Page:Taras Bulba. A Tale of the Cossacks. 1916.djvu/70

64 he crept through the hedge into the garden, and climbed a tree which spread its branches over the very roof of the house. From the tree he crawled upon the roof, and made his way through the chimney straight into the bedroom of the beauty, who, at the moment, was seated before a candle, engaged in removing the costly earrings from her ears. The beautiful Pole was so alarmed on suddenly beholding a strange man before her, that she could not utter a single word; but when she perceived that the student stood before her with downcast eyes, not daring to move a hand through timidity, when she recognised in him the one who had fallen headlong in the street before her, laughter again overpowered her.

Moreover, there was nothing terrible in Andríi's features; he was very handsome. The beauty was giddy, like all Poles; but her eyes, her wondrous, clear, piercing eyes, darted a glance—a glance as long as constancy. The student could not move a hand, but stood bound as in a sack, when the Voevod's daughter approached him boldly, placed upon his head her glittering diadem, hung her earrings on his lips, and flung over him a transparent muslin chemise, with gold-embroidered garlands. She tricked him out, and played a thousand foolish pranks, with the unconstraint of a child, which distinguishes the giddy Poles, and