Pagina 366 di 3800

"What's the matter?" exclaimed Prince Andrew standing still in

his excitement. "Don't you understand that either we are officers

serving our Tsar and our country, rejoicing in the successes and

grieving at the misfortunes of our common cause, or we are merely

lackeys who care nothing for their master's business. Quarante

mille hommes massacres et l'armee de nos allies detruite, et vous

trouvez la le mot pour rire," * he said, as if strengthening his

views by this French sentence. "C'est bien pour un garcon de rien

comme cet individu dont vous avez fait un ami, mais pas pour

vous, pas pour vous. *(2) Only a hobbledehoy could amuse himself

in this way," he added in Russian-but pronouncing the word with a

French accent-having noticed that Zherkov could still hear him.

* "Forty thousand men massacred and the army of our allies

destroyed, and you find that a cause for jesting!"