University of Virginia Library

13. A LOST OPPORTUNITY.

—

"Then came Peter to Him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my
brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?"
. . . . "So likewise shall My heavenly Father do also unto you,
if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their
trespasses."—ST. MATTHEW xviii., 21-35.

IN a certain village there lived a peasant by
the name of Ivan Scherbakoff. He was pros-
perous, strong, and vigorous, and was consid-
ered the hardest worker in the whole village.

He had three sons, who supported themselves
by their own labor. The eldest was married,
the second about to be married, and the young-
est took care of the horses and occasionally at-
tended to the plowing.

The peasant's wife, Ivanovna, was intelli-
gent and industrious, while her daughter-in-
law was a simple, quiet soul, but a hard worker.

There was only one idle person in the house-
hold, and that was Ivan's father, a very old
man who for seven years had suffered from
asthma, and who spent the greater part of his
time lying on the brick oven.

Ivan had plenty of everything—three horses,
with one colt, a cow with calf, and fifteen
sheep. The women made the men's clothes,
and in addition to performing all the necessary
household labor, also worked in the field; while
the men's industry was confined altogether to
the farm.

What was left of the previous year's supply
of provisions was ample for their needs, and
they sold a quantity of oats sufficient to pay
their taxes and other expenses.

Thus life went smoothly for Ivan.

The peasant's next-door neighbor was a son
of Gordey Ivanoff, called "Gavryl the Lame."

It once happened that Ivan had a quarrel with
him; but while old man Gordey was yet alive,
and Ivan's father was the head of the house-

hold, the two peasants lived as good neighbors
should. If the women of one house required
the use of a sieve or pail, they borrowed it
from the inmates of the other house. The
same condition of affairs existed between the
men. They lived more like one family, the one
dividing his possessions with the other, and per-
fect harmony reigned between the two families.

If a stray calf or cow invaded the garden of
one of the farmers, the other willingly drove
it away, saying: "Be careful, neighbor, that
your stock does not again stray into my garden;
we should put a fence up." In the same way
they had no secrets from each other. The
doors of their houses and barns had neither
bolts nor locks, so sure were they of each other's
honesty. Not a shadow of suspicion darkened
their daily intercourse.

Thus lived the old people.

In time the younger members of the two
households started farming. It soon became
apparent that they would not get along as

peacefully as the old people had done, for they
began quarrelling without the slightest provo-
cation.

A hen belonging to Ivan's daughter-in-law
commenced laying eggs, which the young
woman collected each morning, intending to
keep them for the Easter holidays. She made
daily visits to the barn, where, under an old
wagon, she was sure to find the precious egg.

One day the children frightened the hen and
she flew over their neighbor's fence and laid
her egg in their garden.

Ivan's daughter-in-law heard the hen cack-
ling, but said: "I am very busy just at present,
for this is the eve of a holy day, and I must
clean and arrange this room. I will go for the
egg later on."

When evening came, and she had finished
her task, she went to the barn, and as usual
looked under the old wagon, expecting to find
an egg. But, alas! no egg was visible in the
accustomed place.

Greatly disappointed, she returned to the
house and inquired of her mother-in-law and the
other members of the family if they had taken
it. "No," they said, "we know nothing of it."

Taraska, the youngest brother-in-law, coming
in soon after, she also inquired of him if he
knew anything about the missing egg. "Yes,"
he replied; "your pretty, crested hen laid her
egg in our neighbors' garden, and after she had
finished cackling she flew back again over the
fence."

The young woman, greatly surprised on hear-
ing this, turned and looked long and seriously
at the hen, which was sitting with closed eyes
beside the rooster in the chimney-corner. She
asked the hen where it laid the egg. At the
sound of her voice it simply opened and closed
its eyes, but could make no answer.

She then went to the neighbors' house, where
she was met by an old woman, who said:

"What do you want, young woman?"

Ivan's daughter-in-law replied: "You see,

babushka
[grandmother], my hen flew into your
yard this morning. Did she not lay an egg
there?"

"We did not see any," the old woman replied;
"we have our own hens—God be praised!—and
they have been laying for this long time. We
hunt only for the eggs our own hens lay, and
have no use for the eggs other people's hens
lay. Another thing I want to tell you, young
woman: we do not go into other people's yards
to look for eggs."

Now this speech greatly angered the young
woman, and she replied in the same spirit in
which she had been spoken to, only using
much stronger language and speaking at greater
length.

The neighbor replied in the same angry
manner, and finally the women began to abuse
each other and call vile names. It happened
that old Ivan's wife, on her way to the well for
water, heard the dispute, and joined the others,
taking her daughter-in-law's part.

Gavryl's housekeeper, hearing the noise,
could not resist the temptation to join the rest
and to make her voice heard. As soon as she
appeared on the scene, she, too, began to abuse
her neighbor, reminding her of many disagree-
able things which had happened (and many
which had not happened) between them. She
became so infuriated during her denunciations
that she lost all control of herself, and ran
around like some mad creature.

Then all the women began to shout at the
same time, each trying to say two words to an-
other's one, and using the vilest language in
the quarreller's vocabulary.

"You are such and such," shouted one of the
women. "You are a thief, a
schlukha
[a mean,
dirty, low creature]; your father-in-law is even
now starving, and you have no shame. You
beggar, you borrowed my sieve and broke it.

You made a large hole in it, and did not buy
me another."

"You have our scale-beam," cried another

woman, "and must give it back to me ;" where-
upon she seized the scale-beam and tried to
remove it from the shoulders of Ivan's wife.

In the mêlée which followed they upset the
pails of water. They tore the covering from
each other's head, and a general fight ensued.

Gavryl's wife had by this time joined in the
fracas, and he, crossing the field and seeing
the trouble, came to her rescue.

Ivan and his son, seeing that their women-
folk were being badly used, jumped into the
midst of the fray, and a fearful fight followed.

Ivan was the most powerful peasant in all the
country round, and it did not take him long to
disperse the crowd, for they flew in all direc-
tions. During the progress of the fight Ivan
tore out a large quantity of Gavryl's beard.

By this time a large crowd of peasants had
collected, and it was with the greatest diffi-
culty that they persuaded the two families to
stop quarrelling.

This was the beginning.

Gavryl took the portion of his beard which
Ivan had torn out, and, wrapping it in a paper,
went to the
volostnoye
(moujiks' court) and en-
tered a complaint against Ivan.

Holding up the hair, he said, "I did not
grow this for that bear Ivan to tear out!"

Gavryl's wife went round among the neigh-
bors, telling them that they must not repeat
what she told them, but that she and her hus-
band were going to get the best of Ivan, and
that he was to be sent to Siberia.

And so the quarrelling went on.

The poor old grandfather, sick with asthma
and lying on the brick oven all the time, tried
from the first to dissuade them from quarrel-
ling, and begged of them to live in peace; but
they would not listen to his good advice. He
said to them: "You children are making a great
fuss and much trouble about nothing. I beg of
you to stop and think of what a little thing has
caused all this trouble. It has arisen from only
one egg. If our neighbors' children picked it

up, it is all right. God bless them! One egg
is of but little value, and without it God will
supply sufficient for all our needs."

Ivan's daughter-in-law here interposed and
said, "But they called us vile names."

The old grandfather again spoke, saying:

"Well, even if they did call you bad names, it
would have been better to return good for evil,
and by your example show them how to speak
better. Such conduct on your part would have
been best for all concerned." He continued:

"Well, you had a fight, you wicked people.

Such things sometimes happen, but it would
be better if you went afterward and asked for-
giveness and buried your grievances out of
sight. Scatter them to the four winds of
heaven, for if you do not do so it will be the
worse for you in the end."

The younger members of the family, still
obstinate, refused to profit by the old man's ad-
vice, and declared he was not right, and that he
only liked to grumble in his old-fashioned way.

Ivan refused to go to his neighbor, as the
grandfather wished, saying: "I did not tear
out Gavryl's beard. He did it himself, and his
son tore my shirt and trousers into shreds."

Ivan entered suit against Gavryl. He first
went to the village justice, and not getting sat-
isfaction from him he carried his case to the
village court.

While the neighbors were wrangling over the
affair, each suing the other, it happened that
a perch-bolt from Gavryl's wagon was lost;
and the women of Gavryl's household accused
Ivan's son of stealing it.

They said: "We saw him in the night-time
pass by our window, on his way to where the
wagon was standing." "And my
kumushka

[sponsor]," said one of them, "told me that
Ivan's son had offered it for sale at the
kabak

[tavern]."

This accusation caused them again to go into
court for a settlement of their grievances.

While the heads of the families were trying

to have their troubles settled in court, their
home quarrels were constant, and frequently
resulted in hand-to-hand encounters. Even the
little children followed the example of their
elders and quarrelled incessantly.

The women, when they met on the river-
bank to do the family washing, instead of at-
tending to their work passed the time in abus-
ing each other, and not infrequently they came
to blows.

At first the male members of the families
were content with accusing each other of vari-
ous crimes, such as stealing and like mean-
nesses. But the trouble in this mild form did
not last long. They soon resorted to other
measures. They began to appropriate one an-
other's things without asking permission, while
various articles disappeared from both houses
and could not be found. This was done out of
revenge.

This example being set by the men, the
women and children also followed, and life

soon became a burden to all who took part in
the strife.

Ivan Scherbakoff and "Gavryl the Lame" at
last laid their trouble before the
mir
(village
meeting), in addition to having been in court
and calling on the justice of the peace. Both
of the latter had grown tired of them and their
incessant wrangling. One time Gavryl would
succeed in having Ivan fined, and if he was not
able to pay it he would be locked up in the
cold dreary prison for days. Then it would be
Ivan's turn to get Gavryl punished in like
manner, and the greater the injury the one
could do the other the more delight he took in it.

The success of either in having the other
punished only served to increase their rage
against each other, until they were like mad
dogs in their warfare.

If anything went wrong with one of them he
immediately accused his adversary of conspir-
ing to ruin him, and sought revenge without
stopping to inquire into the rights of the case.

When the peasants went into court, and had
each other fined and imprisoned, it did not
soften their hearts in the least. They would
only taunt one another on such occasions, say-
ing: "Never mind; I will repay you for all
this."

This state of affairs lasted for six years.

Ivan's father, the sick old man, constantly
repeated his good advice. He would try to
arouse their conscience by saying: "What are
you doing, my children? Can you not throw off
all these troubles, pay more attention to your
business, and suppress your anger against your
neighbors? There is no use in your continuing
to live in this way, for the more enraged you
become against each other the worse it is for
you."

Again was the wise advice of the old man
rejected.

At the beginning of the seventh year of the
existence of the feud it happened that a daughter-
in-law of Ivan's was present at a marriage. At

the wedding feast she openly accused Gavryl
of stealing a horse. Gavryl was intoxicated
at the time and was in no mood to stand the
insult, so in retaliation he struck the woman a
terrific blow, which confined her to her bed for
more than a week. The woman being in deli-
cate health, the worst results were feared.

Ivan, glad of a fresh opportunity to harass his
neighbor, lodged a formal complaint before the
district-attorney, hoping to rid himself forever
of Gavryl by having him sent to Siberia.

On examining the complaint the district-
attorney would not consider it, as by that time
the injured woman was walking about and as
well as ever.

Thus again Ivan was disappointed in obtain-
ing his revenge, and, not being satisfied with
the district-attorney's decision, had the case
transferred to the court, where he used all
possible means to push his suit. To secure
the favor of the
starshina
(village mayor) he made
him a present of half a gallon of sweet vodki;

and to the mayor's
pisar
(secretary) also he
gave presents. By this means he succeeded
in securing a verdict against Gavryl. The sen-
tence was that Gavryl was to receive twenty
lashes on his bare back, and the punishment
was to be administered in the yard which sur-
rounded the court-house.

When Ivan heard the sentence read he
looked triumphantly at Gavryl to see what
effect it would produce on him. Gavryl turned
very white on hearing that he was to be treated
with such indignity, and turning his back on the
assembly left the room without uttering a word.

Ivan followed him out, and as he reached his
horse he heard Gavryl saying: "Very well; my
spine will burn from the lashes, but something
will burn with greater fierceness in Ivan's
household before long."

Ivan, on hearing these words, instantly re-
turned to the court, and going up to the judges
said: "Oh! just judges, he threatens to burn
my house and all it contains."

A messenger was immediately sent in search
of Gavryl, who was soon found and again brought
into the presence of the judges.

"Is it true," they asked, "that you said you
would burn Ivan's house and all it contained?"

Gavryl replied: "I did not say anything of
the kind. You may give me as many lashes as
you please—that is, if you have the power to do
so. It seems to me that I alone have to suffer
for the truth, while he," pointing to Ivan, "is
allowed to do and say what he pleases." Gav-
ryl wished to say something more, but his lips
trembled, and the words refused to come; so
in silence he turned his face toward the wall.

The sight of so much suffering moved even
the judges to pity, and, becoming alarmed at
Gavryl's continued silence, they said, "He may
do both his neighbor and himself some fright-
ful injury."

"See here, my brothers," said one feeble old
judge, looking at Ivan and Gavryl as he spoke,
"I think you had better try to arrange this

matter peaceably. You, brother Gavryl, did
wrong to strike a woman who was in delicate
health. It was a lucky thing for you that God
had mercy on you and that the woman did not
die, for if she had I know not what dire misfor-
tune might have overtaken you! It will not do
either of you any good to go on living as you
are at present. Go, Gavryl, and make friends
with Ivan; I am sure he will forgive you, and
we will set aside the verdict just given."

The secretary on hearing this said: "It is
impossible to do this on the present case. Ac-
cording to Article 117 this matter has gone too
far to be settled peaceably now, as the verdict
has been rendered and must be enforced."

But the judges would not listen to the secre-
tary, saying to him: "You talk altogether too
much. You must remember that the first
thing is to fulfill God's command to 'Love thy
neighbor as thyself,' and all will be well with
you."

Thus with kind words the judges tried to

reconcile the two peasants. Their words fell
on stony ground, however, for Gavryl would not
listen to them.

"I am fifty years old," said Gavryl, "and have
a son married, and never from my birth has the
lash been applied to my back; but now this bear
Ivan has secured a verdict against me which
condemns me to receive twenty lashes, and I
am forced to bow to this decision and suffer
the shame of a public beating. Well, he will
have cause to remember this."

At this Gavryl's voice trembled and he
stopped speaking, and turning his back on the
judges took his departure.

It was about ten versts' distance from the
court to the homes of the neighbors, and this
Ivan travelled late. The women had already
gone out for the cattle. He unharnessed his
horse and put everything in its place, and then
went into the
izba
(room), but found no one
there.

The men had not yet returned from their

work in the field and the women had gone to
look for the cattle, so that all about the place
was quiet. Going into the room, Ivan seated
himself on a wooden bench and soon became
lost in thought. He remembered how, when
Gavryl first heard the sentence which had been
passed upon him, he grew very pale, and turned
his face to the wall, all the while remaining
silent.

Ivan's heart ached when he thought of the
disgrace which he had been the means of bring-
ing upon Gavryl, and he wondered how he
would feel if the same sentence had been passed
upon him. His thoughts were interrupted by
the coughing of his father, who was lying on
the oven.

The old man, on seeing Ivan, came down off
the oven, and slowly approaching his son seated
himself on the bench beside him, looking at
him as though ashamed. He continued to
cough as he leaned on the table and said,
"Well, did they sentence him?"

"Yes, they sentenced him to receive twenty
lashes," replied Ivan.

On hearing this the old man sorrowfully
shook his head, and said: "This is very bad,
Ivan, and what is the meaning of it all? It is
indeed very bad, but not so bad for Gavryl as
for yourself. Well, suppose his sentence
is
car-
ried out, and he gets the twenty lashes, what
will it benefit you?"

"He will not again strike a woman," Ivan
replied.

"What is it he will not do? He does not do
anything worse than what you are constantly
doing!"

This conversation enraged Ivan, and he
shouted: "Well, what did he do? He beat a
woman nearly to death, and even now he
threatens to burn my house! Must I bow to
him for all this?"

The old man sighed deeply as he said: "You,
Ivan, are strong and free to go wherever you
please, while I have been lying for years on the

oven. You think that you know everything
and that I do not know anything. No! you are
still a child, and as such you cannot see that
a kind of madness controls your actions and
blinds your sight. The sins of others are ever
before you, while you resolutely keep your own
behind your back. I know that what Gavryl
did was wrong, but if he alone should do wrong
there would be no evil in the world. Do you
think that all the evil in the world is the work
of one man alone? No! it requires two persons
to work much evil in the world. You see only
the bad in Gavryl's character, but you are blind
to the evil that is in your own nature. If he
alone were bad and you good, then there would
be no wrong."

The old man, after a pause, continued: "Who
tore Gavryl's beard? Who destroyed his heaps
of rye? Who dragged him into court?—and yet
you try to put all the blame on his shoulders.

You are behaving very badly yourself, and for
that reason you are wrong. I did not act in

such a manner, and certainly I never taught
you to do so. I lived in peace with Gavryl's
father all the time we were neighbors. We
were always the best of friends. If he was
without flour his wife would come to me and
say, '
Diadia Frol
[Grandfather], we need flour.'

I would then say: 'My good woman, go to the
warehouse and take as much as you want.' If
he had no one to care for his horses I would say,
'Go,
Ivanushka
[diminutive of Ivan], and help
him to care for them.' If I required anything
I would go to him and say, 'Grandfather Gor-
dey, I need this or that,' and he would always
reply, 'Take just whatever you want.' By this
means we passed an easy and peaceful life.

But what is your life compared with it? As
the soldiers fought at Plevna, so are you and
Gavryl fighting all the time, only that your
battles are far more disgraceful than that fought
at Plevna."

The old man went on: "And you call this
living! and what a sin it all is! You are a

peasant, and the head of the house; therefore,
the responsibility of the trouble rests with you.

What an example you set your wife and chil-
dren by constantly quarrelling with your neigh-
bor! Only a short time since your little boy,
Taraska, was cursing his aunt Arina, and his
mother only laughed at it, saying, 'What a
bright child he is!' Is that right? You are to
blame for all this. You should think of the sal-
vation of your soul. Is that the way to do it?

You say one unkind word to me and I will reply
with two. You will give me one slap in the
face, and I will retaliate with two slaps. No,
my son; Christ did not teach us foolish people
to act in such a way. If any one should say an
unkind word to you it is better not to answer at
all; but if you do reply do it kindly, and his
conscience will accuse him, and he will regret
his unkindness to you. This is the way Christ
taught us to live. He tells us that if a person
smite us on the one cheek we should offer unto
him the other. That is Christ's command to us,

and we should follow it. You should therefore
subdue your pride. Am I not right?"

Ivan remained silent, but his father's words
had sunk deep into his heart.

The old man coughed and continued: "Do
you think Christ thought us wicked? Did he
not die that we might be saved? Now you
think only of this earthly life. Are you better
or worse for thinking alone of it? Are you
better or worse for having begun that Plevna
battle? Think of your expense at court and the
time lost in going back and forth, and what
have you gained? Your sons have reached
manhood, and are able now to work for you.

You are therefore at liberty to enjoy life and
be happy. With the assistance of your children
you could reach a high state of prosperity. But
now your property instead of increasing is grad-
ually growing less, and why? It is the result
of your pride. When it becomes necessary for
you and your boys to go to the field to work,
your enemy instead summons you to appear at

A lost Opportunity.

court or before some kind of judicial person.

If you do not plow at the proper time and sow
at the proper time mother earth will not yield
up her products, and you and your children will
be left destitute. Why did your oats fail this
year? When did you sow them? Were you not
quarrelling with your neighbor instead of at-
tending to your work? You have just now re-
turned from the town, where you have been the
means of having your neighbor humiliated.

You have succeeded in getting him sentenced,
but in the end the punishment will fall on your
own shoulders. Oh! my child, it would be bet-
ter for you to attend to your work on the farm
and train your boys to become good farmers
and honest men. If any one offend you forgive
him for Christ's sake, and then prosperity will
smile on your work and a light and happy feel-
ing will fill your heart."

Ivan still remained silent.

The old father in a pleading voice continued:

"Take an old man's advice. Go and harness

your horse, drive back to the court, and with-
draw all these complaints against your neigh-
bor. To-morrow go to him, offer to make peace
in Christ's name, and invite him to your house.

It will be a holy day (the birth of the Virgin
Mary). Get out the samovar and have some
vodki, and over both forgive and forget each
other's sins, promising not to transgress in the
future, and advise your women and children to
do the same."

Ivan heaved a deep sigh but felt easier in his
heart, as he thought: "The old man speaks the
truth;" yet he was in doubt as to how he would
put his father's advice into practice.

The old man, surmising his uncertainty, said
to Ivan: "Go, Ivanushka; do not delay. Ex-
tinguish the fire in the beginning, before it
grows large, for then it may be impossible."

Ivan's father wished to say more to him, but
was prevented by the arrival of the women, who
came into the room chattering like so many
magpies. They had already heard of Gavryl's

sentence, and of how he threatened to set fire to
Ivan's house. They found out all about it, and
in telling it to their neighbors added their own
versions of the story, with the usual exaggera-
tion. Meeting in the pasture-ground, they pro-
ceeded to quarrel with Gavryl's women. They
related how the latter's daughter-in-law had
threatened to secure the influence of the man-
ager of a certain noble's estate in behalf of his
friend Gavryl; also that the school-teacher was
writing a petition to the Czar himself against
Ivan, explaining in detail his theft of the perch-
bolt and partial destruction of Gavryl's garden
—declaring that half of Ivan's land was to be
given to them.

Ivan listened calmly to their stories, but his
anger was soon aroused once more, when he
abandoned his intention of making peace with
Gavryl.

As Ivan was always busy about the house-
hold, he did not stop to speak to the wrangling
women, but immediately left the room, direct-

ing his steps toward the barn. Before getting
through with his work the sun had set and the
boys had returned from their plowing. Ivan
met them and asked about their work, helping
them to put things in order and leaving the
broken horse-collar aside to be repaired. He
intended to perform some other duties, but it
became too dark and he was obliged to leave
them till the next day. He fed the cattle, how-
ever, and opened the gate that Taraska might
take his horses to pasture for the night, after
which he closed it again and went into the
house for his supper.

By this time he had forgotten all about Gav-
ryl and what his father had said to him. Yet,
just as he touched the door-knob, he heard
sounds of quarrelling proceeding from his
neighbor's house.

"What do I want with that devil?" shouted
Gavryl to some one. "He deserves to be
killed!"

Ivan stopped and listened for a moment,

when he shook his head threateningly and en-
tered the room. When he came in, the apart-
ment was already lighted. His daughter-in-law
was working with her loom, while the old
woman was preparing the supper. The eldest
son was twining strings for his
lapti
(peasant's
shoes made of strips of bark from the linden-
tree). The other son was sitting by the table
reading a book. The room presented a pleasant
appearance, everything being in order and the
inmates apparently gay and happy—the only
dark shadow being that cast over the household
by Ivan's trouble with his neighbor.

Ivan came in very cross, and, angrily throw-
ing aside a cat which lay sleeping on the bench,
cursed the women for having misplaced a pail.

He looked very sad and serious, and, seating
himself in a corner of the room, proceeded to
repair the horse-collar. He could not forget
Gavryl, however—the threatening words he had
used in the court-room and those which Ivan
had just heard.

Presently Taraska came in, and after having
his supper, put on his sheepskin coat, and, tak-
ing some bread with him, returned to watch
over his horses for the night. His eldest
brother wished to accompany him, but Ivan
himself arose and went with him as far as the
porch. The night was dark and cloudy and a
strong wind was blowing, which produced a
peculiar whistling sound that was most un-
pleasant to the ear. Ivan helped his son to
mount his horse, which, followed by a colt,
started off on a gallop.

Ivan stood for a few moments looking around
him and listening to the clatter of the horse's
hoofs as Taraska rode down the village street.

He heard him meet other boys on horseback,
who rode quite as well as Taraska, and soon all
were lost in the darkness.

Ivan remained standing by the gate in a
gloomy mood, as he was unable to banish from
his mind the harassing thoughts of Gavryl,
which the latter's menacing words had in-

spired: "Something will burn with greater
fierceness in Ivan's household before long."

"He is so desperate," thought Ivan, "that he
may set fire to my house regardless of the
danger to his own. At present everything is
dry, and as the wind is so high he may sneak
from the back of his own building, start a fire,
and get away unseen by any of us. He may
burn and steal without being found out, and
thus go unpunished. I wish I could catch
him."

This thought so worried Ivan that he decided
not to return to his house, but went out and
stood on the street-corner.

"I guess," thought Ivan to himself, "I will
take a walk around the premises and examine
everything carefully, for who knows what he
may be tempted to do?"

Ivan moved very cautiously round to the
back of his buildings, not making the slightest
noise, and scarcely daring to breathe. Just as
he reached a corner of the house he looked

toward the fence, and it seemed to him that he
saw something moving, and that it was slowly
creeping toward the corner of the house oppo-
site to where he was standing. He stepped
back quickly and hid himself in the shadow of
the building. Ivan stood and listened, but all
was quiet. Not a sound could be heard but the
moaning of the wind through the branches of
the trees, and the rustling of the leaves as it
caught them up and whirled them in all direc-
tions. So dense was the darkness that it was at
first impossible for Ivan to see more than a few
feet beyond where he stood.

After a time, however, his sight becoming
accustomed to the gloom, he was enabled to see
for a considerable distance. The plow and his
other farming implements stood just where he
had placed them. He could see also the oppo-
site corner of the house. He looked in every
direction, but no one was in sight, and he
thought to himself that his imagination must
have played him some trick, leading him to be-

lieve that some one was moving when there
really was no one there.

Still, Ivan was not satisfied, and decided to
make a further examination of the premises. As
on the previous occasion, he moved so very cau-
tiously that he could not hear even the sound of
his own footsteps. He had taken the precau-
tion to remove his shoes, that he might step the
more noiselessly. When he reached the corner
of the barn it again seemed to him that he saw
something moving, this time near the plow;
but it quickly disappeared. By this time Ivan's
heart was beating very fast, and he was stand-
ing in a listening attitude when a sudden flash
of light illumined the spot, and he could dis-
tinctly see the figure of a man seated on his
haunches with his back turned toward him, and
in the act of lighting a bunch of straw which he
held in his hand! Ivan's heart began to beat
yet faster, and he became terribly excited, walk-
ing up and down with rapid strides, but without
making a noise.

Ivan said: "Well, now, he cannot get away,
for he will be caught in the very act."

Ivan had taken a few more steps when sud-
denly a bright light flamed up, but not in the
same spot in which he had seen the figure of the
man sitting. Gavryl had lighted the straw,
and running to the barn held it under the edge
of the roof, which began to burn fiercely; and
by the light of the fire he could distinctly see
his neighbor standing.

As an eagle springs at a skylark, so sprang
Ivan at Gavryl, saying: "I will tear you into
pieces! You shall not get away from me this
time!"

But "Gavryl the Lame," hearing footsteps,
wrenched himself free from Ivan's grasp and
ran like a hare past the buildings.

Ivan, now terribly excited, shouted, "You
shall not escape me!" and started in pursuit;
but just as he reached him and was about to
grasp the collar of his coat, Gavryl succeeded in
jumping to one side, and Ivan's coat became

entangled in something and he was thrown vio-
lently to the ground. Jumping quickly to his
feet he shouted, "
Karaool! derji!
"(watch! catch!)

While Ivan was regaining his feet Gavryl
succeeded in reaching his house, but Ivan fol-
lowed so quickly that he caught up with him
before he could enter. Just as he was about to
grasp him he was struck on the head with
some hard substance. He had been hit on the
temple as with a stone. The blow was struck
by Gavryl, who had picked up an oaken stave,
and with it gave Ivan a terrible blow on the
head.

Ivan was stunned, and bright sparks danced
before his eyes, while he swayed from side to
side like a drunken man, until finally all be-
came dark and he sank to the ground uncon-
scious.

When he recovered his senses, Gavryl was
nowhere to be seen, but all around him was as
light as day. Strange sounds proceeded from
the direction of his house, and turning his face

that way he saw that his barns were on fire.

The rear parts of both were already destroyed,
and the flames were leaping toward the front.

Fire, smoke, and bits of burning straw were
being rapidly whirled by the high wind over to
where his house stood, and he expected every
moment to see it burst into flames.

"What is this, brother?" Ivan cried out, as
he beat his thighs with his hands. "I should
have stopped to snatch the bunch of burning
straw, and, throwing it on the ground, should
have extinguished it with my feet!"

Ivan tried to cry out and arouse his people,
but his lips refused to utter a word. He next
tried to run, but he could not move his feet,
and his legs seemed to twist themselves around
each other. After several attempts he suc-
ceeded in taking one or two steps, when he
again began to stagger and gasp for breath.

It was some moments before he made another
attempt to move, but after considerable exer-
tion he finally reached the barn, the rear of

which was by this time entirely consumed; and
the corner of his house had already caught fire.

Dense volumes of smoke began to pour out of
the room, which made it difficult to approach.

A crowd of peasants had by this time gath-
ered, but they found it impossible to save their
homes, so they carried everything which they
could to a place of safety. The cattle they
drove into neighboring pastures and left some
one to care for them.

The wind carried the sparks from Ivan's house
to Gavryl's, and it, too, took fire and was con-
sumed. The wind continued to increase with
great fury, and the flames spread to both sides
of the street, until in a very short time more
than half the village was burned.

The members of Ivan's household had great
difficulty in getting out of the burning building,
but the neighbors rescued the old man and car-
ried him to a place of safety, while the women
escaped in only their night-clothes. Everything
was burned, including the cattle and all the

farm implements. The women lost their trunks,
which were filled with quantities of clothing,
the accumulation of years. The storehouse
and all the provisions perished in the flames,
not even the chickens being saved.

Gavryl, however, more fortunate than Ivan,
saved his cattle and a few other things.

The village was burning all night.

Ivan stood near his home, gazing sadly at the
burning building, and he kept constantly re-
peating to himself: "I should have taken away
the bunch of burning straw, and have stamped
out the fire with my feet."

But when he saw his home fall in a smoul-
dering heap, in spite of the terrible heat he
sprang into the midst of it and carried out a
charred log. The women seeing him, and fear-
ing that he would lose his life, called to him to
come back, but he would not pay any attention
to them and went a second time to get a log.

Still weak from the terrible blow which Gavryl
had given him, he was overcome by the heat,

and fell into the midst of the burning mass.

Fortunately, his eldest son saw him fall, and
rushing into the fire succeeded in getting hold
of him and carrying him out of it. Ivan's hair,
beard, and clothing were burned entirely off.

His hands were also frightfully injured, but he
seemed indifferent to pain.

"Grief drove him crazy," the people said.

The fire was growing less, but Ivan still stood
where he could see it, and kept repeating to
himself, "I should have taken," etc.

The morning after the fire the
starosta
(village
elder) sent his son to Ivan to tell him that the old
man, his father, was dying, and wanted to see
him to bid him good-bye.

In his grief Ivan had forgotten all about
his father, and could not understand what was
being said to him. In a dazed way he asked:

"What father? Whom does he want?"

The elder's son again repeated his father's
message to Ivan. "Your aged parent is at our
house dying, and he wants to see you and bid

you good-bye. Won't you go now, uncle Ivan?"
the boy said.

Finally Ivan understood, and followed the
elder's son.

When Ivan's father was carried from the
oven, he was slightly injured by a big bunch of
burning straw falling on him just as he reached
the street. To insure his safety he was re-
moved to the elder's house, which stood a con-
siderable distance from his late home, and
where it was not likely that the fire would
reach it.

When Ivan arrived at the elder's home he
found only the latter's wife and children, who
were all seated on the brick oven. The old
man was lying on a bench holding a lighted
candle in his hand (a Russian custom when a
person is dying). Hearing a noise, he turned
his face toward the door, and when he saw it
was his son he tried to move. He motioned
for Ivan to come nearer, and when he did so he
whispered in a trembling voice: "Well, Ivan-

ushka, did I not tell you before what would be
the result of this sad affair? Who set the vil-
lage on fire?"

"He, he,
batiushka
[little father]; he did it.

I caught him. He placed the bunch of burning
straw to the barn in my presence. Instead of
running after him, I should have snatched the
bunch of burning straw and throwing it on the
ground have stamped it out with my feet; and
then there would have been no fire."

"Ivan," said the old man, "death is fast ap-
proaching me, and remember that you also will
have to die. Who did this dreadful thing?

Whose is the sin?"

Ivan gazed at the noble face of his dying
father and was silent. His heart was too full for
utterance.

"In the presence of God," the old man con-
tinued, "whose is the sin?"

It was only now that the truth began to
dawn upon Ivan's mind, and that he realized
how foolish he had acted. He sobbed bitterly,

and fell on his knees before his father, and,
crying like a child, said:

"My dear father, forgive me, for Christ's sake,
for I am guilty before God and before you!"

The old man transferred the lighted candle
from his right hand to the left, and, raising
the former to his forehead, tried to make the
sign of the cross, but owing to weakness was
unable to do so.

"Glory to Thee, O Lord! Glory to Thee!" he
exclaimed; and turning his dim eyes toward
his son, he said: "See here, Ivanushka! Ivan-
ushka, my dear son!"

"What, my dear father?" Ivan asked.

"What are you going to do," replied the old
man, "now that you have no home?"

Ivan cried and said: "I do not know how
we shall live now."

The old man closed his eyes and made a
movement with his lips, as if gathering his
feeble strength for a final effort. Slowly open-
ing his eyes, he whispered:

"Should you live according to God's com-
mands you will be happy and prosperous
again."

The old man was now silent for awhile and
then, smiling sadly, he continued:

"See here, Ivanushka, keep silent concerning
this trouble, and do not tell who set the village
on fire. Forgive one sin of your neighbor's,
and God will forgive two of yours."

Grasping the candle with both hands, Ivan's
father heaved a deep sigh, and, stretching him-
self out on his back, yielded up the ghost.

* * * * * * *

Ivan for once accepted his father's advice.

He did not betray Gavryl, and no one ever
learned the origin of the fire.

Ivan's heart became more kindly disposed
toward his old enemy, feeling that much of the
fault in connection with this sad affair rested
with himself.

Gavryl was greatly surprised that Ivan did

not denounce him before all the villagers, and
at first he stood in much fear of him, but he
soon afterward overcame this feeling.

The two peasants ceased to quarrel, and their
families followed their example. While they
were building new houses, both families lived
beneath the same roof, and when they moved
into their respective homes, Ivan and Gavryl
lived on as good terms as their fathers had done
before them.

Ivan remembered his dying father's com-
mand, and took deeply to heart the evident
warning of God that
a fire should be extinguished
in the beginning
. If any one wronged him he
did not seek revenge, but instead made
every effort to settle the matter peaceably.

If any one spoke to him unkindly, he did not
answer in the same way, but replied softly, and
tried to persuade the person not to speak evil.

He taught the women and children of his house-
hold to do the same.

Ivan Scherbakoff was now a reformed man.

He lived well and peacefully, and again be-
came prosperous.

Let us, therefore, have peace, live in broth-
erly love and kindness, and we will be happy.