Page:Complete Works of Count Tolstoy - 01.djvu/131



young man whose lady I had taken away was dancing a mazurka, and leading it as the first pair. He leaped from his seat, holding his lady's hand, and instead of making "pas de Basques," as Mimi had taught us, simply ran ahead. When he reached the corner, he stopped, spread his legs, struck the floor with his heel, turned about, and hopping, ran ahead.

As I had no lady for the mazurka, I sat behind grandmother's high chair and observed.

"What is he doing there?" I reflected. "That is not at all the way Mimi taught us; she assured us that everybody danced a mazurka on tiptoe, moving the feet evenly and in a circle; and now it seems that they dance it quite differently. There the Ivins, and Etienne, and all are dancing, but none of them make ' pas de Basques; ' and even Volódya has learned the new fashion. It is not at all bad! And what a sweet girl Sónichka is! There, she has started again —" I felt exceedingly happy.

The mazurka came to an end. A few elderly men and women walked up to grandmother, in order to bid her good-bye, and departed. Avoiding the dancers, the lackeys were carefully carrying things for the tables into the back rooms. Grandmother was visibly tired, spoke as if against her will, and prolonged her words beyond measure. The musicians for the thirtieth time lazily began the same motive. The tall young lady, with whom I had