"Can it be that I am going to freeze to death?" I asked myself, as I
dropped off. "Death, they say, always begins with drowsiness. It's much
better to drown than freeze to death, then they would pull me out of
the net. However, it makes no difference whether one drowns or freezes
to death. If only this stake did not stick into my back so, I might
forget myself."
For a second I lost consciousness.
"How will all this end?" I suddenly ask myself in thought, for a moment
opening my eyes, and gazing at the white expanse,--"how will it end?
If we don't find some hayricks, and the horses get winded, as it seems
likely they will be very soon, we shall all freeze to death."
I confess, that, though I was afraid, I had a desire for something
extraordinarily tragic to happen to us; and this was stronger than
the small fear. It seemed to me that it would not be unpleasant if at
morning the horses themselves should bring us, half-frozen, to some
far-off, unknown village, where some of us might even perish of the
cold.
And while I have this thought, my imagination works with extraordinary
clearness and rapidity. The horses become weary, the snow grows deeper
and deeper, and now only the ears and the bell-bow are visible; but
suddenly Ignashka appears on horseback, driving his troïka past us. We
beseech him, we shout to him to take us: but the wind carries away our
voices; we have no voices left. Ignashka laughs at us, shouts to his
horses, whistles, and passes out of our sight in some deep snow-covered
ravine. A little old man climbs upon a horse, flaps his elbows, and
tries to gallop after him; but he cannot stir from the place. My old
driver, with his great cap, throws himself upon him, drags him to the
ground, and tramples him into the snow. "You're a wizard!" he cries.
"You're a spitfire. We are all lost on your account." But the little
old man flings a snowball at his head. He is no longer a little old
man, but only a hare, and bounds away from us. All the dogs bound after
him. The mentor, who is now the butler, tells us to sit around in a
circle, that nothing will happen to us if we protect ourselves with
snow: it will be warm.
In fact, it is warm and cosey: our only trouble is thirst. I get out my
travelling-case; I offer every one rum and sugar, and drink myself with
great satisfaction. The story-teller spins some yarn about the rainbow,
and over our heads is a roof of snow and a rainbow.
"Now each of you," I say, "make a chamber in the snow, and go to
sleep." The snow is soft and warm like wool. I make myself a room, and
am just going into it; but Feódor Filíppuitch, who has caught a glimpse
of my money in my travelling-case, says, "Hold! give me your money,
you won't need it when you're dead," and seizes me by the leg. I hand
him the money, asking him only to let me go; but they will not believe
that it is all my money, and they are going to kill me. I seize the old
man's hand, and with indescribable pleasure kiss it: the old man's hand
is tender and soft. At first he takes it away from me, but afterwards
he lets me have it, and even caresses me with his other hand.
Nevertheless, Feódor Filíppuitch comes near and threatens me. I hasten
to my chamber; it is not a chamber, but a long white corridor, and some
one pulls back on my leg. I tear myself away. In the hand of the man
who holds me back, remain my trousers and a part of my skin; but I feel
only cold and ashamed,--all the more ashamed because my auntie with her
sunshade, and homœopathic pellets, comes arm in arm with the drowned
man to meet me. They smile, but do not understand the signs that I
make to them. I fling myself after the sledge; my feet glide over the
snow, but the little old man follows after me, flapping his elbows. He
comes close to me. But I hear just in front of me two church-bells, and
I know that I shall be safe when I reach them. The church-bells ring
nearer and nearer; but the little old man has caught up with me, and
falls with his body across my face, so that I can scarcely hear the
bells. Once more I seize his hand, and begin to kiss it; but the little
old man is no longer the little old man, but the drowned man, and he
cries,--
"Ignashka, hold on! here are Akhmet's hayricks! just look!"
That is strange to hear! no, I would rather wake up.
I open my eyes. The wind is flapping the tails of Alyoshka's cloak into
my face; my knees are uncovered. We are going over the bare crust,
and the triad of the bells rings pleasantly through the air with its
dominant fifth.
I look, expecting to see the hayricks; but instead of hayricks, now
that my eyes are wide open, I see something like a house with a
balcony, and the crenellated walls of a fortress. I feel very little
interest in seeing this house and fortress; my desire is much stronger
to see the white corridor where I had been walking, to hear the sound
of the church-bells, and to kiss the little old man's hand. Again I
close my eyes and sleep.