The passenger train sped merrily from the south to the north,
traversing golden fields of wheat and beautiful groves of oak,
careering with rumbling upon iron bridges over bright rivers, leaving
behind it whirling clouds of smoke.
In the COUPE of the second class, even with open windows, there was a
fearful stuffiness, and it was hot. The smell of sulphurous smoke
irritated the throat. The rocking and the heat had completely tired out
the passengers, save one, a merry, energetic, mobile Hebrew, splendidly
dressed, accommodating, sociable and talkative. He was travelling with
a young woman, and it was at once apparent, especially through her,
that they were newly-weds; so often did her face flare up with an
unexpected colour at every tenderness of her husband, even the least.
And when she raised her eyelashes to look upon him, her eyes would
shine like stars, and grow humid. And her face was as beautiful as only
the faces of young Hebrew maidens in love can be beautiful—all tenderly
rosy, with rosy lips, rounded out in beautiful innocence, and with eyes
so black that their pupils could not be distinguished from the irises.
Unabashed by the presence of three strange people, he showered his
caresses upon his companion every minute, and, it must be said,
sufficiently coarse ones. With the unceremoniousness of an owner, with
that especial egoism of one in love, who, it would seem, is saying to
the whole universe: “See, how happy we are—this makes you happy also,
isn’t that so?”—he would now pass his hand over her leg, which
resiliently and in relief stood out beneath her dress, now pinch her on
the cheek, now tickle her neck with his stiff, black, turned-up
moustache ... But, even though he did sparkle with delight, there was
still something rapacious, wary, uneasy to be glimpsed in his
frequently winking eyes, in the twitching of the upper lip, and in the
harsh outline of his shaved, square chin, jutting out, with a scarcely
noticeable dent in the middle.
Opposite this infatuated couple were placed three passengers—a retired
general, a spare, neat little old man, with pomade on his hair, with
curls combed forward to the temples; a stout land-owner, who had taken
off his starched collar, but was still gasping from the heat and
mopping his face every minute with a wet handkerchief; and a young
infantry officer. The endless talkativeness of Simon Yakovlevich (the
young man had already managed to inform his neighbours that he was
called Simon Yakovlevich Horizon) tired and irritated the passengers a
trifle, just like the buzzing of a fly, that on a sultry summer day
rhythmically beats against a window pane of a closed, stuffy room. But
still, he knew how to raise their spirits: he showed tricks of magic;
told Hebrew anecdotes, full of a fine humour of their own. When his
wife would go out on the platform to refresh herself, he would tell
such things that the general would melt into a beatific smile, the
land-owner would neigh, rocking his black-loam stomach, while the
sub-lieutenant, a smooth-faced boy, only a year out of school, scarcely
controlling his laughter and curiosity, would turn away to one side,
that his neighbours might not see him turning red.
His wife tended Horizon with a touching, naive attention; she wiped his
face with a handkerchief, waved upon him with a fan, adjusted his
cravat every minute. And his face at these times became laughably
supercilious and stupidly self-conceited.
“But allow me to ask,” asked the spare little general, coughing
politely, “allow me to ask, my dear sir, what occupation might you
pursue?”
“Ah, my God!” with a charming frankness retorted Simon Yakovlevich.
“Well, what can a poor Jew do in our time? It’s a bit of a travelling
salesman and a commission broker by me. At the present time I’m far
from business. You—he! he! he!—understand yourselves, gentlemen. A
honeymoon—don’t turn red, Sarochka—it don’t repeat itself three times
in a year. But afterwards I’ll have to travel and work a great deal.
Here we’ll come with Sarochka to town, will pay the visits to her
relatives, and then again on the road. On my first trip I’m thinking of
taking my wife. You know, sort of a wedding journey. I’m a
representative from Sidris and two English firms. Wouldn’t you like to
have a look? Here are the samples with me ...”
He very rapidly took out of a small, elegant case of yellow leather a
few long cardboard folding books, and with the dexterity of a tailor
began to unfold them, holding one end, from which their folds fell
downward with a light crackling.
“Look, what splendid samples: they don’t give in to foreign ones at
all. Please notice. Here, for instance, is Russian and here English
tricot, or here, cangan and cheviot. Compare, feel it, and you’ll be
convinced that the Russian samples almost don’t give in to the foreign.
Why, that speaks of progress, of the growth of culture. So it’s
absolutely for nothing that Europe counts us Russians such barbarians.
“And so we’ll pay our family visits, will look at the fair, pay a visit
to the CHATEAU DES FLEURS, enjoy ourselves a little, stroll a bit, and
then to the Volga down to Tzaritzin, to the Black Sea, and then again
home to our native Odessa.”
“That’s a fine journey,” said the sub-lieutenant modestly.
“I should say it’s fine,” agreed Simon Yakovlevich; “but there are no
roses without thorns. The work of a travelling salesman is exceedingly
difficult and requires many kinds of knowledge, and not so much the
knowledge of business as the knowledge of—how shall I say it?—the
knowledge of the human soul. Another man may not even want to give an
order, but you must work like an elephant to convince him, and argue
until he feels the clearness and justice of your words. Because I take
only absolutely clean lines exclusively, of which there can be no
doubts. A fake or a bad line I will not take, although they should
offer me millions for it. Ask wherever you like, in any store which
deals in cloths or suspenders GLOIRE—I’m also a representative from
this firm—or buttons HELIOS—you just ask who Simon Yakovlevich Horizon
is, and everyone will answer you: ‘Simon Yakovlevich is not a man, but
gold; this is a disinterested man, as honest as a diamond.’” And
Horizon was already unpacking long boxes with patented suspenders, and
was showing the glistening leaves of cardboard, covered with regular
rows of vari-coloured buttons.
“There happen great unpleasantnesses, when the place has been worked
out, when a lot of travelling salesmen have appeared before you. Here
you can’t do anything; they absolutely won’t listen to you, only wave
their arms. But that’s only for others. I am Horizon! I can talk him
over, the same like a camel from a menagerie. But it happens still more
unpleasant, when two competitors in one and the same line come together
in the same town. And it happens even worse when it’s some chimney
sweep and can’t do business himself and spoils business for you too.
Here you go to all sorts of tricks: let him drink till he’s drunk or
let him go off somewhere on a false track. Not an easy trade! Besides
that, I have one more line—that’s false eyes and teeth. But it ain’t a
profitable line. I want to drop it. And besides I’m thinking of leaving
all this business. I understand, it’s all right for a young man, in the
bloom of his powers, to flutter around like a moth, but once you have a
wife, and may be a whole family even ...” he playfully patted the woman
on the knee, from which she became scarlet and looked uncommonly
better. “For the Lord has blessed us Jews with fecundity for all our
misfortunes ... Then you want to have some business of your own, you
want, you understand, to become settled in one place, so’s there should
be a shack of your own, and your own furniture, and your own bedroom,
and kitchen ... Isn’t that so, your excellency?”
“Yes ... Yes ... eh—eh ... Yes, of course, of course,” condescendingly
responded the general.
“And so I took with Sarochka a little dowry. What do I mean, a little
dowry? Such money that Rothschild would not even want to look at it are
in my hands a whole capital already. But it must be said that there are
some savings by me, too. The firms I know will give me credit. If God
grant it, we shall still eat a piece of bread and a little butter—and
on the Sabbaths the tasty GEFILTEH FISCH.”
“That’s fine fish: pike the way the sheenies make it!” said the gasping
land-owner.
“We shall open up for ourselves the firm of ‘Horizon and Son.’ Isn’t
that true, Sarochka—‘and Son?’ And you, I hope, will honour me with
your esteemed orders? When you see the sign, ‘Horizon and Son,’ then
straight off recollect that you once rode in a car together with a
young man, who had grown as foolish as hell from love and from
happiness.”
“Ab-solutely!” said the land-owner.
And Simon Yakovlevich at once turned to him:
“But I also work by commission broking. To sell an estate, to buy an
estate, to arrange a second mortgage—you won’t find a better specialist
than me, and such a cheap one at that. I can be of service to you,
should the need arise,” and he extended his visiting card to the
land-owner with a bow, and, by the way, handed a card each to his two
neighbours as well.
The land-owner dived into a side pocket and also dragged out a card.
“Joseph Ivanovich Vengjenovski,” Simon Yakovlevich read out loud.
“Very, very pleased! And so, should you need me ...”
“Why not? It’s possible ...” said the land-owner meditatively. “Why,
yes: perhaps, indeed, a favourable chance has brought us together! Why,
I’m just journeying to K——about the sale of a certain forest country
house. Suppose you do that, then,—drop in to see me. I always stop at
the Grand Hotel. Perhaps we may be able to strike up a deal.”
“Oh, I’m already almost sure, my dearest Joseph Ivanovich!” exclaimed
the rejoicing Horizon, and slightly, with the very tips of his fingers,
patted Vengjenovski’s kneecap carefully. “You just rest assured; if
Horizon has undertaken anything, then you’ll be thanking him like your
own father, no more, no less.”
Half an hour later Simon Yakovlevich and the smooth-faced
sub-lieutenant were standing on the platform of the car and smoking.
“Do you often visit K——, mister sub-lieutenant?” asked Horizon.
“Only for the first time—just imagine! Our regiment is stationed at
Chernobob. I was born in Moscow, myself.”
“AI, AI, AI! How’d you come to get into such a faraway place?”
“Well, it just fell out so. There was no other vacancy when I was let
out.”
“But then—Chernobob is a hole! The worst little town in all Podolia.”
“That’s true, but it just fell out so.”
“That means, then, that the young officer gent is going to K——to divert
himself a little?”
“Yes. I’m thinking of stopping there for two or three days. I’m
travelling to Moscow, really. I have received a two months’ leave, but
it would be interesting to look over the city on the way. It’s very
beautiful, they say.”
“Oh, what are you trying to tell me? A remarkable city! Well,
absolutely a European city. If you only knew, what streets,
electricity, trolleys, theatres! And if you only knew what cabarets!
You’ll lick your own fingers. Positively, positively, I advise you,
young man, to pay a visit to the CHATEAU DES FLEURS, to the Tivoli, and
also to ride out to the island. That’s something special. What women,
wha-a-at women!”
The lieutenant turned red, took his eyes away, and asked in a voice
that quavered:
“Yes, I’ve happened to hear that. Is it possible that they’re really so
handsome?”
“Oi! Strike me God! Believe me, there are no handsome women there at
all.”
“But—how’s that?”
“Why, this way: there are only raving beauties there. You
understand—what a happy blending of bloods! Polish, Little Russian, and
Hebrew. How I envy you, young man, that you’re free and alone. In my
time I sure would have shown myself! And what’s most remarkable of all,
they’re unusually passionate women! Well, just like fire! And do you
know something else?” he asked in a whisper of great significance.
“What?” asked the sub-lieutenant in a fright.
“It’s remarkable, that nowheres, neither in Paris, nor in
London—believe me, this was told me by people who had seen the whole
wide world—never, nowhere, will you meet with such exquisite ways of
making love as in this town. That’s something especial, as us little
Jews say. They think up such things that no imagination can picture to
itself. It’s enough to drive you crazy!”
“But is that possible?” quietly spoke the sub-lieutenant, whose breath
had been cut off.
“Well, strike me God! But permit me, young man, by the way! You
understand yourself. I was single, and of course, every man is liable
to sin ... It’s different now, of course. I’ve had myself written in
with the invalids. But from the former days a remarkable collection has
remained to me. Just wait, I’ll show it to you right away. Only,
please, be as careful as possible in looking at it.”
Horizon with trepidation looked around to the right and left and
extracted from his pocket a long, narrow little box of morocco, in the
style of those in which playing cards are usually kept, and extended it
to the sub-lieutenant.
“Here you are, have a look. Only, I beg of you, be very careful.”
The sub-lieutenant applied himself to picking out, one after the other,
the cards of plain and coloured photography, in which in all possible
aspects was depicted in the most beastly ways, in the most impossible
positions, the external side of love which at times makes man
immeasurably lower and viler than a baboon. Horizon would look over his
shoulder, nudge him with his elbow, and whisper:
“Tell me, ain’t that swell, now? Why, this is genuine Parisian and
Viennese chic!”
The sub-lieutenant looked through the whole collection from the
beginning to the end. When he was giving back the little box, his hand
was shaking, his temples and forehead were moist, his eyes had dimmed,
and over his cheeks had mantled a blush, mottled like marble.
“But do you know what?” Horizon exclaimed gaily, all of a sudden. “It’s
all the same to me—the Indian sign has been put upon me. I, as they
used to say in the olden times, have burned my ships ... I have burned
all that I used to adore before. For a long time already I’ve been
looking for an opportunity to pass these cards on to some one. I ain’t
especially chasing after a price. You wish to acquire them, mister
officer?”
“Well, now ... I,—that is ... Why not? ... Let’s ...”
“That’s fine! On account of such a pleasant acquaintanceship, I’ll take
fifty kopecks apiece. What, is that expensive? Well, what’s the
difference, God be with you! I see you’re a travelling man, I don’t
want to rob you; let it go at thirty, then. What? That ain’t cheap
either? Well, shake hands on it! Twenty-five kopecks apiece. OI! What
an intractable fellow you are! At twenty! You’ll thank me yourself
later! And then, do you know what else? When I come to K—, I always
stop at the Hotel Hermitage. You can very easily find me there either
very early in the morning, or about eight o’clock in the evening. I
know an awful lot of the finest little ladies. So I’ll introduce you.
And, you understand, not for money. Oh, no. It’s just simply nice and
gay for them to pass the time with a young, healthy, handsome man of
your sort. There’s absolutely no money of any kind necessary. And for
that matter—they themselves will willingly pay for wine, for a bottle
of champagne! So remember then; The Hermitage, Horizon. And if it isn’t
that, remember it anyway! Maybe I can be of use to you. And the cards
are such a thing, such a thing, that it will never lay on the shelf by
you. Those who like that sort of thing give three roubles for each
specimen. But these, of course, are rich people, little old men. And
then, you know”—Horizon bent over to the officer’s very ear, winked one
eye, and pronounced in a sly whisper—“you know, many ladies adore these
cards. Why, you’re a young man, and handsome; how many romances you
will have yet!”
Having received the money and counted it over painstakingly, Horizon
had the brazenness to extend his hand in addition, and to shake the
hand of the sub-lieutenant, who did not dare to lift up his eyes to
him; and, having left him on the platform, went back into the
passageway of the car, as though nothing had happened.
This was an unusually communicative man. On the way to his COUPE he
came to a stop before a beautiful little girl of three years, with whom
he had for some time been flirting at a distance and making all sorts
of funny grimaces at. He squatted down on his heels before her, began
to imitate a nanny goat for her, and questioned her in a lisping voice:
“May I athk where the young lady ith going? OI, OI, OI! Thuch a big
girl! Travelling alone, without mamma? Bought a ticket all by herthelf
and travelth alone! AI! What a howwid girl! And where ith the girl’th
mamma?” At this moment a tall, handsome, self-assured woman appeared
from the COUPE and said calmly:
“Get away from the child. What a despicable thing to annoy strange
children!”
Horizon jumped up on his feet and began to bustle:
“Madam! I could not restrain myself ... Such a wonderful, such a
magnificent and swell child! A regular cupid! You must understand,
madam, I am a father myself—I have children of my own ... I could not
restrain myself from delight! ...”
But the lady turned her back upon him, took the girl by the hand and
went with her into the COUPE, leaving Horizon shuffling his feet and
muttering his compliments and apologies.
Several times during the twenty-four hours Horizon would go into the
third class, of two cars, separated from each other by almost the
entire train. In one care were sitting three handsome women, in the
society of a black-bearded, taciturn, morose man. Horizon and he would
exchange strange phrases in some special jargon. The women looked at
him uneasily, as though wishing, yet not daring, to ask him about
something. Only once, toward noon, did one of them allow herself to
utter:
“Then that’s the truth? That which you said about the place? ... You
understand—I’m somewhat uneasy at heart!”
“Ah, what do you mean, Margarita Ivanovna? If I said it, then it’s
right, just like by the National Bank. Listen, Lazer,” he turned to him
of the beard. “There will be a station right away. Buy the girls all
sorts of sandwiches, whichever they may desire. The train stops here
for twenty-five minutes.”
“I’d like to have bouillon,” hesitatingly uttered a little blonde, with
hair like ripened rye, and with eyes like corn-flowers.
“My dear Bella, anything you please! At the station I’ll go and see
that they bring you bouillon with meat and even stuffed dumplings.
Don’t you trouble yourself, Lazer, I’ll do all that myself.”
In another car he had a whole nursery garden of women, twelve or
fifteen people, under the leadership of an old, stout woman, with
enormous, awesome, black eyebrows. She spoke in a bass, while her fat
chins, breasts, and stomachs swayed under a broad morning dress in time
to the shaking of the car, just like apple jelly. Neither the old woman
nor the young women left the least doubts as to their profession.
The women were lolling on the benches, smoking, playing cards—at
“sixty-six,”—drinking beer. Frequently the male public of the car
provoked them, and they swore back in unceremonious language, in hoarse
voices. The young people treated them with wine and cigarettes.
Horizon was here altogether unrecognizable; he was majestically
negligent and condescendingly jocose. On the other hand, cringing
ingratiation sounded in every word addressed to him by his female
clients. But he, having looked over all of them—this strange mixture of
Roumanians, Jewesses, Poles and Russians—and having assured himself
that all was in order, gave orders about the sandwiches and
majestically withdrew. At these moments he very much resembled a
drover, who is transporting by railroad cattle for slaughter, and at a
station drops in to look it over and to feed it. After that he would
return to his COUPE and again begin to toy with his wife, and Hebrew
anecdotes just poured from his mouth.
At the long stops he would go out to the buffet only to see about his
lady clients. But he himself said to his neighbours:
“You know, it’s all the same to me if it’s TREIF or KOSHER. I don’t
recognize any difference. But what can I do with my stomach! The devil
knows what stuff they’ll feed you sometimes at these stations. You’ll
pay some three or four roubles, and then you’ll spend a hundred roubles
on the doctors curing yourself. But maybe you, now, Sarochka”—he would
turn to his wife—“maybe you’ll get off at the station to eat something?
Or shall I send it up to you here?”
Sarochka, happy over his attention, would turn red, beam upon him with
grateful eyes, and refuse.
“You’re very kind, Senya, only I don’t want to. I’m full.”
Then Horizon would reach out of a travelling hamper a chicken, boiled
meat, cucumbers, and a bottle of Palestine wine; have a snack, without
hurrying, with appetite; regale his wife, who ate very genteelly,
sticking out the little fingers of her magnificent white hands; then
painstakingly wrap up the remnants in paper and, without hurrying, lay
them away accurately in the hamper.
In the distance, far ahead of the locomotive, the cupolas and belfries
were already beginning to sparkle with fires of gold. Through the COUPE
passed the conductor and made some imperceptible sign to Horizon. He
immediately followed the conductor out to the platform.
“The inspector will pass through right away,” said the conductor, “so
you’ll please be so kind as to stand for a while here on the platform
of the third class with your spouse.”
“NU, NU, NU!” concurred Horizon.
“And the money as agreed, if you please.”
“How much is coming to you, then?”
“Well, just as we agreed; half the extra charge, two roubles eighty
kopecks.”
“What?” Horizon suddenly boiled over. “Two roubles eighty kopecks? You
think you got it a crazy one in me, what? Here’s a rouble for you and
thank God for that!”
“Pardon me, sir. This is even absurd—didn’t you and I agree?”
“Agree, agree! ... Here’s a half more, and not a thing besides. What
impudence! I’ll tell the inspector yet that you carry people without
tickets. Don’t you think it, brother—you ain’t found one of that sort
here!”
The conductor’s eyes suddenly widened, became blood-shot.
“O-oh! You sheeny!” he began to roar. “I ought to take a skunk like you
and under the train with you!”
But Horizon at once flew at him like a cock.
“What? Under the train? But do you know what’s done for words like
that? A threat by action! Here, I’ll go right away and will yell
‘help!’ and will turn the signal handle,” and he seized the door-knob
with such an air of resolution that the conductor just made a gesture
of despair with his hand and spat.
“May you choke with my money, you mangy sheeny!”
Horizon called his wife out of the COUPE:
“Sarochka! Let’s go out on the platform for a look; one can see better
there. Well, it’s so beautiful—just like on a picture!”
Sarah obediently went after him, holding up with an unskilled hand the
new dress, in all probability put on for the first time, bending out
and as though afraid of touching the door or the wall.
In the distance, in the rosy gala haze of the evening glow, shone the
golden cupolas and crosses. High up on the hill the white, graceful
churches seemed to float in this flowery, magic mirage. Curly woods and
coppices had run down from above and had pushed on over the very
ravine. And the sheer, white precipice which bathed its foot in the
blue river, was all furrowed over with occasional young woods, just
like green little veins and warts. Beautiful as in a fairy tale, the
ancient town appeared as though it were itself coming to meet the
train.
When the train stopped, Horizon ordered three porters to carry the
things into the first class, and told his wife to follow him. But he
himself lingered at the exit in order to let through both his parties.
To the old woman looking after the dozen women he threw briefly in
passing:
“So remember, madam Berman! Hotel America, Ivanukovskaya, twenty-two!”
While to the black-bearded man he said:
“Don’t forget, Lazer, to feed the girls at dinner and to bring them
somewhere to a movie show. About eleven o’clock at night wait for me.
I’ll come for a talk. But if some one will be calling for me extra,
then you know my address—The Hermitage. Ring me up. But if I’m not
there for some reason, then run into Reiman’s cafe, or opposite, into
the Hebrew dining room. I’ll be eating GEFILTEH FISCH there. Well, a
lucky journey!”