I
accepted with pleasure; we sat down to table; Zourine drank a great
deal, and pressed me to drink, telling me I must get accustomed to the
service.
accepted with pleasure; we sat down to table; Zourine drank a great
deal, and pressed me to drink, telling me I must get accustomed to the
service.
Pushkin - Daughter of the Commandant
I
seated myself in the _kibitka_ with Saveliitch, and started for my
destination, crying bitterly.
I arrived at Simbirsk during the night, where I was to stay twenty-four
hours, that Saveliitch might do sundry commissions entrusted to him. I
remained at an inn, while Saveliitch went out to get what he wanted.
Tired of looking out at the windows upon a dirty lane, I began wandering
about the rooms of the inn. I went into the billiard room. I found there
a tall gentleman, about forty years of age, with long, black
moustachios, in a dressing-gown, a cue in his hand, and a pipe in his
mouth. He was playing with the marker, who was to have a glass of brandy
if he won, and, if he lost, was to crawl under the table on all fours. I
stayed to watch them; the longer their games lasted, the more frequent
became the all-fours performance, till at last the marker remained
entirely under the table. The gentleman addressed to him some strong
remarks, as a funeral sermon, and proposed that I should play a game
with him. I replied that I did not know how to play billiards. Probably
it seemed to him very odd. He looked at me with a sort of pity.
Nevertheless, he continued talking to me. I learnt that his name was
Ivan Ivanovitch[11] Zourine, that he commanded a troop in the ----th
Hussars, that he was recruiting just now at Simbirsk, and that he had
established himself at the same inn as myself. Zourine asked me to lunch
with him, soldier fashion, and, as we say, on what Heaven provides.
I
accepted with pleasure; we sat down to table; Zourine drank a great
deal, and pressed me to drink, telling me I must get accustomed to the
service. He told good stories, which made me roar with laughter, and we
got up from table the best of friends. Then he proposed to teach me
billiards.
"It is," said he, "a necessity for soldiers like us. Suppose, for
instance, you come to a little town; what are you to do? One cannot
always find a Jew to afford one sport. In short, you must go to the inn
and play billiards, and to play you must know how to play. "
These reasons completely convinced me, and with great ardour I began
taking my lesson. Zourine encouraged me loudly; he was surprised at my
rapid progress, and after a few lessons he proposed that we should play
for money, were it only for a "_groch_" (two kopeks),[12] not for the
profit, but that we might not play for nothing, which, according to him,
was a very bad habit.
I agreed to this, and Zourine called for punch; then he advised me to
taste it, always repeating that I must get accustomed to the service.
"And what," said he, "would the service be without punch? "
I followed his advice. We continued playing, and the more I sipped my
glass, the bolder I became. My balls flew beyond the cushions. I got
angry; I was impertinent to the marker who scored for us. I raised the
stake; in short, I behaved like a little boy just set free from school.
seated myself in the _kibitka_ with Saveliitch, and started for my
destination, crying bitterly.
I arrived at Simbirsk during the night, where I was to stay twenty-four
hours, that Saveliitch might do sundry commissions entrusted to him. I
remained at an inn, while Saveliitch went out to get what he wanted.
Tired of looking out at the windows upon a dirty lane, I began wandering
about the rooms of the inn. I went into the billiard room. I found there
a tall gentleman, about forty years of age, with long, black
moustachios, in a dressing-gown, a cue in his hand, and a pipe in his
mouth. He was playing with the marker, who was to have a glass of brandy
if he won, and, if he lost, was to crawl under the table on all fours. I
stayed to watch them; the longer their games lasted, the more frequent
became the all-fours performance, till at last the marker remained
entirely under the table. The gentleman addressed to him some strong
remarks, as a funeral sermon, and proposed that I should play a game
with him. I replied that I did not know how to play billiards. Probably
it seemed to him very odd. He looked at me with a sort of pity.
Nevertheless, he continued talking to me. I learnt that his name was
Ivan Ivanovitch[11] Zourine, that he commanded a troop in the ----th
Hussars, that he was recruiting just now at Simbirsk, and that he had
established himself at the same inn as myself. Zourine asked me to lunch
with him, soldier fashion, and, as we say, on what Heaven provides.
I
accepted with pleasure; we sat down to table; Zourine drank a great
deal, and pressed me to drink, telling me I must get accustomed to the
service. He told good stories, which made me roar with laughter, and we
got up from table the best of friends. Then he proposed to teach me
billiards.
"It is," said he, "a necessity for soldiers like us. Suppose, for
instance, you come to a little town; what are you to do? One cannot
always find a Jew to afford one sport. In short, you must go to the inn
and play billiards, and to play you must know how to play. "
These reasons completely convinced me, and with great ardour I began
taking my lesson. Zourine encouraged me loudly; he was surprised at my
rapid progress, and after a few lessons he proposed that we should play
for money, were it only for a "_groch_" (two kopeks),[12] not for the
profit, but that we might not play for nothing, which, according to him,
was a very bad habit.
I agreed to this, and Zourine called for punch; then he advised me to
taste it, always repeating that I must get accustomed to the service.
"And what," said he, "would the service be without punch? "
I followed his advice. We continued playing, and the more I sipped my
glass, the bolder I became. My balls flew beyond the cushions. I got
angry; I was impertinent to the marker who scored for us. I raised the
stake; in short, I behaved like a little boy just set free from school.
