Book Eleven: 1812 - Chapter XIV

by Leo Tolstoy

　　Madame Schoss, who had been out to visit her daughter, increased thecountess' fears still more by telling what she had seen at a spiritdealer's in Myasnitski Street. When returning by that street she hadbeen unable to pass because of a drunken crowd rioting in front of theshop. She had taken a cab and driven home by a side street and thecabman had told her that the people were breaking open the barrelsat the drink store, having received orders to do so.

　　After dinner the whole Rostov household set to work withenthusiastic haste packing their belongings and preparing for theirdeparture. The old count, suddenly setting to work, kept passingfrom the yard to the house and back again, shouting confusedinstructions to the hurrying people, and flurrying them still more.Petya directed things in the yard. Sonya, owing to the count'scontradictory orders, lost her head and did not know what to do. Theservants ran noisily about the house and yard, shouting and disputing.Natasha, with the ardor characteristic of all she did suddenly setto work too. At first her intervention in the business of packingwas received skeptically. Everybody expected some prank from her anddid not wish to obey her; but she resolutely and passionately demandedobedience, grew angry and nearly cried because they did not heedher, and at last succeeded in making them believe her. Her firstexploit, which cost her immense effort and established herauthority, was the packing of the carpets. The count had valuableGobelin tapestries and Persian carpets in the house. When Natashaset to work two cases were standing open in the ballroom, one almostfull up with crockery, the other with carpets. There was also muchchina standing on the tables, and still more was being brought in fromthe storeroom. A third case was needed and servants had gone tofetch 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 plateswrapped 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 threecases," said the butler's assistant.

　　"Oh, wait, please!" And Natasha began rapidly and deftly sorting outthe things. "These aren't needed," said she, putting aside some platesof 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," urgedSonya reproachfully.

　　"What a young lady she is!" remarked the major-domo.

　　But Natasha would not give in. She turned everything out and beganquickly repacking, deciding that the inferior Russian carpets andunnecessary crockery should not be taken at all. When everything hadbeen taken out of the cases, they recommenced packing, and it turnedout that when the cheaper things not worth taking had nearly allbeen 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. Afew more things might have been taken out, but Natasha insisted onhaving her own way. She packed, repacked, pressed, made the butler'sassistant and Petya- whom she had drawn into the business ofpacking- press on the lid, and made desperate efforts herself.

　　"That's enough, Natasha," said Sonya. "I see you were right, butjust take out the top one."

　　"I won't!" cried Natasha, with one hand bolding back the hair thathung over her perspiring face, while with the other she pressed downthe carpets. "Now press, Petya! Press, Vasilich, press hard!" shecried.

　　The carpets yielded and the lid closed; Natasha, clapping her hands,screamed with delight and tears fell from her eyes. But this onlylasted a moment. She at once set to work afresh and they now trustedher completely. The count was not angry even when they told him thatNatasha had countermanded an order of his, and the servants now cameto her to ask whether a cart was sufficiently loaded, and whether itmight be corded up. Thanks to Natasha's directions the work now wenton expeditiously, unnecessary things were left, and the mostvaluable packed as compactly as possible.

　　But hard as they all worked till quite late that night, they couldnot get everything packed. The countess had fallen asleep and thecount, 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, andMavra Kuzminichna, who was standing at the gate, had him broughtinto the Rostovs' yard. Mavra Kuzminichna concluded that he was a veryimportant man. He was being conveyed in a caleche with a raisedhood, and was quite covered by an apron. On the box beside thedriver sat a venerable old attendant. A doctor and two soldiersfollowed the carriage in a cart.

　　"Please come in here. The masters are going away and the whole housewill be empty," said the old woman to the old attendant.

　　"Well, perhaps," said he with a sigh. "We don't expect to get himhome alive! We have a house of our own in Moscow, but it's a longway from here, and there's nobody living in it."

　　"Do us the honor to come in, there's plenty of everything in themaster'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 hishead disconsolately, told the driver to turn into the yard, andstopped 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 tookhim into the wing and put him in the room that had been MadameSchoss'.

　　This wounded man was Prince Andrew Bolkonski.