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The personal matter that absorbed Levin during his conversation

with his brother was this. Once in a previous year he had gone to

look at the mowing, and being made very angry by the bailiff he

had recourse to his favorite means for regaining his temper,-he

took a scythe from a peasant and began mowing.

He liked the work so much that he had several times tried his

hand at mowing since. He had cut the whole of the meadow in front

of his house, and this year ever since the early spring he had

cherished a plan for mowing for whole days together with the

peasants. Ever since his brother's arrival, he had been in doubt

whether to mow or not. He was loath to leave his brother alone

all day long, and he was afraid his brother would laugh at him

about it. But as he drove into the meadow, and recalled the

sensations of mowing, he came near deciding that he would go

mowing. After the irritating discussion with his brother, he

pondered over this intention again.