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 They soon filled a basket with mushrooms; even Lili found some of the birch agarics. Always before Miss Hull had found them and pointed them out to her; but now she herself found a huge birch shliupik, and there was a universal cry of enthusiasm:—

"Lili has found a mushroom!"

Afterwards they came to the river, left the horses under the birch trees, and went to the bath-house. The coachman, Terenti, leaving the animals to switch away the flies with their tails, stretched himself out on the grass in the shade of the birches, and smoked his pipe, and listened to the shouts and laughter of the children in the bath-house.

Though it was rather embarrassing to look after all these children, and to keep them from mischief; though it was hard to remember, and not mix up all these stockings, shoes, and trousers for so many different legs, and to untie, unbutton, and then fasten again, so many tapes and buttons,—still Darya Aleksandrovna always took a lively interest in the bathing, looking on it as advantageous for the children, and never feeling happier than when engaged in this occupation. To fit the stockings on those plump little legs; to take the younger ones by the hand, and dip their naked little bodies into the water; to hear their cries, now joyful, now terrified; to see these breathless faces of those splashing cherubimchiks of hers, with their scared or sparkling eyes wide open with excitement,—all this was a perfect delight to her.

When half of the children were dressed, some peasant women, in Sunday attire, on their way to get herbs, came along, and stopped timidly at the bath-house. Matriona Filimonovna called to one of them, in order to give her a sheet and a shirt to dry that had fallen into the water; and Darya Aleksandrovna talked with the women. At first they laughed behind their hands, not understanding her questions; but little by little their courage returned and they began to chatter, and they quite won Darya Aleksandrovna's heart by their sincere admiration of the children.