Pagina 570 van 1294

"I have a presentiment, Dounia. Well, you may believe it or not,

but as soon as she came in, that very minute, I felt that she was

the chief cause of the trouble...."

"Nothing of the sort!" cried Dounia, in vexation. "What nonsense,

with your presentiments, mother! He only made her acquaintance

the evening before, and he did not know her when she came in."

"Well, you will see.... She worries me; but you will see, you

will see! I was so frightened. She was gazing at me with those

eyes. I could scarcely sit still in my chair when he began

introducing her, do you remember? It seems so strange, but Pyotr

Petrovitch writes like that about her, and he introduces her to

us--to you! So he must think a great deal of her."

"People will write anything. We were talked about and written

about, too. Have you forgotten? I am sure that she is a good

girl, and that it is all nonsense."

"God grant it may be!"

"And Pyotr Petrovitch is a contemptible slanderer," Dounia

snapped out, suddenly.