts and anxieties; following which, Zagloba repeated from time totime: "So there is no help!"

  Some hours passed. The sun had travelled far to the west, towardChigirin; from the east a cool breeze sprang up. Zagloba took off hislynx-skin cap, raised his hand to his sweat-moistened head, andrepeated again: "So there is no help!"

  Bogun roused himself, as if from sleep. "What do you say?" he inquired.

  "I say that it will be dark directly. Is it far yet?"

  "No."

  In an hour it had grown dark in earnest, but they had already reached awoody ravine. At the end of the ravine a light was gleaming.

  "That is Rozlogi," said Bogun, suddenly.

  "Is it? Whew! there is something cold in that ravine."

  Bogun reined in his horse. "Wait!" said he.

  Zagloba looked at him. The eyes of the leader, which had thepeculiarity of shining in the night, were gleaming at that moment likea pair of torches.

  Both of them stood for a long time motionless at the edge of theravine. At length the snorting of horses was heard in the distance.These were Bogun's Cossacks coming on slowly from the depth of theforest.

  The essaul approached for orders, which Bogun whispered in his ear;then the Cossacks halted again.

  "Forward!" said Bogun to Zagloba.

  Soon the dark masses of buildings around the mansion, the storehousesand well-sweeps stood in outline before their eyes. It was quiet in theyard. The dogs did not bark. A great golden moon shone above thebuildings. From the garden came the odor of the cherry and appleblossoms. Everywhere it was quiet,--a night so wonderful that in truthit lacked only the sound of a lyre somewhere under the windows of thebeautiful princess. There was light yet in some parts of the house.

  The two horsemen approached the gate.

  "Who is there?" called the voice of the night-guard.

  "Don't you know me, Maksim?"

  "Oh, that is you! Glory to God!"

  "For the ages of ages. Open the gate! And how is it with you?"

  "All is well. You haven't been in Rozlogi for a long time."

  The hinges of the gate squeaked sharply, the bridge fell over thefosse, and the two horsemen rode into the square.

  "Look here, Maksim! don't shut the gate, and don't raise the bridge,for I am going out directly."

  "Oh! you hurry as if you had come for fire."

  "True! Tie the horse to the post!"